I didn’t know about the secret language of nursing moms until my daughter was born, but soon I was laughing over niplash stories (ouch!) and occasionally NAKing (nursing at keyboard) with the rest of them.
There is one phrase I didn’t hear, though. One phrase which, given the opportunity, would be the one thing I’d tell my pre-parent self. In fact, if I could write a simple note and hurl it back in time, it would say this:
Research Tongue Ties
I mean sure, it’s great to have funny stories about washing my son’s new clothes with the tags (and hangers!) still attached. And leaving the house with mismatched shoes? Definitely snort worthy.
But really, I would have preferred to know that the level of sleep deprivation my son and I were both experiencing was not normal. I wish I’d known that he was waking so often to nurse because he couldn’t fully drain my breast during a feeding, and that eating more frequently was the only way he could compensate.
I wish I’d known he was tongue and lip tied.
When I shared our story’s happy ending and followed up with this post on how to identify tongue and lip ties at home, I never imagined that it would reach as many moms as it has. Fortunately, word is getting out with your help, and I receive a steady stream of messages from moms who’ve had an “aha moment’ that helped them on their breastfeeding journey. THANK YOU for that. Seriously.
This post is for those of you who have written to ask about pain-management after the procedure. As I’ve said before, I’m not an expert on this, but I will share what worked for me. If you’ve had the procedure done, please share anything you found helpful in the comments!
Before we get to that, though, let’s discuss two often-asked questions:
Do Babies Feel Pain?
It seems silly to even wonder about this, doesn’t it? And yet it’s what medical professionals used to believe, which is why they performed procedures like open heart surgery without anesthesia or pain killers. (source 1, source 2) Newer research contradicts this, and so does common sense, but occasionally I still hear it said.
When I considered whether or not to have both of my sons’ tongue and lip ties revised, I was very concerned about the discomfort it would cause my boys. Fortunately, the frenulum – or the skin that attaches the lip or tongue to the mouth – has very few nerve endings. The nerve endings of newborns are particularly underdeveloped – a fact I took comfort in when I had my second son’s ties revised just weeks after he was born. (Source: Personal conversations with Dr. Kotlow, a leading expert on tongue and lip ties, and conversations with several lactation consultants)
After weighing the risks and benefits, I felt certain that both my boys would benefit from a revision. Looking back, it made a huge difference both times, and I’m so glad I did. If I had the choice to make again, I’d definitely do it. Of course, I’d use the natural pain management techniques I’ve listed below, too.
Why Not Conventional Pain Relievers?
Though there is still a lot of research to be done, some evidence suggests that tongue ties may be more common in babies who have the MTHFR genetic mutation. It’s fairly common – some estimates say up to 50-60% of the U.S. population has some form of it. (source) Individuals with MTHFR mutations may have low levels of glutathione, a master antioxidant that is essential for cellular redox homeostasis, detoxification, immune function, oxygen transport, protection of DNA and other processes. (source 1, source 2)
Acetaminaphin – aka Tylenol – depletes glutathione from the body. (source) Given the range of illnesses in which low glutathione levels may play a role – ADD, autism, colitis, Chrohn’s, depression and eczema for example – my personal approach is to avoid Tylenol unless a person’s MTHFR status is known. (source 1, source 2, source 3, source 4, source 5, source 6, source 7,)
So what about ibuprofen? have not been able to find much information on it’s use in individuals with MTHFR, but some people I have spoken with think it’s a better option. However, the benefits still need to be weighed against the risks.
According to Dr. Claire McCarthy, “Researchers from Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis looked at medical records of children admitted to the hospital, and found that of those who had kidney damage, a significant number had been taking non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen or naproxen (Aleve). Some of the kidney damage was serious.
This isn’t news to doctors; we’ve known that along with possible bleeding problems, NSAIDs can damage kidneys. But we think of it as rare and we don’t always mention it to parents. Which is our bad. But since medications like ibuprofen and naproxen are readily available without a prescription, we don’t always get a chance to talk with parents about it either.” (source)
Fortunately, I found that boy of my little ones did very well with a more natural approach after their revisions. Here are some suggestions based on my experience:
Pain Management After Tongue And Lip Tie Surgery
Before The Procedure
Chiropractic and/or CranioSacral Therapy – Because the mobility of the tongue has been compromised, tongue tied children may experience whole body tension. It makes sense if you think about it – if for some reason you had to clench your teeth for an extended period of time you’d soon be feeling tension in your neck and shoulders. A visit to the chiropractor 1-2 days before the procedure may help release some of that tension so that a child goes into the procedure as comfortable as possible. Massage prior to the procedure may be helpful as well.
Rescue Remedy For Kids – About ten minutes prior to the procedure, I gave my youngest son Rescue Remedy For Kids using the dosage instructions on the label. He had been fussing a lot and I was worried that he’d be really upset about the procedure, but he immediately calmed down and went to sleep. Most of the time I notice a difference after giving Rescue Remedy, but it’s not typically that dramatic. However, my experience with the grown-up version is that it does have a calming effect even when it’s not outwardly obvious.
After The Procedure
Within 48 Hours
During this period I used Rescue Remedy with my son seemed uncomfortable. It’s also important to follow-up with chiropractic care and/or CranioSacral therapy if at all possible. According to Mellanie Sheppard, IBCLC, who is the lactation consultant who first educated me about ties, CranioSacral therapy administered by a skilled practitioner seems to consistently improve recovery and overall oral function following the procedure. (source: personal email)
With my older son I was able to follow-up with CranioSacral therapy, but when my younger son was born we found that the closest practitioner was a 5+ hour drive. We opted to see a skilled pediatric chiropractor instead, and saw excellent improvement.
And of course, it’s important to follow-up with a lactation consultant following the procedure. If your LC can’t meet you within 48 hours don’t stress, but do schedule a visit as soon as possible.
During Stretching Exercises
This was actually the part that both of my son’s seemed the most bothered by. With my youngest son I finally realized that it wasn’t so much due to discomfort, but due to the fact that he didn’t like my husbands huge fingers pressing around in his mouth. For that reason, we started waiting until he was asleep to do them. We gave him Rescue Remedy with a dropper as he slept, then waited 10 minutes and did the exercises. He fussed a little but didn’t even wake up most of the time.
Other Suggestions That May Help
Acupressure
A book I’m reading right now – 12 Acupressure Points For Pediatric Sleep & Wellness – says that stimulating the “heart point” on the hands can be helpful for tongue ties. I emailed the author to find out how acupressure could be helpful for a structural issue like ties, and she wrote back and said that it helps the area to relax.
Ice Water
According to Mellanie, whom I mentioned earlier, babies seem to tolerate stretches better when parents dip their fingers in ice water so that they are very cold prior to stretching.
Coconut Oil
Another tip Mellanie shared with me is to dip your fingers in a little coconut oil before massaging/stretching the area.
Do you have a tip for managing discomfort after a tongue/lip tie release? Please share it below!
Dear Heather, I have been reading and loving your blog for a long time. I was just wondering what does it take to get started? how much time do you spend a day? how do you find the time? Is there anyway you would write a post on writing a blog?
Thanks
I’m still trying to figure out what tongue and lip tie is….Do you have a post regarding that?
I sure do. Here’s an overview 🙂 https://mommypotamus.com/a-step-by-step-guide-to-diagnosing-tonguelip-ties/
My new granddaughter has lip and tongue ties. R there special bottles nipples that might help her?
I’m not sure. There’s a group called the Tongue Tie Babes Support Group on Facebook that may be able to share some insight on this.
My son (1 yr, 1 mth)had laser surgery this morning for a double lip tie, cheek ties, and tongue tie. The lip and cheek was severe, and the tongue moderate. Right after the procedure, he nursed wonderfully, but that was around 10 am. Now it’s 330pm and he refuses the breast. I’m trying so hard to just get him to latch but he just wont. I’m hoping to hear back from the dentist today 🙁
Do you know anyone whose baby “forgot” how to nurse after frenectomy? We had the procedure done on my 7th baby, who is a 27 weeker preemie, when he was about 2 weeks adjusted. I became totally panicked because he promptly forgot how to suckle on my breast AND a bottle. He lost weight for a few days.
Anyway, a CST and Chiropractor really helped him. We were dependent on a nipple shield but within 48 hours of his treatments, he was weaned from it. Hallelujah!
Do you think it might have been a nursing strike? They can happen for many reasons. http://www.llli.org/faq/strike.html
I’m glad CST and chiropractic care was so helpful!
I wasn’t sure where to post but this seems fitting.. My son is just about 5 months old and after all this time we finally realized why he was nursing so often and not sleeping.. Lip and tongue tied. Well he had it revised and he will not eat very often! Possible nursing strike? Or just major discomfort.. He won’t take breast or bottle.. I have syringe fed him a couple oz but that’s all he would take.. We see a lactation consultant tomorrow and had chiro today, however she didn’t seem to say much about it.. I’m feeling so overwhelmed and so lost! How do I get him to eat again!! Help
I’m in the same boat my Baby has here untied like a month a go and she decreed on her eating she only wants the bottle
This couldn’t come at a better time for me. My son is nineteen months old. We had a beautiful home birth. He latched right away and seemed to be doing great. I had some very painful first weeks nursing him that I hadn’t experienced with my others. Owen is my sixth baby. My midwife did say he had a lip and tongue tie but my pediatrician didn’t think so. Anyway he grew and was chunky and beautiful. But we started having problems when solids were introduced. He can’t eat anything that is not puréed. Smooth. Free from chunks. This has caused so much anxiety for me. We finally saw a holistic dr. that thought the problem could be a tongue tie. (Slap forehead). So we will be going to Dr. Kotlow and hopefully this will help his feeding issues. I feel terrible that he is this old and going to have this procedure done. I wish I had done this as soon as we knew he had these ties. I just feel terrible. And at the same time hopeful….
How did the revision go? We have an appt next week with Dr Kotlow. My little guy is 15 months.
I know this is an old post but we just saw Dr Kotlow today. Our two week old has been crying non stop and won’t eat I’ve been crying too as he’s never been this distraught. What worked for pain mgt? And how long did it take for your bAby to return to normal feeding?
Hi Kristen, I’m so sorry to hear he’s uncomfortable. You may find this post helpful: https://mommypotamus.com/pain-relief-after-tongue-and-lip-tie-surgery/
How old was your baby when you did the revision? How much of the rescue remedy do you give a 3 week old?
My youngest son was about two weeks old. I used the dosage instructions on the label.
Hi Janelle,
My daughter is 2.5 years old, and has had major feeding difficulties ever since she was born. I exclusively pumped and bottle fed, and she has always struggled with solids, and still does. Everything has to be pureed and smooth like your son. Finally after seeing several docs, specialists, feeding therapists, etc. we have discovered she has a lip & tongue tie!! We are getting is released on June 1st. I wanted to ask you, how did your son recover and does he eat solids, now??
Thank you in advance!
Thank you for another great tongue/lip tie post! Your post on diagnosing tongue ties pretty much saved my life when I was nursing my newborn baby girl non-stop, and putting her to sleep to get her to nurse as she screamed her head off whenever I put her to the breast awake. Then I had to work to get her to nurse while sleeping. I cried constantly for the first month. (She wouldn’t take a bottle.) No one, including my experienced midwife and lactation consultant, knew what was wrong. When I read your post on diagnosing tongue tie, sure enough she had a severe posterior tie (which is why no one saw it). Went to Dr Notestine at 8 weeks, who confirmed my mama instinct (moment of I’m-not-crazy-after-all!!)and lasered the tie. After two months of craniosacral therapy and chiropractic care we finally got the nursing thing figured out. Quite a journey, but we persevered and triumphed. So thank you a million million times for these posts!!!
Hello,
I looked up rescue remedy and it’s for 2 and up. How much for a 3 month old? Thank you.
Thank you for posting about this! Our son recently had surgery at the age of five to remove his tongue tie. I have been wanting to share our experience with others in hopes that it will be helpful. I received very differing information and could not find the information I needed to make the best decision for him. We adopted him from Korea at the age of two. It took us until the age of three to even realize that he had a tongue tie, and it was very random one day that I even noticed it. Once we realized it; however, I started connecting the dots. His speech difficulties were not simply related to his adoption, his cavities were not due to falling asleep with a bottle when he was a baby, his gagging and throwing up at meals was not his fault or due to too much food in his mouth, and the gap forming between his two front teeth was not normal. I had numerous doctors and a speech therapist tell me to wait on having the tie clipped. They said don’t do it at all or wait until he’s hold enough to decide. Our son also has anxiety about doctors so he had to go under general anesthesia when his cavities couldn’t wait any longer. We decided to have the tongue tie lasered at the same time. We are so thankful that we did! He ability to form sounds that used to be difficult or impossible is improving, he can use his tongue to clean food out of his teeth, he can move food around in his mouth to chew and swallow better so he doesn’t choke and gag, and many days lately he proudly shows me something new he can do with his tongue. I wish more people in the medical and speech community would see the value in this procedure. With the new laser techniques, the recovery seems to be shorter and less painful.
Annie,
How did he respond to doing stretches and what did you do for pain management after the procedure? I have a 5 year old and 2.5 year old with ties that I want to have taken care of. They are not really go with the flow type kids and the 2.5 year old hates for me to even brush her teeth. I can’t imagine having to do stretches with either of them following the procedure and don’t want to have the tissue heal back together
Rebecca,
We used IBuprofen for pain….There were no stretches recommended for our son. With the laser method, it seemed to heal quickly. There was some pain for 2-3 days and the doctor just gave us some vitamin E capsules that we punctured and then used the oil directly under the tongue to keep it lubricated for the first couple of days.
I am so glad that you wrote this post! I was wondering if you have any suggestions on pain management after a lip and tongue tie revision in an older child. I know that my 7 year old is going to have to have both his tongue and lip ties released very soon (fortunately they did not affect nursing much for us, and we had a very long and successful nursing relationship, but I am pretty sure they are affecting his teeth), and I am dreading what it will be like for him after the procedure. He has 2 copies of the C677T MTHFR mutation as well as a few other mutations, so I am very careful of what I put in his body. He is also VERY sensitive (probably because of the mutations), so I know that we are gong to need something fairly potent to help hm through the stretching exercises. We already see a chiropractor, and I do know of a great CST practitioner. ANY other ideas would be fabulous!!!! Thank you for all you do for all of us mamas out there!
My 8 year old had a tongue tie that prevented nursing. The docs said it was fine, but she could not latch. We had the tongue tie clipped at 4 months old. Fast forward 7 and a half years…I saw a guest post on wellnessmama from Heather, and a lightbulb went off because my daughter had a large space between her teeth and perpetually yellow front teeth. We went on the recommendation of a friend to a dentist who used the laser.
She was severely lip tied, I am so thankful that we caught it when we did, but wished it was done when she was a baby. My daughter was apprehensive, but after 10 minutes the procedure was done and she told the Dr. It was okay if he told the parents with babies who came in that it didn’t hurt her. She did all the exercises herself every hour on the hour, and she was so proud of her clean teeth and brand new smile.
we were blessed with a great dentist, and the pain was minimal to nonexistent. We didn’t have to give her any pain medication afterwards.
Also as a side note, I was a little bitter because I really feel like someone should’ve caught it much sooner. The dr said that about 50% of the time, when a child is lip-tied, they are also tongue-tied.
Anyway, I am truly grateful to you Heather for shedding light on the tongue tie and lip tie. It was such an emotional roller coaster when my daughter was a baby, I am so grateful that you helped me diagnose her lip tie as well.
I feel bitter as well and my son is only 15 months. I just hurt wondering how different the past 15 months could’ve been for us ? Why are these missed so often?
I went to a infant dental specialist to get my newborn’s ties resolved and she did wonderful! She used a lazier and he is doing great! i haven had chiropractic care done on him and he is still doing wonderful. my little guy can fuss but he has done great
I wish I’d read this 2 1/2 years ago! Might have eliminated the red to supplement with formula fir a couple months. Grateful to say my DD loves her nom noms still. However what really caught my attention was the mention of the MTHFR mutation. I just read something recently on it and it struck close to home regarding my spouse. When I read what you write in addition, it makes me wonder if my MIL and husband, and maybe my daughter have it too. Can’t wait to read about it in a future post. Love love love the work you do, thanks!
Looking forward to reading your upcoming post about MTHFR! I’d like to hear about whether you’ve done the testing (and where). I’ve read mixed things about testing and have been wondering whether to have it done for my child and myself. The whole MTHFR thing is rather confusing to me, though (and I sense I’m not the only one who feels that way!)…so I feel sort of stuck, unsure where to begin, how to choose a qualified practitioner, etc. I’d also like to know what you think of having the testing done in case it becomes necessary to have a medical exemption from vaccines, if the various laws regarding mandatory vaccination do go into effect.
Unfortunately, MTHFR mutations would not be enough to qualify for a medical exemption, even though though children with the mutation have compromised detox pathways. I am still educating myself but I will write as soon as I feel like I have something helpful to share 🙂
I have Factor II and MTHFR… my 5 month old son just had a tongue and lip tie revision. Would love to read more about MTHFR and the connection!!!
Gosh I wish I had read this when you posted it. We had my 4 wk old’s lip tie revised on Wednesday. The dentist who is somewhat popular here in Anchorage, AK for doing the procedure suggested ibuprofen so that’s what we gave our little guy. He’s doing fine but I would have preferred to use RR. Oh well! I did just schedule with a pediatric chiro. Hopefully a week after the revision won’t be too late to have him adjusted (?).
2 of my 4 children have had tongue ties (#1 and #3). I think #3 may also have a lip tie, but it’s hard to tell. She’s eating and talking just fine, so there’s probably no problem. Oddly enough, #1 (boy) and #3 (girl) have the same round, wide face shape. The other two children (both boys) have longer, oval face shapes. Also, from what I’ve been told, my own grandmother and her father, as well as some family members on my husband’s father’s side, have been tongue tied. All are mostly German heritage. Don’t know if any of these things make a difference, but it sure seems strange to me. It’s hard to tell if that means anything, since our children are 100% mutt with both of our ancestries put together. =)
Anyway… Thanks for bringing attention to tongue and lip ties! Most doctors don’t pay attention to that anymore. They’ll just tell you to bottle feed, since tongue-tied babies don’t usually nurse well. =P
Also, looking forward to what you learn about MTHFR mutations. I’ve done a little research, but nothing too useful.
I can’t wait for more on MTHFR. I just found out that my husband has two of the MTHFR genetic mutations. Thanks to your posts I discovered that our son had lip and tongue ties…everything made sense (difficulty with nursing, delayed speech, tooth decay). He had a laser procedure to correct his lip tie last year at age 6. We used turmeric and bromelain for pain control, along with a little Hylands teething gel. We did not administer any “calming” medication beforehand, just a little numbing cream with a local administered. Dr. Bobak Ghaheri in Gresham, Oregon is great! I highly recommend him. He is an ENT doctor, and trained with Dr. Kotlow out in NY. Dr. Kotlow refered me to Dr. Ghaheri. We will go back to evaluate if we need to do the tongue tie in the future or not.
Hey Heather! Your tongue and lip tie posts were what finally helped me piece together part of the many problems my son was having and i’m so grateful! Since then I’ve spent hours and hours researching – his tongue tie revision didn’t come until after he was trying to eat solids and we had many difficulties. I spent a lot of time putting this post together to hopefully help moms that are past the nursing stage and having problems with solids. I hope it’s eye opening to others like it was to me 🙂 http://realfoodwithkids.com/hidden-cause-childrens-eating-difficulties/
Thanks to your post about diagnosing tongue and lip ties, i knew what to look for when my second son was born. We had both tongue and lip revised at 6 weeks. I did have some Rescue Remedy on hand but never use it. I did use a couple of doses of arnica tablets. What is your opinion about Arnica? I’m afraid the tongue may have partially reattached but he is doing so well nursing that I plan to wait until we introduce solids to see hoe he does. Hopefully we won’t have to re-revise but if so, I would like to be prepared! We have been seeing a wonderful chiropractor who specializes in kids and CST. I’m even traveling 4 hours round trip each week to see her! He’s 12 weeks now.
Thank you so much for so much wisdom! I read this post while I was pregnant with my second child. He is now six weeks old. We have been all over creation trying to get to a dentist who would finally do a frenectomy if necessary. He had his today! I’m not nuts… He had both a posterior tongue tie and lip tie. We are using the homeopathic remedy arnica for pain. We gave him one before and for every two hours after. It’s helping a ton. We also used rescue remedy. The entire time I was reading, I was kicking myself for not knowing this when my 4.5 year old daughter was born. At two years old she was still nursing every two hours. I thought it was because I had “programmed” her that way. She has never been a fan of foods that require tremendous chewing like meats. She was sick a lot as a baby and had illness that would last for weeks on end. We have not had her diagnosed or treated because of her age and now she seems to be flourishing. I am so thankful to have read this and trusted my instincts and only wish I had found it sooner!
Thank you so much for this information. We had our sons lip and tongue tie procedures done a few days ago. We never had any nursing issues and only discovered these ties when his four front teeth started decaying and I found your site where we put two and two together. We are now eating a Weston Price diet and hoping for a remineralizing story like you had with your daughter.
I have two questions. My son is older (21 months), so with a mouth full of teeth, it it challenging to get the tongue tie stretches done without getting bitten. Any suggestions? Also, over how many days did you do the exercises for on your little ones? Thank you in advance!
I’m going to order the rescue remedy for kids and hope that helps him. I feel like I’m torturing him with every exercise and it’s breaking my heart.
My son is seven weeks old and had his lip and tongue ties released a week ago. Nursing effectiveness seems to have improved… But he’s crying has increased exponentially. We have seen a pediatric chiropractor… Who seemed to help some but this inconsolable baby is breaking my heart. The sites are definitely not infected. Not sure what else it could be. They are supposed to start feeling better after 24 to 48 hours… Whenever he is awake, and not eating, he is pretty much upset. Our dentist to do the procedure and has done it many many times with the laser says that this seems to be the exception to the rule. Anyone else experienced this?
Kristy, how did you use the turmeric and bromeliad? Our 6 year old needs to get a frenectomy and he is nervous, to say the least.
Sorry, this posted to the wrong comment.
Briley, perhaps he has emotional trauma/fear because of the procedure? I know he is young but if nothing else seems to be the cause it might be worth looking in to. Regardless, maybe try some tapping on him to help release whatever – emotional or physical – is bothering him. Look at The Tapping Solution website or Google tapping and babies/ kids.
Briley,
My son was 8 weeks old when he had his tongue and lip tie done last week., and we too are experiencing inconsolable crying. His latch is so much better but he will only eat I small spurts and sometimes completely screams If given the breast or bottle. We are at a loss!!! Please let me know how you are doing now or if you found a solution!
How is your little one now?
My 10 wk old had it done 5 days ago and it’s been awful. The stretches are killer and he’s not his typical happy self. I’ve been rotating motrin and Tylenol every time I have to do the stretches (every 4 hrs). I hate hate hate giving him either of these. We never give these to our children, in fact we didn’t even have any in the house and he’s #6.
I just need to know it gets better.
I’m praying your sweet little one is greatly improved!
Karla,
My little guy now 4.5 months old is much better. His latch is amazing and he has gotten really pudgy since his surgery putting on tons of weight. I can remember feeling so helpless but it will get better. It took him about 10 days to get back to himself and even then he would have a spell or two for another week. But now he is great!!! Best of luck and know that it is worth it in the end!
Hi Jana!
My 3.5 just got his tongue and lip tie clipped today. There has been a lot of blood today and now he’s vomited twice. The doc on call isn’t very helpful. I’m guessing this is from pain? (Or a stomach big with a really unfortunate coincidence?) I would never give a baby this small Tylenol or Motrin but am willing to do whatever if he’s seriously vomiting from pain! Did yours have any reactions like this?
Thank you for this post! My daughter (4 weeks old) just had laser done to correct her lip tie and tongue tie. We do stretches 4 times a day. My question is at what point do you think that a cst or chiropractor isn’t necessary?
Hi Heather,
We just had my daughter’s tinfue and lip ties revised by laser at 3 weeks old. I use rescue remedy and arnica on the recommendation of our holistic dentist. The first 24 hours she really struggled to feed and attach so I have ended up with mastitis. Now after 48 hours she is feeding better, (better than before the procedure as well which is a relief), but she still finds the stretches really painful. I give her the homeopathics beforehand and try to do it mid feed or when she’s asleep, but she ends up gasping I’m pain. I know the procedure is worthwhile in the end, but I’m struggling with hurting her every 4 hours. What do you think about the risks of pain meds vs the risk of damage due to experiencing regular pain, especially at the hands of her mum? I feel awful and like I’m torturing her 🙁
Hi Heather,
After reading about your and Micah’s tongue/lip tie experience, I can totally relate!
Recently I had another baby and he was born with a tongue/lip tie and a very high palate that was also diagnosed kind of late. In the beginning it was very difficult to nurse him and consequently my milk supply became low. Before I knew any better I turned to supplementing with a goats milk infant formula while waiting for lactation services to help me. His tongue/ lip tie revision will happen via laser on Dec 11th. My question(s) are by introducing the formula, did I just unintentionally ruin his gut bacteria now? I know you mentioned they seal around 6 mths. He gets a probiotic daily to help with his gut but by introducing so early did I just upset his delicate lil belly for who knows how long now? A bit of info for you, he’s 4 mths old, we have both began cranial-sacral therapy, stopped supplementation and got a great naturopath who has guided him and my diet as well. I too, also have the MTHFR gene mutation.
Thanks!
Hi Heather,
Have you come across any information/sites that indicate the doctors performing the tongue/lip procedures need a specific certification to use the laser as a form of treatment? I live in Oregon and my lactation consultant recommended a specific doctor to revise my sons tongue tie as he had an incomplete release of his tongue with surgical scissors by his pediatrician and he also needed lip tie release. The particular doctor she recommended is a pediatric dentist who performs the laser treatment in office but you must pay out of pocket. My husband and I had some concerns and decided to do more research. As it turns out her website only states she received “further education” to perform the frenectomies using the laser. During my research I found a highly recommended ENT who is one of the only ENT surgeons in Oregon who uses an in-office laser treatment. Is there a certification or some kind type of verification parents can look for to know the doctor, whether ENT or pediatric dentist, is in fact properly trained in this procedure and can use the laser??
Your best bet would be to find your local tongue and lip tie support group and ask for recomendations from other parents.
Start here: http://www.tt-lt-support-network.com/united-states-providers.html
I am unaware of any certification specific to laser for frenectomy but there are professionals who travel and lecture concerning the use of laser for this purpose.
A good place to start when seeking a professional may be to look into IATP members.
http://www.tonguetieprofessionals.org
My 3 week old had his tounge and lip tie fixed yesterday, since then he won’t eat at all. Won’t latch or take a bottle. I knoe he’s hungry but is getting very frustrated. Keeps trying but doesn’t have it down. What can I do?! Its horrible! How long will it last? 🙁
Wish I found this 7 months ago when my son was born. I actually came across this when I had Google to see of there’s a benefit to using coconut oil before the stretches. I for the life of me couldn’t get my son to latch the day we left the hospital. 7 months old as of march 4th today we had it revised! He had a shallow latch, clicked while nursing or taking a bottle, apnea, snored, and always acted hungry while nursing. If I’d pump before he’d instantly be frustrated. Go figure. I took the easy stuff. If I pumped after I only got 1 to 2 oz less that I would pumping before feeding. (I played around for about two months before that averaged out. I’d feed whatever I pumped) can’t wait for our journey to be more pleasant for both of us. Here’s to hoping! (And yes, I think I’m going to do a mix of breast milk and coconut oil under his tongue, maybe a drop of oragel too, undecided)
Hi- if I’m not able to find a great chiropractic or cranio sacral therapy in westchester, ny area. For my 19 month old son. Just using the rescus remedy for kids ok for the lip tie ok?
My daughter Rose is 17 months old, and had her tongue and lip tie revision earlier today. I used Rescue Remedy, arnica, and hylands teething tablets, and tried to nurse her a lot. She did better in the morning, and was surprisingly happy/ playful. After her afternoon nap, it was a different story. She won’t nurse (and that is the primary way she has been getting nutrition), and won’t even drink water. She makes the sign for “milk” and says “momma” and her version of “milk milk”, but when I put her to breast she just rests her lips loosely around my nipple/ occasionally bites down, but won’t suck. I finally gave her some Ibu profin, and she fell asleep, but still wouldn’t nurse beforehand. I’m scared of how the next 3 weeks are going to go, and have read all the above posts – I called a chiropractor last week, but wasn’t able to get scheduled yet. I’m not sure if there are any craniosacral therapists where I live. I have never heard of “the tapping solution”, but can look that up. Any other ideas?, for pain management and getting her to eat? Is it better to give her heavier doses of arnica and no Ibu profin?, or is that dangerous as well? I’m a single mom and live with my parents at the moment, so I feel like I have to be that much more on top of it – as if every time she is in pain or not eating, it is entirely my fault. The exercises are also tough for me to do (emotionally – to watch her get so upset), and I’m wondering if there is some sort of numbing gel that exists that might help her? She ate SO much better than she ever has right after we got home, but since 5 won’t eat anything…and it’s after midnight now. I can’t sleep because I’m worried about her and how I am going to do the stretches in the dark at 2 am by myself, and have her not be able to nurse for comfort afterwards :/. Help!
Similar story here… It’s been a week now since we lasered my 3-month old daughter’s tongue tie and she does not feed well, not even from a bottle. @Mommypotamus, how did your sons recover? How long did it take to see impact?
My daughter is now 3 years old, she still has a tongue tie, she’s having difficulty speaking. She’s going into surgery in about 3 weeks but I’m very afraid she’s going to be put under anesthesia. I don’t know if I should wait until she’s about 10 years old talk through it with her so they could just do her a local anesthesia. And not put her through this situation at this early age. I need some advise Thank you .
Arnica homeopathy is safe for all ages and is a great pain reliever