Tongue tie- any experiences?
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Just a positive story for you. My first daughter’s tongue tie wasn’t found until 6 months and I had it cut privately then and although the process was horrible (my husband had to hold her down). After 30 mins she had forgotten all about it and was back to normal. Good luck with whatever you decide x
Both of my kids have had tongue and lip ties (they usually come together!) My first baby didn’t have his done until he was 5 months old as we tried soo many channels through the NHS and no one was prepared to cut it because he was always latching well and gaining weight. He had really bad reflux and the GP just prescribed him omeprazole! With my second I had hers done privately at 8 weeks (as soon as she was old enough for pain relief) For both of my babies I’ve taken them to the same tongue tie specialist who uses a co2 laser to do it rather than snipping as it doesn’t bleed, they numb it first and it’s less likely to reattach. The reflux and sleep issues went shortly after having their tongue/ lip ties sorted! Tongue ties don’t only affect feeding in babies. As you are experiencing it can cause reflux, as well as sleep issues, tension, speech delays etc! It’s definitely worth having done (in my opinion!)x
My baby had tt snipped at about 5 weeks old, reflux symptoms, wind, unsettled ect. Slowly getting better but not great still and generally a fussy baby x
We went privately as the NHS told us their waiting list was 8 weeks or more, we had it done at 3 weeks old. Many private places will only do it up to very young ages as they do it without anaesthetic. Also I think they older the less it will help because they have already developed their bad latch and can't really learn to get better.
@Abbie what kind of sleep issues did you have with your little ones?
Thank you everyone for sharing these! Really helpful x
@Alexandria they were both very uncomfortable being on their back as they had pretty bad gas/ reflux and lots of tension They also both needed to nurse little and often so woke up basically every hour 😴 @Emmo this isn’t entirely true. The place I had both my babies done used a numbing cream and swaddled them (even though my oldest was 5 months). Usually before 12 months they will swaddle and do the procedure as normal and after this they typically use general anaesthetic. When I took my oldest there was a mum there with a 7 and 5 year old waiting for them both to have it done! After my oldest had his done at 5 months he definitely had a different/ better latch. An osteopath and lactation consultant can help with this too
I saw an IBCLC earlier this week and she confirmed my son has a posterior tongue tie. He’ll be 11 weeks tomorrow. She’s not overly concerned as he has been gaining weight well. And I’m not too concerned with his feeding either. He is also suspected of having CMPA and has silent reflux (so I know how tough this can be!) but he’s breastfed so I’m trying to manage as much as I can through my own diet. He doesn’t take the dummy and sometimes has a hard time feeding. My IBCLC said that the cut off for referrals to snip the tongue tie depends on the hospital - I’m in London so St Thomas’ cut off is when baby is 12 weeks old but at Kings’ College it’s 5 months old. If you feel that your son is struggling with feeding I think it’s worth getting a second opinion to see whether it’s worth the referral to get it cut. Feeding and looking after a baby is so tough as it is. If it helps to make things easier for you both, I think it’s worth getting a second opinion. Best of luck with it all x