We rely greatly on our pediatricians to guide us when it comes to our children’s health and wellness. However, it can be challenging to find the right pediatric specialist through all stages of your child’s development. 

Struggling with sleepless nights? A sleep consultant for babies and children may be a good choice. Does your child have difficulty with speech or eating? Consider children’s speech therapy. Need an informative, child-friendly dental visit? A pediatric dentist on the Main Line or a Main Line orthodontist for kids can help. 

Why Your Child May Need More Than Well Visits

Parental instinct may nudge us to seek additional, specialized care for our children even when a pediatrician assures us that everything is fine. Seeking specialized care is a sign of proactive parenting and can make a huge difference in a child’s daily life. These Main Line pediatric specialists focus on specific aspects of your child’s growth, giving them the best chance to thrive and to succeed.

Speech and Feeding Therapy

Daily, essential functions such as breathing, eating, and speaking may not come easily to some children. Fx Therapies, founded by pediatric speech-language pathologist and certified myofunctional therapist Monica Hood, can help if your child needs extra support.

Hood suggests that children benefit from an evaluation if they have trouble saying certain sounds, experience challenges with snoring and mouth breathing, or display oral habits like finger sucking.

“All of these symptoms can affect how your child breathes, eats, speaks, and sleeps and be signs of underlying dysfunction,” said Monica. 

Hood founded Fx Therapies with the philosophy that every child deserves to breathe, eat, and communicate. Utilizing a play-based approach, Hood creates a plan specifically tailored to your child that evaluates the root cause of any dysfunction. Treatments include children’s speech therapy, feeding and swallowing therapy, myofunctional therapy, and oral habit elimination.

Pediatric Dentistry That Kids Actually Enjoy

A pediatric dental office is designed to keep children happy and engaged during their dental appointments. When children have a good experience at the dentist, their long term oral health is positively influenced.

Dr. Anil Shah of Great Valley Pediatric Dentistry believes the role of the pediatric dentist is to treat each patient as family. He recognizes that every child is different, with unique needs.

“At Great Valley Pediatric Dentistry, we focus on making genuine connections, turning dental visits into the best experience ever for that child,” Dr. Shah said. “By making parents part of the team and emphasizing preventative care in a loving atmosphere, we not only secure their oral health today, but also help break the cycle of dental fear for life.”

Dr. Jackie Wingate invests in the latest technologies to make dental visits comfortable and fun at Groovy Pediatric Dentistry in Berwyn. For example, she uses Solea laser to treat cavities without anesthetic and red-light photobiomodulation, which reduces pain and promotes healing after procedures like extraction. Using these dental technologies, Groovy Pediatric Dentistry allows patients (and their parents) to have a stress-free dental visit.

Dr. Jackie says, “With over a decade of experience as a board-certified pediatric dentist, I’ve built a practice that combines compassion, design, and cutting-edge technology to make care as gentle and easy as possible for our patients.”

Sleep Consulting for the Whole Family

A good night’s sleep can make a difference in our health, mood, and well-being. Katie Roeder is a certified pediatric sleep consultant and postpartum doula who has helped hundreds of families with children who struggle with sleep. 

Roeder founded Happily Ever After Sleep Consulting to help children of all ages achieve uninterrupted sleep, which benefits a child’s health and development. By using a holistic approach, Roeder formulates a personalized plan that fosters independent sleep without utilizing the “cry it out” method. 

“If you are struggling with your child’s sleep and you’ve tried everything, but nothing has worked, it may be time to seek out a sleep expert,” she said. “With my sleep plan and support they’ll quickly transform into an independent sleeper, giving you long stretches at night and long naps so everyone can get the rest they need.”

Individualized Orthodontic Care

The American Academy of Orthodontists recommends that a child visit the orthodontist by age 7. Though many kids at that age still have baby teeth, they may benefit from screening for issues such as crowding or an underbite. Planning for treatment of these conditions can prevent more severe problems in the future. 

Dr. Emily Funk of Emily Funk Orthodontics says, “Some children can greatly benefit from early orthodontic treatment to help with the way the jaw bones are developing, or guide the eruption of the permanent teeth.”

As a Main Line Orthodontist for kids, Dr. Funk centers her practice philosophy on comfort and patient care. She advocates for early intervention when necessary which she says can, “decrease future treatment time and reduce the need for more invasive treatment when your child reaches their teenage or adult years.”

Building Your Child’s Care Team

A consultation with a pediatric specialist can make a significant impact in your child’s growth and development. Specialists will work with you and with your pediatrician, becoming a team to ensure your child has access to the best possible care. It is never the wrong decision to listen to your parental instincts or to seek a second opinion. Guidance from a pediatric specialist can be life changing for both your family and your child. 

Visit our Main Line Parent Health & Wellness Guide to select and build a care team your family can trust.

Lead photo courtesy of Dr. Jackie Wingate of Groovy Pediatric Dentistry.