# 9 From Bite to Belly: Explaining Myofunctional Therapy’s Role in Digestion

In this episode of Myo Life, Carmen explores the surprising connection between myofunctional therapy and digestion. She breaks down how tongue posture, breathing patterns, chewing habits, and stress levels all influence gut health. As both a Myofunctional Therapist and Nutrition Therapy Practitioner, Carmen shares her expertise on why so many people struggle with digestive issues—and how simple adjustments can make a profound difference. If you've ever wondered why digestion feels like a constant struggle, or you need better ways to explain this to clients, this episode is for you!

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Transcript

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Speaker 1 1:11

Hey , I'm Carmen and welcome to Mayo Life . That's short for my outrageous life , which is exactly the kind of life I get to live since I found the courage to ditch dental hygiene and build a life I'm bonkers about as a Mayo functional therapist and entrepreneur . Here you will find all the things Mayo business and how to build a life that you , too , are bonkers about . I'm very happy you're here . Shall we dive in . Hi everyone , welcome back to the podcast . Today we are diving into a topic that might surprise you how myofunctional therapy connects to digestion . Now you might not immediately think about your tongue posture , the way you breathe or how you sit as being linked to bloating or gut discomfort , but trust me , they are . This topic is so close to my heart because it blends two of my biggest passions myofunctional therapy and nutrition . I see so many clients who have struggled with digestive issues for years , thinking that it's just how they are , but here's the truth . Those issues are often connected to habits and patterns that they didn't even realize were impacting their health . So I've been there myself , feeling fascinated but also a little overwhelmed by how interconnected the body is . That's actually why I decided to add nutrition therapy certification to my skillset . It allowed me to take a deeper dive into digestion and how I could better help my clients . So today I want to share what I've learned so you can have an easier time explaining this to your clients . Now I don't know about you or where you took your training , but I know when I took my myofunctional therapy training , it really wasn't taught to me the ability to explain the digestive part , but rather just say oh , that's just how it is . People who have oral facial myofunctional disorders often have digestive issues . So if you have ever wondered why digestive discomfort seems to be a constant in your life , or maybe all of your clients' lives , this episode is for you . So let's get into it . So first let's talk about why I pursued nutrition therapy . So I pursued it because I was building a premium brand . So this is one of the things that I really drilled down on inside the Ditch Hygiene Academy . But we're not building a Medicaid practice . Okay , in the work that I do with students , we're working on really building a premium wellness practice . So I really felt like digestion was just a piece of the puzzle . I also had a lot of clients with congestion and I knew I could help them from a nutritional standpoint . So that's really why I got into it . So let's talk about the myofunctional therapy digestion connection .

Speaker 1 4:29

So incorrect tongue posture I just want to look at my notes here . So incorrect tongue posture is really the first thing . So this is no vagal nerve stimulation . So you know that correct tongue posture is tongue up , tongue on the spot , tongue making contact across the roof of the mouth , tip to tail up . So when we know that somebody doesn't have correct vagal nerve stimulation , the vagus nerve is kind of magical . It's responsible for regulation of breathing , regulation of digestion , anxiety , depression , all of that stuff . So really important so that we know digestive issues can come from incorrect tongue posture .

Speaker 1 5:10

The next reason that you might have a client who has digestive issues is shallow thoracic breathing , when somebody doesn't use their diaphragm . So whether it's from an untreated tongue tie or not , when I do a breathing demonstration or assessment with my clients , I'm assessing their patent nasal passages to see if they can nasal breathe . But I'm also evaluating how they breathe . So many of my clients I can see them with their shoulders moving . So obviously if you're watching this on video , you can see what shallow thoracic breathing looks like . If you're just listening to it , it's when they're just using the upper portion of their lungs , their shoulders are moving , so we'll see digestive issues because of that . Why ? Because that's stressed breathing , the same as mouth breathing is stressed breathing . So I always tell my clients , like your body when it senses that there's a concern , like oh my gosh , we have to prepare for the woolly mammoth or we have to prepare to run away from the saber tooth tiger , your body doesn't care what happens to your burrito . Hence digestive issues .

Speaker 1 6:21

Okay , the next reason rapid eating behavior . So we see well , I see this with tied and no ties . So when somebody has an untreated tongue tie , quite often I see one of two chewing patterns they chew really slow , they chew , they're slow . Eating is a chore . It's because working with that tongue tie is really difficult . My granddaughter used to be like this chew , chew , chew , chew , chew . That's also where they get the texture aversions , like if it's hard to chew , they don't want it . But also rapid eating . So a lot of humans , as they transition to solid foods , it's just easier to chew , chew down the hatch , chew , chew down the hatch . So I will have parents say , oh yeah , johnny has always just eaten like a vacuum cleaner . Well , it's not that Johnny woke up one day and said , hey , I'm going to just be a rapid eater , I'm going to choke , I love this . No , that's not going to happen . He just transitioned to the path of least resistance , which was chew , chew down the hatch . You would be shocked at the number of children that I work with that barely even chew their food . Okay , when we do optimum chewing training in their therapy , the food that they chew up and spit back into their cup is unbelievable . It's , it's completely identifiable , whereas it really should be chewed up to the consistency of a smoothie , okay .

Speaker 1 9:06

Next on my list is stressed out people have digestive issues , and so in today's day and age , everybody is stressed out . Okay , um , this , the reason that people have digestive issues from that , if they're just stressed and strung out is the . The digestion begins in the brain in a parasympathetic mode . Okay , we know that our nervous system has sympathetic and parasympathetic . Sympathetic is you're stressed . Parasympathetic is rest and digest . Okay , so when people eat from a place of stress or rapid or in a hurry , then the digestion process just gets short-circuited , so it starts in the brain in a relaxed state . So that's another reason . And then just the simple mechanics of chewing and swallowing . So I watch a lot of people chew and swallow and , for whatever reason , they just do it terribly . They don't know any different . So that's the biggest thing .

Speaker 1 10:13

So that when you are talking with your clients , I think it's really important to help them understand that just because they have symptoms that they think are normal doesn't mean that they are that they are . So being able to talk about why they have digestive issues is really helpful . So incorrect tongue posture and I literally will client with clients will say , okay , you've got lots of digestive issues . When I do an exam and they're doing their breathing assessment , I am already looking at their paperwork to see if they have digestive issues . And the reason that is is because when they're demonstrating their breathing , I can see their shallow thoracic breathing . So that's a great segue into the conversation when I say , okay , well , the good news is you can breathe through your nose , I can see that you can do that and you don't have nasal blockages , but I do see shallow thoracic breathing , which would maybe explain your digestive issues . So I always go into that .

Speaker 1 11:20

You know , talking about the incorrect tongue posture , no , vagal nerve stimulation , mouth breathing , rapid eating behavior so I would really get good at being able to tell them all the reasons that they see digestive issues . Now , if you have somebody who deals with congestion , you want to dig a little bit deeper . Do they have congestion because their mouth breathing , or do they have congestion because of their diet ? So that's just a deeper conversation conversation . Obviously you're going to work on tongue posture . Um , let me see my notes here . So when somebody has rapid eating behaviors , I'm also obviously going to help with that , because once we get to the , the normalizing , the chewing and swallowing , they're going to automatically be slowed down . I always tell them you can only eat and drink as fast as steps allow . So that's going to help .

Speaker 1 12:21

And then , last is , make sure that your clients know that myofunctional therapy is going to help them improve digestive symptoms If their digestive symptoms are related to an OMD . So a great example of where that may not be the case is like I had a client once who was taking a medicine for diabetes and it had a side effect of giving her a stomach ache . So when I was working in therapy with her , I said well , we're going to , I'm going to help you solve the digestive issues that are caused by your tongue posture , your rapid eating , you know , not chewing and swallowing correctly swallowing air , all of that kind of stuff . Obviously we're not going to solve what is caused by the diabetes medicine . So that , um , I think that is probably it . The biggest thing is that I would have loved to have this information on connecting the digestion , because that's probably the biggest area . When I meet with somebody , they have no idea that what I do as a myofunctional therapist has anything to do with their digestion , and it always is . The best . Best part of the journey with the client is to see how much better that they get .

Speaker 1 13:49

I always like to share the story of a young client that I had years and years ago when I met her and her mom . I think she was 10 at the time . Mom was a nurse and she was referred to me for myofunctional therapy in the middle of a three-year orthotropic journey . So she was in the bio block . She was sent to me to get her myofunctional therapy completed . So this little girl had been being medicated with an adult dose of heartburn medicine for as long as mom could remember . So that really bothered mom that her little girl had such a hard time with rapid eating behaviors and heartburn . So in addition to the medicine , she also ate half a bottle half a bottle of antacids every day . So mom's goal for therapy actually was that we could just get her off the antacids , because she knew that a 10 year old eating half a bottle of antacids was no bueno . So that was the goal .

Speaker 1 14:55

The one thing that I regret , going back , you know , thinking back on this case is I wish I had stayed better at asking about her symptoms , because I do have my clients do a habit and symptom tracker and she was really good about keeping track of . Did I have heartburn ? If it was , yes , give me a scale of one to 10 . So she was really good . So when we started therapy , which we did in July , I from the very beginning would ask her hey , how is your heartburn , how is your heartburn , how is your heartburn ? And she would say , oh , it's still , you know , 12 out of 10 , still 12 out of 10 . So I eventually quit asking and I just plugged along doing what I do . So fast forward to this makes me so happy to tell this story .

Speaker 1 15:42

To fast forward to December we were getting to take a two week break for the holidays and so I was just kind of buttoning things up where she was at , where we were headed , and I said how about your heartburn ? How is that doing ? And she said what do you mean ? I said , well , your heartburn . You know you had heartburn so bad . And she said , oh , I don't , I don't have heartburn anymore . And I remember thinking , wait what ? And mom sat there with the biggest ear to ear grin on her face as the little girl said yeah , I , um , I don't have heartburn anymore . And I said oh , you mean that you're just not taking your antacids anymore ? And the little girl says , no , I'm not taking anything . And I looked at mom and we both had tears in our eyes and she said , yes , she was completely off all antacids and her medication Still warms my heart .

Speaker 1 16:43

So from July to December , just doing myofunctional therapy , this girl's biggest problem was her rapid eating behaviors . The little girl honestly thought that the faster she ate , the more she tasted it , and so we worked through the steps . She was no different than the steps that I worked through with other clients , but her digestion just was so much better . So you may not know or believe the impact that you have on somebody's digestion , which is why I wanted to do this episode , because now that I know about it from the nutrition standpoint versus the myofunctional therapy standpoint is huge .

Speaker 1 17:28

You know , when I have somebody talking about congestion , we can talk about their diet . Alcohol , dairy , gluten and sugar are the biggest inflammatory agents . If I have somebody who just can't get a handle on the congestion , is it becoming worse because of the mouth breathing , which is possible . But also , what about their diet ? What does that look like ? Sometimes I have to pause my functional therapy and then I need to pick up my nutrition therapist hat and put that on and we start cleaning up some of that other stuff . So some of my clients do have to pick up my nutrition therapist hat and put that on and we start cleaning up some of that other stuff . So some of my clients do have to clean up the dairy if they realize that the dairy makes them congested .

Speaker 1 18:07

So , um , I absolutely love it . So there you have it . That , I hope , helps explain myofunctional therapies role in digestion . Um , it is all tied together the breathing , the rapid eating , the posture , all of those things . So I hope that helps you understand that connection , mostly so that you can explain it pretty decent to your client . So thank you for joining me today and until next time , take care of yourself and go build a life that you are bonkers about . I will see you soon , my friend .