Success BF a baby with tilted jaw?

Alli321

I have not had success getting my newborn to latch on to the breast.  She has a tilted jaw and tongue due to the way she was laying in utero.  Some of her other facial assymetry (nose, etc) has straightened out a bit.  I A few of the lacatation people I spoke with seem to think this will correct itself, or once her mouth gets bigger she will be able to latch on.  Has anyone dealt with this?  I am hoping to get her to latch on soon rather than having to keep pumping all day long.

otc

YES!  And now that I know what I know it was actually because he had torticollis and his neck was very sore on the one side. His could nurse on the right but not the left.

I saw the LC 3 times about it and they blamed it on my nipple size and his small mouth. 

Now he is 10 months old and in PT for his neck.  If I had realized that his crooked head and latch problems were actually torticollis I feel like we could have done PT at a very young age and stretched his neck out we would have had better success on the left. It also would have been easier for him to stretch his neck out before he was 6 months old and could turn and sit up, etc with his bad habits forming.  All his pics his head is tilted to the left.It was a corworker that told me that I needed to get him help for his torticollis.  I guess it can cause visual problems and scoliosis if not corrected.

Please talk to your pediatrician asap about torticollis.  He got this in utero from positioning and have a crooked mouth which has resolved and one side of his face was much thinner.  The LC didn't know that's what the problem was and whenI told her she was excited to have another tool and rationale for people with this problem.

I'm not saying that's what your DD has, but it sure sounds like what we went through.  I hope that you check it out:)

 

otc

https://www.pedisurg.com/PtEduc/Torticollis.htm

https://www.babycenter.com/0_torticollis_10912.bc

otc

Ugh, my stupid laptop keeps posting when I push enter instead of new paragraph.  I gave you those 2 websites to see how easy it is 2 stretch them out.

I wouldn't do it until you have the diagnosis but it sure made sense to me that all our latch problems were because it was painful.

I ended up doing the cross cradle with a lot of pillows to make him lateral to my breast so he didn't have to turn his neck which in retrospect makes sense.  I also had good luck with the football hold with lots of pillows. It did get better after he grew a little, too.

Alli321

Thanks, I will ask my pediatrician about it.  Maybe in the meantime i can get her to latch on to just one side.  That' be better than nothing like she is doing now.