Breastfeeding and Tongue Ties/Lip Ties

So as most of you know Colin was born with tongue tie. We almost didn't make it past the first few weeks of nursing because of it. Since then I've been on a mission to educate people about ties because nobody should have to suffer from a hurting nursing relationship because of a tie. We weren't checked in the hospital for one and left the hospital in pain while nursing with bleeding nipples (graphic, but true. Your nipples should never bleed while nursing. ever.) and when we did identify the tie we had pediatricians tell us that ties don't affect breastfeeding, which is very much false.  For the record we got another opinion, and got his tie clipped when he was 5 weeks old. It was like I was nursing an entirely different baby. It no longer was painful and Colin gained weight. Like 2 pounds in a week, because all of a sudden he was an efficient eater. So tell me again how ties don't affect nursing? Lol

So lets talk about ties. I went to the New Mexico Breastfeeding Task Force's Annual conference last week. One of their guest speakers was Dr. Bobby Ghaheri, an ENT. Not just any ENT. An ENT who is making strides and waves across the country and world with his outreach, experience and skills in assessing ties. He is basically my hero and because of him I was inspired to write this blog post about ties. http://www.drghaheri.com/blog/

What are some symptoms of ties:

And I will also repeat this. Nursing is not supposed to be painful. Ever. Nursing was designed to be a joyful and harmonious experience for both mom and baby. Nursing releases hormones that make it a special bond and beautiful experience. If you are experiencing  pain, please seek out help. Whether it be a Lactation Consultant or a La Leche League group I guarantee you they can give you the guidance you need to make nursing enjoyable, like it should be, for both of you. 

So above are the symptoms of ties. Some babies have all of these symptoms and others have none. Another interesting one, for those who have an oversupply of milk is baby gains weight very quickly because in the beginning your milk supply is hormonally driven. Once your hormones taper off your body relies off of supply and demand to produce milk. If baby is an inefficient sucker because of ties all of a sudden mom's supply tanks and baby's weight levels off. Not on the list above, but is often mentioned. Weight gain cannot be the only marker of successful breastfeeding, especially if mom is having issues. Babies and mommies go hand in hand. There is not just a baby, there is a baby and someone. The two of them make a breastfeeding dyad. 

So some interesting facts about ties. In Utero we are all tongue tied until the end of the first trimester when the ties are supposed to move back. Lip ties, or what most people see as lip ties are very common. In fact 90% of babies have a "lip tie." What really indicates a tie is the amount of tension of the lip and the tongue. If you can easily flip the lip up without any whiteness on the frenulum or with ease from the baby, that is not a tie. Same with the tongue, if you can easily lift the tongue up to the roof of your mouth, that is not a tie. Another thing to keep in mind sticking your tongue out does NOT mean you don't have a tongue tie. It is more about the ability to stick your tongue UP and the flexibility to reach the roof of your mouth than it is out. 

So how do ties affect nursing? Of course the issues listed above, but what is really happening is the tongue can't get in the proper position to effectively and efficiently nurse. Thus affecting how much of the Breast they take in and causing pain to the mother... among other issues. And the lip, is also an important factor of nursing. The lip acts like a suction and nursing is like a vacuum affect. When a baby is tied you hear clicking which is the loss of suction. They cant get a good seal. They slide off the breast, milk dribbles out of their mouth. They instead inhale air causing gas, reflux and colic. 

What happens when you don't want to correct ties?  As a child there can be speech issues, food aversions dental issues and of course on the super restricted tongues never being able to lick an ice cream cone or be a very good kisser.  Dr. G talked a lot about the palates in your mouth and how they can be affected which I found super interesting. Babies with restricted tongues have a much higher palates because even in utero they can't get the proper movement to flatten it out. High palates can cause a slew of issues from drainage issues, dental issues to  mouth breathers and sleep apnea!  Of course not everyone who doesn't get a tie corrected will have all those issues, but that is always there as a possibility to consider!

I'm not trying to scare anyone I'm just trying to spread awareness. Most ties are genetic. I have one and besides some jaw tension don't have any other issues and I've noticed a few people in my family do as well. But now that I know these things I can keep them in mind. They are also very easily fixed. I'm talking a 2-5 minute procedure from an expert. Colin's clipping was over in minutes and he only cried because their hands were in his mouth and that little snip saved our nursing relationship. 

Why is that important? Because nursing is amazing. It saves lives. You transfer antibodies back and forth that protect your baby from viruses and bacteria. Breast milk sets up  their gut microbes for the rest of their life. It prevents obesity and increases their IQ. Oh and lets not forget the benefits to mom! The longer you nurse you cut down your chances for breast cancer and cervical cancer and increase your bone density and avoid osteoporosis.  And besides all of those benefits nursing is the most natural and beautiful thing I've ever done. It is amazing. The bond and the connection you create with your baby is something that nobody can recreate.  

I also want to mention that doctors, ENTs and dentists and even lactation consultants don't know enough and some don't know anything about ties. Why? Because it isn't something that is taught in medical school. Doctors get less than an hour average of breastfeeding education typically... although hopefully that is changing. What they learn they've taught themselves or seeked out education on it themselves.  That and formula feeding was the most common thing until a few decades ago. so they had no reason to know about this information and it was taken out of the books. Dr. G is a prime example. He is an ENT. The reason he is on this mission to educate is because his own daughters were tied. They didn't catch his older daughter's tie and she had a ton of issues with nursing. When his second daughter was born they told them right away that she was tied and that was when he realized so was his first daughter. He said he was really mad at himself for a long time  because he is a specialist in this field and he felt like he should known... but he didn't because he wasn't taught about it. Since then he has basically flipped his whole practice to correcting ties and working on educating and spreading awareness because no mother baby dyad should have to suffer. 

So if nursing isn't working for you or someone you know and the symptoms sound like the ones listed above. Please please seek out help. It is worth it. I promise.