Tonsil Recovery: Guess who is feeling better!

It has been a week since Alex's surgery and he is finally on the mend! These last seven days have been hard, tiring, frustrating, and a little scary. Alex really struggled all through the weekend and early week with eating. He ate a single can of chicken noodle soup over the course of 3 days. :( It is a bit un-nerving to have a conversation with your ten year old about not starving himself. But we finally cleared a food hurdle and now he is back to 3 meals a day of soft food. yay!

Casey is taking Alex to his post op appointment in about an hour. My week has been packed with school and work (which I have today as well) so Casey has been on full Daddy Duty and has done great! Looks like I handle surgery and the immediate days following really well and he handles the recovery days like a champ. We make a good team.

Alex has gotten a bunch of cards from friends and family and let me tell you, he LOVES them. Those cards and gifts have done more to make him feel better then most meds. Thank you everyone, you gave Alex a dose of the best medicine ever! Love * I know super cheesy, but it is true*

We should get the go from the doctor today to have Alex return to school next week, but he will most likely still be out of PE for another week. He also has a completely different voice because he is talking through his nose right now. The upper palate muscles are tight from the scabs which makes him talk in a nasal tone, he has to repeat a bunch of words for us everyday, but it gets in talking practice.

Thoughts on Surgery and Recovery:

• Have help, don't try to do it all alone.
• Happily go to the grocery or pharmacy while help stays with the sicko, you need a break too!
• Sleep as much as possible! Naps will be your friend for both the sicko and caretaker.
• Movies in bed at 3am are a blessing.
• Invest in soup and Popsicles.
• Be prepared for throw up, Alex just stopped throwing up on Tuesday.
• Have a small stockpile of gifts for the kiddo to distract them and get them out of bed. Lego sets worked for us. Alex got 7 between us and gifts. LOL
• Set a pain management routine. Alex would take his meds, get in a warm bath and lay there while sucking on a Popsicle, then out of the bath into bed with a movie or just to nap. This routine got us through the first 72 hours of recovery. We also fell back on it in later days when the pain came back.
• Be prepared for the pain to get worse before it gets better. Seriously Alex's worse day for pain was 2 days after surgery.
• Most importantly, just be there to comfort, that did more than anything for Alex.

The Tonsil Surgery, lots of pictures and long

This is a picture heavy post and probably gory detail post, but I want to write it down so I don't forget and for any other parents who might stumble across this post while looking for tonsil info like I spent all of last week doing. *whew how about that run-on sentence!*

We were up way before dawn on Alex's surgery day and arrived at the surgery center with Alex in Pj's and full bedhead. He was okay, a little nervous which was to be expected. But the staff was amazing!
The IV was probably the hardest part for him before surgery, but our prep nurse Sheila did a great job explaining how it all worked for him and even took apart an IV stick to show him the insides. That alone made Alex relax a little bit, he loves to know how things work.

The surgery staff took time to come and introduce themselves to me and Alex. The anesthesiologist Dr. C was great, making small talk with Alex about his DS games (which I was REALLY glad i had brought for him, well, he talked me into allowing it to come). But we both knew the time was coming up for him to head to surgery when they all started gathering around his bed.

I took that time to tell Alex about a Lego set he had waiting for him back at home for his recovery, it immediately distracted him which gave the nurse a chance to put his "sleepy meds" in his IV without him freaking out about it. He was pretty funny telling everyone about his Legos when he suddenly stopped and asked "Why is everything blurry? I think I should take off my glasses." After that it was really quick, I had a small chance to give him a kiss and tell him that I would see him soon, and off he went. I wandered back to the waiting room, knowing it would be at least 45 to an hour before I would see him again.

I did everything I could to distract myself from thinking about what was happening to him at the exact moment. I deleted everything off my phone, read part of a book, and before I knew it Dr. B was there to tell me how it went. I had some time to ask some questions and felt really relieved. I still had time to wait before I would be allowed in recovery so I called Casey and my MIL and then had a crazy lady telling me about how she had to be there for her nephew because his Dad was arrested that morning. Seriously.

Once back in the recovery section Alex was really out of it and making horrible sounding coughs. His first words out of his mouth were, "Surgery sucks!" Once he was stable and able to breathe clearly without coughing we were moved to a private recovery bay where we put Alex in a big recliner.

Our nurse Dee Dee was amazing, seriously that woman was such a comfort to us both. While in recovery we discovered that Alex is unfortunately one of those people where anesthesia is really hard on them. He immediately started throwing up old blood, blood that he had swallowed during surgery. I felt so bad for him each time he was throwing up, it sounded so painful. We got him a dose of pain meds on top of the morphine that he was on and a big dose of anti nausea meds. Alex was given a Popsicle, but could barely handle it since he was in so much pain, he ended up just passing out each time he tried to take a bite, or barfing. And red Popsicles are not allowed because they can't tell if there is fresh bleeding, just a heads up!

We stayed in recovery for all most 3 hours because he was not able to stop throwing up. We ended up with another dose of meds that stopped the nausea a little bit and made him even more sleepy.

These barf pans came in handy! I counted and on the day of his surgery he barfed more than 20 times in a 24 hour period. Super scary.

This pic was taken at Alex's request, it was pretty funny to have him wake up briefly and only ask for a picture to be taken. Poor kiddo was passed out on the car ride home, he had zero muscle control and only woke up once to barf. I swear I grew arms to handle driving, holding his head, and barf pan all at the same time.

My mom was waiting here at home when we arrived, she was so great to come and hang out with Alex while I dashed off to the grocery and pharmacy. he slept the whole time which was a blessing.

The pic below was how we spent the majority of the surgery day at home, Alex sleeping, me next to him with my laptop and a every phone I have within arm's reach.

One problem we did have was that Alex had to pee but couldn't. We tried three times in an hour period, but no dice. I had a call into the surgery nurse who finally got back to us and said to put him in the tub with warm water and let him pee in there. It did the trick 20 minutes into the bath. thank goodness! otherwise we would have had to pack up and go to Children's Hospital for a catheter and over night stay. Yay for warm baths!

Alex's only request on Thursday was to see his Lego set, so I set it up right in front of him so he could see it when he could open his eyes.

Archie was a constant companion on Thursday, he was glued to Alex's side always a little worry ball. But a comfort for Alex who would reach out and lay a hand on him every once and a while.

We ended the day with a little bit of food in Alex, some Gerber peaches and chicken broth. He ended up barfing both up later. Keeping liquids in him has been a huge struggle. It hurts to swallow, it hurts to open his mouth wider then a little bit, it just hurts. It is heart breaking from a parent's point of view to be laying next to your kiddo and hear their stomachs growl, but they won't eat/can't eat.

Thursday night was ROUGH. We both passed out around 9:30pm and Alex woke up around midnight in pain, dosed him up and he fell back asleep. At 3:30 am he was up again in major pain and hungry. I dosed him with meds and put him in the tub, where we found out he was seeing scary things on these pain meds. Poor guy couldn't look at the tiles and towels without seeing "bad face and scary movies playing". :(

We ended up establishing a wake up routine of pain meds, bath, Popsicle, movie and then sleep.

Thursday was a long day and night.

More to come later on Day 1 and Day 2 after surgery. Casey is home from his business trip and Alex is 100% better after a scary rough morning. Here is hoping that he sleeps well tonight, me too!

Tonsil Post #4: The Night Before

Alex is chillin' in the tub right now, enjoying warm water, bubbles and forced relaxation. Once he has a good soak I am going to rub down his body with an awesome Lavender Lotion bar to hopefully help him fall asleep faster tonight. We are up early tomorrow morning, 5am for me, 5:30 am for him. We need to be out the door by 6am to get to the surgery center on time.

Last night's adventures should help us both fall asleep quickly tonight. Sharon started having contracts last night, so my mom came and took Alex to her place and Sharon and I spent an evening in the observation clinic at her hospital. She is having contracts, but no dilation or active labor. I just know she is going to have her baby when I can't be there for her. I think I finally got in bed and fell asleep around 1am.

I was up super early to get Archie groomed and pick up Alex for a dentist appointment. We got all the way to the dentist's office when we found out through the receptionist that all of Alex's dental benefits have been used up for this year, so how would I like to pay?? Ummmm, I wouldn't?! Once Alex's surgery is out of the way I will do mortal combat with the insurance company to get his checkup and teeth cleaning covered, *sigh*

I have been nervous all day so I have been cleaning, everything! I even swiffered the walls in our bedroom. LOL. Alex has been nervous too so I distracted him with one of the Lego sets Casey bought for him after his recovery. I figure that he is going to be super out of it for a couple days so Lego building won't be a high priority, why not enjoy a small set now?

Plans for the rest of the night before prep are to pack a small bag for him with a change of clothes, Star Blankie (an old woobie), and Mrs. Fish who he got at Children's Hospital last week when they drew his blood for labs. Yeah, he is ten, but I am not going to take away comfort items when he is nervous and a little scared. We will give Casey a call soon, say night nights, maybe read over the book his ENT gave us to explain the surgery again, and hopefully get some decent sleep.

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Okay, I am TOTALLY nervous about the 30 minutes he is going to be in surgery. I am afraid that I will break down during that time since I will have nothing to distract me. I did the same thing when he was a baby and was circumcised at the hospital, I SWEAR I could hear him crying down the hall. I am nervous and trying so hard to not show Alex how I am feeling. I talked briefly with Casey a little bit ago, but he was driving back to the hotel after his class, and I was on the verge of tears, I couldn't even talk about being nervous without choking up. Did the same thing when my MIL called to wish Alex luck. Bless her heart she asked me how I was doing and I could barely squeak out that I am okay and it will all be okay. Damn hormonal Mommy nerves.

Please pray for Alex's surgery to go smoothly and his recovery to be swift. And pray for me to have plugs for my tear ducts, I have to stay strong, no water works. Well, maybe tonight while I am in the shower I will let them out.

It will all be okay. :)

Tonsil Post #3: 48 hours till surgery

Everyone has been spoiling Alex, I guess it is hard not too. We are all nervous about Thursday. We are all a little worried. We all know it will be okay, but it is still hard to go through any surgery as a family.

Casey, unfortunately is on a business trip this week. We have had it booked since Christmas and it is for a very old client of ours, which means that we didn't want to cancel it. So Thursday, I will be sending him text messages and emails all day long. Yes, Casey would be here if this surgery was a major surgery, but everyone (doctors, nurses, friends and family) have all said that this is a minor surgery even though there is general anesthesia involved. Even the horrors stories from the Internet say that surgery was a piece of cake, its the recovery that is a bitch. Casey comes home on Saturday and will be here to help us through the bulk of the recovery. So all is well.

Alex has been battling a minor cold or infection all week. His fever is gone, but he complains of a headache, sore throat and stomach ache. His doctor says no worries, we will go through with the surgery on Thursday unless his fever is over 102. I can't wait for all these minor colds and infections to go away once his tonsil are out. We are all hoping it is the magic fix for Alex.

My Mom came and dropped off a new DS game for Alex, to spoil him of course. We have multiple Lego sets stashed in the closet for easy play during recovery. I love on him whenever I can.

I try not to let myself think about it too much, I had to make myself stop thinking about the time I will be alone at the surgical center, during surgery, and the small panic I started to feel about that half hour. *sigh*

Tonight Alex and I are cleaning machines! We are super cleaning the house so we can enjoy our Wednesday, and not have to worry about small messes or vacuuming on Thursday or the days after. Cleaning is also what I do when I have something worrying on my mind, it helps to distract my nerves and focus my thoughts.

Damn... I am totally just rambling. More to come tomorrow.

Hard Day & Tonsil Post #2 & New Diet Recipe

Tonight we had our first official new "diet" dinner, which is honestly not all that new to us, but it's one of our standards. Alex has been really upset about how much of his favorite foods he can not have, well it is pretty much everything. Doing a bit more digging online I have found that he can have cheeses and some cream sauces but infrequently (no more then once a week for both the sauce and cheese). This new diet is very heavy in fresh veggies and fruits (that are not citrus) which is a good thing, but Alex has his Dad's anti-veggie outlook. :)

On to the recipe!

Applesauce Porkchops, wild rice with quinona and steamed green beans.

Applesauce Porkchops
3/4 C Applesauce unsweetened
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1 finely diced garlic clove

Combine all the above ingredients together for the sauce. I just mixed mine in a 1 cup measuring cup and set aside.

Brown pork chops in a heavy bottomed skillet, with pepper on both sides. I added olive oil to the pan and a small bit of butter ( sorry I can't help it, butter in moderation is not a problem and it can add so much flavor). Brown both sides, lower heat and top with sauce. Cover and cook on medium low heat for 20 minutes.

I served with wildrice/quinona mix and steamed green beans. The chops have sauce on them, but don't miss out on the sauce that has browned in the bottom of the pan, it was yummy.

Alex didn't mind this dinner, but unfortunately his tummy is a bit upset so he didn't eat much more than the chop.

In the summer I can't wait to try a variation of this on the grill with grilled veggie kabobs!

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On to the Tonsil part of the post. I just checked on Alex and he has a bit of a fever, which we have to get rid of ASAP since he can't go into surgery with a fever, they will rescheduled it. I dosed him with Tylenol and have popped him into the shower to steam it out. Ibuprofen and aspirin are a huge No-no right now since they are both blood thinners and Alex can't be on them before his surgery. Here's hoping the Tylenol will do the trick, it isn't as effective as Ibuprofen for Alex.

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Today was even more of a hard day for Alex. We went over to my parents house for a little bit today so Alex could see his Poppa before his surgery and to play with the neighborhood kids. When I went across the street to get Alex to head home, I discovered that he had accidentally stepped on a baby bunny hiding in the yard. Alex was holding the bunny in a yugioh tin and the poor thing was barely able to breathe. All the kids were upset and Jenny the Mom was just trying to keep her 4 from hysterics. Alex and I told the kids we would bring the bunny home and take care of her.

Poor Alex was so upset that she was hurt, he felt it was his fault and was having a hard time looking at it as an accident. The bunny died on the way home which I figured was going to happen because of the way she was breathing. Casey met us at the door, his Daddy sense was on high alert and we immediately loved on Alex and hugged him up trying to cheer him up. Out behind our fence line Casey dug a hole and we have a small funeral for the bunny, said our prayers, and painted a rock with RIP and a cross.

Needless to say it has been a very hard day for Alex. I know he feels at fault for the bunnies death, but we just try to remind him if all the bunnies that the dogs catch in the yard each year and that accidents happen. He has become very attached to the idea of wild animal pets in the last couple months, I think it has been stemming from the books he has been reading.

Anyways, lots of bunny prayers were sent to heaven today. And more prayers for Alex too.

The Tonsil Post #1

Alex had his ENT appointment today. After one quick look down his throat the Doctor decided that he definetely needed a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. If you want a good shot of what his tonsil looks like you can see it below, beware it is slightly TMI. So surgery is scheduled on the 18th at a local out patient client that our doctor uses. We will all be glad when this is behind us.

We also discovered today that Alex has acid reflux, but it is a body response, not a food response. His poor larnyx is so red and irratated, he clears his throat all the time which is not helping his throat to heal. I was shocked when the doctor said that it was acid reflux, but after a couple months on meds and a drastically altered diet, he should be good to go. More on the acid reflux and changes we are going to make later.

On top of the last two things listed, Alex got a bloody nose last night, so today they cauterized a blood vessel in his nose. It was quick and pretty painless, he isn't even bothered by it now, but will have to have medicine swabbed in there for a couple weeks.

We also had to make a trip to Children's hospital to get a couple blood panels done for the surgery. He had a mild panic attack getting his blood drawn, just a glimpse at the nerves I think we will see on surgery day.

Today's ENT appointment has been eventful. I will post more about Alex's tonsil journey as we get closer to the appointment and afterwards. Hopefully our posts will be able to help other parents out there looking for tonsillectomy information.

Can you believe he says it doesn't hurt at all??? Crazy high level of pain tolerence on this guy.