FAQs
Appointment Questions
What types of sessions do you offer?
Initial Consultation (70-90 mins): I meet with families to discuss parent concerns, evaluate reflexes, plan and schedule treatments, and answer all your questions about reflex integration.
For treatment, I recommend scheduling 2-5 consecutive days of 90-minute to 6-hour appointments for MNRI® reflex work. Experienced practitioners use various techniques from all the programs in MNRI. In weekly sessions, one reflex is addressed but with the intensive model, multiple reflexes are worked on for a balanced sensory system.
What does an MNRI® session look like?
The structure of an MNRI session depends on factors like the patient’s alertness, mobility, appointment length, and session goals. It usually involves sitting or lying in a supine or prone position. I incorporate techniques from various MNRI protocols to help the brain and body understand each reflex. If standing and active reflex work is needed, we use floor space for games and activities to strengthen reflex repatterning. The MNRI® Program prioritizes safety, with practitioners trained to identify and build on movements that are easy, safe, and natural.
What should parents do during the sessions?
Your support during the session by being present, engaged, and available to help your child feel safe is of tremendous help. There may be times when you’ll need to provide toys, sing songs, or provide snacks for your child to help them feel comfortable while on the table. Other times, when I’m showing exercises for homework, you may want to have paper and pencil ready to jot down notes for yourself. Asking questions and participating in the session to help you understand is encouraged!
How do I receive more info about the cost of services or get started?
You can shoot me an email or send a message through the Contact page on this website. Once you've reached out to me I'd be happy to send you information and schedule a Discovery Call to discuss MNRI® in more detail and schedule the initial consultation appointment.
How much time each week will the Home Exercise Plan take?
The answer to this question has a lot of variables that factor in, so it won’t be the same for each family or individual. Some children and adults may have more exercises and techniques included in their plan to support the developmental or rehabilitative function of the specific reflexes that need to be addressed and therefore would be looking at needing work every day 1-2 hours. Other plans may address fewer reflexes but require slower and more frequent repetitions of the exercises. Family schedules can also impact the amount of time that can be devoted to completing the Home Exercise Plans each week and is always considered when the plan is created. I generally share with families that even if you are only able to do 30-40 minutes of the plan on assigned days, if you are connected and intentional with the work that you’re doing, you will still be making an impact.
What if my child won’t sit or lay still on the table?
Initially, many children and adolescents have difficulty with laying still on the massage table. This is because their body craves constant movement and stimulation so that it can keep sending information to their vestibular and proprioceptive receptors within the body. This is a way that they step into “negative protection” to cope with stressors that they encounter every day in all environments. Using MNRI®, we are inviting their sensory systems to shift into “positive protection” so that they can regulate their systems and feel safe. All that to say, I work systematically using specific techniques and targeting specific reflexes to help them feel more regulated in their body translating to more relaxation on the table. I also support the individual by creating a routine in which we encourage time on the table and work in short breaks for active reflex repatterning.
Payment Questions
What forms of payment do you accept?
I currently accept check, credit card, cash, and payments through the PayPal and Venmo apps. I also accept debit and credit cards associated with Health Savings Account (HSA) and Flexible Savings Account (FSA).
Do you offer any types of discounts or payment plans?
Yes, a benefit of not being in contract with insurance companies is that I am able to offer discounts to families who refer me to others, military discounts for families of active and retired members, and other types of discounts that would otherwise not be allowed if I had set rates with the insurance companies. For intensives, I offer pre-paid session packages and 2,3, and 4 month payment plans.
Intensive Questions
What is the timeline for each day of an intensive?
The start time for each day of the intensive is usually dependent on the length of the sessions each day, but is somewhat flexible to accommodate each family’s needs. I generally like to start around 9am and do three, 50-55 minute sessions in the morning then take an hour lunch around noon to resume at 1pm and finish up the sessions after lunch. Some families may prefer to start earlier if they want to get all their sessions in before lunch or opt to start later in the day.
What does each day of the intensive look like?
The first session of the first day will consist of an initial evaluation of reflexes to determine benchmarks of most reflexes as a starting point to work from. Each session after that will be direct intervention with parent training and handouts on techniques you can start doing after the intensive as part of the Home Exercise Plan (HEP).
Is there a minimum of hours per day and days per week?
Yes, for the intensive model to be effective, I suggest that we do at least 3 hrs a day for children under 7 and at least 4 hrs a day for 7-21 at least 3 days a week.
What is the plan for after an intensive?
I almost always recommend that the family take a few days off from doing any MNRI® to help the body rest and adjust to the changes that were made during the intensive. Once that rest time is over, it is beneficial to get started with the HEP that will be introduced to you during the intensive. If you have any questions or need a refresher on specific techniques, we can schedule a virtual chat to review.
What does a Feeding Intensive look like?
As an SLP, I’m able to work on many different skills, but by far my favorite is working in the area of pediatric dysphagia. I have always been so interested in the phases of a swallow, how we can visualize them, and how all the muscles have to work together to create a safe swallow. Unfortunately, there are limited treatment options and most feeding therapists lack the nuanced training to make safe but effective clinical decisions. I have had the unique opportunity to develop my skills and focus my passion for pediatric swallowing so that I can offer services to families who are wanting to spend time addressing their children’s swallowing issues in therapy.
Since starting Unity Therapy Solutions, I have been developing my approach to pediatric dysphagia to take all the different courses and experiences I’ve obtained and create a holistic approach that addresses the physical and psychological factors that make swallowing and feeding disorders so complex. Based on a child’s current skill level, I like to look at what reflexes are involved, which cranial nerves might need attention, if there are modifications to the food or presentation that needs to occur, and what past experiences may have contributed to trauma experiences around feeding. In school we are taught to focus our attention on such a small piece of the puzzle, but as we zoom out and look at the whole picture, we can see how the brain and body are connected and both need to be addressed for progress.
Some of the therapy modalities used during feeding intensives:
NeuroTactile Protocol
NeuroStructural Protocol
Oral Facial/Visual Auditory Protocol
Repatterning or Archetype Protocol
Sensory Point KT Taping for Oral Motor
AmpCare Effective Swallowing Protocol (NMES)
SOS Approach to Feeding