During VitalStim, Sara our therapist, is teaching Ella to suck/swallow (thickened) water through a straw. It's amazing how difficult it is for Ella to seal her lips...it's all neurological. This trick will also help with her speach since you have to seal your lips for a lot of sounds...like "ma", "ba", etc. We'll let you know how the new swallow study goes on September 5th.