Kenneth Said:

What is sensory eating?

We Answered:

Sending this one to Nana for you, she can help. Hang in there and read up on as much as you can.

Judith Said:

My 2.5 year old needs to see a feeding therapist.?

We Answered:

The feeding therapist will possible do some mouth massage and will certainly work on slowly integrating more foods with more textures into his diet. You can sit in on these sessions, ask questions, and continue to do the same thing at home. You may find that after a few sessions there's not much the therapist is doing that you couldn't do yourself.

If he doesn't have any other developmental problems, you may be better off avoiding therapy. Breastfeeding certainly does provide all his nutritional needs, and there is a liquid multi-vitamin you can give him when it comes time to come off the breast.

My daughter had sensory issues with her food too (she has multiple disabilities and delays). She would not put ANYTHING in her mouth (including toys) except her pacifier and her bottle. She ate formula, formula with cereal, and fruit babyfood diluted. She survived just fine on these foods and finally started to eat oatmeal after I sat down with her several times a day and ate it myself and going Mmmm! Yumm! So oatmeal became the first solid food she would eat. From there it was still a very long road to the next food and the one after that.

Now she is 4 years old and eats just as well as any other toddler and is fairly open to trying new foods. I took her to an OT a few times for feeding therapy, and for me it was a waste of time so we stopped going. I took her out of her other therapies too because I'm a stay-at-home-mom and I have more time to work with her than a twice a week therapist. She has surpassed all her doctor's expectations.

So try the therapist, but don't believe them when they say he needs the therapy to avoid malnurishment. 10 foods is a good quantity for a toddler and you'll be able to increase that number over time.

Feel free to email me if you have more questions about therapy or how to introduce more foods.

Esther Said:

What is sensory eating disorder?

We Answered:

Great suggestions so far. I have two kids with sensory dysfunction, both of whom have eating issues. My 13 year old didn't eat any meats until he was four or five. Still now he has trouble with grains and pasta, he gags on them.

My ten year old has trouble not only with textures but with smells and tastes. We had to start small with her, she would get upset if we just put one of her 'fearful foods' on the table. So we would reward to get it on the table without a meltdown. Verbal and food rewards (seconds of her favored foods) Then we would reward to put one piece on her plate. Then we worked towards putting it on her fork. Then putting it in her mouth, spitting it right back out. Then chewing once and spitting it out (You do have to have a strong stomach for this version! LOL!) finally it was swallowing. We would put a small amount of her favorite foods on there, and she had to do the task before she could have more. It took almost a year to get her to do it, but now she'll eat any veggie (except peppers, those are still no, but she ate one today for the first time ever!!!) She will beg for steamed broccoli or green beans now.

It can happen, it just takes some work. I think she was five before she ever ate a fruit or veggie. Just have your ped recommend a good vitamin while you're working on it. We didn't use the pediasure because we were concerned that if her stomach was full there wouldn't be enough hunger to push her to ask for seconds.

Luis Said:

Can someone explain a person's health deteriorating during the night and then improving in the morning?

We Answered:

I'm sorry your mother has been so ill. Labored breathing can be caused by a lot of things, and the fact that your mother cannot communicate can make it even more challenging to figure out what was going on. The basic things that can cause it are lung problems, heart problems, brain problems, and pain, but there are others. It is possible that they gave her some treatment that night, and the treatment worked. It is also possible that the problem was just temporary, and it improved on its own. It is hard to say more without knowing more details. Her doctor would probably have a better idea what was going on that night, and whether it is likely to happen again. I will hope for the best for your mom.