Specialty Services

Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy (OMT)

What is OMT?

Orofacial myofunctional therapy (OMT) is a gentle, exercise-based program that helps you retrain the muscles of your face, mouth, and tongue to work the way they’re meant to.

Many people develop habits like mouth breathing, tongue thrusting, or incorrect swallowing without realising it — and these can affect things like speech, sleep, breathing, or even the way teeth and jaws develop.

OMT uses simple, personalised exercises to strengthen and coordinate these muscles, helping you breathe through your nose, rest your tongue in the right place, and swallow correctly. Over time, this can improve comfort, oral health, sleep quality, and even facial balance, supporting your overall wellbeing in a natural, lasting way.

These sessions are conducted by qualified speech pathologists who are trained in orofacial myofunctional therapy. They understand how the muscles of the mouth, face, and tongue work together and can create a personalised program to support your specific needs and goals.

Who can benefit from OMT?

Orofacial myofunctional therapy (OMT) can benefit children, teenagers, and adults who experience difficulties with how their oral and facial muscles function. This includes people who breathe through their mouth instead of their nose, have a tongue thrust or incorrect swallowing pattern, experience speech sound difficulties, snoring, or sleep-disordered breathing. It can also help those who have habits such as thumb or finger sucking, or who are preparing for or maintaining orthodontic treatment. Individuals with temporomandibular joint (TMJ) discomfort, poor lip seal, or low tongue posture may also find OMT helpful.

If you or your child show any of these signs, a speech therapist trained in orofacial myofunctional therapy can assess muscle patterns and develop a personalised exercise program to improve function, comfort, and overall wellbeing.

For more information, or to book a Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy session please contact us directly.

Multidisciplinary Sessions

In a multidisciplinary approach, an Occupational Therapist and Speech Pathologist collaborate to provide a well-rounded and holistic therapy experience for clients. Each professional brings specialized expertise to address different aspects of a client's needs, working together to support both communication and functional development.

Speech Pathologists focus on speech, language, and communication skills, while Occupational Therapists concentrate on improving fine motor skills, sensory processing, and daily functional abilities. By working in tandem, they can offer a comprehensive therapy plan that targets both communication and motor skills, providing a more integrated and cohesive approach to care.

This collaboration is especially beneficial for individuals with complex needs, such as those with developmental delays, autism, or neurological conditions, where both communication and functional skills often overlap.

With both professionals working together, they can develop tailored strategies that address all aspects of a child’s or adult's development, leading to better outcomes and more effective care.

For more information, or to book a multidisciplinary session please contact us directly.

Integrated Therapy Sessions

At First Step Therapies we offer integrated therapy sessions delivered by a single dual-qualified Speech Pathologist and Occupational Therapist. This unique approach allows us to address a wide range of goals — from communication and social skills to sensory processing, emotional regulation, and motor development — all within one cohesive session.

What is integrated therapy?

Integrated therapy means that rather than seeing two separate professionals for Speech Pathology and Occupational Therapy, families can work with one clinician who is qualified in both fields. This approach allows for a holistic, streamlined, and highly coordinated therapy experience, supporting your child’s development across multiple areas simultaneously.

What does integrated therapy involve?

Because multiple goals across different developmental areas are combined into a single session, significant preparation, planning, and documentation are required to ensure the therapy is cohesive, meaningful, and effective.

Behind each integrated session, there is:

  • Careful coordination of therapy goals to ensure they complement each other and work toward broader developmental outcomes

  • Thoughtful selection and sequencing of activities that address both communication and functional skills in a natural, flowing way

  • Individualised session planning that considers your child’s unique strengths, needs, and goals

  • Detailed documentation to track progress across both speech and occupational therapy domains

Why Choose Integrated Therapy?

For many children, challenges in areas like communication, sensory processing, motor coordination, and emotional regulation often overlap. By working on these skills together in an integrated session, we can provide more targeted, engaging, and functional therapy — supporting your child to apply their skills across daily life.

For more information, or to book intergrated therapy sessions, please contact us directly.