Founded by Valerie Gent, Let's Eat! Feeding Therapy is a Newcastle based Private Paediatric Feeding intervention service for babies and children from birth to adolescence.
Feeding difficulties in babies and children can be very stressful for parents as well as their child. The goal of Let's Eat! is to empower the family to be able to understand and respond to the feeding difficulties their child may present with. Treatment is clinic based but home and school visits can be arranged with an additional travel fee.
Valerie is passionate about feeding difficulties, she loves working with families in a practical and team focused way.
We look forward to working with you too!
Starting solids, parent-led weaning or baby-led weaning?
There is so much information online about starting your baby on solids which can make it very confusing and challenging to know where to start. Step one is determining whether your baby is ready… The World Health Organisation recommends starting solids by 6 months, but not before 4 months.
Paediatric Feeding Disorders (PFD) – the new diagnostic term..
Paediatric Feeding Disorders and why you may see us using this term in your child’s feeding reports. Up until recently, if you had a child with a feeding difficulty, your health providers may have termed it differently. A Speech Pathologist might have called it “delayed oral motor skills” while
How can I get feeding therapy for my child when I can’t go to a clinic in this COVID-19 telehealth world?
Getting feeding therapy for your child in this COVID-19 climate.
What I don’t recommend doing when you come to eat with your fussy eater…
Today in our Let’s Eat Team meeting, Ashleigh and I talked about fussy eaters and mealtime stress. The phrase of “parents provide and children decide” is commonly used and forms the platform of how we work with families. This phrase was coined by Ellyn Satter in her Division of
Swallowing tablets? Do you or your child have difficulties with it?
Do you know this is a question I often get asked and I know when I worked in acute hospitals, I often got asked by doctors to help patients with their meds. When a cousin recently asked me, I struggled to find a lot of information online and then
Are mealtimes a cause of stress in your household?
Here is my 6 step plan on how to serve it up and hopefully enjoy that family meal. We were all little once and as parents now, we serve up meals on what we know and often how we were served as children. This could be pre-plating and sitting
Practice makes perfect
Practice made perfect is the title of a journal article published in 2008. Although this article is now 12 years old, it is a good one that gives us as therapists and parents important information about how a child learns about a food. In our clinic, we often see
We are looking for a new therapist to join our team!
For the first time ever- this job position is open to a Speech Pathologist OR an Occupational Therapist. The catch is? Your role will be in paediatric feeding only as per our specialist feeding private practice. The upside? If you have loved feeding difficulties / fussy eating and have
32 steps to eating- walking the journey of a fussy eater.
Being a food explorer in Japan was certainly an experience. For the first time, I was able to feel how many of my patients felt. Being presented with new foods, a language barrier and the cultural politeness of at least trying foods rather than refusing presented a new challenge
Listening to Rachael from @hope in a suitcase describe the situations in why she is called to support with suitcases and backpacks, Ash and I were reminded that this time more than any is a time to reach out and help. It could be as big or as little as you like- whatever you can do.
Reach out everyone- knock on the door of a neighbour and drop off some groceries or just stay for a cuppa and a chat. Human connection is so important.
Happy Thursday
PS- thank you to my connect bible study for also contributing. Your immediate offer to help was so appreciated.
Therapists and parents- have you found a good social story that helps kids understand the concept of chewing with their mouth closed?
Downfall of teaching a child to chew is that years of speech therapy has taught her all about good oral placement and chewing strength but with her mouth open! But hey she did amazing- her mum weaned the PEG and she is now 100% oral.
So now the next step... social manners with eating.
I’ve looked at Teachers Pay Teachers and general online sites and haven’t found anything. Would LoVE a cute animation video that captures her interest and injects fun and laughter.
Not sure if my dream video or even social story exists? Keen for your ideas
Thanks
Val
Ps- isn’t Michelle from Full House adorable!
And then this regular patient of mine walks in. The feeding therapists who attended our feeding workshop a few weeks ago will recognise his face. He started with 2 brand specific purées (he has ASD) and a bottle with me in December 2018. It was his hard work and his mother’s perseverance that led to yesterday’s session.
This mother persisted- fortnightly sessions, Telehealth through COVID and even when her younger son was sick- she would cancel her older’s son session and book a catch up session. She worked so hard.
They worked through different purées (commercial) then home made- fruit- Vege-meat. Worked on cup drinking and straw drinking. Weaned the bottle (it’s been 6 weeks!). He is now brushing his teeth twice a day (he did not brush his teeth when we first met- he had so many oral sensory issues) and yesterday -
he ate a vegemite bread roll!!!
Look at him- holding that mirror, focusing so hard on chewing and moving his tongue. Learning to chew is so hard when you start to learn this skill at 5 years.
This family is not the only family on our caseload with such dedication and persistence. There are many who turn up to clinic every fortnight with the same level of dedication.
To all the parents and therapists- it’s beams of rainbows like these that remind us like a quiet whisper...... keep going- you have got this.
Our Let’s eat week is finishing on such a bright note- thank you little one. You reminded me why I do this day in and day out. 🙏🏻
Xo Val
PS- thank you beautiful mummy for giving me permission to share this photo.
We only run these cooking clubs once a year and every year, they prove to be super popular. So if you would like your child to
1. Cook with us
2. Explore food with us
3. Be in the journey of food learning with peers
4. Have a parent group session to problem solve feeding issues at home
And be supported by a
1. Feeding therapist and Speech Pathologist - Ash from Let's Eat! Feeding Therapy
2. Occupational therapist from Ability Focus Occupational Therapy
Then join us on 21st January 2021. Privately message us or admin@abilityfocusot.com.au for more details.
Thanks
Let's Eat! team
Thanks Michelle from @Nestle for asking us to speak!
Jane shared this great website which I had to share with you- https://preventallergies.org.au/
Have a great weekend! Val
