Frenectomy

Zoey had a frenectomy today to correct an upper lip tie and tongue tie.  I did a lot of reading and research, and realized it was something we needed to correct, and she would not outgrow on her own without procedure.

Poor little thing.  She was really good in the Pediatric ENT's waiting room, walking around, looking at other kids and babies, and just being social in general.

She did not realize it was a doctor's office since we had never been to this specialist before (with her main pediatrician, she starts crying in the parking lot).

She had a very skeptical / nervous look when the doctor brought us back, but didn't panic until the doctor brought out the otoscope to look in her mouth.  That was when she realized that the strange man in front of her was a doctor, and she got completely hysterical.

We actually didn't think that we were going to do the procedure today.  I figured we would do a consultation, assess options, and decide when / how to move forward.  The doctor was great.  He explained everything, and said we could either do it in the office, or in a hospital setting, but that would involve anesthesia. I was adamant about not wanting anesthesia used on Zoey, with her being so young, if it wasn't absolutely necessary, so he recommended doing it in the office.  I asked him when it could be done, and he said "I could do it now."

That was quite a surprise, but I figured:

1. We need to get it done
2. It's better while she's young (in fact the doctor said if we wait much longer and she gets more teeth, he would have to go the anesthesia route)
3. She was already upset (poor little thing's day gets ruined by trips to the doctor), so I figured why upset her again on a different day

We agreed, and the doctor applied some sort of numbing gel (which made her hysterical to the point that other nurses in the building thought that the procedure was done), we took her back to the lobby for 5 or 10 minutes and waited.

When we brought her back in again, it took about 5 or 10 seconds for the whole procedure.  Just a quick *snip, snip* and done.  I freaked out a bit with how much she was bleeding in the mouth, but the bleeding stopped in just a few minutes.  By the time we left the office, she had completely stopped bleeding, and stopped crying.  She was calm the entire drive home.

Surprisingly, she was in a wonderful mood all evening.  I think the upper lip tie and tongue tie were causing her discomfort.  She was singing (well, how a toddler kinda makes melodic sounds), laughing this evening.  She was also smiling and moving her tongue around her mouth, like she was exploring the new range.

It was an emotionally stressful day for me, but I'm really glad that we got it done and she seems happier.