Arching with Breastfeeding and Tongue Issues

I am seeing an eight-month-old with breastfeeding and reflux issues. At birth Baby J never latched well. She had a tongue-tie revision, which helped, but was not fully corrective.

Currently, mom pumps breastmilk for daytime bottle feedings and breastfeeds her all night every 1-3 hours, while Baby J is sleeping. I applaud the dedication I see from mothers in my practice.

Mom said Baby J had a history of arching very early on, but no professional ever said it was a problem. In our CFT world arching is a HUGE red flag. She happened to read the Lancaster research article on the website, which makes a big deal about arching, and gave me a call.

Baby J’s bottom line: her strong fascial arch from her pelvis up her back into her neck ends in her tongue…ouch. Mom mentioned her constant “clicking” tongue noise. This was my tip-off from our Lancaster research of a possible tight tongue.

Wherever there are muscle cells like the tongue, there is fascia surrounding each cell. You might say the tongue is muscle tissue, but I would say it is muscle and fascial tissue. Trauma to the fascia causes the problem.

But the problem magnified in her case because her fascial back arch was straining directly INTO her tongue. We believe that the tongue and other oral structures cannot be physiologic until that arching clears.

The key to infant CFT is to connect the dots (arching, tongue, and breastfeeding) as one. In my world Baby J would have been treated right at birth, probably avoiding eight months of family anguish.