Tongue UP, Lips Closed, Healthy Breathing through our Nose. Sleeping Tongue Posture Hold Exercise

We want to promote optimal oral rest posture while sleeping.  That means the tongue is fully elevated to the palate (roof of the mouth), jaw is gently closed, and lips are sealed.  This will promote healthy nasal breathing as well as guiding craniofacial growth and development.  Sometimes babies need that extra help to teach their muscles where to go.

From Michelle Emanuel, OT, IBCLC, she created the Sleeping Tongue Posture Hold exercise.  It’s a pain free exercise, even for after a tongue tie release, which encourages the tongue muscle to be up in the palate where we want it to be.  One of Michelle’s YouTube Videos of the exercise.

If you see your baby with an open mouth while sleeping.

Close your baby’s mouth, pushing on the soft underbelly of the tongue, just behind the chin.  Make sure lips are sealed together.

(Even if you don’t want to do this exercise, always make sure when your baby is sleeping that the mouth is closed, lips sealed, and push the tongue up to the palate.  This will encourage and establish nasal breathing.  We do not want these babies to be mouth breathers.)

Check sleeping tongue posture by gently pushing down on the chin to open the mouth, the front middle part of the tongue should be suctioned up to the palate. Keep gently pushing down on the chin until the tongue suction breaks and the tongue falls from the palate.   Close baby’s mouth, reestablish a seal of the lips and tongue up to the palate.  Repeat again.

This is a GREAT exercise to do after a tongue tie release. While your baby is sleeping, it’s easy to do and it will encourage a passive wound stretch. but please know that this does NOT replace an active wound care stretch during the first two weeks of the procedure.