Dear Parents of Tongue Tied Babies,
If you follow any lactation account on Instagram you've probably seen the New York Times article Inside the Booming Business of Cutting Babies’ Tongues or the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) open address of the issue. You are going to see a lot of heated conversations continue around oral ties, this isn't entirely new, but it may cause you to wonder if you made the right decision for your baby.
Process that but then hear this - you made the best decision you could with the information that you had.
These articles highlight extreme examples but their pain was still real. These stories belong to them, your story and your decision is your own.
If you felt your support team was pushy or if you did not receive enough education to make an informed decision then do not refer that person again. Look for second opinions when possible. But none of this means that great support teams don't exist!
What I'm not loving right now is parents stuck in the middle, again, not knowing who to trust.
Parents should know what a full oral assessment looks like and that a picture alone can never replace it. Parent should know that pediatricians get minimal breastfeeding education and unless they choose to seek extra education they should not be evaluating oral function. Breastfeeding parents should get latch support first because a bad latch can cause very similar symptoms to oral ties. Parents should have access to wrap around care with body work and feeding support, not promises of quick fixes.
To the professionals feeling personally attacked by this article I challenge you to question why. If you are doing full assessments, supporting parent's care and maintaining a credible referral network then you shouldn't feel targeted. Many parents like myself are incredibly grateful for your specialized work!
It hurts me to hear “Tongue ties are a fad” because the feeding challenges I experienced with my first still run deep in some ways. I've had over 3 years to process our experience but my son's struggle to gain weight left scars on the small number of newborn pictures that we have. The many weeks of pumping and feeding therapy were an intense jump into parenthood that I'll never forget. They are not a fad for the babies that need help.
We have to create conversations in this grey area. Not all babies need their fenulums released and not all parents are getting equal access to quality care.
As inflamed as this conversation has become I hope it creates progress. I hope it leads to more training and connections within associated professions to better serve babies and parents in the future.
