I have a client with a 3 month old baby that is doing something very
curious.  Mom had history of quick non intervention type birth followed by
absolutly no desire on the infants part to breastfeed. There did not seem
to be any physical oddities, at that time, present in the mouth but the
baby had a very stong gag reflex and bunched her tounge toward the back of
her mouth, and on occasion would point her little tounge out of her mounth
but not in the normal manner like cupping a breast, it would be straight
out like she was trying to strech it as far as she could.  I worked with
this mother trying all the tricks I knew and baby was discharged not
nursing, mom pumping large quantities of milk and baby using wide base
bottle with EBM.  Mom kept trying and at 2 months of age the baby FINALLY
latched and has nursed well since.

Here is the strange part.....mom comes to a weekly social-support group for
new moms and asked if it was normal for the baby to stick her  tounge out
when feeding, I said yes, mom said Ok  how about, realllllly stick the
tounge out. So I watched her at the breast.....oddest thing I ever saw!!!
Baby had her tounge out beyond the lips and it was very visable during
casual observation.  Mom is not having any problems so I reassured her that
it was OK, but does this baby have an unusually long tounge and perhaps
that complicated things in the beginning or has she just figured out a
slightly different way to do things.  I know this does not matter if all is
well, but perhaps I missed something in the beginning.

Lori Peters RN IBCLC

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