Feeding Tube Weaning

Many parents feel responsible for teaching their child how to chew, drink or swallow.  While adults are partners in the process, learning to eat is a very basic program that is scripted for each of us in early development.   Even kids who have motor or cognitive challenges have the ability to learn new things with experience, especially if they are driving the process.  […]

March 13, 2020

On this week’s episode of the Tube to Table podcast, Jennifer and Heidi are talking about autonomy. What is it and why is it important in your child’s tube weaning journey? It is so important to allow your child to be autonomous and independent while building a healthy and happy relationship with food. This should […]

March 12, 2020

Having a child with a feeding tube, or who is going through the tube weaning process can feel very lonely. It is difficult for people who aren’t experiencing it first hand to understand how tough it is, and how pervasive the fear and pressure can be, even when things are going well. Friends and family members trying to be supportive and ask questions because they care, may […]

March 6, 2020

On this week’s episode, Jennifer and Heidi are talking about liquids and how they play a role while weaning your child from a feeding tube. As we all know, liquids are an essential part of our life, especially when we are sick  or not feeling our best. Think about when you are dehydrated and how that makes […]

March 5, 2020

At Thrive, we often work with parents on building their own DOR (Division of Responsibility) within mealtimes. This was developed by Ellyn Satter and reviews the basics behind the roles of the parent and child at mealtimes. The parent’s role is to determine the what, when, and where of mealtimes and the child’s role is to determine […]

February 28, 2020

Many parents struggle with getting their children to eat certain foods, certain meals, or sometimes anything at all. For parents of picky eaters, anxious eaters, or kids that have feeding tubes or feeding disorders this struggle can be all too challenging.  Portion size can make a huge difference in helping a child feel comfortable with […]

February 21, 2020

On this week’s episode, Heidi is joined by Brianna Brown, a feeding therapist and member of the Thrive Tube Weaning Team. To follow up with last week’s topic on anxiety, Brianna and Heidi are discussing how to move forward when there is an actual problem or crisis during a tube wean. Anxiety and the feeling […]

February 20, 2020

On this week’s episode of the Tube to Table podcast, Heidi is joined by Jamie, a feeding therapist and full-time member of the Thrive Tube Weaning Team. This week is Tube Feeding Awareness Week and we are so happy that this podcast has been able to reach families who have a child on a feeding […]

February 13, 2020

Our Treatment Progression Pyramid is a visual representation of the specific steps we address during our Tube Weaning treatment. Our program looks a little different from most treatment programs because we believe that a strong foundation for kids to learn about what their bodies need is crucial. Self-regulation skills are the skills that lead children with and without feeding challenges to […]

February 10, 2020

This week’s podcast was all about how we measure success throughout our tube weaning program at Thrive. It is important that when we focus on measuring progress, we look at so much more than the numbers. At Thrive, we encourage parents and medical teams to shift their focus from a number-based measure to a more qualitative […]

February 7, 2020

Welcome back for another episode of Tube to Table! This week we are talking about how to measure progress while weaning your child from their feeding tube. We have been hearing from various families that we work with that there is confusion over how progress is measured. This is also a common conversation we find […]

February 6, 2020

No one plans to have a child who needs a medical team, so it isn’t a process that many people are prepared for. Even for parents who have advance knowledge that there might be some health issues after their child’s birth, the actual process of walking through the healthcare system can be more exhausting and frustrating than it should […]

January 31, 2020