Tubes & Tonsils

First of all, I wanted to take a minute to say thank you to all of you who are following along with my blog.  The outpouring of support, encouraging comments, and number of followers has been overwhelming.  Always remember that I love to hear from you as well so don’t be afraid to leave your comments on the blog.

 

In other news, both kiddos had their appointment with the ENT on Monday.  Brady was asleep upon arrival which made it perfect for doing the audiology screening.  He did wake up after the initial test and then sat on David’s lap for the remainder of it.  When it was Tessa’s turn, she sat on my lap inside the little booth.  Results from the testing showed that both kids have limited hearing currently (due to sitting fluid and ear infections) but no permanent damage.

We met with the ENT doctor next and discussed Tessa first.  She currently does not have an ear infection but does have sitting fluid in both ears.  Since she has had five infections in the last ten months, on has visible fluid in both ears, he recommended tubes.  I also made mention that she is my “floppy fish” and is constantly moving around at night and waking up.  He asked a series of questions about her breathing and we told him that she is breathing through her mouth and often has moments where she “gasps” for her breath.  He immediately looked at her tonsils.  Hers were measuring a size 3 on a scale from 0-4.  Simply put, they are very large for her little mouth which is causing the limited air, etc.  He would like to remove her adenoids and tonsils while she is having her tubes put in.

Brady was next.  He has had approximately eight ear infections since January.  The ENT doctor looked at both of his ears and Brady was currently showing an infection again (after three rounds of antibiotics)…so make that nine.  Needless to say, he needs tubes as well and we were not a bit surprised.

I asked a million questions about the procedure (I was the epitome of the annoying mother).  I have such anxiety about anesthesia for both kiddos that it’s enough to make me sick just typing about it.  I realize the process takes roughly five minutes for the tubes and a total of thirty minutes for all of Tessa’s procedures, but that is still time that I do not have control over their well-being and can’t be near them…and it is torture.

We are scheduled to have the tubes put in for both kids next week.   However, I am still contemplating whether or not to move forward with the tonsillectomy for Tessa or wait until she is older and see if she “grows” into her tonsils.  Sometimes I think we are too quick to suggest surgery these days.  Yet, on the other hand, perhaps it is the best thing for her so she can rest more soundly.  Hmmm