The Hidden Link Between Muscle Function & Speech

May is Better Hearing & Speech Month, making it the perfect time to talk about something that often goes unnoticed, but plays a huge role in how we speak...Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders (OMDs).

At Midwest Myofunctional, we help both children and adults uncover how the way the muscles of the face, mouth, and tongue function can directly impact speech clarity, breathing, and overall communication.

What are OMDs?

OMDs refer to improper movement patterns of the lips, tongue, jaw, and face. These patterns can affect:

• Speech sound production

• Breathing (mouth vs. nasal breathing)

• Swallowing patterns

• Resting posture of the tongue and lips

When these muscles aren't working properly, speech can't work efficiently either.

How OMDs Impact Speech

Speech isn’t just about knowing sounds. It’s about how the muscles coordinate to produce them. When oral muscles are not functioning optimally, we often see:

• Articulation errors (like difficulty with sounds such as /s/, /z/, /t/, /d/, /l/, /r/)

• Tongue thrust affecting clarity and precision

• Distorted sounds that don’t fully resolve with traditional speech therapy

• Reduced intelligibility, especially in connected speech

This is why some children (and even adults) may make progress in speech therapy, but struggle to fully “fix” certain sounds.

Why Traditional Speech Therapy Isn't Always Enough

Speech therapy is incredibly valuable, but if underlying muscle patterns aren’t addressed, progress may plateau. That’s where orofacial myofunctional therapy comes in.

We focus on:

• Proper tongue resting posture

• Nasal breathing

• Lip seal and strength

• Coordinated muscle patterns for speech and swallowing

Think of it as giving the foundation that speech needs to truly stick.

Simple Ways to Support at Home

Whether you’re a parent or an adult working on your own speech, here are a few small steps that can make a big difference:

• Encourage lips closed, tongue up posture at rest

• Promote nasal breathing throughout the day

• Be mindful of habits like thumb sucking, nail biting, or prolonged pacifier use

• Practice awareness of tongue placement during speech

Small changes = big impact over time.

Our Approach

We take a whole-person approach, looking beyond just speech sounds to understand why challenges are happening.

Our goal is to:✔ Improve muscle function✔ Support clear, confident speech✔ Promote long-term results (not just quick fixes)