Tonsilectomy - Kansas City,MO

My little guy just had his tonsils and adenoids out this past summer. He had just turned 3, but they did it as an outpatient surgery at a surgery center and there were no restricitions on foods/beverages. His recovery was a little tougher that I thought it would be. He took a full 2 weeks to get back to "normal." My little guy did not like to take the strong pain meds, so we struggled with that, but if you keep up on the meds, it really does help. I bought all sorts of foods/popsicles/beverages and he wanted cheese crackers and milk.... He was very snuggly for that time though! I love to snuggle! I think my little guy has my anxious personality and definitely was scared about it afterwards. He cried when we had to go back for a follow up and asked if they would take him away again....broke my heart. Good luck to you, it really does pay off!

My daughter had hers out this past summer a week after she turned six. She did end up staying overnight one night, but not because of anything age related. She had vomited, wasn't eating or drinking, and was really lethargic as a result. There are certain "tests" the kids have to pass to get discharged, and drinking enough fluids in a certain time period is one. They also have to be urinating. The procedure itself was way faster than I thought it would be... I got a coffee and was texting some friends and the doctor was standing in front of me to say it was done! My daughter didn't need her adenoids out after all, just the tonsils, which came out easily given that she had had strep for about 6 months straight at that point. It was very necessary.

Recovery was harder than I thought but worse in the hospital than at home because she just didn't feel good and was in a good deal of pain. Once we got home, I literally sat with her for two days and forced her to drink as much as possible. By four-five days post surgery, she was doing better, drinking more, and in less pain. We kept up with the Tylenol for almost the full two weeks' recovery, though! They were right when they said it was an up and down recovery. She'd be fine, then suddenly say her throat hurt again. She also slept much later in the morning the first week after surgery.

One thing i was NOT prepared for was my newly turned four year old daughter's reaction to all of this. She was upset that her sister was in the hospital for a night, and very worried about all the people coming and going and being stressed. My husband and I tried to make it as smooth for her as possible, but she did get very clingy for the rest of the summer. It was fine with me, to help her and comfort her, but I just wasn't expecting her to feel it so deeply. You just never know! So take help if you can get it and hopefully your other kids will cooperate with the help. Good luck! We are so glad we did it, no more strep all the time, snoring, and just generally not feeling well for my daughter since she got rid of the tonsils! What an improvement!

I have had my tonsils out and so has my oldest daughter. One thing that I don't know if they mention and I think it is worth repeating, is to stay away from red dyed foods or things that would turn red when mixed with your saliva and such. This way you can see the blood and recognize it if your son does start to bleed. Then you won't wonder if it really is blood or something that he just ate. Keep him hydrated, that will help him as well as keep up on the pain meds....those things will help keep him eating and swallowing. I would also recommend stocking up on things that he likes to eat before you head to surgery, that way you don't have to go to the store for a while. We kept things like jello, popcicles, even mashed potatoes on hand and ready at will. He may not want to eat and don't push him to eat, but make sure that he does stay hydrated. For me I didn't like the pain meds that the doctor gave me, I prefered liquid tylenol (it coated my throat as I took it and helped much better than anything else that I was given).

My son was 5 when he had his tonsils/adenoids removed. It was 8 or 9 days until he fully recovered. The 3-5th days were the worst.
I had him sleep on the couch the first couple of nights so I could prop him up and I slept out there with him. I woke him up religiously for his meds and to drink water. Be sure to keep up on the meds and liquids ~ that will be huge in his recovery!
I guarantee you it will be harder on you than it will be on him!! And for the record, my only regret is not doing it sooner b/c it made such a huge difference in his quality of sleep.
Good luck! Take him to the store and let him help pick out food for after. I had pudding, otter pops, ice-cream, popsicles, apples sauce, etc. and the one thing Ty wanted was toast. I barely toasted it so it wouldn't be scratchy and he devoured it. Said it felt good on his throat.

My suggestion is for you stay overnight with him. Remember that nurses are human and make mistakes. Whenever they want to give him something make them explain the why. You are allowed to "fire"your nurse form whatever reason. Remember that. Also tell them you expect to be woken up if you a sleeping and they need to check something on your son.

I was going to post the same ?. My dd is 26mo and will be have the same surgery plus tubs in her ears. We had a choice to stay the night or go home. I am planning to bring her home after as long as she is fine to go. She was hospitalized in July for c-diff and she was not crazy about being there. So I am hoping to make it as stress free as possible. I am hoping we can get a sooner rather than later date I have to call tomorrow to schedule it. gl

Our son was just turned 4 when he had tonsils and adenoids out.
Recovery was easy and he could breathe and sleep so much better when he didn't have those huge fleshy marbles at the back of his throat obstructing his airways.
His surgery was 6am and he was home by noon.