Tongue tie? Hungry baby

[MistletoeBUTNOwine]

My baby is 16 days old, he is dc 2. I ebf his sister with no problems to 9 months, naively thought it would be plain sailing this time too
He can feed for up to an hour, fall asleep at the breast and wake 5 mins later rooting for more milk. He doesn't seem to latch on properly 80% of the time, just sucking on nipple...
At 6 days I caved in and sent dp out for some formula, he guzzled about 4oz. He is now needing 3 4-5 oz bottles of formula as well as pretty much constant bf day and night... A friend suggested he may be tongue tied, I mentioned it to midwife today and she's referred us to a bf/tongue tie specialist with a view to snipping if necessary.

Has anyone else had this? What was the outcome? Could you go back to ebf? If its not tongue tie, what can I do? TIA

My DS had a TT, the snip is a very simple procedure that the lactation consultant performed on our kitchen table. Took a few days to train him to latch on again properly but he's fine now and gaining weight brilliantly.

Bump

This is a great article about tongue ties. TBH I would book an with one of their lactation consultants or go to a clinic. They are the experts in TT so you will know it's been checked properly and they should be able to advise you on latch if it's not a TT. They are private though so you will have to pay to see someone. They might be able to give you advice on who is good in your area on the NHS if you aren't able to pay.

Your LO is young enough that your supply is not set yet so hopefully it shouldn't be a problem building it back up again, you will probably have to feed feed feed (which it sounds like you are doing anyway).

Like GeordieJellybean said, it's a very simple and quick procedure and would explain the problems you've been having.

Thanks this. Very hod article.

My ds used to feed like that. I was also topping him up with formula, about 4 bottles a day. His latch was terrible and feeding was incredibly painful.

He was snipped at 11 weeks. Feeding is great now and I don't regret it for one minute. We have cut out top ups completely.

If it is TT then hopefully it can get sorted. If it isn't then the feeding specialists should be able to help you.

Good luck.