Woohoo! 6 weeks with Tucker Rue!
This 6th week has brought with it some unexpected challenges that he seems to be taking in his stride. Considering yesterday we had him booked in for laser detachment of a lip tie, tongue tie and 2 bucchal (cheek) ties that we were told by many many hospital staff that he didn’t have. It affected his feeding, so his weight gain was affected but thankfully, the lactation consultant at Queensland Child Health Services did another check and urged us to get it diagnosed by someone who actually knew what they were looking for. Through a recommendation we found a leading expert paediatric dentist and a chiropractor who knew just by looking at his face that he had at least one, and within days we’ve had the procedure and found a great team of health professionals to help us with recovery.
While we’re furious it was overlooked by multiple professionals, we’re grateful to have the expert advice to help him get the most out of his recovery and hopefully prevent things like the crooked teeth I have from an “overcrowded” mouth/the tongue and lip tie we discovered I have and the speech issues that my husband has had from his tongue and lip ties we discovered he has, through this process.
Ties like these are associated with the MTHFR gene mutation, which my husband and I both have. We plan on testing our bub for it too to see if he’s homozygous or heterozygous. The gene is involved in the conversion of folate, and means that someone with the mutation often cannot completely utilise the commonly supplemented folic acid form of the nutrient. Knowing this, I’ve been taking the more active methylated form of folate for years and in my prenatal supplement and eating as well as I could in hopes I could prevent something like this. But alas, it is a complicated pathway we are only just starting to learn about the impacts of and the way to best support it. At least we have the support we need and so far he hasn’t needed any pain medication.
He’s a very brave kid, our Tucker Rue and we’re just so proud to know him.
✨💕🥰
#tuckerruelamby #mirislittlelamby #tonguetie #liptie #brisbane #enhancedentistry #mthfr #newborn #brisbanemums #breastfeeding
I’ve been a Mum for a whole month now and in all honesty, I was really surprised to find out how overwhelming is isn’t. Perhaps is just that my brain is wired for seeking the negative (hello anxiety!) but all I seemed to read and hear about parenting was how hard and exhausting and overwhelming it is, so that’s what I expected. But I’m pleased to realise that despite the huge learning curve I’m going through, and the flustering times that have occurred here and there, overall I feel pretty at ease with it all. Being Tucker’s Mum, changing and hand rinsing so many nappies, getting up multiple times a night, getting to know this tiny human and how and when to soothe him or get him to sleep, etc has felt pretty normal and natural, and dare I say it, not actually that difficult for me. In fact, I tried to find a nice quote to articulate how I felt but literally all of them focussed on the bad stuff, and it upset me a lot; I’m really just not here for that kind of negativity. Despite how hard and long I found my labour, the doubts I had and disconnection I felt during the birth, the shock of going through my first surgery after a third degree tear, enduring the flustering opinions from midwives in the hospital while Tucker and I learned how to breastfeed, riding a roller coaster of emotions as my hormones changed and all the rest, I can’t help but feel good and at ease with the whole process. Yes, I am lucky to have a wonderful and supportive husband, great friends to reach out to when I need them and a fairly straightforward natural birth to recover from, but that doesn’t mean my journey is without it’s own challenges. By expecting the challenge, by expecting it may be hard and I may not be able to handle it; essentially expecting the worst, I feel like I gave myself the opportunity to gear myself for patience, resilience and the humility to just go with the flow. I’m in no way perfect (and still so bloody impatient, guys!) but I give it a good crack and it’s really worked for me.
I’m really proud at how I’m handling myself. I really wasn’t sure I had it in me.
