pretty sure he's tongue tied (pic included) update got tie lasered

[tashantx]

I posted before about his gain etc. My previous post is in breastfeeding but basically he has had some weight gain issues which have resolved for the time being (I'm taking fenugreek blessed thistle and eating oatmeal) . Ibclc says it looks fine no tie but I know how this goes in general and I know many ''pros'' miss ties. I don't have pain nursing (maybe a bit of irritation towards the evenings) . He doesn't click but does have difficulty side lying b/c of the way he latches my boob covers his nose. Maybe it's just that he's so tiny? I have an appt with an ent next wednesday, we are currently not working with a ped due to knowing I'd have formula pushed b/c of weight gain issues. He's now gaining an oz a day but he spends a lot of time on the breast. I know that's normal at 4 weeks but he does a lot of nibbling. I'm not terribly optimistic about our appt. I've just read so much about people having a hard time getting a diagnosis a clip without g/a etc. One of the ent's here is 70 so I went with the slightly younger one (in his 50's) b/c maybe he will know more of the new research on tt. I also called a rehab place here and spoke with a speech therapist who said they see dramatic cases that the ent refuses to cut. UGH but these are in older kids not breastfeeding babies. I'm not sure what I'm asking for here...maybe kind word well wishes good thoughts etc.

 even though things are good now I don't want to go on and then develop problems later. (I've allready had supply issues with a previous nursling)

[homemademom]

That's exactly how my ds was/is. We're actually going for a reclip (re-laser) in a week. The doc warned me that he liked to treat little babies pretty conservatively and that in a few months, he might need a little more tissue cut.  My ds has a hard time side-lying, too, for the same reason.  One of my nipples is much flatter than the other and he can't nurse on it lying down because it keeps slipping out.  Anyway, have you seen this link: http://www.lowmilksupply.org/frenotomy.shtml  Maybe one of these specialists is near you? We actually went out of state (a drive of about 5 hours) to get to ours. He was amazing, very knowledgeable and helpful.  It was so nice to have a "professional" that understood the situation and didn't treat me like I was overreacting or making things up.

[tashantx]

thanks I know how u feel about feeling like you are sensationalizing something. As a matter of fact my midwife (who I love but am disappointed with over this) refused to even look at his tongue b/c he's got a great latch from the outer appearance. Also my husband seems pretty frustrated with my persistance on this especially since my son is doing well now. He thinks I'm making myself crazy. My midwife hasn't billed my ins yet so my husband is also hesitant about the ent visit b/c I was hoping we had met our deductible (whole other story) and wouldn't have much out of pocket.  I believe the receptionist said he does a laser procedure, the dr on that list nearest to me is 5 hrs away but a 1 hr flight which I think I'd opt for since I have family in the area I could get a ride with if needed instead of the added expense of a car rental/cab fare. Is yors son posterior tied? I cannot figure out if my sons is or not but he doesn't touch his tongue to the roof of his mouth allthough he can bring it out of his mouth a little bit.

[tashantx]

oh and I just cancelled my appointment for next wednesday after calling to find out the cost incase my ins doesn't cover some/all of it they mentioned hospital fees...uh yeah...nevermind. Called one in the next town over she **has** done in office clips, I have an appointment for the 23rd of august but if they have a cancellation they will get me in sooner. I'm going to call a couple more if any of them do it in office and can get me in sooner I think I'll go for it.

[homemademom]

Yes, he has a posterior tie. It looks so similar to your ds's!  PT's all seem so different in what they allow a baby's tongue to do. My ds can't reach to the roof of his mouth when his mouth is open. He can stick it out just to his bottom lip, but doesn't do it often, I think because it requires more effort and therefore, he tires. In fact, we're still dealing with low supply (I have to supp 6 oz a day). So often, I can feel milk still in my breast, but because of whatever his tongue is doing, he's not able to get at it.

When the doctor (well, pediatric dentist) originally lasered his tongue, he was 1 mth old, and the frenulum really was hard to see and get at since ds's mouth was so tiny. Now that he's almost 6 mths, you can really feel the frenulum. It's thick, not flexible, and doesn't taper going up or down. My dd, who is 8, said it looks like a little tree trunk, lol.  However if you just *looked* at his mouth, it's not very obvious, so it's partially under the tissue, making it probably a level 3 posterior tie.

Good luck with your appt. I hope you get in soon and find someone who knows what they're doing. I think our procedure cost something like $150 with dental insurance (I think it only covered 60%). 

[tashantx]

nak 

we flew to ft worth tues and had ds's tongue and lip lasered. so far he is nursing a bit better doesn't pop off as often and the little bit of discomfort I had is gone unless he slides down the nipple when dozing off. We are going to do some cst next week . He still has somewhat of a shallow latch but he has a short lower jaw and even with the tongue lasered he has a pretty short tongue. it does move a lot more now. I hate doing the stretching stuff to keep it from growing back together, he cries a lot when I do it...poor guy. I think they got it all . It was  a very stressful trip with flying twice in one day not having dh with us and the general fussiness he had that evening (on the flight home) . People were looking at me like I couldn't console my baby and really I couldn't I felt so helpless he was refusing to nurse at that point. I am not sure if it was the flying the procedure my stress or what but I am SO glad it's over. if he needs further treatment later we will drive or plan it better. I'm hoping my ins will reimburse some of it for us. I chose to forego the dr.'s here b/c I didn't want to waste my time. There was one a bit closer to us but I kind of felt uneasy with him....just from what I got with him not being interested in possibly speaking with me over the phone. I needed someone who was willing to reassure me that they knew what they were doing. (not just hearing it from a receptionist...) I ended up getting some names from a friend on facebook of 2 dentists in tx that dr kotlow trained. They were both very kind and were willing to view my pictures via email to assure me it was worth making the flight. My husband was more unsure than I was so it set his mind at ease knowing my trip would not be in vain. Also catherine genna watson looked at his pics and said he was quite restricted which made me feel like I wasn't loosing my mind . when we were in the office I was a nervous wreck but ran into a lady who had her sons done by dr kotlow she reassured me and it was helpful. she flew all the way to ny to have her son done before the dentist I saw was doing the laser procedure. for anyone looking in tx I used dr. cole he is a dentist but also does sleep medicine and is a naturopath. he's done over 70 frenotomies. the other one I considered was dr oser who was also super kind contacted me by phone and even has a lactation consultant at the visit to aid in latching after the procedure. I chose dr cole b/c he's done quite a few more and I like that he's a naturopathic dr as well his office is also mercury free. Anyways this is all over the place but I wanted to update .

[homemademom]

Oh, I felt like people thought I was overreacting about my ds's tt, too!  We had the first clip and all seemed well. But as he got bigger, I could see that the TT was still a problem. We had to drive 4 hours to our ped dentist and dh (unintentionally) made me feel paranoid by saying, "So, there's a chance that the doctor won't think he's still tongue tied after driving all this way?" But I just KNEW. You have to go with your mama gut! Our dentist was so wonderful and helpful. We actual didn't have to pay for the second clip! (We just had it done yesterday.) If you're interested in where we went, pm me. However, it sounds like you have a good dentist there, too. So, if you're ds didn't get enough of it clipped, don't be afraid to go back!