Breathe
First
Specialist functional therapy for better breathing, sleep and jaw comfort — online and across Greater Manchester & the Midlands.
Myofunctional therapy (OMT) retrains the tongue, lips and facial muscles to support nasal breathing, healthier swallowing and jaw stability. It can help with mouth breathing, snoring, TMJ pain and more. Learn how it works and what to expect.
Breathe First can help:
- Achieve better quality sleep
- Relieve headaches and jaw pain at the source
- Increase in energy levels
Areas we Support
We help clients improve breathing habits, oral posture, and muscle function through functional, evidence-based functional therapy and education.
Jaw Discomfort and TMJD
Jaw pain, stiffness, clicking, headaches, or difficulty opening your mouth? TMJD affects daily life, but targeted therapy can help restore comfort and function.
Mouth
Breathing
Breathing with an open mouth can cause dry mouth, fatigue, and facial changes. Common signs include low oral tone, parted lips, and difficulty closing the lips. Therapy retrains nasal breathing for better health and aesthetics.
Tongue Tie / Oral restriction
A restricted tongue can affect speech, swallowing, and breathing. Common signs include difficulty lifting the tongue, mouth breathing, and trouble with certain sounds. Therapy improves mobility and function for better oral health.
Sleep Disordered Breathing
Interrupted breathing during sleep can cause snoring, fatigue, and poor oxygen flow. Signs include mouth breathing, restless sleep, and daytime tiredness. Therapy supports better airway function for restful sleep and overall health.
Tongue
Thrust
Pushing the tongue forward when swallowing can affect speech, teeth alignment, and jaw development. Signs include open-mouth posture, lisping, and misaligned teeth. Therapy retrains tongue posture for better oral health.
Thumb sucking and habit remediation
Thumb sucking, pacifier overuse, or lip and cheek biting can affect teeth alignment and jaw development. Therapy helps break habits for better oral health and function.
Sensory
Integration
Helps the brain and body work together for better coordination, focus, and overall function. Therapy supports oral and breathing patterns for improved well-being.
Malocclusion / Orthodontic Retention
Malocclusion is misaligned teeth, causing jaw pain or chewing issues. Without support, teeth may shift after treatment. Therapy helps maintain alignment.
Speech
Supports clear speech by addressing articulation, phonology, motor speech disorders, voice issues, and stammering. Therapy improves communication and confidence.
Feeding
Supports the chewing and swallowing process for safe, efficient eating. Therapy improves oral coordination, strength, and sensory awareness.
Featured event
Helping a Mouth-Breathing Child: Routines, Signs & Solutions (Live Webinar) – 21st Nov – 7:30pm (GMT)
A live 1-hour webinar for parents: learn how to spot mouth-breathing signs, build fun daily routines, and support healthier sleep and development. Includes printable habit tracker, early-warning guide, and live Q&A with Emily Kirkcaldy.
Helping a Mouth-Breathing Child: Routines, Signs & Solutions – Webinar
A live 1-hour webinar for parents: learn how to spot mouth-breathing signs, build fun daily routines, and support healthier sleep and development. Includes printable habit tracker, early-warning guide, and live Q&A with Emily Kirkcaldy.
Helping a Mouth-Breathing Child: Routines, Signs & Solutions (Live Webinar) – 26th Jan – 7:30pm (GMT)
A live 1-hour webinar for parents: learn how to spot mouth-breathing signs, build fun daily routines, and support healthier sleep and development. Includes printable habit tracker, early-warning guide, and live Q&A with Emily Kirkcaldy.
Helping a Mouth-Breathing Child: Routines, Signs & Solutions (Live Webinar) – 26th March – 7:30pm (GMT)
A live 1-hour webinar for parents: learn how to spot mouth-breathing signs, build fun daily routines, and support healthier sleep and development. Includes printable habit tracker, early-warning guide, and live Q&A with Emily Kirkcaldy.
Breathing & Sleep: Improve Snoring, Mouth Breathing & Grinding Webinar
A 1-hour online session with lead Breathe First clinician, Emily Kirkcaldy. Learn why poor breathing habits affect sleep, and discover simple exercises & nightly routines to reduce snoring, mouth breathing, and grinding.
Breathing & Sleep: Improve Snoring, Mouth Breathing & Grinding – Webinar – 5th Feb 2026 – 7:30pm (GMT)
A 1-hour online session with lead Breathe First clinician, Emily Kirkcaldy. Learn why poor breathing habits affect sleep, and discover simple exercises & nightly routines to reduce snoring, mouth breathing, and grinding.
Meet the team
Emily Kirkcaldy
Highly Specialist SALT, OMT, BBM, YTM (DIP)
I’m Emily, the Owner and Lead Clinician at Breathe First with over 20 years of experience as a Speech and Language Therapist, dedicating the last 5 years to airway focus and oral restrictions/dysfunction. I pride myself on a high quality of patient care, with trust at the centre of the therapeutic relationship.
Maureen Segree
SALT, OMT
I'm Maureen, I am a Specialist Speech and Language Therapist with 30 years of experience, also specialising in Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy. I’m passionate about helping clients improve communication and oral function.
Alice Spencer
Specialist SALT, OMT and BBM
I'm Alice, a therapist specialising in myofunctional therapy and speech and language development, with training in the Buteyko Breathing Method. I use a holistic, evidence-based approach to improve breathing, oral function, and communication for better overall health.
Katie Harp
SALT, OMT
I’m a qualified myofunctional therapist with over 16 years’ experience as a speech and language therapist, specialising in dysphagia and neurological communication disorders. I’m passionate about providing high-quality, evidence-based support, and I love helping people improve their health and wellbeing through my work with Breathe First.
Holly Maya Greenwood
SALT, OMT
I’m Holly, a clinician at Breathe First. I have over 10 years of experience as a Speech and Language Therapist, and I am also trained in movement therapy, manual therapy for voice, swallowing and TMJ disorders, and orofacial myofunctional disorders.
Natalie Golden
RDH, OMT
I'm Natalie, a Registered Dental Hygienist with 25 years of clinical experience. I also practise Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy (OMT), supporting children and adults to improve their breathing, oral posture, and overall function with a calm and practical approach.
Amy Schofield
BSc (Hons) MRCSLT, HCPC, MASLTIP
I’m Amy, a Specialist Speech and Language Therapist with over 13 years of experience. I specialise in speech sound disorders and Orofacial Myofunctional Therapy (OMT). I work collaboratively and am passionate about developing oral function and communication to support people's health and overall wellbeing.
Helen Fraser
SALT, OMT
I’m Helen, a Speech and Language Therapist with over 18 years of clinical experience and specialist training in myofunctional therapy. I offer a warm, personalised approach to evidence-based care, supporting people to enhance their quality of life through improved communication and oral function.
What patients say
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Breathe First have changed my life in the space of 3 months. At 34 I learned through the course of other therapies that my breathing was shallow and my tongue posture wasn’t resting correctly at the roof of my mouth or making contact here when I swallowed.
I reached out because I’m a singer and was worried about the impact this was having on my voice. My initial contact was with Louise who was swift and above-and-beyond helpful in arranging an initial assessment, as she has in organising sessions since. The assessment was carried in-person by Emily during which I learned I had numerous structural oral issues, that they were affecting my voice in many more ways than I considered, and that my voice was just the tip of the iceberg in terms of problems my oral issues were contributing to, including (not limited to) chronic pain, headaches, sinus symptoms, stress, anxiety, exhaustion, and postural and facial appearance trashing my confidence.
I am neurodivergent and struggle with explaining and organising things and I found this process informative and accessible, with Emily taking time to get to know me, to genuinely listen and interpret my challenges and my goals, and by the end providing a detailed report outlining with my myofunctional issues, a therapy plan and a number of recommendations all tailored to my needs evident in how useful they continue to be....
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Breathe First are fantastic and Emily is a kind, understanding and creative therapist. 6 months ago, it never even occurred to me that it would be possible to breathe through my nose due to my cleft lip and palate.
Thanks to Emily's help, my brain has learnt to nose breathe even through the night and I wake up more refreshed. My tongue and jaw muscles are also stronger and my speech is beginning to improve.
I can't recommend Breathe First highly enough.
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Excellent service. Thorough and detailed assessment. Top quality coaching to learn the myofunctional exercises I required. I have personally noticed reduced TMJ pain as well as improved digestion.
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Emily has been and continues to be a monumental help to my child who has complex needs and suffers with a jaw that has locked. We were told he needed surgery to fix it and with Emily's help he's managing to open it once again and begin to learn how to use it again , with hopefully no need for surgery. He immediately took to Emily and trusted her which has meant he's had the most out of all her sessions. She's also helped hugely with his communication.
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My 6 year old son has been struggling with proper nasal breathing since birth due to posterior tongue tie. Emily has been very helpful to identify the root causes of the problem and set out a clear plan of action for myofunctional therapy. She has been very engaging with my son, showing patience, understanding and appreciation when appropriate. Since the therapy there has been a marked improvement in my son's tongue posture and ability to move his tongue correctly. I have also noticed a positive change of behaviour due to him getting a more rested sleep. I'm really pleased with the results so far and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Emily!
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I took my 2.5 year old to see Emily and I left feeling so relieved to finally have some answers and solutions to what has been causing a multitude of issues for my son. Emily made her session fun, engaging and child friendly and was very thorough with her assessment! We have age appropriate games to play with my son to help work on what he needs to and I feel like we're finally on the right tracks to helping him after finding Emily online - thank you!
You're in good hands
Breathe First’s teams have over 20 Years of experience in SALT, AOMT & Buteyko Breathing.
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Years of experience
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Specialisms
Flexible treatment
Life is busy and that is why we are flexible with providing therapy online. Typically we ask for a initial face-to-face consultation.
Online
consultation available
Face to face
clinic available
Myofunctional Therapist or Want to Become One?
Ready to advance beyond traditional dental hygiene or speech therapy? Breathe First equips you with the skills to create real impact while enjoying:
- Flexible Hours (online)
- A Supportive, Expert-Led team environment
- Opportunities in a Rapidly Growing Field
