Latch getting worse - 8 weeks

[harrietm1987]

My baby had her tongue tie cut on day 4. After it was cut she would make some sucking/clicking sounds on one side only, and only in the cradle hold, so I’ve been feeding her in other positions on that side. Now though she’s 8 weeks and is making the smacking sounds on both sides in all positions. I think her latch is just getting lazy and there’s not enough breast in her mouth, but she pulls back every time I latch her on and doesn’t really open wide enough in the first place.

I think I really need help face to face but obviously not possible now in lockdown. Does anyone have any tips? Is it possible to relearn a good latch at this stage? Does it sound like her tongue tie has reattached?

Her weight gain is ok - she dropped 8% and didn’t get back to birthweight until 17 days, but she was 9lbs at birth - and gain has been steady since but because of that initial drop and delay she’s gone from 95th to around 65th centile.

Nappies good and she’s alert and happy but I’m terrified her growth will slow/my supply will drop.

Hi lovely

Have you tried your local breastfeeding support group? Mine were really helpful when I was having problems with the latch! Not sure they are running at the moment with national lockdown but they were still running when my area was in tier 4. Also, there are a few really good support groups on Facebook with trained admin, the one I'm in is called breastfeeding support and guidance Uk, hope this helps!

I'm on week 8 and struggling with a lazy latch and mastitis too! I found going back to basics really helps and also unlatching the baby at the first hint of it being uncomfortable has really helped rather than powering through, it makes them cry but at least there mouth is open wide h ope this helps!! Xxx

@harrietm1987 hey just wondering how you got on and what you did? My dd is 8 weeks and had her tongue tie cut at 6 days old, is now clicking at breast, is she just being lazy? Thanks

@harrietm1987. I thought I'd answer you just in case the op doesn't read your post. Clicking when feeding is not always as bad as the 'rule of thumb' makes it out to be. If a baby is gaining weight, settled after feeds and has plenty of wet and dirty nappies, the click doesn't need to be a particularly bad sign, unless your nipples are also sore. There are a few reasons why babies will make this noise. One is, for example, if you have a fast or strong let down and your baby makes a more shallow latch to control the flow. It may be that they are able to extract exactly the right amount of milk and if they were to suck more strongly, the flow would be too much for them. It does seem to be a feature sometimes too, of babies who have previously had a TT divided. It doesn't necessarily mean the TT has reattached. Certainly my baby who had a TT divided after 7 days, clicked whilst feeding during most of his feeds for a few months afterwards. He also had stopped for a while but then started again. Interestingly, he did it less on the breast that had less milk. He stopped eventually, as he grew bigger and coped better with my let down and flow. I was never worried about the clicking, as the feeds were conformable and he was gaining weight fine. He is 8 months now and hasn't done it for ages.

Have you tried feeding in the laid back position if it bothers you? It helps a deeper latch. But if your baby is trying to control the flow, they may still do it.

@Somethingsnappy thanks so much for your detailed reply. It makes complete sense now as I have quite a fast let down and she's probably just trying to control it as you say. She didn't click as much this eve after a few close together feeds, the breast had been drained from this, again supporting the fast flow theory!!she's gaining weight and has plenty of wet and dirty nappies so that's all good. I had a look in her mouth and nothing seems to have changed in terms of the tongue tie reattaching l, thank goodness!!Thanks for telling me about your experience, its helped put my mind at rest x

@Aokbaby. I'm very glad to have helped! A clicking sound gets a bad press because it can sometimes be a sign of an ineffective latch, but it is only really a concern when combined with other signs, like discomfort for the mother or slow weight gain for the baby. Very often, as I said, a baby will just do it deliberately to control the flow. Or sometimes if a baby just wants to comfort suck but without a huge milk intake, again they may make a shallow or 'soft' latch. All my babies have done this in the early days as I have a strong let down and high milk volume, but my baby who had the TT did it the most and for the longest.

It's definitely interesting that you noticed an improvement in the clicking when your breasts weren't as full! You'll probably notice the clicking sound disappears in the next few weeks or months as your daughter gets bigger and stronger and copes better with the flow, but also because your supply will settle down to be exactly what your baby needs. In the early weeks an oversupply is quite common, which again will influence your let down and flow volumes.

Best of luck for the future and congratulations on your baby! X