Toddler Recovery; Tonsillectomy

This is the first moment I have been able to sit down and think clearly about the events of the past week. Prepare your brain for a lengthy story.

Before I start, let’s talk about tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. While it seems like this may be a quick (very quick) and routine procedure, there are still risks involved, it’s extremely painful and it’s really never fun seeing your child go under the knife. Did you know that your tonsils are extremely close to a major artery? I’ve read some horror stories. Thanks google.

We checked in to Phoenix Children’s Hospital last Friday at 8:45 a.m. with no idea as to what time the surgery would be. Doctors orders, no food or drink before surgery. Do you know how hard that is with a 2 year old?

Getting her out the door without food or milk was easy. She was so excited to go see the Dr. Weirdo. But once we got to the hospital she started asking for milk, and it was all we could do distract her. Luckily there are a ton of fun and interesting things to look at and play with at the Phoenix Childrens Hospital.

We were brought into Rylies pre-op room where she changed into her extremely oversized yet completely adorable scrubs. The nurse let her pick a bear out of a big box of gifts just for babes like her. She chose a british Beanie Baby.

We sat in a play room for hours waiting to be called to surgery. A woman came in and let Rylie play with the mask that would go over her face before putting her to sleep so she wouldn’t be scared. She seemed to like it. We all took a turn wearing it, it smelled like berries.

We finally got called to surgery around 11:00 and they told Rylie she was going to go for a ride on a big bed. At that point we had to just let go as she went through the doors with the nurse. It was so sad.

Surgery was only supposed to be 20 minutes tops, but we waited anxiously for 40 or more minutes. We saw the Dr. come out, then go back in, we waited, and waited.

When they finally called us back to see Rylie, she was passed out on her belly, IV in arm, rubbing her face back and forth on the bed. At this point every emotion that built up throughout the day released. It was a relief to see her but so sad to see her in the state she was in.

The nurse said her face probably was itching from anesthesia which is why she just kept rubbing it back and forth. Her eyes would open, roll to the back of her head, close and repeat. We just rubbed her back and made sure she saw us when her eyes opened. We were told she might be angry or in freak out mode when she finally came to, but instead she sat straight up on the bed, said “all done, bye bye now” and then slumped back down and fell asleep. The nurse said she handled it much better than others.

I was wheeled in a chair, Rylie on my lap, to our room for the night. We got her comfortable in her bed and finally got some food for ourselves.

The nurses were nice enough to allow both Harris and I to stay overnight. From the looks of what we had to sleep on, we knew we had a long night ahead.

Neither of us expected to be thrown up on, multiple times. Needless to say, we didn’t pack enough clothes for our one night stay.

We tried over and over to get her to drink water/juice or take medicine, but nothing would stay down. She was surprisingly in good spirits most of the time, when she wasn’t sleeping she wanted to walk around the nurses desk. Challenging with an IV hookup but we managed.

We took turns holding her throughout the day and when we settled down to sleep, I decided to lay in the bed with her. The two of us in that bed, with guard rails up was a bit cramped, but I wanted to be by my baby and listen to her breathe… quietly breathe. All night alarms went off, nurses came in, we probably only slept about 3 hours tops.

By morning she got small bursts of energy here and there, then sudden crashes, not wanting to drink still, she finally gave in and ate two bowls of ice cream, and we could finally go home!

Our first 2-3 days of recovery went surprisingly well. She was happy to go to bed at night, slept well through the night, had loads of energy to play, and ate tons and tons of yogurt pops, ice cream, cheerios and pudding. We could have used a sponsorship from Dannon for the multiple packs of Danimals she drank, and even tried a few home made smoothies.

She played drums, drew pictures, watched movies, got presents… and then things went south. A day later than we expected (Dr. told us her worse day would be day 3) suddenly we had a non-sleeping, hold me all the time, ouchies in my mouth toddler.

Of course it was this day that Harris went back to work. I was up all night, up all day… in a comatose state… for days. We had 3 sleepless nights and days. She stopped drinking, stopped eating, and just sobbed all day long, on my lap. We watched Beauty and the Beast so many times she’s started quoting the movie.

This recovery is so unpredictable. After days and days of crying, she immediately snapped back into being our happy, healthy little girl who wants to eat and drink everything in sight. Ouchies all better. No ouches in mouth.

There is a noticeable difference in her breathing, sleeping and even her voice, thanks to this surgery. No more snoring, her sleep is silent. It was a terrible week but in the long run I think it will make her so much happier and healthier.

I’m still a little weary about sending her back to school. Mostly for fear of what she will eat there and also since she hasn’t been away from us all week. But today she managed to scarf down french fries with ketchup, chicken nuggets, cheezits and anything else she was offered. So I’d say we are back in business.

For anyone looking for an exceptional ENT (Ear Nose Throat Dr) in Phoenix, I highly recommend Dr. Scott Schraff. And of course many thanks to the amazing Drs and nurses at the Phoenix Childrens Hospital for taking such good care of my family during our stay. They even have fab food in the cafeteria!

Tomorrow, life goes back to normal. Back to work, back to school. After spending so much time in that hospital, I’m so happy I can say that. To see the sadness surrounding so many people with sick children, experiencing trauma, not knowing how to fix their babies, practically living in that hospital just broke my heart. I’m thankful each day for my happy healthy little girl.