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Z vibe oral stimulator3/13/2023 ![]() ![]() There are a variety of Bite-n-Chew Tips including three shorter ones (unscented, berry scented, citrus scented) and two extra long ones (smooth, textured). Work on promoting a sustained bite, improving jaw strength and stability, or practicing rhythmic chewing skills with these tips. And watch a video demo of how to practice tongue elevation and lateralization with the probe tip in this brief instructional video.īite-n-Chew Tips are round, chewable tips that can be attached to the Z-Vibe to practice - you guessed it - biting and chewing skills. This post on the ARK blog outlines oral motor exercises that can be done with the Probe Tip (as well as with other tips), including working on lip closure, jaw grading, tongue and jaw dissociation, tongue elevation, and tongue lateralization. If you are only going to use one tip attachment for your Z-Vibe, the Probe Tip is going to be your best friend (and thank goodness it’s the one that comes with the Z-Vibe when you order it!). Learn more about using the Z-Vibe to address oral hypo- and hypersensitivity HERE on the ARK Therapeutic blog. Or, for children with low oral tone or awareness, the textured sides can be used to provide increased sensory input to “wake up” the mouth prior to feeding or speech work. The smooth side is especially good for starting out with kiddos with oral sensitivities, and then you can gradually progress to the textured sides. The three different surfaces (bumpy, striated, and smooth) can be used to provide different types of tactile input to various parts of the face and mouth such as the gums, palate, lips, cheeks, and tongue. The Probe Tip is the basic tip that automatically comes with the Z-Vibe when you order it, and it is super versatile. So great! This example comes from the Z-Vibe Tips & Techniques book available through ARK’s website. Consult this post for several easy oral motor exercises you can try with your Z-Vibe (and even some without) right away.ĭid you know the Z-Vibe comes in a variety of colors, and that there are actually over 35 Z-Vibe tip attachments available in various scents, sizes, textures, and resiliencies? Wow! Let’s look at six different types of tip attachments for the Z-Vibe and how you can use them. If the child loses the tongue bowl, you can immediately flip back to the Fine Tip to stimulate it again, then continue with the Spoon Tip. Here is an example of how you could use two tips at once: When working on spoon feeding, you could use the Fine Tip to stimulate a tongue bowl, then quickly turn the Z-Vibe around to use the Spoon Tip on the opposite end. When using the Z-Vibe, you can twist in several different types of “tips” onto either end of the handle (so you can have two different tips attached at once) in order to target different types of feeding, speech, and oral motor skills. Check out this blog post on the ARK website to find out. What purpose does vibration serve when working on oral motor tasks?, you ask. If you’re wondering what oral motor therapy is, it’s basically a type of therapy that works on the oral skills that are pre-requisites for proper speech and feeding development. ![]() To turn it off, twist the knob counterclockwise until the handle is no longer vibrating. ![]() ![]() To activate the vibratory feature of the Z-Vibe, simply twist the knob end of the handle in a clockwise direction until it begins vibrating. It’s used to build a variety of speech, feeding, and oral sensory skills needed for everyday function. In case you’re not familiar, the Z-Vibe is a vibratory oral motor tool that provides varied sensory input for oral massage, stimulation, awareness, exploration, and more. If you’ve been around pediatric occupational therapy or speech therapy for any length of time, then you’ve probably heard of the Z-Vibe. Your Guide to ARK Therapeutic’s Oral Motor and Feeding Tools However, I have been a firm believer in ARK products for many years and have used them with OT clients as well as with both of my young children (and have even shared about ARK’s oral motor tools on my blog in the past), so my opinions are based on positive experiences with these products in both the past and the present.Īnd guess what? We are hosting a GIVEAWAY at the end of this post! So be sure to not only pin this post for future reference, but also make your way to the end so you can enter the giveaway. This post is sponsored by ARK Therapeutic. My goal with this post is to walk you through the basics of some of ARK’s most popular oral motor products and highlight additional resources that will give you some helpful pointers for how to use each of these tools with the children in your life. Today I have the exciting opportunity to share with you about oral motor and feeding tools from ARK Therapeutic! ![]()
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