At home
Therapy at your kitchen table, where the hard meals actually happen.
Feeding therapy for kids in Richmond, VA
Dinner shouldn't feel like a battle. If your child eats five foods, gags on new textures, or cries when a plate hits the table, you're not doing anything wrong. Feeding therapy can help.
We work with children from infancy through the teen years, in your home or at daycare around Richmond, and online over Zoom for families anywhere in Virginia or Illinois. Your first step is a free 15-minute phone call.
Is it picky eating, or something more?
A lot of kids go through a picky phase. Most grow out of it. It's worth a closer look, though, if any of these sound familiar:
- Your child eats fewer than 20 foods, and the list keeps getting shorter.
- They gag, cough, or vomit with certain textures.
- Meals take longer than 30 minutes most days.
- They drop whole food groups, like all fruits or all meats.
- Mealtimes end in tears, theirs or yours.
- Your pediatrician has mentioned weight or growth.
You don't need to be sure before you call. That's what the evaluation is for.
What feeding therapy looks like
It starts with an evaluation. Karlie watches your child eat a few familiar foods, looks at how their mouth and tongue move, and asks about the foods they take, the ones they refuse, and what a typical day of meals looks like. Then you get a plan you can use at your own table.
No two kids' sessions look the same. Depending on what's behind the struggle, a session might look like play, mouth exercises, eating together, or a mix. When the concern is sensory, we go slowly: kids look at, touch, and smell a new food long before anyone asks them to taste it, and nobody forces a bite.
You're part of every session. We'll show you what to try at home this week and what to skip, so progress keeps going between visits instead of starting over each time.
Training behind the therapy
Karlie Libraro, M.S., CCC-SLP, has worked as a speech-language pathologist since 2015. She is trained in the SOS Approach to Feeding and the Beckman Oral Motor Protocol. Both are well known in pediatric feeding. SOS is for children who have sensory concerns with food or a very limited diet. Beckman is for children who need help with the oral motor part of eating.
Where we meet
At daycare
With the center's permission, we can work with your child's teachers so new foods show up at lunch too.
Online
Live Zoom sessions for families in Virginia and Illinois, with coaching for you at your own table.
In-person visits are within about 20 minutes of Richmond, in Richmond and Henrico, and in Chesterfield case by case. Private-pay home visits farther out have a travel fee.
Cost and insurance
We're in network with Virginia Medicaid, four of its managed care plans, and several commercial plans. Coverage for feeding therapy depends on your plan, so check with your insurance before you start, and we'll help you know what to ask. Private pay is $250 for the evaluation and $125 for a session.
- Phone consultation, 15 minutes
- Free
- Evaluation, 1 hour
- $250
- Therapy session, 30 to 45 minutes
- $125
Questions families ask
My pediatrician says they'll grow out of it. Should I wait?
You can always start with the free call. If it sounds like a phase, we'll tell you. If it doesn't, you'll know what to do next.
Will you make my child eat foods they hate?
No. Kids eat more when they feel safe at the table. Pressure usually backfires.
How long does feeding therapy take?
It depends on your child, how many foods they eat now, and what's getting in the way. We'll talk about a realistic plan after the evaluation, and we'll check in on it together as you go.
Do I have to be in the session?
Yes, if you can. You're the one at the table every day, so the strategies have to work in your kitchen, with your schedule and your child.
Start with a free call
Book a free 15-minute phone consultation. Tell us what mealtimes look like right now, what you've already tried, and what worries you most, and we'll talk through whether an evaluation makes sense for your child. You don't have to figure this out alone.