Matthew Gets His Tonsils Out!

I had decided in the weeks leading up to Matthew's surgery that I wasn't going to tell him was what going to happen to him.  I knew that if I gave him too much information- he would just have increased anxiety over it.  Before Claire had her tonsillectomy, I told her what was going to happen because she was old enough to handle it.  Matthew is too young and I thought that it would just be too scary for my little man.  Lucky I didn't- because we had to reschedule the surgery twice because he got sick with a terrible cough.

Fast forward to this morning.  We woke up at 6:15 a.m. in order to get to the hospital by 7:00 a.m.  I wanted him to sleep to the very last minute so I actually put him to bed in the clothes he was going to wear to surgery.  Through the darkness, I tiptoed into Matthew's room and quietly lifted him out of his deep sleep.  As we got into the hallway he asked me, "Mom- where are we going?"  I looked at his confused face and told him that after much searching- Mommy had found someone who was going to fix his mouth so it wouldn't bother him anymore.  He was satisfied with this answer and never asked another question.  It was almost like he didn't care what they had to do to fix his mouth, he just wanted it fixed.

We arrived at the Children's Surgery Center  of Good Samaritan Hospital right on time.  They brought Matthew back right away and he just went with the flow.  This was such a blessing for me and Damien.  The fact that he wasn't scared or apprehensive made the whole process so much easier.  It validated my decision to only tell him what HE wanted to know rather than telling him everything.  Matthew colored and basically just enjoyed the attention. 

About fifteen minutes before Matthew was wheeled back- they had him drink a dreadfully awful tasting medicine.  While it tastes disgusting- it is a miracle drug.  Like we experienced with Claire- this drug helps the kids get relaxed and also has amnesia like qualities.  That's right.  Matthew doesn't remember a single thing after he took that medicine.  Good thing I have amazing videos of him when he was completely loopy!  I would put it on YouTube but it would probably make it's way to Tosh.o or become some kind of Internet sensation!

Matthew was in surgery for a little under an hour.  We had great confidence in Dr. Arnstein and knew that although this was going to be a tough day for Matthew- his life would be so much better!  Once he was in recovery, they let us go back and watch him sleep off the medicine.  Matthew looked so peaceful as he slept.  I couldn't help but feel bad for him.  Poor guy.  It wasn't his fault that his tonsils decided to grow like they were on steroids!  They had put in an IV while he was under general anesthesia and I knew he was going to hate that it was in his hand when he woke up.

Slowly but surely- Matthew began to wake up.  He had no idea where he was or what was going on.  The nurse suggested that maybe I should hold Matthew instead of making him stay in the hospital bed.  Sure enough- that did the trick.  He was calm with me and it warmed my heart to know that he felt safe in my arms.  After an hour in the recovery room, Matthew was begging to go home through his tears.  He attempted to eat a popsicle, had a few drinks of apple juice, and we were outta there!  Dr. Arnstein said that his tonsils were definitely a huge problem.  However, the adenoids that he removed in addition to the tonsils?  The doctor said they were ridiculously large and said that his quality of life will be so much better now!

When we got back home, Gina had things all under control.  Matthew snuggled into some blankets on the couch, I forced tons of clear fluids down his swollen sore throat, and Damien and I breathed a huge relief that it was over.  Matthew had tons of visitors throughout the day and was spoiled with popsicles, balloons, coloring books, DS games, and ice cream.  He is a lucky guy to be loved so much by so many people!  For me, the highlight of the day came at naptime.  I put Emily to bed in her crib and Matthew, with his big green eyes, asked me if he could cuddle with me during his nap.  I was exhausted after the long day and nothing sounded better than being with my sweet little boy and holding him as he drifted to sleep.

Matthew- we are so happy that you are sleeping better, that you are speaking more clearly, that you can eat without struggling to get food past those darn tonsils, that you are more rested and clear headed, and that you once again showed us how strong, brave, and sweet you really are.  Enjoy those popsicles and ice cream.  You've earned every lick!