Infant Feeding Therapy Services in Bourne, MA
Infant feeding therapy in Bourne, MA, evaluates oral motor function and feeding patterns to address persistent or complex feeding difficulties with therapy-based strategies and follow-up.
What Makes Feeding Therapy Different From Feeding Support?
Feeding therapy focuses on oral motor assessment, feeding mechanics, and coordination challenges that go beyond typical feeding education and counseling.
While traditional feeding support helps with latch, positioning, and basic feeding plans, therapy is designed for infants who show persistent difficulty despite those adjustments. This includes babies with weak suck, poor coordination, or unusual feeding patterns.
Therapy involves evaluating how your baby uses their tongue, jaw, and lips during feeding. It also considers birth history, muscle tone, and developmental milestones that may impact feeding success.
Which Feeding Challenges Require Therapy?
Therapy is helpful for infants with weak suck, fatigue during feeds, gagging, coughing, or difficulty coordinating suck-swallow-breathe patterns.
Some babies tire quickly at the breast or bottle, taking frequent breaks or falling asleep before finishing a feed. Others show signs of discomfort or distress, such as arching, refusing feeds, or slow weight gain.
Families in Bourne and nearby areas often seek therapy when standard feeding adjustments don't resolve the issue. Therapy provides targeted, hands-on strategies to improve feeding efficiency and infant comfort.
How Is Oral Motor Function Evaluated?
Evaluation includes observation of your baby's feeding session, assessment of tongue and jaw movement, and review of feeding history and patterns.
During the visit, your baby will feed while the clinician observes how they latch, suck, and swallow. The clinician may gently assess muscle tone and oral structures to identify tension or restrictions.
This information helps create a therapy plan that addresses specific challenges. Families receive clear, actionable strategies to practice at home between visits.
Therapy visits are frequently held in Plymouth-area homes or at the Vital Chiropractic office location, making care accessible for families near Bourne.
Do Infants in Bourne Face Unique Feeding Challenges?
Bourne families often balance busy schedules and limited access to specialized feeding support, which can delay intervention for complex feeding issues.
When feeding difficulties go unaddressed for weeks, infants may develop compensatory behaviors that make progress slower. Early intervention through therapy helps prevent prolonged frustration and weight gain concerns.
Local families appreciate the combination of therapy expertise and flexible visit formats that fit into their routines.
Stanton Lactation & Feeding Therapy offers therapy-focused feeding support for infants with persistent challenges. Each visit includes oral motor evaluation, a personalized care plan, and two weeks of ongoing support. Book an infant feeding therapy visit to get targeted support at 508-292-3446.
