Do I really need to see a myofunctional therapist before and after my tongue-tie release?

The answer is… YES, YES, and YES! It is absolutely crucial that you receive ample pre-operative therapy along with post-operative therapy. Think of it this way, would you ever have surgery anywhere else on your body and not go through some kind of physical therapy? You can fix the issue at hand, but the muscles need to become functional again and strong enough to maintain good overall posture. How many sessions before and after will vary on your individual case. In our practice, we typically see clients anywhere from 2-6 sessions pre-operatively. This could 1-2 months of therapy. Post operatively, it is important that active wound management is provided to ensure proper wound healing. Most tongue-tie patients would benefit from a full myofunctional therapy program as there is usually dysfunction present in multiple areas of the orofacial complex. This means that you aren’t quite done once active wound management is complete. You would continue on to restore proper oral resting posture which includes establishing dominant nasal breathing patterns all day and all. night, lips closed all day and all night, entire tongue resting in the roof of the mouth all day and all night, and the back teeth resting 2-3mm apart. Most tongue-tie patients present with a dysfunctional swallowing pattern as well. Once the restriction is released and healed, this is when re-carving of the neural pathways would occur to address swallow dysfunction. In our practice we typically see patients for about 6 months to complete a full myofunctional therapy program. Timeline may vary depending on what else is going on in the treatment plan.