Straw drinking

I recently wrote about Coraline’s low muscle tone (floppy muscles) which also includes low oral tone.

Our neighbour Margaret told us Coraline could hold her own bottle a couple of months ago, and we hadn’t realised she could! We love how she often does it one handed now.

We also started her on the #talktools honeybear straw cup on the recommendation of her speech group a couple of months ago. It was a great way to teach her to drink through a straw. The bear is designed so we could squeeze the water up it to begin with, and then Coraline learned to suck through the straw herself. It just took her a go or two using the bear to work out sucking the straw herself.

Drinking from a cup with a straw, as opposed to a sippy cup, is recommended for babies with Down’s Syndrome as it strengthens muscles in the mouth (low oral tone), and also encourages correct tongue positioning and lip closure.