Pediatric Feeding Therapy

What is pediatric feeding therapy?

Some children have neurological or developmental differences that make feeding harder — low muscle tone, autism, cerebral palsy, or sensory sensitivities. Structural differences like tongue tie or cleft palate can affect latching, sucking, or swallowing. Chronic ear infections and breathing issues can also interfere with feeding.

Feeding struggles are stressful for the whole family. We work directly with parents, giving you practical strategies you can use at home alongside formal therapy sessions.

Signs your child may need feeding therapy

Infancy (0–12 months)

• Difficulty latching to breast or bottle
• Poor suck–swallow–breathe coordination
• Excessive coughing, choking, or gagging during feeds
• Frequent arching, crying, or distress with feeds
• Slow weight gain or failure to thrive

Toddlers & preschoolers (1–5 years)

• Extreme food selectivity — fewer than 20 accepted foods
• Gagging or vomiting at the sight, smell, or texture of food
• Refusing entire food groups or textures
• Mealtime meltdowns or extreme anxiety around eating
• Difficulty transitioning to table foods or lumpy textures

What feeding therapy looks like

Sessions are play-based, low-pressure, and always paced by the child. We use a division of responsibility approach — you decide what foods are offered, your child decides whether and how much to eat. Over time, we build a positive relationship with food and expand the diet without force or pressure.

Why choose Total Care OT for feeding therapy

Sadera Braid is a Feed the Peds Alumni with over 31 years of clinical experience specializing in pediatric feeding and oral dysfunction. Sessions are available in your home, your child's school or daycare, or virtually — making expert feeding therapy accessible throughout Central Missouri.

Common questions