My baby is mildly tounge tied, something his doctor pointed out but told me not to worry about due to how well he has been doing. We have been breastfeeding very successfully - on his part at least. His weight gain is great (over 2lbs by his two week appt) and he has plenty of wet/messy diapers a day. My breasts are always drained sufficiently and I have no milk supply problems. Other than that on my part, my nipples are very sore. He compensates for his problem by what feels like chewing on my nipples (I suspect that he is using his gums to compensate for not having full use of the tounge), leaving them feeling constantly bruised. My left nipple even has what looks like a small chunk missing out of it on the tip. I have been using some expressed milk on the nipples after feedings and letting them get plenty of air (I haven't worn a shirt in days) then using Lanolin on occasion as well. I just can't get this left nipple to heal or either of my nipples to not feel bruised and sore. Is there any suggestions beyond having his frenulum cut (as the tounge-tie is very minimal) that may help me improve our feedings and allow my nipples to heal? It's been almost a month and I would like to enjoy breastfeeding more than I have been able to due to the pain involved in it. I try to do my best to allow him a deep latch, I compress my breasts (almost like I'm feeding him a sandwich - a tip by the hospital LC) so there is plenty of nipple/areola in his mouth. I try to make sure his lower jaw is well below the nipple during latch on. Also, my milk usually lets down in seconds, sometimes even before I can get baby's mouth on the breast, so he shouldn't have to work to hard before let-down. I'm just getting frusterated with the pain but I refuse to give up breastfeeding. Another thing I considered - could this be blanching instead of becuase of his tounge?
If he is tongue-tied, even slightly, consult with a LC nd your ped to find someone tyo cut his frenulum. It can be done in-office and requires no real care. Just finding someone to do it is a pain.
YESm have the frenulum snipped! Not only for your nursing comfort now, but tongue tie can develop into a speech impediment later.
I'd go ahead and get it cut... I think you'd both be better off. He'll get to learn to use his tongue "right"(not that he's not "right" now) from the get go, and you'll be more comfortable breastfeeding. That's really important, to be comfortable... It makes the experience so much nicer, though I doubt I need to tell you that. My sister's ex-boyfriend's sister's fiance's son(boy that's a line up, huh?) had the same problem, only worse, and no one even noticed until he was was nearly three. His parent's weren't the brightest bunch, and got on to him for not learning to talk better. Luckily for that poor little boy, my sister went to live with them for a while, and she noticed that his frenulum was attached, and they took him to have it cut... Instant improvement in his speaking skills, and he's doing much better all the time. I'd save you both the trouble, and get it done while he's young, so he doesn't have to learn to compenate for it later.
Seems like the pain is actually being caused by thrush. Baby started showing signs of it yesterday. Hopefully I caught it before it's too bad and will be quick in getting rid of it.
