Services
Our Services: Understanding Your Body, Building Better Function
Individualized care for breathing, oral muscle function, airway health, and the physiological foundations of recovery.
Does any of this sound familiar?
Most people arrive here because of something small they had stopped noticing.
- You snore, or you have been told you stop breathing at night.
- You wake up tired, with a dry mouth or a tight jaw.
- You breathe through your mouth more than you realise.
- Your child snores, mouth-breathes, or sleeps restlessly.
- You have been referred for a tongue-tie release and are not sure what happens next.
- You hold tension in your jaw, neck or shoulders and nothing quite shifts it.
- You had orthodontic work years ago and things have moved back.
None of this is a diagnosis. It is a place to start a conversation.
A different way to understand your health
Many people arrive at Breathe Colorado Wellness after spending considerable time trying to understand why they do not feel or function as well as they would like. Some are struggling with sleep, breathing discomfort, jaw tension, or oral muscle dysfunction.
Others have already explored medical, dental, or therapeutic care and are looking to understand how different aspects of their health may be connected.
Our work begins by listening. We take time to understand your experiences, review relevant history, and observe how your body functions.
Rather than focusing on one symptom or structure in isolation, we consider the relationships between breathing, oral function, airway anatomy, sleep, and recovery.
The purpose of an assessment is not simply to identify what is wrong. It is to understand what is happening, what may be contributing, and what can be supported.
Breathing Behavior Analysis and Training
Understanding how you breathe and how your body responds
Breathing behavior training explores the relationship between your breathing habits, respiratory chemistry, muscular coordination, and nervous system.
We use capnometry to measure exhaled carbon dioxide while observing how you breathe during rest, movement, and other activities.
Why it matters
Breathing influences circulation, oxygen delivery, muscle activity, and the physiological responses associated with stress.
When breathing becomes unnecessarily effortful or poorly matched to the body's needs, it may contribute to discomfort and affect how easily a person adapts to daily demands.
Our work may include:
- Understanding your individual breathing patterns and carbon dioxide regulation.
- Improving coordination between the diaphragm, rib cage, and surrounding muscles.
- Recognizing unnecessary effort, tension, or breath holding.
- Developing more comfortable and efficient breathing habits.
- Learning to adapt your breathing to rest, movement, and changing demands.
What will be asked of you?
Breathing behavior training is an active learning process. You will be invited to notice how you breathe, explore unfamiliar patterns, and practice specific skills between appointments.
Home practice is typically brief, often around 5 to 10 minutes daily. The goal is not to spend your day thinking about your breathing.
It is to develop skills that become increasingly natural, so breathing requires less conscious attention.
“As a physician I go out of my way to recommend Laura and her therapies to my clients because they are so transformative.”
Andrew Goldman, M.D., Boulder Valley Ear Nose and Throat
Double board certified in head and neck surgery, and in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery.
Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy
Helping the muscles of the tongue, lips, jaw, and face work together
Orofacial myofunctional therapy is a program of individualized exercises and behavioral training designed to improve oral muscle function.
We evaluate how these muscles participate in resting posture, swallowing, chewing, and other everyday activities.
Why it matters
The tongue, lips, and jaw play important roles in eating, swallowing, speaking, and maintaining comfortable oral resting posture. These functions also interact with nasal breathing, airway anatomy, and craniofacial development.
When muscles are not coordinating effectively, other structures may compensate. Therapy helps identify these patterns and develop more appropriate movement and coordination.
Our work may include:
- Improving tongue mobility and coordination.
- Developing comfortable tongue, lip, and jaw resting positions.
- Addressing compensatory patterns during swallowing and oral movement.
- Supporting efficient chewing and swallowing.
- Preparing for or supporting recovery after tongue tie release when appropriate.
- Coordinating functional therapy with dental, orthodontic, airway, or sleep care.
What will be asked of you?
Myofunctional therapy requires consistent participation. During appointments, we introduce exercises, observe how your muscles respond, and refine your technique.
Between appointments, you will practice the movements at home, typically for 10 to 15 minutes daily. Each exercise builds upon skills developed earlier in the program.
We progress when you demonstrate the ability to perform a movement with appropriate coordination, rather than simply advancing because a certain number of sessions has passed.
The goal is not to become good at exercises. It is to help the skills you learn become part of how you function every day.
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Adult MYO photo
“Breathe Colorado is not your typical Myofunctional Therapy Practice. Laura's compassionate coaching and unique expertise help her to care for her clients in a truly holistic way.”
Kevin Schwandt, DDS, Reclaim Dentistry, Wheat Ridge, CO
How these services work together
Breathing and oral muscle function are closely related, but they are not the same thing. Some clients benefit primarily from breathing behavior training. Others need focused myofunctional therapy.
And for some, addressing both provides a more complete understanding of the challenges they are experiencing.
A tongue may have adequate mobility but struggle to maintain a comfortable resting position because nasal breathing is difficult. A person may breathe through their nose but rely on excessive muscular effort or have breathing patterns that disrupt respiratory chemistry.
Someone preparing for a tongue tie release may benefit from learning to coordinate their tongue and surrounding muscles before the procedure. These situations call for different approaches.
The right starting point depends on understanding the person, not simply the diagnosis or procedure.
How we begin
Every new client begins with two appointments.
1
Initial Consultation
60 minutes · $200
Our first meeting is an opportunity to understand your concerns, experiences, health history, and goals.
We discuss what has brought you here, what you have already explored, and whether further assessment may be appropriate.
2
Comprehensive Assessment
2 hours · $450
We take a closer look at your breathing behavior, respiratory chemistry, oral muscle function, craniofacial structures, and relevant patterns of movement and compensation.
Depending on your needs, we may also discuss sleep physiology and whether further evaluation by another healthcare professional would be useful.
3
Your Individualized Plan
Together, we review what we have learned and determine whether breathing training, myofunctional therapy, a combination of both, or another form of care is the most appropriate next step.
We also discuss the time, practice, and participation that your program may require.
Your role in the process
Therapy is something we do together. My role is to provide careful assessment, education, guidance, and the opportunity to develop new skills.
Your role is to bring curiosity, communicate openly about your experiences, and make space to practice what we learn.
Progress is not always linear. Some skills come easily. Others take repetition, patience, and time.
There is no expectation that you arrive knowing how to do any of this. We begin with your current abilities and build from there.
The most meaningful changes are often the ones you gradually learn to create and sustain for yourself.
A partnership in understanding
At Breathe Colorado Wellness, our work is intended to complement the care you receive from your medical, dental, and other healthcare professionals.
We do not replace medical diagnosis or treatment. Instead, we help you explore aspects of breathing and muscular function that may benefit from additional attention, education, and practice.
My hope is that you leave with more than a collection of exercises. I want you to understand why we are doing what we are doing, recognize the signals your body provides, and develop greater confidence in your ability to respond to its needs.
Because the purpose of our work is not simply to improve how you function during an appointment. It is to support how you live, recover, and participate in the world beyond it.