Tongue ALWAYS Out

[LSwan11]

My daughter is 11 months old now and has had her tongue out almost 100% of the time since she was around 3 months old. She was VERY congested as an infant and, as a result, adjusted by mouth breathing quite a bit of the time.

Her congestion cleared up around 5 months, but that tongue still sneaks through those teeth to this day. I am starting to get a little concerned that it is still out so much. I am wondering if it is a learned behavior because of the chronic congestion as an infant, or if it is something else. Her pediatrician recommended that we get her checked out by a dentist so they can do x-rays of her mouth to make sure it isn't a structural issue, or tongue size problem.

Anyway, I am just wondering if anyone else had a child that stuck their tongue out all.the.time, and eventually learned to pull it in on their own. I am concerned that her teeth are going to be affected by it, or that something is going on with her mouth.

Googling is a mother's worst nightmare, so I figured I would try posting here instead.

Thanks for any thoughts/input/advice you have!

[Newmom!]

Go with the doctor's advice and make sure there is nothing structurally wrong with her mouth (most likely there isn't). See if you can consult with a speech therapist or occupational therapist who has expericence working in Oral Therapy in infants. They might have some ideas of what you can do at home.

I know for a preschool age child I worked with - the speech therapist suggested parents start touching the toung to help the child become aware of it and encourage her to keep it in. Maybe something like that would help your baby. Don't worry about it at this time, just consult the professionals, rule out anything medical, then search for strategies to help your child to eventually learn to keep tucked behind her teeth. It's possible the professionals will tell you not to worry about it and let nature take it's course.