Imagine the frustration of trying to breastfeed your baby, but instead of eating and being comforted, your baby cries and fusses and arches away from you continually. Imagine that breastfeeding becomes extremely painful for you, because your baby is unable to latch properly. Imagine the helplessness of not knowing what to do and feeling unable to help your baby or change the situation. That is what a mother often feels when her baby has a tongue or lip tie. Parents whose babies have ties may resign themselves to formula feeding, which can add financial and thus emotional stress. Ties are easily treatable – but the most effective dental surgery to treat them is not covered by OHIP. So far this year, four families who we supported through pregnancy faced difficulty with tongue ties. Because of the generosity of our supporters, we were able to cover the cost of surgery for each of them. Two of the moms speak to the life-changing difference that made for them:
“Breastfeeding became very difficult and frustrating for both of us but thanks to Envisage we are able to enjoy our breastfeeding journey.” Tiffany
“I don’t know how I would have been able to get through my unplanned pregnancy without all the help from the wonderful ladies at Envisage Pregnancy Services. Especially when I started breastfeeding and I was experiencing horrible pain from my baby not being able to latch well. They told me he may have a lip tie and recommended I go see a dentist. I became nervous because since my baby was born at the end of November and it was right near Christmas I did not have the money to get his lip tie cut. The ladies there told me not to worry about it. I couldn’t believe my ears. I was so thankful they helped me do this for him the least painful way possible. This also made all the difference in being able to breastfeed my baby successfully.” Emma