HOLD THE RING

Myofunktional Exercise  Collect ion

Application:

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This chapter gives a general description of a collective group of exercises and details which are sharing the here described facts.

(See also ELASTIC EXERCISES).

The operational area of these exercises is tongue malposition as low posture, proversion, extroversion, partly also the Platyglossia or else deficient functions in articulation or the vicious swallowing.

An aimed stepwise palatal orientation of the back of the tongue is to be gained. Depending on the state of the general therapy the method can be employed repeatedly for the first, second or third third of the tongue with the respective positioning or number of ELASTICs in the different training phases. (See Img. XY).

Contents:

On the basis of a feed-back stimulation by an object – the ELASTIC at the palate – this ring, through the directed squeezing up in a manipulated hold-exercise will enforce the persistence (holding tone, stand-by tonicity) of the musculature. At the same time this stimulus will gain a precisely predefined orientation.

Materials:

A small rubber ring, the ELASTIC or else a slice of a raisin, a rice grain, a flake or the like; hand-mirror.

Procedure:

- Previous exercises: The therapist practices the positioning of the ring or the rings during the first training session monitored with the hand-mirror for the use later on while working out at home.

-Starting position: (Mostly) BASIC-POSITION.

- Step-by-step-description:

-1 The mouth is opened the tongue shows.

-2 According to the arrangement or state of training the ring now is positioned :

   a on the tongue tip

   b on the middle of the second tongue third, perhaps together with positioning a.

   c on the middle of the third tongue third, perhaps together with positioning a and b. (Hand-mirror control).

-3 The position is held while counting. Later on the counting will be taken over by controlling longer time spans of minutes (15, 20, 30, 45) with the watch.

-Timing: One lap of training makes one sequence. If there is a counting to a certain number the sequence should be rated in its time space in a way that it can be coupled with other sequences/exercises to a series. If time spans of several minutes (5 min up to 30 or more) are pertained the exercises becomes a complete training phase.

Characteristics:

Manipulation, Hold-exercise, Statics, Stretching, Habituation, Feedback, St3ereognosis, Self-monitoring

Remarks:

Do exist any reservations for what ever reasons against the use of rubber ringlets, substitute material should be used (see “Materials”).

Discussion:

As mentioned this exercise may, depending on the positioning of the rings, be applied for the training of the first, second, and third tongue third. Through that it resembles in application and layout the WORDEXERCISES. It is to the decision of the therapist whether to use for the respective training of the respective tongue third a ring (object as described under “Materials”) is – only – positioned on the currently trained tongue third or whether the “previous” tongue third will as well carry a ring.

In the latter case the exercise can be structured as an INCREASE-ARRANGEMENT: One ring > two > three rings. With the rings arranged in this way in other exercises a swallow training (SWALLOW REFLEX EXERCISES) is described. In the respective chapter the adequacy of the measure is discussed.

Instructions:

The tongue has learned to sit down on its place – the POINT – and to lean against the backrest (the palate) very comfy.

To give her a reminder to this site we will let her practice it with a marking. And this will be those rings, the ELASTICs. As we have exercised in our training session the rings are set precisely on the prescribed places. This is checked carefully with the mirror. Then the tongue lifts up the ring and squeezes it (gently) against the palate. You should feel precisely that it is pressed against the correct spot.

The tongue will have to keep at this place as long as we had agreed upon. If the tongue will slacken and forgets its correct position the ring will suddenly start swimming about in the mouth. Immediately a mirror is needed to reposition the ring on its correct spot. After some time the tongue will master its task so well that it will stay on the right place even without a ring.