tonsils out stories?

[Ohio12]

anyone care to share your experience with dc getting tonsils out? df of dd age 6 is having a lot of pain in recovery, even with Tylenol with codeine every four hours. is this normal? she is about 24 hours out btw. when might she feel better? thanks for any insight.

[OHGrandma]

Have they called the dr? And for me, I'd lose the codeine, that stuff makes me miserable.

[sixpence1978]

My DS had his out when he was 4. Honestly, I think the younger they are, the easier time they have. At 6, your DC is well aware of the pain and able to express it more.

 

24 hours after the surgery is still a very tender time. Is the Tylenol not working at all, or is it taking the edge off. The Codeine should be making her sleepy. If she is in a lot of pain, I would go ahead and say to call the dr.

 

My DS did get a Tylenol suppository during the surgery, which I think helped a lot. That way, he didn't have to swallow the medicine.

 

It was a full week before DS was back to normal again. In the meantime, he ate lots of applesauce, pudding, jello, yogurt, ice cream, and brothy soups. I also bought him whatever he wanted to drink, as that is the most important. He loved having a usually taboo Cherry 7-up. Definitely make sure that dairy foods aren't introduced until a couple days after the operation.

[LaxMom]

I had mine out when I was 16. The surgeon - it would be in poor taste to call him what I normally call him, 22 years later, on the boards - told me I would be completely normal the next day, that the last teenager he had passed him in the doorway of her hospital room and he didn't even recognize her, she looked so good, blah, blah, blah.

 

Yeah, I essentially laid on the couch sucking the Tylenol w/ codeine out of the bottle with a straw for 10 days. :glare:

 

I'm sure it's going to be a couple of days before she feels social.

[Heather in Neverland]

The recovery for my 3.5yo was A LOT worse than they told me it would be. And yes, liquid codeine was the pain reliever of choice. He was pretty miserable for about 3 days or so.

[Julie in CA]

Both of my dd's had tonsils and adenoids removed in November. They both went surprisingly well, and neither one actually needed the pain meds. Actually, we tried the meds, but it made one dd feel worse, so the anesthetist told me to try giving no meds. They were both fine. I think I'd call the doc if the pain is that severe and you know your child to not be one that's overly-dramatic about pain. I'm sorry it's been so hard--I was expecting it to be hard too. :grouphug:

 

ETA: We don't do a ton of popsicle treats, so my girls were delighted with the fact that I would allow them as many popsicles as they wanted during the first few days of recovery. We bought several special varieties, and they mainly subsisted on those. They didn't drink much fluid outright, but the popsicles definitely kept them going and reasonably hydrated.

Edited May 14, 2009 by Julie in CA

[Lolly]

I was going to post that you didn't want to hear my story. (Figured it was someone getting ready to have some out.) Dd was miserable. She wouldn't eat or drink anything. I managed to get a teaspoon or two of liquid in her a day for 3 days. Took her back to the doctor who said he would hospitalize her and put an iv in for fluids if she didn't drink a paper cup of water in his office. He did not follow through on his threat. She drank one tiny sip. (Don't know how she was not dehydrated at this point.) he said to watch for dehydration that she was really borderline. I took her home and, do not read further if you cannot handle meanness, spanked her little rear until she finally drank 3 ounces of water. I repeated the process every hour or two until she would drink what I told her to drink. She did not have to go to the hospital for an iv. After almost a week, she asked for Dr. Pepper. After that, she ate and drank anything she saw for a few days.

 

Even with this horrid experience, it was well worth having her tonsils out. I would do it again without any reservations.

[mcconnellboys]

She may need to be double-checked by a doc. Sometimes there are complications that aren't picked up before a patient is released.....

[newlifemom]

I think pain is different for everyone. I had mine out at 31 the same day a couple of 5 year olds had theirs out. Saw the dr 4 days later. The five year olds were eating cheerios! :eek: I was sipping water! Dr wouldn't renew the codeine script, but I found liquid tylenol and lived on that plus water for the next week. About 2 weeks later, I could eat soft food. By three weeks, I was fine. I then met a woman who couldn't speak for 6 weeks after hers. Most of the kids I met, had a much easier time. I wouldn't worry at this point. Pain tolerance is just different for all. Hope your little one feels better soon. :grouphug:

[HeatherLynn]

My DD was in horrible pain, she was 5. She found that warm stuff made them hurt a lot less than cold stuff. 7 days out her babysitter gave her cookies & cream ice cream. Her scabs fell off too early and we ended up back in the hospital for cauterization. So, advice from me: even if it is soft, make sure it has no hard pieces in it. That was no fun.

[Suzanne in ABQ]

Both of my kids had their tonsils/adenoids out on the same day. It took two weeks for them to get better, but they had different experiences. Dd was in pain during the day, especially if she drank or ate anything the least bit acidic (like juice), but she slept well at night. Ds, on the other hand, could eat or drink anything (even tortilla chips) during the day, but was in pain all night.

 

They both hated the taste of the Tylenol/codeine, and wouldn't take it.

 

The pain lasted two weeks, to the day, for both of them. It was a very long two weeks for me. But, they seemed to heal instantly (on the 13th night), and never had another problem. No more sleep apnea. No more ear infections. No more problems! I'm so glad we did it.

 

I hope your little one is feeling better soon.