Deep breathing has many benefits including decreasing anxiety, improving attention and ability to remain calm, as well as improving voice production. If you or your child do not get enough breath support it can lead to:

• not having enough air available to finish your thoughts
• decreased volume by the end of your statement
• low volume
• vocal fatigue
• tension in your vocal mechanism and speech articulators
• wavering pitch
• creating a low, breathy voice.

Two types of breathings patterns are chest breathing and diaphragmatic breathing. Chest breathing is the most common breathing pattern, where the upper part of the rib cage and chest expand on inhalation. Many people breathe this way when sitting and standing. However, this is not the best breathing for speech.

Diaphragm breathing is the desired breathing pattern for optimal voice usage and projection. This type of breathing will come from the region of your stomach and lower rib cage, providing the most volume of air for voicing. It will allow you to control your exhalation while speaking, creating a pleasing tone quality for your best voice.

Some exercises you and your child can do to improve breath support are:

1. Gather pom poms in three colors. Take a straw and have your child play a game by blowing each color pom pom into a separate cup. Once they get all the pom poms into the cups, they win!

2. Your child can practice blowing bubbles by pursing his/her lips to form the bubbles.

3. Have your child(ren) place their hands on their bellies. Ask them to breathe in through their nose until they feel their belly push out against their hands. Then hold the breath for three seconds and exhale from the mouth as they feel their hands move in toward their body. (This exercise is also great for people recovering from COVID19.)

The Therapy Gym is now seeing patients in the gym in addition to telehealth sessions over Zoom. We have taken the necessary precautions to create a safe environment for your child and the therapist. Please contact us to schedule a session for your child so we can help your child reach his/her full potential.

The Therapy Gym, owned by Dr. Elisheva Fuchs, is the leading pediatric therapy center in Bergen County. The Therapy Gym provides physical, occupational, speech, behavioral and aquatic therapy as well as many classes for kids. Only the best, highly skilled and trained therapists work at the gym to help each child reach his or her potential. If you have questions or concerns about your child’s development, call The Therapy Gym at 201-357-0417 or email [email protected]. You can also follow The Therapy Gym on Instagram and Facebook to learn more tips.