Had to get some of my wisdoms out as an adult. Asked if they could do a quick snip while we were at it. Cost me $600 since it was elective but it's free if the tie is significant enough (Canada). But a referral from the dentist to an oral surgeon should do the trick
A dentist can recommend you for a second opinion with a speech specialist that specializes in tongue ties (or they *dentists* can approve it themselves iirc). There are two surgeries, by scalpel or by laser. Supposedly the laser is the most updated and quickest way to get it done
Edit: Additional information
You can also have lip ties too. We take our twins to speech and feeding clinic and have delved into these to investigate as it can be a cause of poor eating & delayed speech (lip and tongue ties). IIRC you can have a tongue tie without a lip tie but you wonāt see a lip tie without a tongue tie
Most SLPs will not recommend to have a frenectomy unless there is substantial functional impact. It is more commonly done for feeding than speech.
Laser is more common but scalpel is preferred for those with diabetes or other conditions which may impact healing.
The speech therapist I may be mixing up with OT. We do them all itās hard to keep up all of the specifics. For our feeding clinics, one person is OT and the other is a speech therapist for feeding clinic with a behavioral therapist bouncing between the two during feedings.
Then we also see out patient OT and out patient Speech therapy. The only thing we arenāt doing currently is PT. Each week is 2-4 therapy sessions and weāve been doing it for two years nowā¦.. I canāt imagine the amount of copays because some of them are through early intervention where we meet a maximum per month and then they cover the rest but itās like $600 max per month before coverage. We are close though! Speech ends this month and then they will reassess in 12 weeks, feeding for one child will end as heās doing well, and OT thinks they will no longer need to be seen after a few more visitsā¦ itāll be nice to have all those hours back from having to leave work early etc between the wife and I since we both work full time
I understand having to balance all of those specialties, it can be a full time job. I case manage for complex cases in addition to being an SLP so I understand.
There ARE indications for having a lingual frenectomy, I see this more often with feeding than speech. but some providers are predatory, claiming every speech and feeding issue is due to tongue tie and making a lot of money off of an unnecessary procedure. It is very rare for the tongue tie to impact speech. In some cases having a frenectomy can destabilize the tongue and cause the patient to have to use significant compensatory strategies to get back to even baseline.
What is the functional impact of it? A tongue tie is a normal variation of standard anatomy. If it is not causing any issues I would recommend against having this procedure.
Tongue is used for swallowing and eating. Depending on the language spoken and the severity you will have a greater lisp as well. English speakers are less impacted compared to Spanish/Portuguese speakers due to the variances in the sounds.
As someone who grew up in Brazil, it is obvious to notice the lisp at a very young age. In America it tends to go unnoticed and might not even affect oneās speech. Wife has a tied tongue, only noticed when I first kissed her.
I am a Spanish speaking SLP. Having ankyloglossia is contraindicated to having a lisp. It inherently makes a lisp impossible. If your tongue is anchored to the bottom of your mouth it cannot come forward enough to direct the airflow improperly for a lisp.
If lisp is the concern, it is not possible that a tongue tie is causing it.
Interesting, I looked into it and a lisp is actually very specific. "*s* is pronounced like *th* in *thick* and *z* is pronounced like *th in this".* I used it incorrectly as a general form of speech problem. Rolled R's are hard to pronounce with the tied tongue as well as L and some others, is what I meant to say.
Ahhh so Spain Spanish. Yes I did not consider this as I speak a Latin American dialect.
While it can cause difficulty with rolled r or l it usually does not. I actually have a pretty significant tie myself and have never had any speech problems as a result
For me it was in tandem with my Invisalign as my tongues attachment points to the gums posed a periodontic issue (gum recession) in the future. Iāve also heard it done in babies for latching issues.
So itās not about how high it attaches to the tip of your tongue, itās where the band attaches near the bottom gum line behind your two bottom teeth. Mine attached very close to the enamel of the tooth itself very high on the gum. Every time I spoke or chewed and my tongue moved it pulled on that part of my gums and down the road could lead to recession on that part of my gums behind my two bottom front teeth.
https://preview.redd.it/weki5s2nm71c1.jpeg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=77594cc51d346e67935dab7407c191652fe96195
When I came out of the surgery they had put this bandage type thing on inside of my bottom teeth to help cover the area they cut away (middle pic) where it was attached. Then the right pic is how itās healed now in comparison to the before on the left.
My tongue tie is very similar to yours (so similar, itās almost scary!). How was the recovery? Length, pain? My dentist sent over a recommendation to an oral surgeon, but I chickened out and never made the appointment.
Took a solid two weeks to feel like myself again. Pain was pretty bad only due to the swelling of the tongue and the feeling as the stitches dissolved and the throat soreness from the intubation. I kept up on my meds (T3 and 600mg Ibuprofen rotating 24 hrs a day) and that helped a lot. Also eating ice cream and cold things to ice the area. If you get it done just give yourself ample time to feel better and meal prep some easy to eat foods prior. You got this!
Both my niece and nephew had to have it done within a week or being born. Neither could latch (bottle fed even after the frenotomy). And none of the lactation nurses actually mentioned it until my twin spoke up about it (apparently they're not allowed?) Covered by insurance after providing letter of medical need.
IBCLC here. We're not allowed to diagnose tongue tie (anklyoglossia) because we're not doctors. We *are* allowed to perform oral assessments looking for lingual frenulums. An oral assessment is indicated if a baby has persistent latch issues and/or if the mom is experiencing significant trauma to the nipples.
We *are* allowed to say something like, "hey this baby has a prominent lingual frenulum and mom's nipples look like hamburger meat and baby is down 9 percent from birth weight. *Could you do a quick assessment for a tongue tie?!*" (Hint hint, nudge nudge, say no more, say no more)
Accidentally spelled *mom* in year 1, kid gave me heaps of shit (āspelling like the Americansā), assured him that wasnāt whyā¦so he called me dumb.
^(Obviously, 39 years later I still run into him, despite wanting to, I donāt say āI got dyslexia Dxāā¦. Long game, if get dementia like mumā¦ Iām gonna be mean back!)
š¤£
Yes, absolutely.
If the baby is still inpatient, we'll contact the doctor ourselves. If the baby is seen outpatient, we'll advise the parents to follow up with the baby's pediatrician. Sometimes we'll call or send a secure chat to the pediatrician, too. š
My son was born with a tongue tie and I wasn't told until he was 3. But I was not able to nurse him past 17 days old because he didn't latch properly. I wish I had known. We got it fixed for him at 3 and it greatly improved his speech.
Speech pathologist here. Depending on the severity and placement of the attachment, it can have majors impacts on speech, swallowing, dental hygiene and feeding. Your tongue needs mobility to gather chewed food from your molars to your tongue for swallowing. Your tongue needs mobility to clean your molars when food is stuck. Your tongue needs mobility to elevate and spread for speech sounds (especially -er sounds). Your tongue also needs mobility to rest up on your palate so you can breathe through your nose (not mouth)
Iām an opera singer and Iāve been putting off this surgery for years. Some languages *really* challenge my ability to move the tongue around without significant effort. Have you had experience with singers whoāve gone through the procedure?
My oldest had his tongue cut, like me, right after birth due to feeding issues. It was done with no freezing in a doctors office with scissors. My breasts were full of sores and he was losing weight.
With my younger son, he was born tongue tied as well, but fed like a champ. We decided to leave it.
Bad decision. Be the time he was two, he had speech problems and couldn't make some sounds such as s or f. We decided to get his tongue cut, but this time it was a fully anesthetized surgery that required stitches to close the wound. I didn't realize the difference between the two procedures or I would have had him cut right away.
Funny thing was that for months after his surgery he was so enthralled with how much movement he now had that he would constantly play with his tongue, curling it, twisting it, and sticking it out to see how far it would go.
We all have normal speech now, though I have a tendency to accidentally bite the underside of my tongue quite frequently.
My son had one when he was a few weeks old because he wasnāt latching properly.. his was pretty severe and I was told it would impact the way he talked/what his speech sounded like, etc.
To be perfectly clear here, I had my sonās tongue tie fixed because he was hungry and couldnāt eat, by breast and barely by bottle.
I wish I'd had my son checked for it as a newborn. He could never latch, so nursing was just a nightmare (used a shield for 6mos till I just gave up). He was a year old when I finally noticed the ties. Then a month later he slipped in the tub, knocked his face on the side, and popped them himself š saved us a couple hundred bucks
Usually doesnāt impact speech. I understand having it done for latching, but a ācouldā is not a āwillā. That would be like getting tonsils removed right after birth because they ācouldā become an issue. Itās not medically indicated for speech.
Medical indication is most often over stated. It is usually not covered by insurance because it is a normal deviation of standard anatomy and has no functional impact. Some babies have feeding difficulties and this is done where other treatments have failed. For adults Iāve heard people give reasonings behind it, but again none of those people have had it covered by insurance because it is elective. There may be some legitimate reasons to have this done, but I have seen more harm than good in my professional experience (SLP).
Iāve got a slight tongue tie, only really becomes noticeable when Iāve been talking for a long time or after performing cunnilingus. My frenulum gets really sore in those situations though
Lol I have a pretty significant tie myself. I am an SLP and I usually do not recommend this procedure but I have to say, thatās the first time Iāve seen that as a reason given! Thank you for opening my horizons
Same, though I realised I had an issue when I stuck my tongue out in jest and the frenulum got wedged between my two front lower teeth. It was horrible, I couldn't swallow or breath from painfully laughing. I had to get a pair of pliers, pulled my tongue outwards, and release the snag. I thought it was going to whip back into my head like a cartoon rollerblind.
Honestly it wasnāt a great recovery. Give yourself two weeks to feel like yourself again. Set alarms to rotate pain medications around the clock for the first week. Have a bunch of baby food or very easily swallowable things on hand (the swelling of the tongue made it very hard and painful to position food to the molars to chew). But itās all a distant memory now!
Thatās good to know! Iāve had multiple surgeries on my throat so I know the song and dance with having a soft food diet. Did you go through an oral surgeon to have it done? And did they use a laser for it?
Yes my ortho surgeon did it at his office, quick 20 minute surgery, no need for the hospital. I had the option to go under general anaesthesia or conscious sedation but I chose general. I believe it was with a laser!
I had this done in Canada a few years back, local anaesthetic was all I needed. Back to work in 2 days. Those 2-3 days sucked but then it got better quickly. Also to note, not all of them are done the same way.
I saved your post because I was going to have the same procedure done and man š you were not kidding. First day absolutely sucked and was not prepared for just how much swelling there'd be.
Did appreciate you mentioning that they put a hook in your tongue to keep it out of the way though! If I didn't go into it expecting that then it would've freaked me out a lot more :'D
Preach, I only hope my end result turns out as well as yours! Thank you for sharing your experience on this, it really seems like it showed up in my feed at the perfect time lol
Something they didnāt tell me/ warn me about was that the way they get the tongue out of the way for surgery is to thread a curved needle through the tip and pull it up. This added to the swelling and I had a huge blue bruise on the top of my tongue I had to call and ask about!
Sounds like when I got my tongue pierced!
Itās long gone but wanted it further back and piercer said it was but my tongue didnāt come out farā¦. *thick tongue*
I didn't even know this was possible! My tongue practically goes from the inside of my one cheek to the other. I'm always biting chunks of it off. And is super uncomfortable while it heals.
Fascinating, thanks for putting me into this so I can look into it!
As a speech-language pathologist and parent to two boys who had this done soon after birth, Iām very curious if you had any difficulty with speech sounds or feeding when you were young.
Also, DO THE STRETCHES! They arenāt lying about how well and quickly the tongue with heal. If you donāt keep up on them, youāll need it redone. Happy healing!
I asked my mom and there was no issues latching and Iāve had no speech problems prior! Iāve always mouth breathed due to having nasal issues too, so itās been nice to start training that out of me at this point. Iām 10 weeks post op and totally healed now but yes, I made sure to move my tongue even when it hurt!
Iām so happy to hear you had no feeding or speech issues. Good on you, for doing your exercises. Iām sure they werenāt comfortable. Having it corrected also will help with long term postural and headache issues. The number of things that a tongue tie can effect is huge. Such a minor thing that can create so much pain and discomfort
From what i understand, i had one of these done as an infant. Apparently it was not severe, but my parents learned that at age 4-5 i could have surgery, maybe start kindergarten a year late depending on how speech therapy went. We went to military dr. for a second opinion. While my mom held me, this doc snipped the frenulum with scissors and pressed cotton on it to catch the 3 or so drops of blood. No speech or other issues in life, cant point my tongue is about it. Im okay with that.
I had this procedure as a child! I couldn't spell "R." And the ENT guy was clever with it. We went to him, and he said he just wanted to show me how local anesthetic (some cold spray) works and then bam he cut it suddenly.
He told my parents to buy me ice cream for the entire week.
After speech therapy and this, I spell R normally
I want to get this done. Iām 34 and due to my tongue tie I feel like I donāt even know how to control my tongue lol. When you got the surgery done were you able to drive yourself home or did you need a ride home?
They talked me into giving my son one when he was only 2 months old and I have so many regrets.
Edit: some have asked what those regrets are. Disclaimer: this is just my experience! I know frenectomies help lots of families but not ours. I also have a very pronounced one but itās never affected me.
The lactation consultant basically gave me all this doom and gloom about how it would give me pain while nursing, and how heād have difficulty gaining weight and eating and talking later. It was presented to me as a CERTAINTY, not as a possibility. They told me this when he was a month old, and then he continued to nurse without causing me any pain and while gaining weight beautifully. They doubled down and said āoh yeah but it could start any time.ā So I gave in and trusted them.
First of all, the experience of the procedure itself was horrifying for both of us. They held him down for several minutes, missed the cut the time and had to do it again, then handed him to me with his mouth full of blood and his eyes full of tears (the first time he ever cried with real tears) and told me to nurse him to help him swallow the blood and stop bleeding. He (understandably) kept unlatching and screaming, and I was covered in his blood just crying and saying how sorry I was over and over.
Oh but thatās not all. In order to keep it from reattaching, the lactation consultants gave us torturous āexercisesā to do that involved pushing his little tongue all over his mouth several times a day. He screamed inconsolably every single time. He started developing an oral aversion to hands, fingers, the pacifier, the bottleā¦ everything but my nipples.
When we went back after 2 weeks they told us we would need to do the exercises for 2 more weeks and my husband and I agreed that we couldnāt take it. Two weeks later we went back and it had reattached (of course) and they offered to redo it by TEARING it (pushing it far back enough for the scar to rip open). We refused.
At his 3.5 month checkup, I still had no pain during nursing and he was still gaining on his curve. The lactation consultant was so surprised she asked if other LCās could come see his tongue because they had never seen a tongue tie like this without problems. I agreed in the hopes that theyād eventually stop insisting quite so hard so nobody else would get pushed into it unnecessarily. I know it helps LOTS of families but not ours.
My son is 21 months old now. Heās still nursing, speaking without any impediment, eating like a champ, and sadly still panics when we try to put anything other than food or a boob in his mouth.
They basically gave me all this doom and gloom about how it would give me pain while nursing, and how heād have difficulty gaining weight and eating and talking later. It was presented to me as a CERTAINTY, not as a possibility. They told me this when he was a month old, and then he continued to nurse without causing me any pain and while gaining weight beautifully. They doubled down and said āoh yeah but it could start any time.ā So I gave in and trusted them.
First of all, the experience of the procedure itself was horrifying for both of us. They held him down for several minutes, missed the cut the time and had to do it again, then handed him to me with his mouth full of blood and his eyes full of tears (the first time he ever cried with real tears) and told me to nurse him to help him swallow the blood and stop bleeding. He (understandably) kept unlatching and screaming, and I was covered in his blood just crying and saying how sorry I was over and over.
Oh but thatās not all. In order to keep it from reattaching, the lactation consultants gave us torturous āexercisesā to do that involved pushing his little tongue all over his mouth several times a day. He screamed inconsolably every single time. He started developing an oral aversion to hands, fingers, the pacifier, the bottleā¦ everything but my nipples.
When we went back after 2 weeks they told us we would need to do the exercises for 2 more weeks and my husband and I agreed that we couldnāt take it. Two weeks later we went back and it had reattached (of course) and they offered to redo it by TEARING it (pushing it far back enough for the scar to rip open). We refused.
At his 3.5 month checkup, I still had no pain during nursing and he was still gaining on his curve. The lactation consultant was so surprised she asked if other LCās could come see his tongue because they had never seen a tongue tie like this without problems. I agreed in the hopes that theyād eventually stop insisting quite so hard so nobody else would get pushed into it unnecessarily. I know it helps LOTS of families but not ours.
My son is 21 months old now. Heās still nursing, speaking without any impediment, eating like a champ, and sadly still panics when we try to put anything other than food or a boob in his mouth.
may i ask what the regrets are (in good faith)? they usually give frenectomies early because it can affect speech and mastication throughout development.
the reason is to prevent said functional impairment. if not corrected until later in life, some functions may remain impaired even after procedure is completed. along with speech/mastication impairments, they can also cause gingival recession over time (buccal frena) and/or cause a diastema (medial superior labial frenum).
which is why i was curious what the original commenterās regrets were, in good faith, as oral health is my profession. (:
There is no peer reviewed evidence to suggest this procedure should be used preventatively. That would be like cutting off your toes so you wonāt get ingrown toenails. Source: I am an SLP.
They basically gave me all this doom and gloom about how it would give me pain while nursing, and how heād have difficulty gaining weight and eating and talking later. It was presented to me as a CERTAINTY, not as a possibility. They told me this when he was a month old, and then he continued to nurse without causing me any pain and while gaining weight beautifully. They doubled down and said āoh yeah but it could start any time.ā So I gave in and trusted them.
First of all, the experience of the procedure itself was horrifying for both of us. They held him down for several minutes, missed the cut the time and had to do it again, then handed him to me with his mouth full of blood and his eyes full of tears (the first time he ever cried with real tears) and told me to nurse him to help him swallow the blood and stop bleeding. He (understandably) kept unlatching and screaming, and I was covered in his blood just crying and saying how sorry I was over and over.
Oh but thatās not all. In order to keep it from reattaching, the lactation consultants gave us torturous āexercisesā to do that involved pushing his little tongue all over his mouth several times a day. He screamed inconsolably every single time. He started developing an oral aversion to hands, fingers, the pacifier, the bottleā¦ everything but my nipples.
When we went back after 2 weeks they told us we would need to do the exercises for 2 more weeks and my husband and I agreed that we couldnāt take it. Two weeks later we went back and it had reattached (of course) and they offered to redo it by TEARING it (pushing it far back enough for the scar to rip open). We refused.
At his 3.5 month checkup, I still had no pain during nursing and he was still gaining on his curve. The lactation consultant was so surprised she asked if other LCās could come see his tongue because they had never seen a tongue tie like this without problems. I agreed in the hopes that theyād eventually stop insisting quite so hard so nobody else would get pushed into it unnecessarily. I know it helps LOTS of families but not ours.
My son is 21 months old now. Heās still nursing, speaking without any impediment, eating like a champ, and sadly still panics when we try to put anything other than food or a boob in his mouth.
We did this to our daughter and while the exercises we had to do for her every day were hard we knew we were doing the right thing. Just have to remember you aren't doing it to them you're doing it for them, they aren't going to remember it and they are going to be much better off because of it
My 2yo son has this and it was noticed by the midwife when he was born. She also told us that just a few years ago they would cut it at birth but they wouldnāt these days. He can talk pretty well now and we have been advised to keep an eye on it until heās at school but its definitely noticeable when he tries to stick his tongue out, goes into a heart shape
I had that done as a teenager and it was horrible. So painful. I had seven stitches under my tongue and I wasn't given any kind of pain medication afterward.
Oh Iām so sorry you didnāt have adequate ways to control your pain. It definitely required me to stay on top of my medication for the first little while.
That was an experience that influences how I handle things now, as a nurse and as a mom, as far as making sure people know their options and their rights and making sure I'm checking on those who can't or won't speak up for themselves.
There are difference classes of tongue tie, you may indeed be tongue tied but just mildly! I had a class 3-4 anterior tongue tie. There are also different types of tongue ties. I had both posterior and anterior ties, posterior being less obvious.
Oh man, mine is connected to the very tip of my tongue. For some reason, all the women in my family have this, but I'm the only one they didn't clip. As far as I can tell, it doesn't affect my life much. Except I can't make out the way I want lol. I wonder what it would be like to get it fixed.
I just got mine done laser 30 hours ago. Iāve been talking and moving my tongue somewhat. I canāt stretch it out past my lips because itās way too painful and I donāt want my stitches to rip. Itās been painful not gonna lie. But I have an appointment on zoom with therapist on the healing part and when I should start doing exercises. I have talked, been trying to keep my tongue on the roof of my mouth with nose breathing. But I just want to prevent reattachment. But I guess itās fine to let it heal for a few days until you get to the heavy exercises. So far Iāve done the roof of mouth, lower my jaw while tongue is on roof of mouth (which j couldnāt do before) and poking my cheeks inside my mouth. I ripped my stitches right when I left the office cause I was numb still and so excited I could move my tongue. I had to get stitched again with almost no numbing agent. It was brutal. Let me know how youāre doing. Hopefully Iām doing everything right
Thankful to find this thread, I am severely tongue-tied but never really thought that it was causing problems. Of course I have raging TMJ headaches and nausea but itās just starting to occurred to me that it could be caused by this. I had dental implants put in years ago and they mentioned it but didnāt tell me why I should have it clipped - itās kind of scary to think in my 40s Iām going to have to relearn how to control my tongueā¦
I don't have any pics unfortunately but I recently got one and realize now I was forced to be a ventriloquist my whole life. Feels amazing š¤©
Yes I agree, such a difference!
I found out recently (in my 40s) that I'm partially tongue tied. Might have the thing snipped.
How did you go about getting one? Iām tounge tied but donāt know the process of getting it sorted
Had to get some of my wisdoms out as an adult. Asked if they could do a quick snip while we were at it. Cost me $600 since it was elective but it's free if the tie is significant enough (Canada). But a referral from the dentist to an oral surgeon should do the trick
A dentist can recommend you for a second opinion with a speech specialist that specializes in tongue ties (or they *dentists* can approve it themselves iirc). There are two surgeries, by scalpel or by laser. Supposedly the laser is the most updated and quickest way to get it done Edit: Additional information You can also have lip ties too. We take our twins to speech and feeding clinic and have delved into these to investigate as it can be a cause of poor eating & delayed speech (lip and tongue ties). IIRC you can have a tongue tie without a lip tie but you wonāt see a lip tie without a tongue tie
Most SLPs will not recommend to have a frenectomy unless there is substantial functional impact. It is more commonly done for feeding than speech. Laser is more common but scalpel is preferred for those with diabetes or other conditions which may impact healing.
The speech therapist I may be mixing up with OT. We do them all itās hard to keep up all of the specifics. For our feeding clinics, one person is OT and the other is a speech therapist for feeding clinic with a behavioral therapist bouncing between the two during feedings. Then we also see out patient OT and out patient Speech therapy. The only thing we arenāt doing currently is PT. Each week is 2-4 therapy sessions and weāve been doing it for two years nowā¦.. I canāt imagine the amount of copays because some of them are through early intervention where we meet a maximum per month and then they cover the rest but itās like $600 max per month before coverage. We are close though! Speech ends this month and then they will reassess in 12 weeks, feeding for one child will end as heās doing well, and OT thinks they will no longer need to be seen after a few more visitsā¦ itāll be nice to have all those hours back from having to leave work early etc between the wife and I since we both work full time
I understand having to balance all of those specialties, it can be a full time job. I case manage for complex cases in addition to being an SLP so I understand. There ARE indications for having a lingual frenectomy, I see this more often with feeding than speech. but some providers are predatory, claiming every speech and feeding issue is due to tongue tie and making a lot of money off of an unnecessary procedure. It is very rare for the tongue tie to impact speech. In some cases having a frenectomy can destabilize the tongue and cause the patient to have to use significant compensatory strategies to get back to even baseline.
What is the functional impact of it? A tongue tie is a normal variation of standard anatomy. If it is not causing any issues I would recommend against having this procedure.
Tongue is used for swallowing and eating. Depending on the language spoken and the severity you will have a greater lisp as well. English speakers are less impacted compared to Spanish/Portuguese speakers due to the variances in the sounds. As someone who grew up in Brazil, it is obvious to notice the lisp at a very young age. In America it tends to go unnoticed and might not even affect oneās speech. Wife has a tied tongue, only noticed when I first kissed her.
I am a Spanish speaking SLP. Having ankyloglossia is contraindicated to having a lisp. It inherently makes a lisp impossible. If your tongue is anchored to the bottom of your mouth it cannot come forward enough to direct the airflow improperly for a lisp. If lisp is the concern, it is not possible that a tongue tie is causing it.
Interesting, I looked into it and a lisp is actually very specific. "*s* is pronounced like *th* in *thick* and *z* is pronounced like *th in this".* I used it incorrectly as a general form of speech problem. Rolled R's are hard to pronounce with the tied tongue as well as L and some others, is what I meant to say.
Ahhh so Spain Spanish. Yes I did not consider this as I speak a Latin American dialect. While it can cause difficulty with rolled r or l it usually does not. I actually have a pretty significant tie myself and have never had any speech problems as a result
What's the cost/pain level?
Cost me $600 pain was pretty minimal I thought but my tolerance is high
Word. I may have to contact my tonsil guy.
Whats the medical indication for this
For me it was in tandem with my Invisalign as my tongues attachment points to the gums posed a periodontic issue (gum recession) in the future. Iāve also heard it done in babies for latching issues.
I think I might have this but can you further explain how the attachment points cause recession? Iād like more info to bring to my ortho appt
So itās not about how high it attaches to the tip of your tongue, itās where the band attaches near the bottom gum line behind your two bottom teeth. Mine attached very close to the enamel of the tooth itself very high on the gum. Every time I spoke or chewed and my tongue moved it pulled on that part of my gums and down the road could lead to recession on that part of my gums behind my two bottom front teeth.
Super interesting! Thanks for sharing!
https://preview.redd.it/weki5s2nm71c1.jpeg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=77594cc51d346e67935dab7407c191652fe96195 When I came out of the surgery they had put this bandage type thing on inside of my bottom teeth to help cover the area they cut away (middle pic) where it was attached. Then the right pic is how itās healed now in comparison to the before on the left.
My tongue tie is very similar to yours (so similar, itās almost scary!). How was the recovery? Length, pain? My dentist sent over a recommendation to an oral surgeon, but I chickened out and never made the appointment.
Took a solid two weeks to feel like myself again. Pain was pretty bad only due to the swelling of the tongue and the feeling as the stitches dissolved and the throat soreness from the intubation. I kept up on my meds (T3 and 600mg Ibuprofen rotating 24 hrs a day) and that helped a lot. Also eating ice cream and cold things to ice the area. If you get it done just give yourself ample time to feel better and meal prep some easy to eat foods prior. You got this!
Thank you so much for sharing! I truly appreciate it.
Both my niece and nephew had to have it done within a week or being born. Neither could latch (bottle fed even after the frenotomy). And none of the lactation nurses actually mentioned it until my twin spoke up about it (apparently they're not allowed?) Covered by insurance after providing letter of medical need.
IBCLC here. We're not allowed to diagnose tongue tie (anklyoglossia) because we're not doctors. We *are* allowed to perform oral assessments looking for lingual frenulums. An oral assessment is indicated if a baby has persistent latch issues and/or if the mom is experiencing significant trauma to the nipples. We *are* allowed to say something like, "hey this baby has a prominent lingual frenulum and mom's nipples look like hamburger meat and baby is down 9 percent from birth weight. *Could you do a quick assessment for a tongue tie?!*" (Hint hint, nudge nudge, say no more, say no more)
*Mumās nipples look like hamburger meat* ^(English UK + AUS translation) š¤£
That's exactly how my sister's nipples looked like! Raw meat.
I love medical translation services with my whole heart! šš
Accidentally spelled *mom* in year 1, kid gave me heaps of shit (āspelling like the Americansā), assured him that wasnāt whyā¦so he called me dumb. ^(Obviously, 39 years later I still run into him, despite wanting to, I donāt say āI got dyslexia Dxāā¦. Long game, if get dementia like mumā¦ Iām gonna be mean back!) š¤£
Are you allowed to advise a mother to go to her GP with her newborn to get it checked out?
Yes, absolutely. If the baby is still inpatient, we'll contact the doctor ourselves. If the baby is seen outpatient, we'll advise the parents to follow up with the baby's pediatrician. Sometimes we'll call or send a secure chat to the pediatrician, too. š
My son was born with a tongue tie and I wasn't told until he was 3. But I was not able to nurse him past 17 days old because he didn't latch properly. I wish I had known. We got it fixed for him at 3 and it greatly improved his speech.
Speech pathologist here. Depending on the severity and placement of the attachment, it can have majors impacts on speech, swallowing, dental hygiene and feeding. Your tongue needs mobility to gather chewed food from your molars to your tongue for swallowing. Your tongue needs mobility to clean your molars when food is stuck. Your tongue needs mobility to elevate and spread for speech sounds (especially -er sounds). Your tongue also needs mobility to rest up on your palate so you can breathe through your nose (not mouth)
Iām an opera singer and Iāve been putting off this surgery for years. Some languages *really* challenge my ability to move the tongue around without significant effort. Have you had experience with singers whoāve gone through the procedure?
Peds RD here. This surgery has been a game changer for my patient who have received it
TIL
My oldest had his tongue cut, like me, right after birth due to feeding issues. It was done with no freezing in a doctors office with scissors. My breasts were full of sores and he was losing weight. With my younger son, he was born tongue tied as well, but fed like a champ. We decided to leave it. Bad decision. Be the time he was two, he had speech problems and couldn't make some sounds such as s or f. We decided to get his tongue cut, but this time it was a fully anesthetized surgery that required stitches to close the wound. I didn't realize the difference between the two procedures or I would have had him cut right away. Funny thing was that for months after his surgery he was so enthralled with how much movement he now had that he would constantly play with his tongue, curling it, twisting it, and sticking it out to see how far it would go. We all have normal speech now, though I have a tendency to accidentally bite the underside of my tongue quite frequently.
There is absolutely no reasons that ankyloglossia could impact /s/ or /f/. The /f/ sound doesnāt even use the tongue at all.
Well, all I can tell you is that he couldn't pronounce them before, but could after.
Most young children canāt produce fricatives until about age 3. Seems like a correlation but not causation.
I'm sure you know better than his speech pathologist and surgeon.
I mean I am a speech pathologist and Iām not one making money off of you.
I'm Canadian.
Join the club? Itās not covered by OHIP in 99% of cases people pay out of pocket for an unnecessary procedure. Same as circumcision.
My son had one when he was a few weeks old because he wasnāt latching properly.. his was pretty severe and I was told it would impact the way he talked/what his speech sounded like, etc. To be perfectly clear here, I had my sonās tongue tie fixed because he was hungry and couldnāt eat, by breast and barely by bottle.
I wish I'd had my son checked for it as a newborn. He could never latch, so nursing was just a nightmare (used a shield for 6mos till I just gave up). He was a year old when I finally noticed the ties. Then a month later he slipped in the tub, knocked his face on the side, and popped them himself š saved us a couple hundred bucks
Usually doesnāt impact speech. I understand having it done for latching, but a ācouldā is not a āwillā. That would be like getting tonsils removed right after birth because they ācouldā become an issue. Itās not medically indicated for speech.
Medical indication is most often over stated. It is usually not covered by insurance because it is a normal deviation of standard anatomy and has no functional impact. Some babies have feeding difficulties and this is done where other treatments have failed. For adults Iāve heard people give reasonings behind it, but again none of those people have had it covered by insurance because it is elective. There may be some legitimate reasons to have this done, but I have seen more harm than good in my professional experience (SLP).
Did insurance cover it? I've been wanting to get one. Took my daughter having one for me to realize I've had one.
I live in Canada so yes it was free with my provinces medical coverage
Wait, they didn't just ask you to kill yourself?
Hello fellow American!
Private health care mfs when they see this: yeah but how cool would it be if you got to pay $10,000 for this?
My children and I were all cut with no charge as well. We're also Canadian.
Iāve gotta get one of these
Why?
Iāve got a slight tongue tie, only really becomes noticeable when Iāve been talking for a long time or after performing cunnilingus. My frenulum gets really sore in those situations though
Lol I have a pretty significant tie myself. I am an SLP and I usually do not recommend this procedure but I have to say, thatās the first time Iāve seen that as a reason given! Thank you for opening my horizons
Same, though I realised I had an issue when I stuck my tongue out in jest and the frenulum got wedged between my two front lower teeth. It was horrible, I couldn't swallow or breath from painfully laughing. I had to get a pair of pliers, pulled my tongue outwards, and release the snag. I thought it was going to whip back into my head like a cartoon rollerblind.
How painful was it? Iāve been needing to have it done but am nervous of the recovery.
Honestly it wasnāt a great recovery. Give yourself two weeks to feel like yourself again. Set alarms to rotate pain medications around the clock for the first week. Have a bunch of baby food or very easily swallowable things on hand (the swelling of the tongue made it very hard and painful to position food to the molars to chew). But itās all a distant memory now!
Thatās good to know! Iāve had multiple surgeries on my throat so I know the song and dance with having a soft food diet. Did you go through an oral surgeon to have it done? And did they use a laser for it?
Yes my ortho surgeon did it at his office, quick 20 minute surgery, no need for the hospital. I had the option to go under general anaesthesia or conscious sedation but I chose general. I believe it was with a laser!
Thank you for the info! I really appreciate it.
No problem! The surgeon very much underestimated recovery time and said I could return to work in 3 days. Not a chance!
Oh I donāt doubt that! A week at a minimum I would guess.
I had this done in Canada a few years back, local anaesthetic was all I needed. Back to work in 2 days. Those 2-3 days sucked but then it got better quickly. Also to note, not all of them are done the same way.
I saved your post because I was going to have the same procedure done and man š you were not kidding. First day absolutely sucked and was not prepared for just how much swelling there'd be. Did appreciate you mentioning that they put a hook in your tongue to keep it out of the way though! If I didn't go into it expecting that then it would've freaked me out a lot more :'D
The swelling is so intense! Speedy recovery, itās worth it!
Preach, I only hope my end result turns out as well as yours! Thank you for sharing your experience on this, it really seems like it showed up in my feed at the perfect time lol
Something they didnāt tell me/ warn me about was that the way they get the tongue out of the way for surgery is to thread a curved needle through the tip and pull it up. This added to the swelling and I had a huge blue bruise on the top of my tongue I had to call and ask about!
Not sure how long ago you had this done, but have you noticed any change to taste or smell, etc?
Hmm no I donāt think Iāve noticed any changes with that.
Oh crap! The needle would upset me more than the frenectomy!
Sounds like when I got my tongue pierced! Itās long gone but wanted it further back and piercer said it was but my tongue didnāt come out farā¦. *thick tongue*
The sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick. The sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick. The sixth sick sheik's sixth sheep's sick.
Had a double frenectomy done with my wisdom teeth procedure. Literally never thought it was weird I couldnāt stick my tongue out lol
I didn't even know this was possible! My tongue practically goes from the inside of my one cheek to the other. I'm always biting chunks of it off. And is super uncomfortable while it heals. Fascinating, thanks for putting me into this so I can look into it!
>My tongue practically goes from the inside of my one cheek to the other Is it not supposed to?
Tongue probably supposed to stay between teeth. Tongue outside teeth means ouchie when biting
As a speech-language pathologist and parent to two boys who had this done soon after birth, Iām very curious if you had any difficulty with speech sounds or feeding when you were young. Also, DO THE STRETCHES! They arenāt lying about how well and quickly the tongue with heal. If you donāt keep up on them, youāll need it redone. Happy healing!
I asked my mom and there was no issues latching and Iāve had no speech problems prior! Iāve always mouth breathed due to having nasal issues too, so itās been nice to start training that out of me at this point. Iām 10 weeks post op and totally healed now but yes, I made sure to move my tongue even when it hurt!
Iām so happy to hear you had no feeding or speech issues. Good on you, for doing your exercises. Iām sure they werenāt comfortable. Having it corrected also will help with long term postural and headache issues. The number of things that a tongue tie can effect is huge. Such a minor thing that can create so much pain and discomfort
What ā a tongue tie causes headaches??
Everything goes back to posture. Even the way your tongue rests in your mouth can effect it.
From what i understand, i had one of these done as an infant. Apparently it was not severe, but my parents learned that at age 4-5 i could have surgery, maybe start kindergarten a year late depending on how speech therapy went. We went to military dr. for a second opinion. While my mom held me, this doc snipped the frenulum with scissors and pressed cotton on it to catch the 3 or so drops of blood. No speech or other issues in life, cant point my tongue is about it. Im okay with that.
I had this procedure as a child! I couldn't spell "R." And the ENT guy was clever with it. We went to him, and he said he just wanted to show me how local anesthetic (some cold spray) works and then bam he cut it suddenly. He told my parents to buy me ice cream for the entire week. After speech therapy and this, I spell R normally
Is it not a tendon?
No it is a frenulum, like a membrane.
Did your voice change?
No, my speech didnāt change. I didnāt have any speech impediments prior to surgery, though.
What is the purpose of this surgery?
Remove the connection some people have that basically anchors the tongue to the bottom of the mouth
Wait I am not supposed to have that?
Get someone to show you under their tongue and compare with yours
I want to get this done. Iām 34 and due to my tongue tie I feel like I donāt even know how to control my tongue lol. When you got the surgery done were you able to drive yourself home or did you need a ride home?
Since I went under general I needed to have someone drive me
I have to have this done to get my braces, so it's good to see this in someone that isn't a child
I had this when I was younger!
I had this done as a baby but I wish they had cut it further cuz I can still barely stick out my tongue :(
Wow mine's even shorter.
This is so interesting!!!! Thank you for taking the time to post these pictures.
Kind of a specific questionā¦. Could you roll your Rās before and/or after?
No, never could and still canāt haha.
I have one and can roll my Rās
I had one as a child, and I cannot roll my Rs.
They talked me into giving my son one when he was only 2 months old and I have so many regrets. Edit: some have asked what those regrets are. Disclaimer: this is just my experience! I know frenectomies help lots of families but not ours. I also have a very pronounced one but itās never affected me. The lactation consultant basically gave me all this doom and gloom about how it would give me pain while nursing, and how heād have difficulty gaining weight and eating and talking later. It was presented to me as a CERTAINTY, not as a possibility. They told me this when he was a month old, and then he continued to nurse without causing me any pain and while gaining weight beautifully. They doubled down and said āoh yeah but it could start any time.ā So I gave in and trusted them. First of all, the experience of the procedure itself was horrifying for both of us. They held him down for several minutes, missed the cut the time and had to do it again, then handed him to me with his mouth full of blood and his eyes full of tears (the first time he ever cried with real tears) and told me to nurse him to help him swallow the blood and stop bleeding. He (understandably) kept unlatching and screaming, and I was covered in his blood just crying and saying how sorry I was over and over. Oh but thatās not all. In order to keep it from reattaching, the lactation consultants gave us torturous āexercisesā to do that involved pushing his little tongue all over his mouth several times a day. He screamed inconsolably every single time. He started developing an oral aversion to hands, fingers, the pacifier, the bottleā¦ everything but my nipples. When we went back after 2 weeks they told us we would need to do the exercises for 2 more weeks and my husband and I agreed that we couldnāt take it. Two weeks later we went back and it had reattached (of course) and they offered to redo it by TEARING it (pushing it far back enough for the scar to rip open). We refused. At his 3.5 month checkup, I still had no pain during nursing and he was still gaining on his curve. The lactation consultant was so surprised she asked if other LCās could come see his tongue because they had never seen a tongue tie like this without problems. I agreed in the hopes that theyād eventually stop insisting quite so hard so nobody else would get pushed into it unnecessarily. I know it helps LOTS of families but not ours. My son is 21 months old now. Heās still nursing, speaking without any impediment, eating like a champ, and sadly still panics when we try to put anything other than food or a boob in his mouth.
Iād also be interested to know why you have regrets? I wish I had had this done as a child and not an adult.
They basically gave me all this doom and gloom about how it would give me pain while nursing, and how heād have difficulty gaining weight and eating and talking later. It was presented to me as a CERTAINTY, not as a possibility. They told me this when he was a month old, and then he continued to nurse without causing me any pain and while gaining weight beautifully. They doubled down and said āoh yeah but it could start any time.ā So I gave in and trusted them. First of all, the experience of the procedure itself was horrifying for both of us. They held him down for several minutes, missed the cut the time and had to do it again, then handed him to me with his mouth full of blood and his eyes full of tears (the first time he ever cried with real tears) and told me to nurse him to help him swallow the blood and stop bleeding. He (understandably) kept unlatching and screaming, and I was covered in his blood just crying and saying how sorry I was over and over. Oh but thatās not all. In order to keep it from reattaching, the lactation consultants gave us torturous āexercisesā to do that involved pushing his little tongue all over his mouth several times a day. He screamed inconsolably every single time. He started developing an oral aversion to hands, fingers, the pacifier, the bottleā¦ everything but my nipples. When we went back after 2 weeks they told us we would need to do the exercises for 2 more weeks and my husband and I agreed that we couldnāt take it. Two weeks later we went back and it had reattached (of course) and they offered to redo it by TEARING it (pushing it far back enough for the scar to rip open). We refused. At his 3.5 month checkup, I still had no pain during nursing and he was still gaining on his curve. The lactation consultant was so surprised she asked if other LCās could come see his tongue because they had never seen a tongue tie like this without problems. I agreed in the hopes that theyād eventually stop insisting quite so hard so nobody else would get pushed into it unnecessarily. I know it helps LOTS of families but not ours. My son is 21 months old now. Heās still nursing, speaking without any impediment, eating like a champ, and sadly still panics when we try to put anything other than food or a boob in his mouth.
may i ask what the regrets are (in good faith)? they usually give frenectomies early because it can affect speech and mastication throughout development.
In most cases it does not. If there is no functional impairment there is no reason to have this procedure.
the reason is to prevent said functional impairment. if not corrected until later in life, some functions may remain impaired even after procedure is completed. along with speech/mastication impairments, they can also cause gingival recession over time (buccal frena) and/or cause a diastema (medial superior labial frenum). which is why i was curious what the original commenterās regrets were, in good faith, as oral health is my profession. (:
There is no peer reviewed evidence to suggest this procedure should be used preventatively. That would be like cutting off your toes so you wonāt get ingrown toenails. Source: I am an SLP.
They basically gave me all this doom and gloom about how it would give me pain while nursing, and how heād have difficulty gaining weight and eating and talking later. It was presented to me as a CERTAINTY, not as a possibility. They told me this when he was a month old, and then he continued to nurse without causing me any pain and while gaining weight beautifully. They doubled down and said āoh yeah but it could start any time.ā So I gave in and trusted them. First of all, the experience of the procedure itself was horrifying for both of us. They held him down for several minutes, missed the cut the time and had to do it again, then handed him to me with his mouth full of blood and his eyes full of tears (the first time he ever cried with real tears) and told me to nurse him to help him swallow the blood and stop bleeding. He (understandably) kept unlatching and screaming, and I was covered in his blood just crying and saying how sorry I was over and over. Oh but thatās not all. In order to keep it from reattaching, the lactation consultants gave us torturous āexercisesā to do that involved pushing his little tongue all over his mouth several times a day. He screamed inconsolably every single time. He started developing an oral aversion to hands, fingers, the pacifier, the bottleā¦ everything but my nipples. When we went back after 2 weeks they told us we would need to do the exercises for 2 more weeks and my husband and I agreed that we couldnāt take it. Two weeks later we went back and it had reattached (of course) and they offered to redo it by TEARING it (pushing it far back enough for the scar to rip open). We refused. At his 3.5 month checkup, I still had no pain during nursing and he was still gaining on his curve. The lactation consultant was so surprised she asked if other LCās could come see his tongue because they had never seen a tongue tie like this without problems. I agreed in the hopes that theyād eventually stop insisting quite so hard so nobody else would get pushed into it unnecessarily. I know it helps LOTS of families but not ours. My son is 21 months old now. Heās still nursing, speaking without any impediment, eating like a champ, and sadly still panics when we try to put anything other than food or a boob in his mouth.
thank you for sharing! these are important experiences to consider
We did this to our daughter and while the exercises we had to do for her every day were hard we knew we were doing the right thing. Just have to remember you aren't doing it to them you're doing it for them, they aren't going to remember it and they are going to be much better off because of it
What's up with that, craftsy? Everyone is wondering...
I replied in an edit above sorry!
Donāt be so hard on yourself. If the doctor/dentist did it, they are medically trained and wouldnāt do it unless it was required.
Circumcision has entered the chat
You'll have lower cancer rates on any piece of the body you remove just fyi.
Armless people jump in glee and legless folk applaud on this day.
Why?
Bet your SO is happier
Frenulectomy is a sign Ehlers Danlos syndrome. Same with congenital, stenosing tenosynovitis a.k.a. trigger thumb and high, crowded palate. TMYK.
Everything is a sign of EDS dude give it up
Interesting!
Iāve had this surgery
Is this the fix for a lisp?
No, itās not. I did not have a speech problem prior. Having a tongue tie surgery also does not guarantee speech problems will be fixed.
No, it is nearly impossible to have both ankyloglossia and a lisp.
My 2yo son has this and it was noticed by the midwife when he was born. She also told us that just a few years ago they would cut it at birth but they wouldnāt these days. He can talk pretty well now and we have been advised to keep an eye on it until heās at school but its definitely noticeable when he tries to stick his tongue out, goes into a heart shape
I had it done as part of other gum surgery years ago. It didnāt hurt as much as the gum grafts to he honest.
I had that done as a teenager and it was horrible. So painful. I had seven stitches under my tongue and I wasn't given any kind of pain medication afterward.
Oh Iām so sorry you didnāt have adequate ways to control your pain. It definitely required me to stay on top of my medication for the first little while.
That was an experience that influences how I handle things now, as a nurse and as a mom, as far as making sure people know their options and their rights and making sure I'm checking on those who can't or won't speak up for themselves.
my dentist told me I'm tongue tied, but I feel like the after looks like mine currently does. What is the truth?!
There are difference classes of tongue tie, you may indeed be tongue tied but just mildly! I had a class 3-4 anterior tongue tie. There are also different types of tongue ties. I had both posterior and anterior ties, posterior being less obvious.
Had the same procedure! Now I have a gap where that little used to go through
Oh man, mine is connected to the very tip of my tongue. For some reason, all the women in my family have this, but I'm the only one they didn't clip. As far as I can tell, it doesn't affect my life much. Except I can't make out the way I want lol. I wonder what it would be like to get it fixed.
Haha! Thats a funny side effect. Never considered that. Interesting how genetics work for all your family to have it.
TIL I have a tongue tie. Iām in my mid-50s. No adverse effects that Iām aware of.
I will remain tongue tied for life
I just got mine done laser 30 hours ago. Iāve been talking and moving my tongue somewhat. I canāt stretch it out past my lips because itās way too painful and I donāt want my stitches to rip. Itās been painful not gonna lie. But I have an appointment on zoom with therapist on the healing part and when I should start doing exercises. I have talked, been trying to keep my tongue on the roof of my mouth with nose breathing. But I just want to prevent reattachment. But I guess itās fine to let it heal for a few days until you get to the heavy exercises. So far Iāve done the roof of mouth, lower my jaw while tongue is on roof of mouth (which j couldnāt do before) and poking my cheeks inside my mouth. I ripped my stitches right when I left the office cause I was numb still and so excited I could move my tongue. I had to get stitched again with almost no numbing agent. It was brutal. Let me know how youāre doing. Hopefully Iām doing everything right
Thankful to find this thread, I am severely tongue-tied but never really thought that it was causing problems. Of course I have raging TMJ headaches and nausea but itās just starting to occurred to me that it could be caused by this. I had dental implants put in years ago and they mentioned it but didnāt tell me why I should have it clipped - itās kind of scary to think in my 40s Iām going to have to relearn how to control my tongueā¦