Seriously! What's next? Thankfully I have a very supportive partner and that has made all the difference with all of the hurdles that have come my way.
A few months ago I was getting a little worried about Baby C's weight gain. I kept looking for the fat rolls that weren't coming. I looked at pictures of his siblings at his age and noticed Baby K didn't have any rolls then either, which should have been more of a warning since she has a lip tie. Around this time I also noticed a groin hernia and he seemed to be a bit fussy. We went into the Ped to discover that at 2 months he had only gained 1 lb since birth.
This sent us both into a panic, so much so that her first suggestion was to put him on formula. She knows me, and knows how I feel about formula. I also knew that my milk was not the issue. I called the IBCLC that day and set up an appointment. Until we could meet I "Triple Fed", this meant feeding one side while pumping the other, swapping sides and then bottle feeding whatever was pumped. This was a long exhausting process. Especially with the older 3 running around and attempting to get school work done. At one point I actually broke my hand pump, and once I had my old electric double pump.. I was attached to the wall for at 15-30minutes every 3-4 hours.
I met the IBCLC at the Pediatric Dentist's office where both confirmed the tie. Baby C was diagnosed with a Stage 3 Posterior Tounge Tie. He wasn't getting much milk transfer from latching and would spit up much of what he did get.
The Dentist suggested we go see a Speech Therapist for evaluation and therapies for the tie, which was made easier since Lil C already has weekly therapies. Baby C was also getting weekly weight checks and his weight had been slowly increasing thanks to the triple feeds, but the stress and exhaustion of the feeds did make me consider formula a few times.
Meanwhile we had the appointment about his hernia. The Surgon didn't really see a tie but assured me that he could do that too when he did the repair. Good news right? Instead of being awake he could be asleep and we could deal with all the painful stuff at once.
After he came out of the hernia repair the surgon informed me that he had had 2 hernia (both now repaired) and that he couldn't get a Pediatric ENT to come look, but the plastic surgeon looked at it and he didn't think it looked like a tie either, so he didn't clip it. I almost broke down in tears. I informed him that his problem wasn't length but that it was to thick. "Besides he doesn't have any weight gain issue." I managed not to smack him. But I all but yelled at him that he was only gaining weight due to the triple feeds. He suggested we see a pediatric ENT or a Speech Therapist. When I told him we had seen a Pediatric dentist and a Speech Therapist he asked what she said.. and when I curtly replied that she confirmed it... well the look on his face can only be described as "Cat got your tounge"
After Baby C healed from the repair I was hoping he had gotten big enough and strong enough (like Baby K did) that he didn't need all the triple feeds, I started slacking.. and at his weight check, his weight had slowed way down. So I scheduled the clip with the Pediatric Dentist.
He didn't fuss to much and for the first time he fully drained me and barely spit up. Plus the spit up was mostly clear. Since the repair a week ago he has gained 1 lb and gotten back on the growth curve. His spit-ups aren't every feeding and most of the feeding anymore. And best of all, he finally has fat rolls.
Happy World Breastfeeding Week Ya'll!