Is it possible to lengthen your tongue

The goal is for your tongue to lie still in your mouth and not wiggle around. Things to notice:. If you feel your tongue wanting to wriggle around, just breathe and relax it as best you can. Relax your jaw, and let it drop with gravity. Let your tongue rest inside the basin formed by your lower teeth, and try to let it rest just at the level of the tops of your teeth. To stretch your tongue, you need to press your tongue tip down, behind your lower front teeth, and let the top surface of the blade of your tongue touch the back of your lower front teeth as you roll the middle and back of your tongue forward.

Let your jaw drop and think a gentle smile to make room for the movement of your tongue. It may take a few weeks to notice an improvement in your swallowing. As your ability to swallow improves, your risk of aspiration will decrease. Your SLP may be able to change your diet and allow you to eat certain types of food again. This can improve your nutritional intake, your overall health, and your quality of life.

Continue to practice all of your swallowing exercises as prescribed by your SLP. If you miss practice session, you may have less improvement. Work closely with all the members of your healthcare team to properly treat your condition.

Health Home Treatments, Tests and Therapies. Why might I need tongue-strengthening exercises? Different medical conditions can lead to swallowing problems. What are the risks of tongue-strengthening exercises? How do I get ready for tongue-strengthening exercises? Your SLP can let you know if there is anything else you need to do before getting started. What happens during tongue-strengthening exercises? As an example, you may be asked to: Stick out your tongue as far as you can.

Put something flat like a spoon or tongue depressor on your tongue. Push against your tongue with the flat object, and push your tongue against the object. Hold for a couple of seconds. Repeat 5 times. Repeat the exercise above 5 times. This time, put the spoon or depressor below your tongue instead. Extend your tongue as far as possible to the corner of your mouth while pushing against a depressor.

Repeat on the other side of your mouth. Repeat the whole process 5 times. Extend your tongue to the bumpy part on the top of your mouth right behind your teeth. Then curl your tongue back toward the back of your mouth as far as possible. Hold for a few seconds. As example, you may be asked to: Inhale and hold your breath very tightly. Bear down like you are having a bowel movement. Keep holding your breath and bearing down as you swallow.

Perform tongue exercises. Repeat this exercise three or four times. Moving your tongue back and forth across the outside of your top lip.

Closing your mouth and moving your tongue between your right and left cheeks. Moving your tongue in and out of your mouth several times. Method 2. Understand the basics of Kechari Mudra yoga. Kechari Mudra is an advanced yoga practice in which the practitioner uses their tongue to strengthen their body and raise their level of consciousness.

Begin practicing Kechari Mudra. While sitting in a comfortable position, roll your tongue up to touch your upper palate. See how far back your tongue is able to go. You may only be able to touch your hard palate when first starting out.

Hold your tongue back until you start to feel pain, then rest your tongue in its normal position. As you continue practicing Kechari Mudra Yoga, your tongue should stretch and reach further back towards your uvula. After you gain some confidence, you can practice Kechari Mudra while engaging in light activities. Seek the guidance of an advanced yogi. In the final stages of Kechari Mudra, your tongue should be long enough to go behind your uvula and up into your nasal cavity.

Your guide may recommend the application of butter or ghee to draw out and lengthen your tongue. At this point, your tongue should be long enough to reach the center of your eyebrows. Even with a guide, Kechari Mudra may take months or years to master. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Consult with a doctor before performing yoga or other tongue stretching exercises. Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0. Related wikiHows How to. How to.

About This Article. Co-authored by:. Co-authors: Updated: January 21, Categories: Tongue Health.