Sucking the tongue or rocking it is a common habit that may cause serious oral problems. The tongue is a powerful muscle that can push against and come between the front teeth during swallowing, resting, or chewing. The problem of tongue thrust can lead to future dental issues and even speech impediments if left untreated. In addition, the tongue thrust habit can affect sleep and lead to poor oral hygiene.
Many infants suck their thumb or fingers and some have a habit of sucking their mouths as a way to cope with stress or anxiety, but this non-nutritive tongue sucking usually resolves by age three. However, adults may develop a tongue thrust habit due to a variety of reasons, including the use of a pacifier or bottle feeding, certain medications, health conditions like Tardive dyskinesia and Parkinson’s disease, or psychological issues such as anxiety.
How to Stop Sucking Your Tongue
The good news is that there are at-home and professional treatments that can help with the tongue thrust habit. Some home treatments include using a mouth guard at night, setting periodic reminders to break the habit (like a timer that goes off every 15 to 30 minutes), and finding a replacement behavior that can help with stress or anxiety. Other professional tongue thrust treatment includes the use of a program that provides short, simple exercises to help change the tongue’s position inside the mouth. This seven-week tongue thrust correcting program will likely improve a lisp and likely solve malocclusions caused by the tongue thrusting habit.