Myofunctional Therapy in Walnut Creek, CA
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Contact UsWhat Is Myofunctional Therapy?
Orofacial myofunctional disorder (OMD) can affect the lip, jaw, or tongue position. This disorder alters the way the cheeks, teeth, lips, and jaw function when speaking or eating, along with how they sit when in a resting position. Life Dental & Orthodontics values myofunctional therapy as an effective way to improve the quality of life in Walnut Creek, CA patients suffering from OMD. Each therapy session consists of a set of exercises that have been carefully selected to address your particular OMD needs. To find out if myofunctional therapy could benefit you, schedule a consultation at your earliest convenience.
Is someone you love a mouth breather? Having the lips constantly apart is not only detrimental for your health, but it also can lead to more vertical growth of the face, with narrow, crowded dental arches. Habits such as mouth breathing, thumb sucking, and poor oral rest posture can be addressed with myofunctional therapy. Think of your myofunctional therapist as a personal trainer for your tongue and the muscles of your face!
How Is Myofunctional Therapy Performed?
We will facilitate the connection of our patients with specialized healthcare professionals who employ the latest therapeutic techniques and cutting-edge technology for the treatment of OMD and its associated conditions, such as mouth breathing and temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD). Each session will comprise a series of exercises to rewire the neural pathways and improve facial and tongue muscle functions. Some exercises may include:
- Create nasal breathing patterns
- Normalize the resting position of your lips and tongue
- Breaking harmful habits, such as thumb-sucking
Life Dental & Orthodontics Reviews
I took my young boys to Life dental & Orthodontics because they were airway focused and that was really important for a family! We were mostly helped with Katie the RDA and she was so great with the boys made everything fun and super patient with them. I also really appreciated how in-depth Dr. Hockel explained everything to myself and our kids. My boys can get easily overwhelmed and he had such gentle and calm energy throughout the whole process! I really appreciated that! Highly recommend this team! :) Jessie at the front desk is also super helpful and sweet!
Life Dental has an excellent Dental staff! Everyone is friendly & accommodating. Please consider Life Dental & Orthodontist for your next visit.
Absolutely love this place! Friendly and accommodating staff and I really appreciate Dr Hockel’s knowledge of what’s going on with not only my teeth, but how it all works together with my airway and everything else too!
I went with my 3 girls and the customer service is excellent. They were Warm, inviting, gentle. They gave lots of details and information. You come in and get to see the pictures of their staff. Overall it felt great. My kids were actually happy!
I came to Doctor Hockel due to problems with sleep apnea. He diagnosed a narrow palate and some other issues that ultimately are obstructing my airway and recommended a course of palate expansion (upper and lower) before going for more extensive surgery to correct problems with my jaw. It's been really great working with him and his staff! They're all extremely knowledgeable and very helpful. They've answered every question I had and taken the time to explain what's being done each time (in what's going to be a couple-year-long process.) They're definitely using the latest tools and techniques and I feel completely comfortable with whatever they recommend. All in all, a *really* great dentist! [Edit from 2+ years in the future - 10/18/2023] I had my jaw surgery (total TMJ replacement and MMA (Maxillomandibular advancement, to move the upper teeth forward) in St Louis in May (via the only surgeon Dr Hockel trusts to do the surgery, who really is great) and returned to Dr Hockel's care in late June. Sleep apnea is cured, my bite was lined up and everything went well. Today was a great day - I got my braces off! We're now in the process of stabilizing the teeth with a retainer, but they look great and feel even better, with everything in my bite closing in the right places and all the teeth nice and straight and even. Dr Hockel's staff were awesome as usual - I showed up 20 minutes early and they said "come right in!" and we got to work. If you ever need to deal with airway issues (or indeed with orthodontia and other dental procedures), definitely give Life Dental and Orthodontics a call. They're the best!
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Improve Your Quality of Life
Oral myofunctional therapy can benefit individuals in the Walnut Creek, CA community dealing with conditions such as TMJ disorder and Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders (OMD). We prioritize connecting patients with experienced specialists who excel in addressing airway and orofacial conditions. To explore the possibilities of myofunctional therapy, please reach out to our team at Life Dental & Orthodontics.