BACKPACK

Myofunktional Exercise  Collection

Application:

This exercise presumably serves the invigorating of the levator tracks for the retral tongue body in the course of the swallow reflex therapy. (Anatomie: II, A, Seite 18).

Contents:

Gross motor – dynamic strengthening exercise to back up the muscles (extrinsic Tongue muscles and diaphragma oris) for the swallow reflex in the retral third of the tongue.

Materials:

Wooden spatula, if necessary, hand mirror for the self monitoring.

Procedure:

- Previous exercises: Generally the exercises for the first and second third of the tongue should be completed; in special cases an exercise may be positioned in front which promote the orientation of the last tongue third towards the palate as, for example, SQUEEZE-A-FLAKE or ELEVATOR.

-Starting position: The mouth opens wide while the tongue stays at the mouth floor.

- Step-by-step-description:

-1 Now, at first by the therapist later on by the patient himself the end of the spatula is set as far back as possible retrally flat on the middle line of the tongue body.

-2 On request the back of the tongue now starts pressing the spatula upwards

while the spatula is pushing down to keep the balance or shift it in its favour; this leads to a sportive contest between spatula and tongue.

-Timing: As the exercise rather is keeping a position one sequence will mean to hold the position for a counted time, at first up to ten, later on increasing. Three sequences may be coupled together to one series.

Characteristics:

Hold exercise, myotone raising, orientation, manipulation, motivation:

Remarks:

Choking stimuli should be expected asking for a deliberate settling in of the action, self reduces the stimulus.

Discussion:

This exercise might be label statodynamic or pseudostatic; it certainly is no motility or mobility exercise and, thus, rather is like a hold procedure. Compared to the other exercises for the retral tongue part the here discussed has the stronger invigorating effect for the levator musculature in this region, i.e. for tongue muscles and oral diaphragm. This is the reason, too, why it should be positioned in accordance to the structuring principle: Sensibilization – Orientation – Mobilization – Invigoration – Habituation rather in front of the ,KA’-SWALLO or SQUIRT AND SWALLOW.

Instructions:

This is a wonderful method to strengthen the back of your tongue.

You will have to open your mouth real wide.

In one hand you take the spatula and with the other you hold the mirror if you want to control yourself.

Now put the weight far back on the tongue.

The tongue presses against it, strongly! Count to ten slowly. Then a break and then the repetition, as often as we said.