4yr old ds Tonsils and adenoids out - any advice

[tiger66]

My 4 year old ds is having his tonsils and adenoids out this week. Does anyone have any good advice for post op to help it go more smoothly?

Thanks

I have lots but no time just now - aargh! Please do a search on 'tonsils' in the Childrens Health section and you'll find huge threads of advice, loads of really good tips. I'll try and come back later to add more, sorry - but my very very top tip is to stay on top of pain meds for at least a week afterwards, no matter if he seems in pain or not. I gave dd hers a few minutes before they wore off, alternating so she was never without some sort of pain-relief - helped a lot.
Back later.

Thanks elibean. look forward to your return

Hi Ds had his tonsils out a year ago when he was 3. I agree with the pain meds I can ds his 1/2 hour before he ate which really helped.I also set an alarm and gave it to him during the night. I was told not to take him out for two weeks afterwards because of risk of infection. Lots of ice lollies help and little bits to eat such as toast as it helps clean the scabs.
Ds had an infection where the tonsils were a bit like tonsillitis with out tonsils and needed two lots of antibiotics to clear it up, so if they don't seem to be getting better take him to the gp.

Lots of hugs and watching DVDs also helped lots.

I'm back

Is he staying in overnight? Either way, plenty of light loose t-shirts for both of you - gets sweaty in there, and he may be sick after coming round from anaesthesia. dd wasn't, but some kids are.
Snacks for you, and drinks, and possibly drinks/snacks for him (they like to give crisps, toast, rough foods that promote healing and amazingly - although in lots of pain - dd took crisps but refused foods you might imagine were easier). If he's in bed for a while, you may not want to leave him in order to go foraging for refreshments.
Ice lollies helped dd stay hydrated both in hospital (I sent dh out to get them!) and back at home, when she wouldn't drink.
If your ds is one of the unlucky ones that is in lots of pain and won't swallow (dd was - but most kids find it much easier, some no worse than an ordinary sore throat) don't forget you can get painkillers from the GP or hospital in suppostory form. Just stay on top of pain relief.
Don't worry if your ds seems confused or upset whilst waking up from anaesthetic - its a reaction to the meds, as much as anything else, and he won't remember it. You will, of course
DVDs, or books, or small toys or all the above for distraction before and after op. Before is almost harder, in a way, because they can't eat or drink and want to do both!
It can be very normal for kids to run a slight temp for a day after the op - if it goes away, then comes back after a couple of days, see a doctor: it could be an infection and will need treating straight away. But on the day, normal. (They forget to tell you sometimes, freaked me out)
Um....thats it for now, but if you search for old threads you will see heaps more! Also, for your own sanity, do post here after op if you are worried/have questions about the healing process....its not always a straight line, they can have a downward dip after a few days when the scabs (ick) fall off, they can have suddenly disgusting breath, etc etc. Someone here will know!

Most of all, good luck, and know that whatever the problem that is taking your ds into his op - having the problem go away makes it more than worthwhile!

ps as per post before mine, yes to alarm during night to give pain meds regularly - I did that too (or she would wake in pain anyway).

dd had bad sleep apnoea, was exhausted, and could barely eat, pre-op, because she was choking on her tonsils (and had a floppy larynx, which didn't help). After the op they can lose a lot of weight (not eating for 2 weeks) but don't worry if that happens - they bounce right back as soon as the pain goes! dd went from pitiful little scrawny spider-girl to bouncing healthy 2 yr old as a result of her op, in a remarkably short time. Its a very helpful op!

We're going in for this tomorrow with our almost-4-year-old. There's lots in the archive here. I'm scared but know it will help him so much. Good luck to your DS :)

How'd it go, Tiger and Green? Hope both little ones ok!

Back home. Op went well - adenoids and tonsils were huge apparently and now ds can breathe through his nose for the first time. Day of op he had a lot of pain and ended up on morphine but doing very well today. Keeping on top of pain which seems to really help. He is so far eating and drinking well so happy.

Definitely will continue with the waking in the night to give the pain relief as that seemed to help last night.

Thanks for all the advice

Poor little chap! So glad he's on the mend, and pain under control. Being able to breathe is worth all of it, isn't it?

Oooh good to know he's doing well tiger :). Are you struggling to think of things to give him that aren't too sloppy? I bought a ton of crispbreads and Hula Hoops!

DS has coped better than I had anticipated (had to be fished out of the ball pool in the playroom less than 3 hours after coming out of surgery!) but is exhausted and weepy. Like Elibean, the surgeon was really emphatic that we had to persist in giving regular pain meds before the need arose. He's a bugger to get back to sleep so not looking forward to waking him at midnight.

Hope your DS continues his good recovery :) and thanks Eli for your advice and reassurance.

I've just got into bed with DS (if you can't beat 'em ...) and he's not clammy and sweaty, which is a first! He's still snoring - though it sounds different - I'm assuming that's just swelling and will stop. So nice that he's not all sticky and hot though, the prospect of some proper restorative sleep for him is wonderful :)

Hurrah, well done Green's ds!

Yes, snoring went on for a bit due to swelling - but no choking, spluttering, waking up stuff. Big relief. dd still snores easily, but its not apnoea anymore...just snoring.

Lots of DVDs Cbeebies ahead for you two

Gutted, ds now has infection so on antibiotics. Pain worse and pretty miserable.

Loves the mini cheddars and cheese straws but like the idea of the crispbread, will go with that. thanks green

Ds has the snoring thing but very different. Think it is due to the swelling. How is he today?

Oh no, sorry to hear that tiger :(, how did you know? Hope the antibiotics kick in fast.

We're doing ok ... Had to force pain meds into him at bedtime and midnight which was horrible but he's been coaxed to take them by himself today. He's napping just now - I think he's just totally drained, and of course he was tired beforehand anyway.

This will all be worth it. Hope your DS is feeling much better soon. :)

He woke up roasting hot and crying and hasn't been good at all since :(

He's really resisting swallowing - hard to get him to eat and barely getting meds into him. Spag bol and banoffee pie for tea by his request so hopefully he'll have some of that, though he says he doesn't want to eat because it's too sore to swallow.

If he's not improved a bit by tomorrow I'm going to the GP.

So sorry to hear both boys not so happy today. It does tend to get worse before it gets better, pain-wise, even without an infection....horrid. I found the first week very stressful, tbh, because a LO in a lot of pain is very upsetting - hope you are both getting some support/TLC/rest yourselves.
Green, do go to GP tomorrow (or rather, call one out - your ds shouldn't go into a high-risk place like a GP surgery if possible. If they won't come out, ask for a side-room to wait in, to avoid picking up infections.) and if ds still finding swallowing that hard, ask for paracetamol suppositories. dd had those, and voltarol too - though some kids react a bit to voltarol, upset tums etc (she was fine, nothing in her tum at all anyway).
Tiger, hope the ABs have kicked in and ds starting to feel better in himself at least?
Hang in there, it will pass...here's to a reasonable night for all.

Green, 'roasting hot', does he have a fever? Anything over 38, I would call the hospital where you had the op done and ask for advice - not wait for GP. In case its an infection. Hope not though!

I've checked his temp with a digital ear thermometer and it's apparently ok but tbh I don't trust it, I think his waxy ears give low readings. He felt fevered to touch though. But he was happier by bedtime and ate some tea so we'll see how the night pans out. :)

Green, how are things today.

Went to gp as similar - getting hard to swallow, very miserable, dribbling and didn't seem to be on top of pain. Gp looked in his throat and said he had infection. Yesterday was miserable but through the night the antibiotics had obviously kicked in and he took his night meds well and seems very good this am.

Definitely get him checked out. You need to keep on top of the pain
Hope today is better

Hi tiger. He woke up upset at 5am but we'd somehow both slept through the alarm for meds in the night, so he obviously wasn't in too much pain in the night. And he's not as upset as he was yesterday afternoon. So we'll see how today goes.

Glad your DS is feeling better today. Sorry for hijacking your thread. It's good to have someone else going through this at the same time (much as I wouldn't wish it on anyone obviously).

No worries re hijacking. As you say it is nice to know that we are going through the same thing and can get advice off each other. Glad to hear that ds is feeling better.

Keep in touch

Glad to hear both dses on the mend, by the sound of it (It is a bit like watching paint dry at the worst moments, time seemed to go soooo slowly when dd was in pain and not swallowing).
hopefully you are both through the worst now - here's to life without tonsils!

When can they start doing something more active? Have keep my little boy quite calm at the moment for fear of bleeding but when can he go out on his scooter to get some exercise?

I think its after about a week, iirc?