Myofunctional therapy you can do at home
The Tongue Teacher in Knutsford
The Tongue Teacher, also called DM Functional in the Dental Monitoring app, is a myofunctional therapy app for children and adults. Myofunctional therapy uses simple exercises to retrain the muscles of the tongue, lips and face, which can affect how you breathe, swallow and rest your tongue. The programme works in two stages. The first focuses on breathing, tongue tie and habits such as clenching or nail biting. The second works on tongue posture, swallowing, chewing and speech.
What is The Tongue Teacher?
The Tongue Teacher is a myofunctional therapy app for children and adults. Myofunctional therapy uses simple exercises to retrain the muscles of the tongue, lips and face, which can affect how you breathe, swallow and rest your tongue. The app guides you through short videos and exercises at home, while we choose your programme and follow your progress through Dental Monitoring.
Why choose The Tongue Teacher?
- Exercises at home: short sessions you can fit around school, work and family life.
- Understand why: over 150 videos show you how to do each exercise and explain why it matters.
- Fun for children: a friendly mascot, rewards and visible progress help keep younger patients motivated.
- Reminders built in: notifications help you remember your exercises each day.
- Tailored to you: your programme is based on your own assessment and the areas you need to work on.
- Followed by us: your progress is shared with the practice through Dental Monitoring, so we can check in and adjust your plan.
- Fewer visits: an alternative to coming into the clinic for therapy sessions.
The process
1.
Assessment
You complete a short assessment in the app at home, covering areas such as tongue posture, swallowing, breathing and chewing.
2.
Your programme
The app sends us a report with recommended programmes, and we review it alongside your orthodontic assessment.
3.
Getting started
We start the programme that suits your needs and show you how everything works.
4.
Daily exercises
You follow short videos and exercises at home, with reminders to help you stay on track.
5.
Progress checks
We follow your progress through Dental Monitoring and adjust your programme at your orthodontic reviews.
Who is The Tongue Teacher for?
The Tongue Teacher is only available to patients having orthodontic treatment with us, including children, teenagers and adults. It works alongside your braces or aligners to support healthy tongue, lip and breathing habits during treatment. If you’re not having orthodontic treatment with us, or would prefer face-to-face sessions, our in-clinic myofunctional therapy may suit you instead.
It may help if you or your child:
- rest the tongue low in the mouth or between the teeth
- push the tongue forward when swallowing
- breathe through the mouth during the day or at night
- have habits such as thumb sucking, nail biting or teeth clenching
- find it hard to keep the lips together at rest
- want support to help keep teeth in their new position after treatment
*Snoring, pauses in breathing or gasping during sleep need to be checked by your GP. You can find out more about the app on The Tongue Teacher website.
— frequently asked questions —
Quick answers to your questions
Who can use The Tongue Teacher?
The Tongue Teacher is only available to patients having orthodontic treatment with us. It’s suitable for children, teenagers and adults, and we’ll let you know at your review whether it could help you.
Is my child old enough to use the app?
The exercises are designed to be simple and fun, so many children can use the app with a little help from a parent. We’ll let you know whether it suits your child’s age and needs.
How long do the exercises take each day?
Most exercises take just a few minutes and can be done at home at a time that suits you. We’ll tell you how often to do them, and the app sends reminders to help you keep on track.
Is there an extra cost?
We’ll explain any cost for The Tongue Teacher at your consultation or review, before you decide whether to use it.
How is it different from in-clinic myofunctional therapy?
With The Tongue Teacher, you follow videos and exercises at home while we check your progress remotely. Our in-clinic sessions are face to face with a member of our team. We can help you decide which suits you better, and you can switch if the app isn’t right for you.
What is DM Functional?
DM Functional is the name The Tongue Teacher uses inside the Dental Monitoring app. They’re the same programme, so if you see either name, you’re in the right place. We’ll help you set it up when you start.
Will it stop my teeth moving after treatment?
Healthy tongue and lip habits can help support your result, but you’ll still need to wear your retainers as advised. We’ll keep checking your teeth at your reviews.