Mealtimes shouldn't be a daily battle! If your child eats a very limited range of foods, gags or refuses new textures, struggles with chewing or swallowing, or mealtimes have become a source of stress for your whole family, feeding therapy can help.
Feeding Therapy in Manhattan & Brooklyn
Extremely limited or "picky" eating that goes beyond typical childhood preferences
Sensory-based food refusal: Reactions to certain textures, smells, or the appearance of food
Oral-motor challenges affecting chewing, swallowing, or moving food safely in the mouth
Difficulty transitioning between purees, textures, or table foods
Mealtime anxiety, gagging, or behavioral struggles around eating
What Feeding Therapy Addresses
Signs Your Child May Benefit From Feeding Therapy:
Feeding therapy is appropriate for children who:
Have eating challenges that are affecting their nutrition
Have growth concerns from their pediatrician
Have difficult mealtimes affecting family life
Gag, cough, or demonstrate anxiety during mealtime
Feeding therapy is not appropriate for:
Kids who occasionally turn down foods here and there
Why Choose Saltwater Speech?
Nicole is trained in the SOS (Sequential Oral Sensory) Approach to Feeding, a research-supported, step-by-step method that builds comfort with new foods gradually. SOS starts with tolerating a food's presence, then its smell, touch, and taste, rather than pressuring a child to simply "just eat it” (which may increase a child’s anxiety and make things worse). What distinguishes our approach is that we brings a speech-language pathology lens to feeding: oral-motor skill, sensory processing, and communication are all considered together, since for many kids these are more connected than they appear.
Every session is followed by clear, practical strategies you can carry directly into mealtimes during the week. Feeding progress requires consistency at and realistic home strategies, and Nicole treats parent communication as part of the treatment itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this the same as a nutritionist or dietitian?
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No, feeding therapy addresses the sensory, motor, and behavioral skills involved in eating, rather than nutrition planning. It's often used alongside guidance from a pediatrician or dietitian when needed.
My child isn't underweight, do they still need feeding therapy?
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Potentially. Weight isn't the only marker of a feeding problem; a very restricted diet, high stress around meals, or sensory-based refusal can all warrant support even without a growth concern.
It's a research-based, hierarchy-based method that helps children build tolerance to new foods in small, manageable steps, rather than pushing them to eat something all at once.
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What is the SOS Approach?
Where are sessions held?
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Sessions are currently held in-home and in-clinic on the Upper East Side, as well as across Brownstone Brooklyn: Boerum Hill, Brooklyn Heights, Carroll Gardens, Cobble Hill, DUMBO, Fort Greene, and Park Slope.
Get in touch to discuss speech therapy for your child or to set up an evaluation.