Tongue-Tied

YES as the subject title says.... Ethan is tongue-tied

Been contemplating whether to proceed or to push it to a later date. On this day, the mommy finally decided. To make decision on this, it is really tough trust me. I had been fighting & struggling with myself. Should I or should I not...Who would want to put your gem under general anaesthetic?

Digging nose before going to the hospital

What is Tongue-Tied

The generic term for tongue tied is also known as short tongue or Ankyloglossia. The ‘lingual frenum' is the cord that stretches from under the tongue to the floor of the mouth. Tongue-tied is the term used when the lingual frenum is short and restricts the mobility of the tongue. This may result in unclear speech as he grows older next time.

What causes it

Tongue tie often runs in families which means Ethan got it inherited from either the mommy's or father's family. There are more tongue-tied boys than girls.

How did I find out

On 7th November 2009, both mommy & Ethan went to a picnic at changi beach with her ex colleagues..A very observant mommy- Mrs Tham saw Ethan's tongue when he cried & told me this. Trust me, no one around me even my family had noticed that his tongue curved in at the tip forming a heart shape.

Thereafter, went to 2 Paediatricians to seek opinions on this and was being referred to a Paediatric Urology who suggested to have surgery ASAP. As tongue tied will often affect a child's speech as he grows older. I was so even surprised that new born babies also went for surgery..

How is it treated

The treatment for tongue-tie is a simple operation called a frenulotomy. A doctor snips the string at the base of the tongue, called the frenulum, with special scissors. Bladeless & no bleeding with just some sore.

The Big Day
Today,28th January 2010 (Thursday), we checked into Mount Alvernia Day Surgery Ward at 7am preparing for the 9am operations The toughest task is to fast. Ethan has to fast for 6 hours. Which means from 3am onwards, no milk no food & not even water...We reached there, check in & Ethan has to change into the hospital robe. At about 830am he started feeling hungry & cranky. We took out all sorts of toys to divert his attention but to no avail. He jusgt wants his milk & get out from the ward.

Father & son in surgerical outfit

Doctor came at 915am, the father has to accompany the son into the operating theatre as I could not bring myself to see Ethan being pinned down by the nurses so as to breathe in the "sleeping gas". I was being told the surgery will be done & finished shortly. True enough, about 15 minutes after I left the father & son, both reappear from the theatre door with Ethan crying & a stone look in him as he had just slept & awoke.

He cried becos he is hungry & the numbness in his tongue. Continue crying becos he is hungry yet not allowed to consume any milk till 1015am. What we did was to give him the magic PSP (also useless), all he wanted was the biscuits from the dispensing machine outside the ward. Believed me, his cries will definitely gained lots of sympathy points.

Being a rebellious mom, I could not bear the thought of Ethan extensive crying. So I went to make some milk in a small container, bought the biscuits from the dispensing machine & started feeding him with biscuits crumbs & milk using the spoon. Though he had not drank alot, at least it filled partial of the stomach.

Tired from crying

Thereafter he went back to the bed in the ward & sleep till it was time for discharge. Back home, he is the same cheery like boy though i know there is still some soreness. What amazes me now is he can stick out his tongue like a normal kid.

I would rather I suffer on his behalf than having Ethan to inflict any pain. Ethan when you read this, please forgive me for making you go through this painful task. Maybe I was a nasty bad hearted person in my previous life that is why is repayment time..