LICK

Myofunktional Exercise  Collection

Application:

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This exercise may be employed for all tongue problems with an orientation deficiency for conveying the tactile kinaesthetic feedback in e.g.  POINTPOSTURE or  ,L’-POSITION. The focus lies more in the sensory field as in the motor quality; involved are the intrinsic and extrinsic tongue muscles (Anatomy: 1.2, Area II).

Contents:

With outside assistance pseudo-manipulated sensitation and orientation of the tongue tip towards the palate (to the POINT) using gustatory substances.

Materials:

Tasty flavouring in a viscous or sticky excipient, sugar-free (cocoa, liquorice, peppermint) like chocolate-cream or infant toothpaste (alternatively a cherry-sized piece of ice; see paragraph “Discussion”).

Procedure:

- Previous exercises: For example PROVE-THE-POINT (see also the exercises for TONGUE-TIP-ORIENTATION).

-Starting position: Wide-ranging conditioning through the SITTING-POSITION.

- Step-by-step-description:

-1 The patient opens the mouth wide.

-2 The therapist (later on an assisting person) dabs some flavour on the incisal papilla.

-2a In complicated cases in assisting during the starting phase the tongue may be “stuffed up” with a wooden spatula.

-3 The patient with the tongue-tip gently seeks contact to the flavour, licks at it and swallows once. After the primary successes the tongue-tip will have to remain clinging to the POINT when swallowing.

-4 Licking and swallowing will be repeated several times until no aroma can be found any more.

Subsequently back to step 2.

-Timing: Per paste application three to four licks and swallows. The whole step sequence will be repeated about five times as to form, for example, a series of three sequences each clocked with a five-rated frequency. The process is repeated until the tongue tip will find the POINT  “at one go”. Afterwards a follow-up exercise may be started. (see “Discussion”).

Characteristics:

Superficial sensory function, organ stereognosis, motivation, gustatory, tactile kinaesthetic, orientation.

Remarks:

Sugar-free material should be used only and allergies be minded (substitute: Small pieces of ice – see “Discussion”).

Discussion:

The arranging of the exercise into the therapy plan is discussed under TONGUE-TIP-ORIENTATION. It belongs to the foundation stones of the overall therapy and therefore is located in the start phase.

The exercise may, alternatively, may be applied as a follow-up work-out following the PROVE-THE-POINT which is rather a functional one than manipulated.

As already reflected in  the discussion for PROVE-THE-POINT there might be included as follow-up exercises, depending on the degree of the disorder, as INCREASE-ARRANGEMENTS :

PROVE-THE-POINT > POINTPOSTURE > RING LOCKER > KEEP-THE-POINT > ,L’-POSITION >,L-M’-POSITION. While the here discussed exercise should bring about a physiological orientation via the gustatory sense  directed on tactile experience, in contrary the exercises using devices as the elastic in  RING LOCKER or the rice grain represent HOLD-EXERCISE initiating a habituation. In the general course of therapy there would be the prior chosen as step 1, the latter as step 2.

Instructions:

The tongue-tip will have to find its favourite spot, the POINT very easily. As it can track down tastes quite well we will help it with a bit of stuff tasting well. We now only need some assistance who will dab the tasty stuff precisely on the POINT. Then the tongue will lick on it – then swallow. And again lick and swallow. When there is all the tasty gone put on some new. This shall be done for two minutes or as long as we arranged.

By the way! The tasty should not contain any sugar as we do not want to repair the tongue while destroying the teeth!