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Feeding Therapy

Is your child a seriously picky eater or an extremely picky eater with a narrow diet? Are they worried about changes in their meal times? Are they particular about their food’s look, sound, smell, texture, or taste? When speaking to your child’s pediatrician, you find yourself saying, “He seems terrified of new foods!” or “I cannot change A THING about the meal, or she falls apart and does not eat!”

If you answered yes to any of those questions – our trained and experienced speech and occupational therapists could help!

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Feeding Therapy Process

Our speech and occupational therapists will first conduct an evaluation consisting of formal and informal assessments to determine the type of approach to feeding therapy with your child. They will ask for a review of your child’s complete feeding history, as well as ask you questions during the evaluation about their eating experience.

Dependent on our findings, our therapists will devise a sensory/motor approach or a combination of both. We will work on addressing the underlying barriers to your child’s ability to eat an age-appropriate meal. When our speech and occupational therapists conduct feeding therapy, we will help your child learn how to eat or eat more efficiently.

Contact our Seattle Feeding Therapists for your consultation.

Request An Evaluation
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Indicators of Benefiting from Feeding Therapy

1

Decreased oral motor skills, such as difficulty chewing or struggling to drink from an open cup
2

Minimal consumption at mealtime
3

Difficulty swallowing or referring to consuming particular foods or textures
4

Gagging, choking, or vomiting during meals
5

Physical reactions to food, such as crying, screaming or refusing to sit at the table
6

Difficulty accepting changes in safe/familiar foods or changes in shapes, textures, temperature, and colors
7

Preferring brand-specific foods, like ONLY eating Tyson chicken nuggets

The indicators above are not the sole signs that your child needs feeding therapy. If mealtime continues to be a struggle over time, we recommend speaking with your child’s pediatrician. They will refer you to our clinic if they deem it necessary.

Please fax your pediatrician at F: 425-358-7159.*

Common Questions & Helpful FAQs

What is the difference between Feeding vs. Swallowing?

Feeding is the process of involving any aspect of eating or drinking for intake.

Swallowing is a complex process during which saliva, liquids, and foods are transported from the mouth into the stomach while keeping the airway protected.

Do you have any suggestions for my child who is a picky eater?

If your child only eats certain foods or dislikes trying new foods, they may be considered a picky eater. It is important to remember that children can be over-sensitive or under-sensitive to foods when they have sensory processing difficulties. A child with sensory processing difficulties may be over-sensitive or under-sensitive to different foods’ smell, sight, or texture.

Here are a few suggestions that you can try at home:

  • Do not allow your child to graze all-day
  • Only introduce one new food at a time, in small portions
  • Do not require a clean plate
  • Instead of requiring your child to try new foods, ask them to try touching the item or putting the food near their mouth
  • Read books to them about training new foods

If mealtime continues to be a struggle over time, we recommend speaking with your child’s pediatrician so they will refer you to the appropriate speech or occupational therapist that will best benefit your child.

How many times should my child eat per day?

According to John Hopkin’s Medicine, school-age children (ages 6 to 12) should eat four to five times daily (including snacks). To meet their daily calorie requirements and continue their consistent but slow growth rate, four to five meals daily would be appropriate for proper growth and development.

What is the role of a parent during the Feeding Therapy process?

Therapy for children is a team effort between us and the parents! Our therapists will review each process step and what we work towards in each session. We would be more than happy to provide you with tips to use at home and how to work with your child outside of our feeding therapy sessions.

How can Speech-language Pathologists play a role in Feeding Therapy?

Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) play a central role in assessing, diagnosing, and treating infants and children with feeding and swallowing disorders. Our SLPs will educate families of children at risk for pediatric feeding disorders, conduct comprehensive assessments and recommend safe swallowing and
feeding plan for families.

From Our Clients

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“

I have been so very impressed by the providers at this establishment. My daughter is completely nonverbal and is nine years old and can have some behaviors that are hard to deal with. The two speech therapist we work with here continue to surprise me with their ingenuity. Every session they come prepared with multiple activities already planned out. We have seen speech therapist in downtown Seattle and driven hours to see speech specialists. I am so happy to have fabulist speech therapist so close to home. Elvina and Michael are amazing! The continuity of care has exceeded my expectations.

Nina Obrien- Google Reviews
“

I really value what they do and as a Mother and sister of two family members who needed services I can say it has completely changed our family. Rock is very friendly, professional, clean, and welcoming. I would highly recommend them – even if you just ‘wonder’ if they can help, it’s worth it to make the call!

Debbie Chadwick- Google Reviews
“

I can’t say enough good things about Rock Therapeutic Services. My 3-year old daughter has some speech delays. Trying to get a toddler to focus is hard but Adrienne is so patient and gets down to her level to interact and play games with her while they work on her speech. Our daughter is so happy and looks forward to her appointments. All the staff that work there are so friendly. I would highly recommend!

Megan Soha- Google Reviews