Seeking Advice on Tongue Tie Surgery

Both my step daughter & my daughter were born tongue tied. The Drs told my step daughters mom that she needed to have it corrected when she was a baby, but she never did. She is now 9 and talks with a slight lisp, and is having her tongue clipped sometime early next year. My daughters isnt as bad, but I did have to stop breast feeding because of it. She is getting hers looked at early next year at the dentist. My husbands sister had the same thing and had to have her tongue clipped... she said they gave her meds so she couldnt feel a thing, and she ate ice cream for the day, and by the following day, she was back to normal!! Its better to have it done as young as possible though... my step daughter knows whats going on, and is scared, but if she had it done when she was younger, she would not remember it today.

I am sorry I do not know too much about it, but my sister had it done back in the early 70's. Hers was as simple as snipping the skin under her tongue. It freed her tongue so she could speak properly. It was quick and easy w/ no complications. I cant think of any reason to NOT do it, otherwise your child may not be able to speak properly.

I think someone else said "back in the day it was offered", well, it was not offered to my parents when I was born. And as I grew up, it was offered again but there was always the possibility of losing sensation in my tongue if I got cut so I never did it. However, being tongue-tied has never affected my speach or eating or the growth of my teeth. If your son's will stop him from normality (except being able to stick out his tongue) then you should have his cut. If not, why take the risk? My docs/dentist always told me it was a cosmetic thing. And you know what, it really is!
And that don't think it will "stretch out" either. That's baloney!

Uh, why is your dentist recommending it? If your pediatrician doesn't think there's an issue, there isn't. The only reason being tongue-tied is a problem is if it interferes with the child's speech. They used to automatically do the surgery back in the day, rarely do it now unless it impacts the child's speech development, because the frenulum (the short little piece of skin that they would want to cut) will stretch on its own usually.
I would NOT NOT NOT get it done based on the recommendation of a dentist.
p.s. - my son is tongue tied and we didn't get the surgery, he's fine,

My daughter had it done when she was about 3 days old still in the hospital. It was a quit snip and that was all there was too it. I am guessing it is different for a 2 1/2 year old. We chose to do it b/c I was attempting to breast feed her but that was still unsuccessful. They did warn me if we didn't do it then it would either correct itself as she got older of would need the surgery at a later time.

Best Wishes!

Hi R.! I have 2 sons, out of 3, who are tongue tied. We have not had surgery and don't feel it is necessary unless they have to have something else done that would require anesthesia. The oldest of our 2 is now 8 yrs old and really has not problems from it. At first we thought he had some speech issues but it turned out he didn't. The little one is almost 3 yrs old and doesn't show any signs that is it causing any trouble.

How about your son, is he having trouble due to his tongue issue? If not, why have the surgery?

Can't wait to hear from you.

Take Care,
N. :) SAHM homeschooling 3 boys 13, 8 & 2 yrs old and married to Mr. Wonderful for almost 15yrs. I love to help other moms, who want to become SAHMs, reach that goal.

Hi R., I was born tongue tied and it was not corrected when I was a child. When I turned 18 I decided to have the proceedure done because it prevented me from french kissing. Even at 18, the procedure wasn't really a big deal and I've never regretted doing it.

Hi R.,
My son now 12 was born in Germany with a tongue tie. Thanks to American medical reports, which said there would be no real negative effect on the child, the doctors decided to not have this corrected right after birth. I'm not sure if there are different severities. My son's tip of the tongue was actually tied down to the gumline of the lower jaw.
When he started talking we recognized his pronounciation not being quite right. He saw a speech therapist during his preschool year, who originally had agreed with the medical field, changed her mind then after a year of unsuccessful therapy. We had the tongue tie removed at the dentist's. He gave him ?laughing gas?. My son was sitting in the chair all relaxed, smiling. The whole procedure was done in 5 minutes (I don't think it was any longer than that). He had some pain afterwards, but because it being in the mouth it healed rather fast. It was a very strange experience for my son now almost 5) to be able to move his tongue freely (sometimes he said he wants his tongue tie back). As of the speech, since the muscle development with the tongue tie had already progressed so far, he was never able to totally overcome this lisp-like problem. He was in speech therapy all through grade school and even though he is very smart this was an easy target for kids to tease him about.
My recommondation for your and your son's sake, get it done as soon as possible. Good luck,
K.

My oldest son, now 3 was tounge tied when he was born. It was so bad that he couldn't nurse or stick his tounge out. They fixed it right in the hospital the 3rd day after birth. The "surgery" you're considering isn't scary at all. It's a rather simple procedure. They take a small pair of scissors and cut the extra skin so that the tounge is free to move normally. They didn't even need an asthetic for my son, it was a quick 30 second procedure. They lifted his tounge and then a little snip and it was over. He didn't even cry. Due to the fact that your son is a bit older they may inject a local for your sake and his. Bottom line, this isn't really a big deal and having it fixed will ensure he can use his tounge properly for speech.

Hope this gives you some peace of mind!