I just got back from a consultation with the oral surgeon regarding a possible posterior tongue tie and he told me I don't have one. This was pretty disappointing because I thought I matched many of the symptoms, I have a slight speech impediment with pronouncing words with R-L-T-S (he said he could hear it, I didn't tell him), I usually can't swallow solid food without chasing it down with water, and proper tongue posture seems impossible; not just from lack of forward growth to lay the tongue flat, but upwards as well. When I was about to leave, I asked him to check again, making sure he was actually looking for a posterior tie, and he again said there's no tie. For those of you who have had a frenectomy or have at least been told you have a posterior tie, did you have specific symptoms and/or did the doctor look for it a specific way? I was convinced I have a tie and getting rid of it would be like a holy grail solution to finally get some progress. I'm still not 100% sure I'm not tied, even though I was just told this an hour ago.
BTW, both doctors I asked said removing all four wisdom teeth wouldn't cause facial changes. I asked the main doctor if he knew of facepulling, he said "beware of quackery if it's not mainstream" despite not hearing about facepulling or wanting to hear about it, or even knowing what an ALF appliance is, which seemed odd because that's a regularly used appliance. Not saying he's a bad doctor, random people asking "hey, accredited doctor, have you heard of internet fad XYZ?" will obviously sound questionable, no matter what said method is actually about.
Have you seen a myofunctional therapist?
Also I don't think I'd get a posterior release unless it was by someone who'd studied under Zaghi.
Have you seen a myofunctional therapist?
Also I don't think I'd get a posterior release unless it was by someone who'd studied under Zaghi.
I haven't seen a myofunctional therapist, only because there aren't any near where I live. (small town in Canada) There aren't a whole lot of options here, unfortunately.
Don't posterior tongue ties have to be felt to be confirmed? I brought that up after he looked the first time, he seemed very confident there wasn't anything there. He did say I have severe acid reflux, which caused my teeth to break down very quickly, so the appointment wasn't a total waste because I didn't know that.
Dr. Zaghi looks to do great work, and he's also affiliated with Joy Mueller and Bill Hang. Sounds like a great resource for anyone in California.
"beware of quackery if it's not mainstream"
That's a humorous way to word it. As if there are acceptable and non-acceptable types of quackery.
What makes you suspect tongue tie?
"beware of quackery if it's not mainstream"
That's a humorous way to word it. As if there are acceptable and non-acceptable types of quackery.
What makes you suspect tongue tie?
Yeah, it seems like anything popular automatically has merit, even if it's something as insane as pulling teeth and shoving jaws into the airway. "Oh sure, that's legit."
It feels like my tongue has limited movement; no difficulty moving it side to side or up/down but it still feels restricted, as if it should be able to go farther or do more.
Talking has always felt weird. I've had a monotone voice forever and it sometimes seems like it could be closer to a normal tone that's inhibited rather than just being how I naturally sound. Regardless of tone, I stutter over my words pretty often. I had speech therapy many years ago and nothing regarding pronunciation/enunciating or speaking clearly was ever resolved.
Proper oral posture is quite rare to achieve. Rather than not getting how to do it or not adopting the habit, it feels physically impossible to get the back part of my tongue up. There are users here who claim to have very narrow palates and elongated faces and most everyone can apparently do and hold the posture regardless, also getting results over time just from the posture alone. I don't think my face has budged since I started in late 2015.
I can't swallow food without water, and sometimes it feels forced even with water. This is such an annoying symptom because I'm never not aware of it and what's frustrating is I thought it would be a more common problem in the orthotropics community, yet I've never seen it brought up. I used to think it was an overjet issue, and asked my orthodontist years ago if the swallowing trouble would go away after treatment, he said yes. When that didn't happen, it seemed logical to think that my tongue just couldn't do the proper motion when eating, so maybe it's restricted. Apparently not. I'm unsure if it's simply a myofunctional thing where I have bad habits that were never corrected, but I've been vigilant towards it for years and don't notice anything that bad. I try the push swallow when eating solid food and it usually won't happen. Taking pills requires me to assume weird poses while preparing for a minute and karate kicking the air while I do a big swallow and hope I don't choke. My twin brother complains about getting full too easily and yet he can still eat a full dinner in less than 5 minutes without rushing, while I take half an hour to eat the same amount because it's such a chore to swallow. Every few years, I get into periods for no reason where swallowing food at all is like an unknown action to my body and it takes over an hour + a liter of water to choke down small meals. Drinking liquids on their own is very easy, so I don't think I have weak swallowing muscles and it might be a tongue issue.
Swallowing air, clicking jaws, constant fear/stress, dry lips, brain fog, and constant sugar craving are more tongue tie symptoms that I have, though I'll admit that many conditions have similar symptoms and looking them up on Google is an easy way to think you're sick with a million different ailments. Being told there's nothing wrong with my clearly nonfunctional tongue makes me suspicious that there actually is a tie and it was somehow not seen.
Sarah Hornsby is a myofunctional therapist who does skype sessions. She also has a few colleagues who do the same. I would highly suggest you get a consultation/evaluation and see what they think, as a lot of the symptoms you mention sound like myofunctional issues to me (whether or not you have tongue-tie).
They may be able to tell after a bit of time if you're tongue tied, even if you don't show the usual signs.
Thanks, I'll definitely look into that. Another thing is do you think osteopathic work would help at all? I was considering the Crane in conjunction with osteopathy, but might hold off until learning more about it. Maybe having a very tight face plays a role in not getting progress.
@paperbag, I just can't say whether or not osteopathic work would benefit you, or the Crane. Everyone is so different. I know that I've done myofascial release as well as craniosacral therapy, which have both immensely helped my posture, and I will continue to get body work done as I believe that body posture and strength has a great influence on the face and oral/tongue posture.
Fair enough, that came out as more of a "diagnose me through the internet" question than I intended. I might as well at least try one session and see what it does. For back/body posture, what has really helped me is the Gokhale chair because it practically does the work for you in terms of sitting properly. Unfortunately, it has had no facial effect after 2 years of using it with a tucked chin, though I admit to not using it all day long.
@paperbag, I'm all for trying things at least once or getting consultations to discuss options further! I'd love to hear your experience.
I got into all of this is because I was doing facial exercises with minimal results/sensation. Once I began fixing my posture, I saw and felt clear change in how my muscles were working. I kind of just tumbled into oral posture from there.
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