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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Thinking against tongue tie procedure?

48 replies

mumof2littlemonkeysx · 07/06/2022 15:48

I have a 7 week old son. Who is very very unsettled he screams all day long probably only sleeps for 2 hours a day split in little chunks. He will scream in car, scream in pram, scream in sling& baby carrier!! Nothing works not even holding him helps if anything hit makes him worse ! He is on omeprazole 10mg a day along with infant gaviscon and neocate formula for CMPA. Milk is fab but his reflux is awful the meds aren't agreeing with him at all and the doctors have said there will be no more help and that they have done all they can! To the point of this post is he has tongue tie and he has procedure to get it cut next week but I'm scared it will make him worse? Will it really be worth it? Everything we have tried up in till now has only made things worse:(

OP posts:

Redbushteaforme · 07/06/2022 20:54

My DS had a very severe tongue tie - screaming with hunger, trying to feed non-stop and lost 10% of his birth weight . Was diagnosed (thankfully) at five days and had the procedure about five days later. Didn't even wince and was a different boy immediately. As well as sorting out the feeding problems, sorting a tongue tie can help prevent future speech problems and may also help future dental health (without a tongue tie, people use their tongue sub-consciously to "clean" their teet.

I don't know if it will sort all your baby's problems but if he has been diagnosed with a tongue tie and is having problems feeding, I would certainly think that you should go for it.

Good luck!

Redbushteaforme · 07/06/2022 20:55

Above should read: "clean their teeth" ...

poppyart · 07/06/2022 21:48

My DD had it done and she didn't even cry, i had mine cut as an adult and honestly it was horrendous, i would go ahead and get it done

ClinkeyMonkey · 07/06/2022 22:21

My situation was similar to Twizbe. DS1 was born with a tongue tie, but we decided not to have it cut as he was feeding well. The midwife described it as 'a real doozy'. I then realised that I have one myself. The only issue I have is that I can't stick my tongue out very far at all😛 But I had no idea it was due to a tongue tie. My cousin had her DS's tongue tie cut and was very happy with her decision. It did help with his feeding difficulties, but he still had horrible reflux.

Original poster

mumof2littlemonkeysx · 08/06/2022 13:25

Thank you so much for everyone's helpful replies ! I've decided to still go to the appointment and she will asses him and go through everything with me

OP posts:

Original poster

mumof2littlemonkeysx · 08/06/2022 13:29

Does this look like one? I'm beginning to think maybe he doesn't even have one ?

OP posts:

SBAM · 08/06/2022 13:36

@mumof2littlemonkeysx can he stick his tongue out at all? My daughters posterior tie wasn’t really visible but the feeding specialist I saw said that because she couldn’t stick her tongue out it was likely that she couldn’t move it correctly to feed, which in turn causes them to take in more air which can worsen reflux.

Belephant · 08/06/2022 13:37

Hi OP, those photos look similar to what I remember my little one's looking like, but I believe it's hard to tell from photos as sometimes a frenulum may look bad but actually not be very restrictive in reality, and vice versa - some don't look bad but they do actually restrict the tongue very badly. That's what the lady who did my son's said anyway!

I couldn't believe how quick and simple the procedure was. We had no issues whatsoever and it healed well and quickly. DS was passed to me instantly for a feed after she cut it which meant there were minimal tears. The procedure made his latch instantly loads better. Unfortunately we had other issues which affected his latch and reactions to my breast milk so it wasn't quite a cure-all for us. But it did certainly have a positive effect!

cadburyegg · 08/06/2022 13:37

I had 2 babies with tongue tie. Your baby looks like he has an obvious tie, but i'm no expert.

Both of my babies ties were cut and it made a huge difference. Particularly with DS1 as we didn't get his cut til he was nearly 4 months due to it being missed multiple times. I was cross about it for a long time because i had 4 months of hell before it was cut. Screaming all day, a constantly unhappy baby. I don't have a single picture of him looking happy and content before he was 4 months old. Within a week of it being cut he was a different child and I could actually enjoy him and was no longer concerned about taking him out in public. Having DS2 was a much nicer experience because i was able to get his tie cut at 8 weeks at the first sign of an issue.

I don't take much notice of people saying things like oh well every baby is tongue tied it's a huge money making thing etc etc... the amount of babies who have their tongue ties cut is of no concern to me and to be honest it's well known that it's undiagnosed. Yes I went privately but the practitioner i went to told me to really consider the procedure and with my second, advised waiting a few weeks to have it done. maybe for some babies it turns out to be not needed after all but the father of my kids is still tongue tied in his mid 30s and struggles to say certain words and eat certain foods. As well as the issues i talked about above i didn't want that for my children.

This is not aimed at you but it confuses me the amount of medication that the NHS are happy to prescribe to tiny babies but they refuse to acknowledge and fund practitioners to help parents with tongue tied babies. The likes of ranitidine and omeprazole never used to be prescribed as much as they are now.

jgjgjgjgjg · 08/06/2022 14:14

Obviously I've got no idea why you made the feeding decisions that you did. But is there any way you could look in to re-lactating and at least partially breastfeeding him?

It's not always a magic cure of course, but it's much easier to feed little and often if breastfeeding.

Apart from that, have you explored the possibility of cows milk protein allergy? Or even lactose intolerance?

Spottydotdotty · 08/06/2022 14:24

Both of mine had tongue ties and both got snipped on the NHS which made a big difference to their ability to feed (although they were both bottle fed by that point)

I have a tongue tie myself and it doesn't make a lot of difference to my life, I have a very very slight lisp and find licking an ice lolly tiring after a while but that's it!

See what they say at the assessment but if it is a tie I'd definitely get it done, it takes seconds and doesn't affect them afterwards at all

GranSu · 11/08/2022 15:27

How to find someone to cut the tongue tie [Frenotomy] ? ?Help ! 9 day old Grand daughter. Referred to ATP website but few local & some seem like money makers! eg weeks of extra treatment needed. Do believe that procedure is needed and not a fad. Prior to the 1950s midwife would check and do it herself. No fuss . Tongue tie is common.

GranSu · 11/08/2022 15:33

Good luck by by to Mumof2

CocoPlum · 11/08/2022 15:55

I've had two BF babies and I am a very experienced breastfeeding practitioner.

I would say it's unlikely to make things worse, but we find that the division takes at least 2 weeks to really make a difference (and maybe a little more as he's 7 weeks now). But you really do need to seek out specialist breastfeeding support both now and after the division. Correcting his restricted tongue movement will only do so much if there are changes you can make to your positioning and attachment.

Good luck. You're doing so well, it's so hard.

tithead22 · 11/08/2022 16:08

His tongue looks like a bowl. My daughter’s did before she had her tongue tie snipped. Once she had it done and she was able to breastfeed effectively, she went from below the 0.4th centile to the 9th. No-one will snip it if it doesn’t need doing - go to your appointment. Might be that you pay just for the consultation. We were lucky and my daughter was seen at Alder Hey.

I also recommend some cranial osteopathy or some physio because they can be stiff and uncomfortable. The IBCLCs I saw had a good overview of body work and how it improves feeding.

My daughter also had reflux and only properly grew out of it in the last few weeks as she turned 9 months. Only just stopped fighting to get omeprazole down her every day. TT didn’t make a difference there, but weaning did.

You’ll get there eventually!

tithead22 · 11/08/2022 16:12

@cadburyegg

Absolutely! It’s ridiculous that such an important public health role is carried out by volunteers for the most part. I don’t know what I’d have done without fantastic breastfeeding peer support because we had one single appointment with an NHS IBCLC and were discharged without any follow up.

PineappleWilson · 11/08/2022 16:12

Do it, my DD struggled to feed and it made such a difference for her. We had to pay to go private as there's no NHS cover in our area (don't get me started on this) but it was well worth the money.

APurpleSquirrel · 11/08/2022 16:24

GranSu · 11/08/2022 15:27

You should be referred to a midwife or other practitioner who can cut the tongue tie by your dr, midwife or Health visitor.

BlankaBanka · 11/08/2022 16:44

I wish my parents had fixed my tongue tie when I was a baby. I can barely stick my tongue out of my mouth and it it frustrating in a million silly ways. My Mum
regrets not dealing with it when I was a baby.

Yes, I could get it done now, privately, but I’m too scared!

PurpleFlower1983 · 11/08/2022 16:45

My DS had it at 3 weeks, over in seconds and much more settled.

SNAFU247 · 11/08/2022 16:48

It is honestly over so quickly and really doesn't cause much drama - certainly my DS had more tears at his 8wk jabs than he did getting his tounge tie cut at 6wks. We went privately.

His tounge tie was only 50% but it really impacted his feeding, despite being bottle fed. He made weird wind noises and 'clucked/clicked' when he sucked. He was like a different baby within a few hours of his procedure - genuinely. I gave him a bit of milk when he had it done to soothe him, and he had a proper feed about 2.5 hours later and I was shocked at the speed he could drink. It was so much easier.

Anecdotally, tounge tie runs in our family (if thats a thing..) both me and my sister, my eldest and also nephew. Nephew didn't get his snipped as NHS list was so long and DSis couldn't afford private. His feeding wasn't too bad, but it did affect his speech in toddlerhood and he was still struggling with some words and sounds when he started school at 5 due to the limited tounge movement. He is fine now though at 10yrs old.

NeverDropYourMooncup · 11/08/2022 16:59

They didn't do it when DD1 was a baby.

It was fucking relentless and took every scrap of enjoyment out of her first year and a lot of time trying to teach her to speak so that other people could understand her until she was six.

Just get it done. For a short time of potential greater discomfort, it could save you years.

mrsbrown2011 · 11/08/2022 17:21

It is one of the most easiest and straightforward of procedures that will only improve your child’s life. Withholding this treatment will make your DCs life unnecessarily difficult

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