Tonsillectomies - a Spinoff Question

Stuffy nose is more of an adenoids thing than tonsils but they are usually removed at the same time when a tonsillectomy is performed.
My son's tonsils were not infected - he had no fever or signs of illness.
They simply swelled to the point where they interfered with his breathing while he slept and swallowing - they became an obstruction.
They were huge fleshy marbles at the back of his mouth that almost touched each other closing off his throat.
We tried shrinking them with steroids but as soon as the series was finished they ballooned right back up again.
There really was no other choice for us - they had to come out (and they did the adenoids at the same time).
After a week of recovery he was eating and sleeping SO MUCH BETTER than he had been.
The snoring was gone immediately and the dark circles under his eyes vanished (he could not sleep well when he could not breathe).
See what the ENT has to say.
Personally, I've never heard anyone say that having the tonsils/adenoids out didn't help.

When I was growing up the doctors took out tonsils almost routinely. I did have mine out at age 7 and it was horrible. I thought I was dying and guess I really don't do well with pain, etc. But I will say my constant ear infections, sore throats, etc. stopped and I have hardly had a sore throat since. I would get at least a second opinion though before any surgery and I know it is not fun to have this surgery. I would also consider that a stuffy nose can be treated with nasal sprays and antihistamines and other medications. I would try that before surgery for sure.

Well, I don't know what to say about protecting your child from unnecessary surgery as far as a tonsilectomy is concerned. Years ago they took most kids' tonsils out. Not anymore. Between my two kids, only one needed them out. Doctors don't routinely do this.

I went through the ringer with my own tonsils - sore throats over and over. Strep, tonsilitis, mono... FINALLY, at 17 I had mine removed. Now THAT'S hard! It is SO much easier on a child to have a tonsilectomy than a grown up. Wish I'd had mine out when I was 5...

You're talking to the wrong people (or not talking to many) if no one ever tells you getting their tonsils out helped.

And just in case you can't tell, getting those things out of my throat sure did help me!!!

Dawn

My nephew had bad allergies and had his tonsils out. My SIL said it helped him a great deal. I actually have not heard anyone say that it has not helped them. I would love for them to do the tonsillectomy on my son who snores and has speech that sounds nasally. But all the ENTs refuse unless he has had several strep infections. Heck, if I could, I would put my hubby under and have his taken out. It would quiet him at night too.

If his tonsils aren't infected I doubt that taking them out would help an allergy that shows up as nasal congestion.

have you tried the neti pot?
super low tech. no side effects. cheap.
I'd give that a shot for at least 2 weeks before agreeing to surgery of any kind.
and yes, he is capable - National Jewish in Denver trains kids as young as 2 1/2 to use it.
you can buy it at Target.

Not sure if a stuffy nose has anything to do with tonsils. I'd think it might have more to do with sinuses (?). I echo somebody else's suggestion to try a Neti pot. I get almost constant post-nasal drip every summer, along with sinus headaches. I used to get horrible sinus infections that also turned into bronchitis every year, and the Neti pot has pretty much stopped that - haven't had a sinus infection or bronchitis in a LOT of years.

I can also echo what somebody else said about getting your tonsils out when you're older. I had mine out when I was 19 due to constant sore throats. It was HORRIBLE! But no more constant sore throats afterward. (I still get sore throats with colds though).

So - see what the ENT says and good luck!

My son had repeated bouts with strep throat. The ENT we saw said that he himself did not have tonsils, wasn't born with them. He said that because we do not use them, more people are being born without them. Not sure about any of it but to answer your question, we are happy we had our son's tonsils out.

No more E.R. visits on Fri night due to high fever and horrible strep throat. No driving around strange cities when we are out of town, looking for a pharmacy.
No more days lost at school waiting for the antibiotics to kick in. No more antibiotics.

But that's just our story.

When my daughter was 13 or 14 months old, she had a runny, stuffy nose constantly. I got tired of the the gym daycare telling me she was sick with a cold.

We stopped giving her liquid milk products. Within a week, no more runny, stuffy nose. We have not had her tested but I believe she is intolerant to milk. She eats yogurt, cheese and ice cream with no issues. But milk still causes the problem 10 years later.