I read with interest the posts on tight upper lip frenulums.  Nine months ago
when my second son was born I found the nursing to be extremly painful.  I
even needed to call my co-leader over to help me (Thanks for the help,
Becket).  Due to an injury that I sustained during delivery I was bedridden
for quite some time and a change in nursing postitions was not possible.  It
seemed to us that the babys' frenulum apperared tight, but the picture was
not totally clear.  For three months I had severe and constant nipple pain.
 I dreaded nursing my baby.  He constanty sucked in his upper lip and I had a
difficult time getting it out.  I asked my pediatrician about it  but he
thought that it looked fine.  One month ago we decided to have ear tubes
placed
(yes, although my baby was exclusively breastfed, he had chronic ear
infections) During consultation with the ENT doc I asked him to asses the
upper frenulum.  He thought that it looked okay.  I persisted and he told me
to remind him right before the procedure and that when the baby was asleep he
would examine it more closely.   When I reminded him he looked confused and
wanted to know why I thought that his upper frenulumn was a problem.  I
explained to him that it caused my breasts to be sore when the baby nursed.
He then looked through the chart and said: " But the baby is eight months
old, how much longer are you going to breastfeed?"  When I answered he agreed
to reexamine it .  He did end up clipping the upper frenulum.  He admitted
that he initially thought I was wrong but on closer examination under
anesthesia he was suprised to find the upper  frenulum to be very tight.  He
also stated that it would take about ten days to totally heal.  When they
brought me my baby and I saw blood coming from his mouth. I felt so bad  I
thought that I had made a mistake by pushing for this.  But when I nursed him
I could feel a difference immediately.  I also think that the baby was healed
and with out pain after about 24 hours.   The point of this story is that #1)
you know your baby better than the doctor.  If you believe the baby's upper
frenulum to be tight, PURSUE IT!  #2) the healing rate appears to very quick,
at least in my experience of one baby.

Randy Halper, RN, BSN, LLL