Medical Concerns

Blogs on Medical Concerns

Medical Concerns, Parenting a Picky Eater, Sensory Concerns

A Special Needs Guide for Learning to Eat with Your SEVEN Senses – Part One

Most of us think of five senses and the human body: Sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. But, when it comes to learning to eat a wide variety of...

Feeding Babies, Feeding Therapy, Feeding Toddlers to School Age, Medical Concerns, Parenting, Parenting a Picky Eater

Falling Sales Squeeze Baby-Food Pouches

Some manufacturers rethink packaging criticized by pediatricians and parents as inhibiting development By Annie Gasparro “We want babies to practice chewing and swallowing,” said pediatric feeding specialist Melanie Potock. “But...

Feeding Therapy, Feeding Toddlers to School Age, Medical Concerns, Parenting, Parenting a Picky Eater

Is This Typical Toddler Behavior or a Sign of Something More Serious?

Written by Leah Campbell Many parents are aware some of the biggest challenges that come with raising kids happen in the first few years. When that second birthday rolls around,...

Medical Concerns, Parenting a Picky Eater, Sensory Concerns

Why Do Kids Chew On Shirts? It’s Not As Weird As You Think

By Cat Bowen Up until last year, I would have monthly trips through my son’s wardrobe to browse his t-shirts. I’d pick out the shirts that had been chewed through,...

Feeding Babies, Medical Concerns, Parenting a Picky Eater

Does Teething Affect Baby’s Appetite? Experts Explain

by Alison Kresta “To help alleviate any appetite worries, I checked in with Dr. LaQuia Vinson, a pediatric dentist at Riley Children’s Health, and Feeding Specialist and co-author of the book, Raising A...

Autism, Feeding Therapy, Medical Concerns

Why Some Kids With ASD Won’t Eat And How to Get Help

by Rebecca Connick, MOT, LOTR “Melanie Potock, MA, CCC-SLP describes using the 3E’s in the treatment of children with feeding deficits: Expose, Explore, and Expand. Her recently published book Adventures in...

Medical Concerns, Parenting a Picky Eater

23 Best Soft Foods to Eat After Surgery

By KARLA WALSH When you have to east soft foods, you’ve got choices! Read more on Eat This, Not That! >>...

Feeding Babies, Feeding Therapy, Medical Concerns

Sensory Overload In The NICU Is Still Impacting My Toddler

By Anna Lee Beyer You might see my toddler eating French fries for lunch and assume she’s a typical picky eater being indulged by her weary parents. The truth is...

Feeding Babies, Medical Concerns

Baby Self-Feeding Week: 7 Facts About Allergies

This week we’re talking all about baby self-feeding. Why, you ask? It just so happens Nancy Ripton and Melanie Potock’s new book, Baby Self-Feeding comes out TODAY! We’re so excited...

Medical Concerns, Parenting a Picky Eater

Picky eating and other holiday food challenges

By Melanie Potock, MA, CCC-SLP Take a deep breath … the holidays are approaching! If you’ve got a picky or hesitant eater at home, holidays can be especially stressful. Whether...

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Aug 2

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Can’t get enough family, friends & 🦀🦀🦀🦀 from @thecrabplace ♥️

Have you ever had fresh steamed🦀?

Crab feasts all summer!

🥰Melanie

Melanie Potock, Picky eaters , pediatric feeding therapy , raising adventurous eaters , Maryland Blue Crab ...

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Did you know there are over 1 million colors in a rainbow? 🌈 And if you’re
lucky enough to see a double rainbow, like the one over my house last night... that’s 2 million beautiful reminders that
nature is full of surprises.

If you’re raising a child who struggles with trying new foods, I hope you’ll take this as your reminder not to give up.

Progress in feeding isn’t usually one big, dramatic moment.

It’s built through hundreds of tiny, patient moments:
💛 One meal.
💛 One playful exposure.
💛 One gentle nudge.
💛 One opportunity to feel safe around food.

Then one day... your child surprises you.

It might be a lick.
A tiny bite.
Or simply sitting at the table with a little less worry than yesterday.

Those moments matter. Feeding therapy helps kids make progress, but not every kiddo needs feeding therapy. Sometimes just expert strategies are enough to help experience these moments of success! Thanks for following me for tips.🤍

🌈 By the way...if you’re looking for guidance or if you’re a therapist
getting started in feeding therapy - my most popular on-demand course,
Feeding Development: Understanding the Spectrum of Picky Eating, is 50% off right now! If you’d like practical, evidence-based strategies to help your child (or the families you support) build a healthier relationship with food, comment RAINBOW and I’ll send you the link and the discount code.

✨ Be sure you’re following me so the discount code can make it to your DMs!

And if someone you know could use a little extra hope today, please share
this with them. 💛

Thanks to my friend @beachauthor for taking this video last night! Be sure
to follow her if you love reading like I do!

🥰Melanie

Melanie Potock, picky eating, feeding therapy, responsive feeding, toddler
nutrition, pediatric feeding, food anxiety, feeding development, parent
support ...

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Jul 31

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I won’t stitch the feeding therapy video - you’ve probably seen it - a feeding therapist who appears to be overly assertive in getting a child to eat while another adult holds down the child’s hands.💔This is a difficult video to watch, and a difficult one for me to comment on. I’ve wrestled with this for days.

A short clip never gives us the whole picture. We don’t know the child’s
history, the treatment plan, what happened before or after this moment, or the clinical reasoning behind what we’re seeing. The family who loves this
child is just trying to help this kiddo - let’s remember that.

But, my DMs are blowing up, asking me to do something.

So, because this reel is being widely shared, I want families to hear
something important:

This is not what MOST feeding therapy looks like in the USA today.

I’m not saying it never happens, but the majority of specialists are not
using such aggressive techniques.

In 25+ years as a pediatric feeding therapist in the U.S., and after
teaching more than 25,000 therapists over the years, I have seen our field
continue to move toward approaches that respect a child’s communication,
regulation and autonomy while still helping children take the next
developmental step.

♥️Feeding therapy can absolutely include gentle nudges. Children sometimes need support tolerating discomfort as they learn something new.

But there is a meaningful difference between gently challenging a child and
physically preventing a child from responding to that challenge.

This video does not represent the feeding therapy I teach. I’ve never used these methods and I know this is the case for the majority of feeding specialists today.♥️

My concern? I don’t want parents who see it to assume that this is what will happen if they seek feeding therapy for their child in the USA.

I’d be so grateful if you would share this post with your own followers, to
reassure our communities that feeding therapy can be, and most often is,
respectful of each child and their unique skill sets.

♥️Melanie

Melanie Potock, feeding therapy, pediatric feeding therapy, feeding
therapist, picky eating, responsive feeding, child autono ...

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Posts filed under: Medical Concerns

Medical Concerns