I Think My Son's Tongue Is Connected Too Far Forward!

hi

2 of my kids were what is called tongue tied have they been seen by doc for it its no big deal they can easy fix it

D.

I know someone that had to have their son's tongue snipped,
I didn't know the person personally, but anyway, I believe
it was fairly simple to do. And it would be worth it in
the long run for him if you had it done. Hope that everything works out for you. K.

My friend's son had this problem and her dad had it too. I do not know any technical terms for it but when her son was very young she had it clipped. His tongue looked really round on the end too, and he is now 11 mos. and it still is very round. One pediatrician told her it would not pose any problems for him that it was just a cosmetic issue. Which was enough for her to have it clipped anyway but, another doctor told her it would cause speech issues and the earlier it was clipped the better. I want to say he was about 3mos as well, maybe even younger. I hope this helps.

I had my daughters tongue snipped during her tonsilectomy. It's a pretty easy procedure. She had them both done at the same time and stayed one night in the Children's hospital. I recommend speaking to Dr. Greinwald at Children's and have him take a look. He is excellent and could tell you everything you need to know. Our daughter's tongue was larger and he said she would lipst later if they didn't do it. The younger they are to get it done, the better. Good luck.

Sounds like he is tongue tied or at least that's what they use to call it. My Uncle never had his fixed until he was in his twenties.It made him talk funny for years.And my Dad being his play mate and younger brother actually started pronoucing words as he heard them from my uncle.Now he talks pretty normal that it is fixed.He said it was a easy fix.

Two of my sons were tongue tied and we had them clipped at the peds office. One son was a newborn when we had it done and the other was about 5 months old. I was scared to death but it really was quick and easy. I nursed them immediately afterwards and they were fine. The worst part was holding their tongues with the gauze. They bled a teeny, tiny bit. It is most likely the reason you had trouble nursing. After much research, we decided it is way better to have it done when they are so little. At least it's quick, and they don't remember it. Good luck!

Good morning T....I wouldn't try to worry about this too much. Our daughter who will be 2 mos. on Monday has this same problem. They refer to this as being tongue tied. Her doc pointed it out to us at the hospital when she was born. They noticed it when she was crying because her tongue would curl up on the end due to this. They are waiting to see if it interferes with her feeding - which it hasn't, & also if it will effect her speech. They say we probably won't know that until she's around 15 months old or so. They are really thinking it will "stretch" out over time between her eating & crying & doing vairous other things that babies do such as sticking their tongue out & so on...if it does end up needing clipped, it is a fairly simply & virtually painless procedure - I'm told.
So, I guess this cold be a problem with your son's feeding, although it could be one of a thousand...I would certainly talk to his doctor about it when you go in the next time. Unless he's not gaining weight like he should be then I would take him in just for that & not wait!
Good luck!

My son was tongue tied too! He didn't have any problems breast feeding and had no trouble talking. We did have it cut though. It was very fast and easy and he had no pain after words. If we didn't do this his tongue would have grown into a "snake tongue" as he grew, that's how bad his was tied. I would bring it up to your doctor. He might wait until he's a bit older to do anything about it, but at least he's aware of this.

Hi T.,
My son is 2 1/2 and they told us his was to short. So he had trouble breastfeeding without a sheild. But my father has the same thing and it has never affected him. To be honest I never knew it about my dad, until this came up with my son. I have never notice it being a problem with his speach either. I chose not to clip it because I did not feel it was neccesary to put him through that if it was not really going to effect him. I am not sure if this is the same thing or not but I would talk to the ped. about it because I was told it was not very bad on the child. I would think if you are going to do it, I would have it done while they are still young because it might be worse on them the older they get. Like I said it may not be the same thing but I hope this help. K. N.

My brother, sister and I all had this as children and it is a very simple procedure. It is done at the dentists office. I was around 8 and my sister was around 10, I can't remember when my brother had it done. My daughter has the same thing and we took her to the dentist when she turned 3 and we are going to wait until she is a little older to do something about it. It didn't affect our speech, just made it difficult to roll your 'r's if speaking spanish. I don't know if would affect nursing, but definitely something to even call your dentist about.
Good luck.

I believe it is called tongue tied. You can tell if he can't stick his tongue out past his lips. So make faces at him by sticking your tongue out and see if he copies. And I do believe it causes issues with breast feeding (they can't latch on as well). When my daughter was born they thought see had it and they told me she would need to have it snipped. She then stuck her tongue out and they said oh never mind. Anyway if he is tongue tied it can cause issues with speech. I'm not a doc but I was lead to believe its a easy procedure if it is needed. Good luck hope all turns out ok

It sounds like your son is tongue tied (a medical condition). My 21 month old is too. First of all, YES this is probably why you had a hard time breastfeeding!!! We had sooo many problems with it and his TT was not diagnosed until he was 14 months old. Thank god, we were able to work through everything and are still nursing, but it is very very rare. IF the TT is found right away they usually snip, but if it is diagnosed later, they usually do not because it would then require sedation. There are many schools of thought on the speech issue. We saw a pediatric oral specialist who said that he doesn't see TTs cause permanent speech issues. HOwever, our son is still not talking and has just been accepted into First Steps for speech therapy. They said that the tongue tie, mixed with his perfectionism could be delaying his attempts to talk. IF he doesn't respond to therapy, they may request a second opinion on the snip.

Also, there are varying degrees of TT. And it can be stretched out naturally and it can even snap naturally. It is genetic, so if you have another child, have them checked immediately and insist that it be snipped in order to help bfing.

I hope this is all helpful. If you have any questions, feel free to message me. We are traveling this road right now. Thanks!!

Absolutely!!!! I would also recommend calling a lactation consultant right away because they will know who in the area can help you with that. Our second child, first son, was born tongue tied. No one at the hospital caught it; it wasn't until he was hospitalized for dehydration at 5 days old. Even then, it was my mom and I that figured it out. The hospital, for whatever reason, didn't want to believe that it was an issue or deal with it. So the day after we checked out we went to Allison Hazelbaker (Columbus, OH) and she sent us to a local dentist. Well, 20 seconds later and with only one drop of blood, he was fixed. Now that first time he latched on I thought I was going to come up out of the chair because of the intensity of the latching on process. But he started gaining 11oz per week after that. We did end up figuring out that my husband was probably tongue tied but he wasn't breast fed so they didn't figure it out. But he had almost every single side effect from being tongue tied, tooth decay, speech problems, tongue thrust problems, couldn't and still can't swallow pills very well, etc. etc. Also 3 of his 4 first cousins (all male) were tongue tied as well. Now our son is 12 years old and is starting the braces process. The orthodontist said that not only can the frenulum under the tongue be an issue but also the frenulums that hold the lips to the gums. He is a little tight under his upper lip which probably explains the wide gap in his two front teeth. The Dr. is going to just snip that sometime during this braces adventure for him.

Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Hi T., I would say your little guy is "tongue tied" I have a nephew who had the same problem.If I remember, it was a very simple procedure to fix.He was much older before anyone realized the problem and was very hard to understand when he spoke after he was able to move his tongue correctly what a difference.Very good of you to notice so fast.Hope this helps.T., Mom to 3, Foster Mom to 3 more

Yes I know where you are coming from. My son now 17 had the same problem when he was little the frenulum is at the end and still is. Our ped. told us not to worry and we would watch it. If he had trouble with speech then we would take care of it (snip it, again not a problem my brother had to have his snipped and it was no big deal). My son had no trouble with speech in fact he was talking in complete sentences by 10 months old and has not stopped yet. Dont' worry just enjoy the babbling it's a fun age. Talk and read to him it will help with language development. But do mention it to your DR just so he is aware.

J.

Hi, my name is Kristen and I have 2 1/2 yr old boy/girl twins, an 18 month old and one on the way. My first son(one of the twins) was tongue tied. I did not know this until later on and realized this was why he wouldn't breastfeed well and we always joked his tongue looked like a snake's:) Our pediatrician looked at it and explained that if they can stick their tongue out past their bottom lip it will usually be fine and will not cause speech problems and we fell in this category. However, if he cannot stick it out past his bottom lip, he may need it snipped, which I have heard is a very simple procedure. I hope this helps!

My son had his tongue clipped at age 3 and I was totally unaware he had a problem. But, he is now 7 and is in speech class, probably as a direct result of it. We had taken him in at age 3 to get his tonsils and adenoids removed and the surgeon pointed this out to us. It's funny because he had been to a total of 9 doctors and dentists and this was the only one who pointed this out! He had trouble at birth with his jaw and skull so had seen several specialists, including a pediatric dentist. Anyway, he did great, not one complaint of that area after the surgery. Get it done because it can affect speech as an adult too. Being tongue tied is not a good thing and yes, it can even affect breastfeeding.

Yes, yes & yes. My friend is going through the same things with her baby. She has had a tremendous amount of trouble with breastfeeding. It's like the bay bites her with every suck. She has been sooooooo sore. She had the tongue clipped & things are going much better. It's called tongue-tied. She is also taking her baby to a chiropractor for cranial adjustments. {The sucking muscles go along the skull}. She said it all has helped a lot. Yes, it can affect speech too. I think she had to take the baby to a pediatric dentist to get it clipped. The family doctors used to do this in office, but maybe not anymore. Good Luck!

Yes, my son ended up with "tongue thrust" in elementary school, in part due to the frenulum too far forward. That involved years of speech therapy to correct the speech issue. They eventually had an oral surgeon clip the frenulum back. It was no more involved than going to the dentist...even easier because the specialists do it all the time. Mr son didn't even feel it and had no pain afterwards. I should have had it checked earlier, so I advise you do discuss with pediatrician and/or an your dentist.

My son had the same problem.
We had it snipped by an ear nose and throat specialist.
We had his done while he had surgery on his eyes after his first birthday. (he was cross eyed)
Trust me, the eye part was much more scarier.
There was nothing following the surgery to do with the tongue. We followed up with the doctor for a post surgery visit and that was it. He would have had speach problems had we not had the procedure done.
There was no complications what so ever, it was almost like it healed as soon as the surgery was done.
Any procedures done on your little one is scary, both my boys were premature so I know the littlest thing is scary.
My son is just fine and talking too much now a days, he is 5.
good luck and all should be well. your family doctor will lead you in the right direction, i just wanted to let you know how our situation was to offer some comfort in any way. :o)
Melissa C.

As a lactation consultant, I can tell you that a tight frenulum (aka "tongue-tied") can cause multiple problems with breast feeding: difficulties with latch - which leads to poor milk transfer, decreased intake, and then overall problems with weight gain. Not to mention damaged and sore nipples for mom. (Breast feeding should NOT hurt- if it does, something is wrong!) Tongue-tied babies can also have trouble even taking a bottle. Although the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) has a position statment recommending clipping a tight-frenulum, some pediatricians are ambivalent about fixing it in infants - and take a "wait and see" if it causes problems later. I have no idea why - other than maybe they never learned how to clip it themselves. The LC's I work with tread carefully with this issue because we know some pediatricians will dismiss the issue. Yes, ask your pediatrician, but it is YOUR decision as a parent to make after you do your own research. If you decide to move forward with the procedure and your physician does not volunteer to do it, try contacting another pediatrician that does (just for the procedure - you don't have to switch doctors) or a pediatric dentist. Your local LaLeche League leader or hospital's lactation consultant can give you a referral. Good luck!

Dear T.,

My son was born "tongue-tied", which is where the frenulum was connected to the end of his tongue. I did a lot of research and found that being tongue-tied could cause a lisp later in life. We went to the doctor when he was about 9 months old and had it cut. It's a simple procedure and my son only cried for a minute. If you need any more information or advice, let me know.

Thanks!
M.

A married SAHM with two wonderful children- a 15 mo old son and a 3 1/2 daughter.

ask you ped if your baby is tongue tied. my son is tongue tied and it was difficult for him to latch on.

Yes, being tongue-tied can have a HUGE effect on nursing! My daughter had a terrible time and so did I. I cried at pretty much every feeding for months. After having her frenulum clipped (such an easy procedure), there was a noticeable difference. But, having waited quite some time to have it done, she never really developed a good nursing habit. Being tongue-tied can affect eating and speach, but this doesn't always happen. My husband is also tongue-tied (it tends to be genetic, so I would keep an eye on other children having the same issue) and he has trouble with ice cream cones and a slight problem with pronouncing S's, but it's barely noticeable.

My son is also tongue-tied. His frenulum was clipped at somewhere around 3 weeks, I think. I'm so tired I have enough trouble remembering one day to the next, lol. He is 6 weeks old now and there has been a huge difference in his nursing. We simply took him to an ENT and had it clipped. The procedure is as simple as sitting in the exam chair, holding baby on your lap and letting a nurse hold the head/mouth while the doctor numbs the frenulum and then snips it with a pair of scisors. I nursed him immediately afterwards. I did the same with my daughter.

All this to say that the procedure is not always necessary but can be beneficial. It all depends on why you think it needs to be done. For my children, it was so they could eat without throwing up as much and causing me a great deal of pain. Different doctors have different opinions as well. The pediatrician at the hospital when my son was born said he didn't care if his tongue was tied or not because it made no difference at all. Obviously, I totally disagree with that, lol. If your pediatrician won't do the procedure (for whatever reason), they should be able to give you a referral. I wish I could remember the name of the doctor we took my son to. He was great. Same with the one who did my daughter's procedure. His name was Jones, I think. He used to work with Community (same professional building as the Pediatric Care Center and Maternity Care Center near Community East). For my son, we went to St. Vincent Hospital. The doctor's name started with a T if that helps, lol. He is a pediatric ENT.

Hopefully you've gotten some good input and can make a decion that you're comfortable with.

God bless,
A.

Hello.
My son was tongue tied. That is why I couldn'st breast feed. The doctors said his wasn't that bad we would keep an eye on it. Finally at 5 someone listened to me because he couldn't lick his lips very well or dislodge food between his cheek and teeth while eating. With him being older, it was a bit different, he was put under light sedation. The doctor disribed the tool to me as a caterizing scissors. they numbed the area and cut it. we didnt have a lick of problems. I would get it fixed asap. Good Luck.

My son is tongue tied as well, we call him our little lizard tongue. We had his checked and as long as it is not impeading his speach developement they probably will not suggest the procedure. my son is now 5 1/2 and although he is still tongue tied, it has not bothered his speech in one bit so we have never had anything done with it.

I worked in a Peds office and have assisted in many of these procedures and its not that bad, far better then a circumcision, for sure. the worse part is the numbing shot they give then they dont even feel the actual procedure.

Hi - I have 4 children and not until my most recent child did I have any idea that I might face this. My little one and I were nursing fine but there was a couple things I had questions about. While talking to the lactation consultant she mentioned that he might be tongue tied. So I went and had it evaluated. She and the Pediatrician both recommended Dr. Gary Notstine in Beavercreek. So he evaluated him and clipped him there. It was not a big deal at all! It does make a difference in the way that they nurse and I had it done just 2 weeks ago when he was 7 weeks old. Good luck!

I had my daughters frenulum snipped at 2 weeks old during one of her checkups. They call it "tongue tied". I opted to do it sooner than later, because the longer you wait, the more opportunity that it will not be a simple 30 second procedure. The older they get, the less likely they are to cooperate, and a sedative (or surgery) becomes more likely. The worst part about it is Mommy being able to deal with it and the other worst is getting your baby to allow the Dr. to lift the tongue with a depressor (which is not painful, it's just that most babies don't like being forced to do something!). The snip itself is quick and there is only a drop or two of blood. I believe that doing this now, could potentially alleviate all the things that could result from an attached frenulum....speech impairments (a quick snip can save you years of speech therapy), licking (a quick snip will allow your toddler to enjoy an ice cream cone), etc... When you go for your appointment, ask if your baby is still young enough that it can be done right there in the office, they may even do it right then and there. It is no worse than a shot, in fact, unlike a shot, there isn't that pain for days following. They can go right to nursing and you will be glad you did it now before your baby gets older and it becomes a more complex procedure. Best of luck and just have someone go with you to give you support. You will probably make it a much bigger deal (as a loving mommy) than it will be and you'll wonder why you got so worked up....atleast that's how I felt. :)

My girlfriend with five children has experienced it, and it was an easy fix. Just a quick snip of the skin and the slightest amount of bleeding. She said it is done in the office and is like clipping your nails. You're right, it could certainly affect nursing and speech. I recommend you letting your doctor know sooner than later to get it taken care of. Your little man will appreciate it in the long run!!
Good luck!

My son's frenulum was attached too far forward at bith as well. Yes, he did have latching problems, and I had heard as well, that it can cause speech problems. We did have his snipped, and I cried longer/harder than he did!! And since it is in his mouth, it healed super fast, only a tiny bit of blood! We noticed a difference in nursing right away!My husband and i are soooo glad that we did it! Hope this helps!

My sister in-law had to have her foster son's snipped and she said it really was not bad at all. I would just talk to your doctor about it. Good luck!

Hello Mama!!
How are you! I never babysat either so a sista like me is trying to figure it out as well. My son had to get his tongue clipped at two weeks because his was having trouble latching on they diagnosed him as tongue tied. he is now 8.5 months and everything appears to be GREAT!!!

I actually have that, as well as my daughter. Although, it sounds as if your son has a more sever case. I'm not sure if it would have affected breast feeding, but probably could have. Your son most likely was not able to fully put his tounge on the roof of his mouth (depending on how severe his case is. It can affect speech. Our dentist said that unless it affects my daughter's speech, we don't need to do anything about it. He did say though that it is a very simple procedure. I would definitely have your ped look at it.

Good luck!

Hello T.! Yes, my son was 3 or 4 months old when he had that little skin under his tounge snipped. It was so far that he couldn't stick his own tounge out. I pointed out to his dr. and he did agree, gave us a name of a dr to go to. We had to go to his 1st appointment to see what was going on and have everything explained to me. It was very scary as a first time mom, but now that I look back at it, it went so quick and he never noticed anything was wrong. It took more time to put him to sleep then the whole procedure did. He did have a little trouble eating that day, but it was nothing! It was very quick and what seems painless now. My mommy feelings were hurt of course when they took my baby boy, but I knew it was for the best. I would bring it up at his next check up and the dr. might recommend it to be done.
Good luck!
V.

This is exactly why he had a hard time breastfeeding a lactation consultant should have caught it. It will affect speech and eating baby foods, having it snipped is no big deal, things in your mouth heal quickly.

My son was born tongue tied, we caught it at birth and I had his tongue clipped at 2 days old (As soon as we left the hospital). It is a simple procedure where they numb it topically and clip it. He nursed 10 minutes later and it was heaven. We had massive nursing problems which left me abraided and bleeding. After the clip he was perfect. I went to Dr. Cajacob at Group Health, but any ENT can do it, some peds do it too. Dr. Manfroy with NE peds can do it. Don't wait. It can cause speech problems (lisp) he may not be able to lick (How far can he stick his tongue out?) and if you wait much longer the skin thickens and general anesthesia is need for the surgery. The Ped in the hospital thought I was nuts because I wanted it fixed, but he wasn't the one with bleeding nipples. If you are really not sure have it evaluated and see what the ped says. Feel free to contact me if you have any other questions about it. BTW, his speech is now unaffected, no one can tell he was tongue tied except someone else who has had a tongue ied kid and recognizes the dent in the tip. Good Luck.

My son was 8 months old when I found out he was "tongue-tied". I took him to a ENT doctor and she diagnosed him with that. She also said that most doctors don't do surgery for the snipping of the tongue unless another surgery was planned. Sometimes it stretches out on its own. My son's did. He also worked with a speech therapist once a month from ages 9 months to three years.
He is still working with a speech therapist since age 4 1/2 (now almost 5) because of a hearing impairment (not related to the tongue-tied issue). I would suggest mentioning it to your doctor and maybe asking for a referrel to an ENT. The doctors at Children's are very good. There are a couple of doctors that come up from Cincinnati Children's to the Dayton Children's. Hope this helps.

My son also had this. He never had any problems. We did have it cut when he was about 3, He had to have his tonsils out and they did it then. No big deal really.
Good luck.

My daughter had this. The doctor saw it at her first 1 week check up and went ahead and snipped it right there. Being my 4th child, I was amazed that there was yet something new I had never seen before in my other kids. It took like 1 second and was healed nearly instantly as he did it in the office. Although she was breastfeeding ok it seemed, I could tell a difference in how she moved her tongue more naturally after he cut it. No worries on this one. Seems like an easy fix compared to other ailments we could be dealing with.
L.

Yup, if it needs to be clipped, it could solve latch issues. I'm surprised they haven't checked it before if you were having so much trouble:( You can have a lactation consultant look at it if you don't want to wait until the 4 month apt. There are two support groups at Community North and the LCs would be happy to give you their opinion on that and any other issues you've been having. You don't need to have given birth there. PM me for information.

you are right it can also effect speech. both of my neighbors kids had this problem and the had to have theres snipped. it was an easy procedure so dont worry. Just bring it up to your doctor.

C. w

My son was 2 weeks old when the doctor notice my sons tongue frenulum was right at the end. He went in and had surgery. It is a real easy procedure everything will be fine. The surgery was real quick.

Our son was tounge tied too. His was caught by the pediatrition in the hospital but he would not cut it nor would our regular pediatrition. They both wanted us to take him to an Ear Nose Throat doctor which we did. His resopnse was we could do it the easy way or the hard way. The hard way was we reschedual to bring him back and put our son under anesthia for him to cut the frenulum or we do it the easy way and he would cut it right there in the office that day. (Our son was 11 days at this point.) I chose the easy way, he cut it with a pair of scissors, there was litteraly one drop of blood and our son immediately started playing with his tounge. He did not have trouble breastfeeding and all the doctors were supprised he didn't. They were all worried about his speech. He did end up taking speech therapy at age 3. Can't really say it had to do with the tounge. It was more he had to learn to take his time in forming his words. He was only in therapy for 2 months. What I am saying is do it now before your son is any older. It is an easy proceedure, our son was more upset by having the doctor's hands in his little mouth than he was by the proceedure itself.

It is possible. I had a friends who had twin boys and one was "tongue tied". A doc clipped his tongue, he was just a few days old. She said he didn't act like it hurt. I don't know if its different in older babies. I'd say this is probably a big factor if you had trouble breast feeding.

I had worked for a pediatic dentist for 11 yrs and i had seen this many times,only a couple of times did we have to trim the frenum at a very young age due to having problems eating,but rest assure its not a horrible procedure they just clip it and no sutures required,and especially at his age he will never have memory of it,just think your mouth is the fastest healing place of your whole body,but def bring it up to your ped and maybe even check into seeing a pediatric dentist in your area not a general one. Good Luck, D.

Especially if his tongue turns heart-shape with the dent in the middle, it sounds like he is tongue-tied (short fremulum). Definetely get it checked out. The procedure in babies is fairly easy to correct it--like 5 min in the dr office (at least when they are tiny--I'm not sure when it changes to the harder surgery, but it does at some point once they get older). That could most definetely be the reason that you are having trouble breastfeeding. To breastfeed, babies have to stick their tongue out past their bottom lip, which is extremely difficult is they are tongue-tied. Also, asyour son gets older, it could cause problems with speech, so there are multiple reasons to get it fixed. And I was jsut reading an article the opther day that said the sooner the better on getting a tongue-tie fixed. Especially if you're trying to breastfeed--it will make life soooo much easier! (Please do keep in mind that, though clipping the fremulum will make it easier to nurse, your son has had 4 months of learning to nurse incorrectly. Many women find that it takes as long for them to learn to nurse correctly as they were nursing incorrectly before. So it may be a while before you son learns how to nurse right, even after his tongue is fixed. But keep with it! You're doing the best you can for your son by nursing him and should be greatly applauded by sticking out the nursing with a tongue-tied baby!!)

I had my 10 month old babies tongue clipped yesterday, by and ENT Specialist...It was so terrible....if I had known it was that bad, I don't think I would have done it....She wasn't given anything to deaden the area, or she wasn't given any anesthia....It took three people to hold her down, and after she clipped it, it bled and bled and bled...and she screamed and screamed and screamed...all this for about 15 ot 20 minutes.....I thought they would have given her some general Anesthia or something....just wondering if this is usually done as surgery...with Anesthia (sp) ?...she is fine today tho...Thank Goodness...

I have a friend who's husbands tongue was like that at birth, so were both of her children and a neice. They all had a very minor surgery to correct it at about 5-6 yrs old. I had never of it until her but have met others since, so apparently it is common.

hi T.,

I would have never known what to look for, except that my husband is "tongue tied". my first two sons were fine, but our third boy seemed to have trouble latching etc........ended up with bottles. at 4 1/2 months when i introduced cereal, he seemed to "play" with it in his mouth differently than my other children.went to my fam. physician and they wouldn't address it until almost age 3!! being a teacher and seeing the issues that speech problems can bring, the wait wasn't ok with me. i took him to our dentist who confirmed my suspicion. he then sent us to a pediatric dental specialist who performed the procedure.
it was scary. andrew was 8 months old by the time we could get in. my husband held him while i cried across the room so andrew wouldn't see me upset! it took all of 5 minutes from start to finish. his mouth healed within the week and everything seemed easier. he ate "normally" now, his sounds were more pronounced, and i was relieved! so glad we didn't wait until after he had begun to speak. good luck! and i think it is worth it to get one or two more opinions from docs if you are not satisfied with the first answers.

We too had the same problem with our son, who is now almost 5. However, we unfortunately didn't notice it until he was two. We did have his clipped, and aside from a little more bleeding than anticipated, it wasn't bad. This did cause problems with his speech because he had already been talking for a year or so before we had the procedure done. He has been in speech therapy for almost three years now. He is able to say words correctly, but got in the habit of saying them the wrong way because of his tongue. I know it can stretch out over time, but if I could do it over, I would have had it clipped before he started talking. I believe it would have alleviated a lot of problems.

Good luck!!

This is not uncommon. My son 11 month old has it too. Our doctor and a speech therapist friend have both assured me that it will stretch as he grows and uses his tongue more for eating and talking. What my friend told me is that if the part that is connecting the tongue looks thick and almost white it will probably be too thick to stretch and may need to be snipped. If your son is able to nurse or take a bottle well I wouldn't worry about it now. But since he's having difficulty it's totally worth getting it looked at. When I was talking to my mom about my son she said I had mine snipped as an infant and it was no big deal.

You are right on all counts. My youngest grandsonn could not nurse poperly. They (the drs) acted like it was no big deal until he had so much trouble talking and only then clipped it. Because it was done so late. He was almost 5, he needed speach therapy for years. Thank goodness our school had a therapist and it was no cost to them. They thought he was just stuttering.
It does sound scary but the sooner it's done the less therapy he will need.
I never held a new born until 2 weeks before my first was born. I was terrified. Hang in there you'll get it. I did.

It sounds like he is tongue tied. It actually isn't a really big deal, and is very easy to fix. My daughter is slightly tongue tied, but it has not caused her any problems. What they do is cauterize the frenulum. It takes about 2 seconds and then it's done! I would absolutely show your pediatrician and see what they have to say. This could have caused problems breastfeeding and/or bottlefeeding. The procedure does sound a little scary, but it's really not bad. I've seen a bunch done because I used to work in a dental office. They don't even feel it.

It's called a tight frenulum or being tongue tied..and ABSOLUTELY this can affect breastfeeding..frankly I'm amazed that you seem to bfdg so well with the description of the severity. It is a very quick procedure, many peds will do it in the office, some don't do them and refer to an ENT to do it. As an LC, I recommend that it gets done. Good luck!