Tongue tie snip....painful??

[kipplin]

Hi there, wasn't sure which thread to put this in... But here goes.

DS has just been diagnosed with tongue tie at 14week old. I'm a bit cross that it has taken so long and in fact I spotted it. DS is ff as I failed miserably at bf....I guess the tt explains some of the problems we had now!

Anyway, it has been suggested we have it clipped but I was horrified to find out it is done without any pain medication or local anaesthetic in under 1's. Apparently most babies do not find the procedure too distressing. I just wanted to hear other people's experiences. I wonder if it will be worse for DS as he is a little bit older? DS is bottle feeding well now, although very slow sometimes. He is also very sickly. He is a happy thriving little man, I don't want to put him through a potentially horrible procedure unless it is worthwhile.

I just want honest opinions on how your LO reacted to the procedure. TIA x

Hi kipplin, DD1 had her tongue snipped at 6 weeks. It was a very quick. they lay her down on the bed and it took no more than a couple of seconds. She let out a little yelp and then was given back to me so I could feed her. It was a bit like her first vaccinations at 8 weeks - she didn't really like it but the pain only seemed momentary. It took her another 2 weeks after that until I finally noticed a difference in the latch so by that time my supply was all over the place. We managed to mix feed for 6 months afterwards. Good luck, your DS will be fine x

Ps I was told that it is likely that subsequent dc could have tongue tie too so just something to be aware of if you plan on having any more! I was v aware of it second time around (dd2 is 8 weeks) and would have insisted they dealt with it in hospital if I thought it was affecting her latch - she has mild tongue tie but fortunately it hasn't caused any problems this time.

Hi,
My son was 90% tied and was snipped at 5 days old as he could just not feed properly. Staff were amazing and Mummy was more upset than baby! He has cried more at a change of nappy so don't concern yourself about the pain. The minute it was done they put him to my breast and the change was instant and obvious, he could feed with ease.
I understand it is better to get these things done as early as possible or it can lead to more serious things later on like lisps etc...
Go for it and good luck

Ds was diagnosed with 70% tt about 2 hours after birth, we were so lucky it was spotted early. He had its snipped at 7 days old. I was given the option to wait in the next room which I did and had a cry. They brought ds to me within 2-3 mins and although he was crying a boob in his mouth soon stopped him and he was fine since. I am sure a bottle feed will sooth your ds just as well.

Hi. My LO had a tongue tie that I had snipped on day 11. Virtually painless, as the frenulum is still v soft at that stage and there are no nerves.

However, the dr only made a small snip and I have finally succeeded in getting a specialist dr to re-do it. That was this morning. A slightly different procedure, as LO is now 10 weeks old and the frenulum thickens with age. He had a local anaesthetic, cauterisation and the snip. Dr reckoned that he would be sore for about 10 days and there is a risk of it reattaching (on older patients they would stitch to prevent this). I'm about to put up a question myself to see if anyone can share exercises to do post snip! LO has been fantastic and really calm, so for now not seeing any after effects. Nipple no longer ending up lipstick shaped. I do have baby bongela on stand by though just in case.

Must depend on where you are. In Oxford (where I am) this is a procedure that required a general anaesthetic and done at 8 months. To be honest was a really light anaesthetic and he recovered incredibly quickly (within minutes). It was the best thing I ever did - much quicker to feed and speech sounds were much clearer.

DD's was done at 5 weeks - took about a minute & she stopped crying v v quickly. So so worth having it done.

However, there was a 10 week old in the post-op breastfeeding room who was pretty distraught & cried for about 20 mins. This may well have been that particular baby's personality but there was a difference between her & the other younger ones having it done (most around 2 weeks old).

HTH OP

My DDs tongue tie was snipped at 14 weeks and she was fine. They took her to another room and I heard her cry but as soon as she saw me again she stopped. It's such a quick procedure, she was away from me for less than a minute.

Once I knew she had a tie I thought it was worth getting it done then so that we could avoid needing a general anaesthetic if it caused problems and needed snipping when she was older. Plus it solved the feeding issues we were having!

Both boys had ties cut younger than yours. They objected more to being swaddled than the cut.

It is obviously very area dependant. Round here it seems to be before 3 months without GA, or over 1 with anaesthetic, and they will only do it if really severe, or causing issues with feeding (for Mum or Baby).

If its mild, and not affecting feeding, I'd be tempted to leave it, but you then run the risk of it not growing out, and having to do something about it later.

Yes yes to there is a genetic link, and check out any subsequence children.

I had DS's done at 2 days. He cried a bit but he was ok straight after. HTH.

Ds' was done when he was just over a week, so very different to 14 weeks, but he was asleep when we took him in, and didn't even wake up when it was snipped!!!!!! I however, was in pieces

DS had his TT snippec at about 3 wk old, I made DH take himas I was full of mum hormones and ready to weep at drop of a hat. Ds never woke up throughout it all

Lady I used to work with had not had hers snipped and blood vessels had grown in the TT area with age and it was no longer a minor op to resolve so she hadsn't had it seen to and has speech impediment issues, obv yjis is a much rarer scenario, but just to highlight potentioal issues if you didn't get ot sorted..

DD had her's done at 6 months under GA. She cried a little as she came round, more when I walked into the room, but fed her straight away and both she and I were stunned by the difference. She even giggled afterwards. And now speaks and sings clearly. Glad we did it for the singing alone cause she loves that!

Ds snipped at three weeks old, I would compare it to an injection in terms of pain and crying. He soon forgot about it. Took about a week to notice the difference in his feeding.

DD1 snipped at 13 days- brief cry when swaddled, but not when cut, then I fed and she was fine.
DD2 snipped at 1 day- she was asleep and didn't wake up.
Made a huge difference with feeding in both cases.

Thanks for all your replies, I feel more reassured about the division now. I am going to request some local anaesthetic though, as by the time we get our appointment DS will be nearly 6months. I think it becomes more painful the older the child is as the frenulum becomes more fibrous. Just want it sorted now.

Kipplin there is a great group on facebook for uptodate info on tt. Tongue Tie Babies Support group. DS had his snipped with no pain relief at 5 months, he cried a little, feed for 10mins and was laughing at the doctor.
Whoever is snipping the tie needs to be able to assess the movement of the tongue this cant be done if anaesthetic is used.
If you are UK based there is the option of private laser tt divison at a dentist in Huddersfield.
Its also advised to have cranial osteopathy asap after division and also to stretch the wound site so it doesnt tighten as it heals. Lots of info on aftercare on the FB site.
Hope you get sorted soon.

My ds had his snipped at 10weeks. It was done in the consulting room without any anaesthetic. Thankfully he was sleep when we arrived and the nurse kept him in his snowsuit (winter in Edinburgh at the time), swaddled him so his arms couldn't get in the way whilst the surgeon snipped the frenulum. he slept through the whole procedure and only woke when she placed some cotton in his mouth to soak any blood. I think he may have cried if he was awake prior to the cut but more as a protest than from pain?

DS is a week old and had his tongue tie snipped at 9 hrs old. The consultant put a dropnof local anaesthetic on the tie before snipping it. DS wasn't bothered at all and fed much better afterwards.