Tongue and lip ties are the little band of tissue [ a frenulum ] that connect your tongue to the lower jaw or connect your upper lip to your gum line. These tissues fall under a category of conditions called "thethered oral tissues tissues," or "TOTS" for short.

Assessing the Palate

Buccal Tie Stretch

First, use the pad of your index finger, in a fishhook-like motion, sweep in-between babe's upper cheek and gum line on one side. Then, perform this lip tie stretch on the other side. This buccal [ meaning cheek ] stretch will aid in decreasing tension in babe's mouth.

Lip Tie Stretch

Using your index finger, sweep under babe's upper lip [ where the lip tie is ]. You can then use both hands to help fold babe's upper lip upwards. Try to stretch the lip towards the nose [ this is shown at 1:10 ]. This then aids in stretching the lip tie [ or frenulum ] that could be tight, impairing proper oral function. 

Tongue Tie Stretch

Sweep underneath the tongue to aid in stretching the tongue frenulum. You can then sweep the tongue up, to help curl the tongue away from the floor of the mouth. 

Chin Stretch

Start with babe's mouth closed. Then using your thumb, gently traction babes lower jaw open for a two second count before closing the jaw. You can close the jaw by applying gentle pressure under the jaw.

Fishy Lips

With your thumb and index finger [ C-shaped contact ], gently squeeze babe's cheeks together, to approximate the lips in a verticle fashion. 

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