Improving
whole-family
quality of life
Love Language Therapy provides guidance to children, adults, caregivers and families by integrating oral-motor, sensory, psychological, and behavioral principles with the client's individual interests. Food is an innately emotional process. We begin evaluation meeting the client at their comfort level and systematically treat the exhibited signs/symptoms. At Love Language Therapy, we personalize the plan of care to each family's lifestyle and cultural/religious background with language learning built-in.
Trauma-informed care
Detailed medical and developmental case history by examining effects of past surgeries, hospital stays, medications, and events
Measuring feeding & swallowing
Functional outcome measures
​
Analysis of Modified Barium Swallow studies
Signs & symptoms
​
Safety
​
Response to therapeutic or compensatory strategies
​
Weight loss/gain
​
Illness episodes
Family interview
Integrating native language for comfortability & familiarity
Working with the routines of the family
​
Analysis of caregiver burden
​
Addressing family/caregiver concerns
​
Co-morbid conditions (e.g., GERD, cleft palate, tongue/lip tie, allergies)
Monitoring milestones
Developmental progress in accepting textures and acquiring gross/fine motor skills related to self-feeding
Therapeutic progress in safely consuming an increased diet
Clinical observation
Oral-motor examination of color, strength, symmetry, range of motion, and atypical features
​
Respiratory status
​
Chewing and clearing patterns
​
Oral-motor awareness of structure and function
​
Hypo/hypersensitivity and aversions
​
Behavioral responses
​
Seating, posture, and positioning
​
Quality of voice, motor speech, and cognition
​
Cranial nerve function
​
Oral care
Home life support
Feeding routine
​
Safety precautions
​
Age-appropriate utensils
​
Speech, language, sensory, oral-motor, feeding, swallowing, and behavioral strategies
​
Environmental modifications
Common Diagnoses
-
Oral, pharyngeal, esophageal dysphagia
-
Difficulty chewing
-
Signs/symptoms: overstuffing, coughing, choking,
-
Failure to thrive
-
Lack of adequate weight gain
-
Food selectivity
-
Tonal issue, lack of postural stability/body control
-
Limited volume intake
-
Texture selectivity
-
Total or partial food refusal
-
Transition from tube feedings to feeding by mouth
​
​You or a loved one may be exhibiting signs or symptoms, such as: overstuffing, coughing, choking, shortness of breath, vomiting, and/or spitting up.
Evidence-Based Treatment
​Sadia Akhtar, CCC-SLP has clinical training and experience in implementing strategies including:
-
Sensory-Motor Feeding
-
Facial Massage
-
Sequential Oral Sensory Feeding
-
Food Chaining
-
Coordination of Suck-Swallow, Bite-Chew-Swallow Patterns
-
Home Exercise & Feeding Program
-
Food Exploration, Play, & Tolerance
-
Oral Motor Awareness
-
Parent/Caregiver Education
-
Postural Control & Alignment
-
Self-Feeding Skills Training
-
Strengthening of Oral Motor Structures
-
Visual, Verbal, & Physical Cueing
-
Behavioral Techniques
-
Free Water Protocol
-
Diet Texture Modifications
.png)