Sorry about the spelling above, I've got mother brain today... anyway, my
dear friend and co-leader prodded me into entering the discussion on tight
frenulum's and lip sucking....As my experience was with the top rather than
the bottom that was queried about in the original post of this thread I
didn't jump in, but here goes:

My mother reports that by 6 days old I had pulled enough of her nipple off
that it was bleeding constantly and was suggested she needed stitching. I
was then spitting up the blood I'd swallowed and so was immediately put on
bottles and formula... as an early teen going through orthodontia I had the
entire frenulum removed surgically from lip through to roof of my mouth in
order to keep my front teeth together - previously separated by the frenulum
with a gap of 1/4inch...Lauren Bacall's beauty aside, I HATED the look and
would not smile until it was "fixed" ---

Now, my first son has always pulled in both top and bottom lips -- but has
"normal" thinish frenulae (all three, top, bottom, and tongue), and my
second has the gapped tooth thick top frenulum (is currently teething molars
so I can't get in the check the others); he too sucks in his lips... the
difference being that it is MUCH harder to keep his out for a full
nursing--that top one especially slowly sucks back in... I find this is not
a problem; I either gently apply pressure to chin to pull bottom out, or
edges of nose/cheeks to pull top one out-- if he's particulary fussy I don't
bother as it creates the pull off-relatch-pull off-cry cycle. As long as it
doesn't hurt me and he's gainig weight fine I leave it alone.

I would imagine that a simple snip would suffice to release an especially
tight lip frenulum just as it does a tongue frenulum... but finding a doc
willing to do that.... or a mom with the guts to do it herself (not that I'd
recommend that) is another story.... the extensive surgery I had is
unnecessary and was cosmetic to keep the front teeth from regapping after
braces came off.
Anne E. Robb, MAT, LLLL
Off on a Tanget, Oregon, USA
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