Removing Tonsils?

When I was in second grade, I had my tonsils removed. I had strep cronically and my mom had to practically beg the doctor to remove them. Since then, I think I've had it 2 times.

Recovery was pretty quick from what I remember. Overnight stay in the hospital (back then) Jello and icecream for a couple of days.

Hi H.!

I say go for it! My son was just six when he had his tonsils and adenoids removed. Due to the size of his, they were causing a lot of health problems (consistent/persistant coughs; lack of sleep for all in the family; he ended up with sleep apnea; snoring; everything he ate was "too crunchy" and we couldn't understand why??).

Needless to say, after many peditrician and cardiologist (my son had open heart surgery at one week old - so they were fearful that the coughing was the start of congestive heart failure) appointments, our cardiologiest told us to see a pulminolgist. When we went to see him, he said who did your tube surgery (ENT); go see her, his tonsils are "impressive." Our ped also never thought they were an issue - too large. We went to see our ENT and guess what... that was the culprit!!

After surgery the ENT came out and said to me, are you sure he has never choked on food before...I said no; and she said, wow, with as large as they were upon examination, I could not believe how large they were when I got them out.

It was three weeks of sheer recovery h-e-@# but well worth it after it was overwith (and I am told that the older they are the shorter the recovery because they are more apt to eat the popciles, drink, etc.)!! His sleep apena was gone (I could hear it through the monitor as he sleeps upstairs!!), he no longer snored, his eating was unbelieveable!!! And his health improved wonderfully! He no longer had dark circles under his eyes!!

We had it done on Dec. 14th and when he went back to school after the holiday break, he ate school lunch from that point forward...food was no longer "crunchy" anymore; the first half of the year we were packing a cold lunch due to that crunchy food. We came to realize that the food was not crunchy, his tonsils were just that large!!

Exactly one week shy of a year we went to his cardiologist appointment and he had gained 4.5 pounds and grown 3.75 inches!!! This is huge since he is only a 43-lb 7-year old today!

Here is my tip for your daughter...make sure she drinks and drinks and drinks...that will certainly help her!!

Good luck!! If I can answer any other questions, please feel free to contact me!!

H., while my son (age 11 at the time) did not have any infections, he had to have his out due to size and interference. (which by the way- the physician said he did not see any issue with the size- but the ENT did). He was put under general anesth. and did very well. He was home same day and really slept for 2 days. Then he was eating- but not much. No straws allowed (they can pull the scab off through the sucking motion). They also said to keep him off his feet even when he felt better until the scabs fell off. There is one HUGE risk in this... if the scabs are broken off early the bleeding is profuse. It can be a truly emergent situation. This is not a problem most of the time,but a child who just cannot stay still may have a higher risk of this- and it does require immediate attention in an ER. This is apparently a very bloody surgery (not trying to scare you, honestly) and they may be a little weak for several days. I suggest a high iron diet afterwards to help them with blood reproduction. The whole ice cream thing- my son really had no interest in it. Instead all he wanted was jello or pudding. He said the ice cream only made it feel worse once is wasnt frozen anymore in his throat.
We did a lot of room temp chicken broth too.
He did end up swallowing the scabs(normal) and one day we looked in and they were gone.
If it can be done over like a spring break so they dont miss any school, they can go back on a limited profile (no running,etc) and keep up just fine.
Good luck!

Hello H.~

When I was a child, I had continuous problems with my throat. I didn't get them removed until I was 20 years old! I wish I would have had it taken care of when I was younger because it would have saved me a lot of grief. The recovery was a bit difficult, but they say that it's easier when you are younger.

So, I'd go for it. More than likely, it will save your daughter from years of illness and pain.

Good luck with your decision!

H.,
Piece of cake. My son was about 4, we had adnoids, tonsils and tubes put in all at the same time for cronic ear infections. Operation took about 5 minutes from the time they took him in until they came out and said it was over. Recovery time there a couple of hours for him to wake up and all was good, some throwing up and crying was all there was too that.
Do not eat anything red, confuses the drs if child is still throwing up. Soft diet and weekend recovery.

The ear tube grow out over time, the rest is history. Take someone with you to sit with the child in the back of the car as they will probably be sick on the way home too! Always good to have a second pair of hands.

Good luck, there will be no problems I am sure of it.

K.

Highly recommend take the tonsils out, she will have a sore throat and bad breath but will be healthier in the end, my daughter has bad environmental allergies and was always sick, she was 2 when we took the adenoids and 3 when took the tonsils, she is 4 1/2 now and has only had 2 -3 colds and one flu since compared to the constant sickness and bronchitis and pneumonia we had before.

I honestly wish my tonsils were gone I have so many throat,problems etc..

My neighbor had her 4 year olds tonsils removed and she hasn't been sick or gotten strep since. Took her a week to recover, she was back to bouncin around in a day or two.

My oldest daughter constantly had strep after they removed her tonsils she never got as sick as often or as severly.My youngest son also got strep on a regular basis plus he had enlarged adnoids he couldn't gain any weight because and was constantly sick we had his tonsils and adnoid removed and he is so much improved. The first 48 to 72 hours are the worst because of the scabbing. They don't want to eat much popsicles, pudding, broth is best at first then ease into more solid foods. Kids heal quickly.

I had my tonsils removed when I was almost 19. I had other problems aside the strep with my tonsils. My case was so bad that I had holes in my tonsils and you're not supposed to have that. So if your daughter is able to get her tonsils out, do it. The first few days suck for recovery. Your throat feels like you've swallowed razor blades. After my throat healed, I don't get sick that often anymore. Recovery really depends on you and your daughter. Follow the after care instructions and she should be fine. Good luck!

Hi H.,
When I was a kid I had strep CONSTANTLY to the point where antibiotics didn't work on me anymore. My mom took me to a kinesiologist (sp?) and naturopath and took me off of wheat and dairy for a couple of months, plus I was on a supplement to combat yeast. Since then I have only had strep one time. Also, my ear aches and sinus problems stopped. It really works!
Good luck!

My daughter had fifteen ear infections by the time she was 5 months old and got her first ear tubes. She had two more pairs of ear tubes by the time she was 4 yrs. When they put her second pair of tubes in and took her adenoids out, the doctor asked if we wanted him to take her tonsils out at the same time. Since she wasn't affected by strep throat at that time, we said no.

After the ear problems cleared up, then the strep problems started. She also got system-wide strep, where the "poison" would come out of her vagina green. Yes, it's really as disgusting as it sounds. When she was 7, we had her tonsils taken out. Both us, and her Peds ENT, were shocked to discover that her tonsils were just full of strep--and she'd been tested as being "free" from strep at that time.

So, if your daughter is having a lot of problems with sore throats and strep, I'd say, go for it. My daughter actually came through the surgery very well. What gave her the extra impetus, though, was being able to have the surgery, have her tonsils out, and then be healthy so she doesn't get sick and have to take medicine. She hates taking meds. LOL

A.