Enlarged Tonsils

Don't be afraid. My daughter has had enlarged tonsils for several years now. She is 14. She has always had really nasty sore throats and whatnot. You need to take him to the ENT. My daughters ped FINALLY recommended her seeing one last month. I took her a couple of weeks ago and sure enough, the ENT said the tonsils NEED to be removed. She will only get worse with age. It is so much better to have them removed when she is younger. She will heal faster. We are waiting til the summer to get hers out so she doesn't miss school. Good luck!

My son's tonsils were so huge they almost touched each other across the back of his throat. He didn't have a fever and any signs of infection. They were making him snore something awful at night and he had a hard time swallowing. We tried shrinking them with steroids but as soon as he finished they swelled right back up again. They were becoming an obstruction. So as soon as he turned 4 we had his tonsils and adenoids out. He healed up fast. He could sleep and eat without problems and I wish we could have had them out sooner.

My oldest daughter suffered with the same situation for months! Our specialist didn't want to take out the tonsils and adenoids..but after a couple more months and difficulty breathing and antibiotics, I BEGGED him to take them out! One of the best decisions we ever made. It was really not all that bad of a surgery and it was easier to take care of her after the surgery than the several times she was on antibiotics. she hasn't had any problems with that since...she is now 19. Good luck!

Trust your ENT - both my sons had their tonsils and adenoids out when they were about 3 and it was the best decision we made. My older son's tonsils made voice sound as if he had a British accent - they were so large that they touched! Both sons slept terribly and snored loudly. After the surgery (which was only a day) they both ate better, slept better and had a sunnier personality. Prior, they ate only soft foods (yogurt, cheese sticks, pasta, etc) after my older son ate a bagel the next week and steak shortly after. I was shocked! It is much better to do it now rather than later so that he can begin school with a healthy diet and better sleep patterns. He'll do better in school. Good luck!

My daughter is having her tonsils and adenoids out on Feb 16th because of strep and restless sleep. I have done lots of research on it and while I am nervous about it I know that it is the best thing for her. Good luck!!

Hi H.. I know this is a very worrisome issue. My son had a similar problem but he also used to seem to stop breathing for two to three seconds after letting out a loud snore. And the snoring was so loud that he kept everyone in the house up. I wouldn't sleep watching him all night afraid that he would just totally stop breathing. He was 4 1/2 at the time. I took him to a specialist and he told me that from the looks of it he would need surgery but that he didn't want to do it at such a young age. He also told me that many times as a child grows and everything expands the situation gets alleviated. And he was right. Several months later my son's situation improved drastically and we haven't had any problems since. He's a month shy from 7 now. Before you agree to surgery make sure you get a second opinion.

Aww poor guy! My son was almost 3 when he had his tonsils out. He too only had enlarged tonsils. He also had a lot of ear infections the first year of his life so he had tubes in then adnoids out so by the time the tonsils came out I wasn't as nervous for him to have the surgery it was the post op that was hard. Your ENT knows what to do I would trust him/her they do not operate on children unless it's the only option left atleast my son's didn't. Good luck to you and your little guy!