Lip & Tongue Ties in Infants – Why Chiropractic Care Matters Before and After Revisions

Written By Jaylene Hopkins

If your baby has been diagnosed with a lip tie or tongue tie, you may be navigating a world of new terms, specialist referrals, and tough feeding challenges. From difficulty latching to reflux, gas, or poor weight gain, these oral restrictions can impact your baby’s ability to eat, sleep, and develop properly.

But here's something many parents in Cary, NC don’t know: one of the most crucial steps in supporting your baby through a tie revision is gentle, pediatric-focused chiropractic care—before and after the procedure.

At Harmony Family Chiropractic, we specialize in caring for infants with oral restrictions using a neurologically based, gentle approach that supports the whole-body function and helps ensure long-term success post-revision.

What Are Lip & Tongue Ties?

Lip and tongue ties are caused by tight or thick oral frenums—the small bands of tissue that connect the tongue to the floor of the mouth or the upper lip to the gums. When these frenums are too short or restricted, they can interfere with a baby’s ability to:

  • Latch properly during breastfeeding

  • Transfer milk efficiently

  • Use the tongue to swallow and regulate breathing

  • Develop oral motor skills and facial tone

Left unaddressed, ties can contribute to:

  • Gassiness and reflux

  • Poor weight gain

  • Maternal nipple pain or damage

  • Sleep disturbances

  • Speech and airway issues later in life

Many families in Cary seek out a tie revision procedure (also called a frenectomy or frenotomy), where a pediatric dentist, ENT, or specialist uses a laser or scissors to release the restriction.

Why Chiropractic Care Before & After Tie Revision Is So Important

While the revision procedure addresses the physical restriction, it doesn’t always resolve the functional patterns that your baby’s body has developed to compensate. That’s where chiropractic care comes in.

Your baby’s nervous system and cranial bones have been adapting to this restriction—often leading to tightness in the jaw, neck, shoulders, and upper spine. These tension patterns can interfere with sucking, swallowing, and head-turning, and they don’t disappear just because the tie is released.

Chiropractic care helps by:

  • Gently releasing tension in the cranial, jaw, neck, and upper back areas

  • Improving nervous system function to support better coordination of sucking and swallowing

  • Supporting cranial nerve function (especially the vagus and hypoglossal nerves) involved in feeding

  • Allowing baby to better integrate the changes post-revision

  • Enhancing the effectiveness of bodywork, oral exercises, and lactation support

The Ideal Timeline for Chiropractic & Tie Revisions

For best results, we recommend:

  • 2-4 gentle adjustments before the revision to reduce tension and prep the body. This can help the revision be more successful and reduce the likelihood of needing a second surgery!

  • 1 adjustment within 24-72 hours after the procedure to help the nervous system integrate the release

  • Continued care as needed to support regulation, digestion, development, and any restrictive issues

Every baby is different, and our team at Harmony Family Chiropractic in Cary creates personalized care plans based on each infant’s scan results, symptoms, and feeding challenges.

What to Expect at Our Office

Our approach is neurologically based and infant-specific. That means no cracking, popping, or forceful movements. We use gentle pressure (about the same as you'd use to check the ripeness of an avocado) to support the spine, cranial bones, and nervous system.

We also use INSiGHT scans to measure nervous system tension and track your baby’s progress objectively.

Families often report:

  • Better latching and milk transfer

  • Decreased reflux or spit-up

  • Improved digestion and gas

  • Better sleep and regulation

  • Reduced oral and body tension

Trusted by Cary NC Parents, Lactation Consultants & Providers

We work closely with lactation consultants, myofunctional therapists, bodyworkers, and pediatric dentists (Holman Family Dental and High House Pediatric Dentistry are our favs!) throughout the Cary, Apex, and greater Triangle area to provide integrated care for babies with ties. If your provider has recommended bodywork, cranial work, or nervous system care before or after a frenectomy, you’re in the right place.

Give Your Baby the Best Start with Nervous System Support

If your baby is scheduled for a lip and/or tongue tie revision in Cary NC—or you’re still trying to figure out the best next step—we’d love to support you. Early, gentle chiropractic care is one of the most powerful ways to help your baby’s body function and adapt better before and after revision.

Call us at 919-234-0505 or schedule your infant consult online. Our team at Harmony Family Chiropractic is here to walk with you through every step of the journey. 🤍


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Jaylene Hopkins
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