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Disclaimer: As it’s often said in Academia, I’m a doctor, but “not that kind.” I am a PhD, not an MD. This article recounts the experience I had supporting my ten-year-old through a tonsillectomy, and should not be considered medical advice. If you have a child who will be undergoing a tonsillectomy, read on to see how it went for my family, but please follow the advice from your medical care team.
My ten-year-old experienced her second bout of strep throat within a 4-month span when her doctor uttered an anxiety-inducing sentence: “We should probably take out her tonsils.”
Source: Healthwise
Tonsils are a part of our immune system and are meant to trap germs before they enter the body. But sometimes they work a little too well and get infected themselves, which for my little one, meant repeated cases of Strep throat. Her pediatrician explained that if we took out her tonsils, she would likely never get strep throat again. I told him I’d think about it. When she tested positive for Strep not even three months later, we elected to have the surgery.
Scheduling
It took approximately eight months from the time we initiated getting the tonsillectomy scheduled to the day the surgery happened. We were referred to the pediatric Ear, Nose, & Throat (ENT) doctor in March, but couldn’t get an appointment until June. In June they informed us the earliest surgery date was the first week of August and we had a decision to make.
Children typically stay home from school for 7 days after a tonsillectomy, and refrain from strenuous sports and PE for 14 days. Most schools in New Orleans begin in very early August. If we took the first available surgery appointment, my little one would miss out on the crucial first days of school. This is prime time for community building and making friends. We decided to push the surgery to the week before Thanksgiving. As a former classroom teacher, I remembered the week before Thanksgiving as a time for review and holiday activities, and I felt okay with her missing those things. Plus, the Thanksgiving break would give her extra time to heal.
Getting Ready For Surgery
As I already mentioned, we had a lot of time to prepare my daughter for the surgery. On her own, she searched tonsillectomies on YouTube, though in hindsight, I’m not sure that was the best idea. She was looking forward to unlimited ice cream but knew that the pain would be more than she’d ever experienced before.
We were honest with her about the pain but also promised her lots of treats and pampering. We even had a special Ta-Ta Tonsils Brunch at Up & Adam before the surgery!
Supplies
We secured the following items to assist in her recovery and help keep her as comfortable as possible:
A humidifier
A Gel-Ice Pack Neck Wrap
Throat-soothing pops
A Lilo & Stitch cozy onesie
Many bottles of children’s acetaminophen
Many bottles of children’s ibuprofen
Chapstick
Activities
We knew being stuck at home, mostly in bed, could be very boring, so we made sure to have new items on hand to keep my little one occupied. Some things we got were:
Puzzles
Books
An LCD writing tablet (this was also to help her communicate if her throat was too sore to talk)
Play-Doh
Food
We loaded up on cold and frozen foods. The shopping list included:
Vanilla ice cream cups
Smoothie pops and smoothies
Popsicles
Apple sauce
Pudding
Yogurt
Apple juice
Gatorade
Additionally, her doctor wasn’t very restrictive when it came to her diet. He advised against spicy and crunchy foods but said she could have warm foods the same day as the surgery. So, we also had on hand:
Chicken broth
Eggs (she had both scrambled and hard-boiled)
Mashed potatoes
Macaroni & Cheese
Ramen
A variety of soups lovingly cooked by my mother
Tonsillectomy Day!
We had to arrive at the hospital at 7:15 AM the day of the surgery. We were instructed that she could not eat any food after midnight, but she could have clear liquids up until 6:15 AM. Two adults were allowed in the pre/post-operation room, so her father and I were able to stay with her for most of the time. There was a steady stream of doctors and nurses who came in to speak to us, answer questions, and have us sign consent forms. About 30 minutes before the actual surgery, a nurse administered a nasal spray that would help her relax. Before they wheeled her out, I applied a lot of chapstick to her lips so they wouldn’t crack during the surgery.
The procedure took about an hour from the time they wheeled her out of the room to the time they wheeled her back. The doctor assured me that everything went well. Before we could take her home, she had to drink 4 oz. of water, which she was able to do fairly easily. We left around noon, putting our entire hospital stay at about 5 hours.
Recovery
I will not sugarcoat this—recovery was rough because of the pain. As mamas, one of the worst things in the world is seeing our little ones hurting. We’d switch places with them in a second if we could. Watching her suffer through throat pain was taxing. In addition, we were exhausted. To stay on top of the pain, I had to give her medicine every three hours—even overnight, alternating back and forth between acetaminophen and ibuprofen. I set alarms around the clock, noting which medicine I had to administer and when. It brought me back to the days when she was a newborn.
Understandably, she didn’t have much of an appetite. The medical team assured me that was normal, and that the most important thing was to make sure she was staying hydrated and going to the bathroom.
Break-Through Pain
My tonsillectomy research, and the medical team, had me dreading days 4 and 5 after the surgery because of breakthrough pain. Breakthrough pain is a sudden intense flare-up of pain that “breaks through” the relief provided by the acetaminophen and ibuprofen. Taking more of the same medicine doesn’t fix it. To combat this, the doctors prescribed a steroid that I had to crush and mix into applesauce. I was given only two doses to be taken 24 hours apart, so I had to choose the time to administer them wisely.
As if on cue, on day 4 my daughter woke up in tears and I could tell she was experiencing a sharper pain than she had before. I crushed the steroid and added it to a quarter cup of applesauce. It was like she’d been given a magic elixir. Not 20 minutes later she was smiling and asking for breakfast. I gave her the second dose of the steroid 24 hours later. She said her pain level dropped from a 6 to a 1 (on a scale of 1-10).
We Did It!
Overall, the experience was tough, but not impossible. I understand that my access to resources, healthcare, and a strong support system contributed to us having a manageable experience, and I am filled with gratitude for that. I’m still proud of my little one, and how she handled herself.
