Diary of a Tonsillectomy & Adenoidectomy

My son, Cameron, has had issues with snoring and sleep apnea for quite some time. According to the pediatrician and the ear nose and throat specialist, the cause of his issues were enlarged tonsils and adenoids. The ear, nose and throat specialist also felt like removing those would help him with some of the other issues that he was having. Some of those issues were over night bed wetting, and also behavioral issues. I called in and scheduled his surgery with the surgery center. It is an outpatient procedure and usually done in a surgery center not an actual hospital.

The Day Before the Surgery

My son was not allowed to eat or drink anything, including water, after midnight. However, some doctors have different procedures when it comes to that, so make sure you check with your doctor to see what his procedure is regarding food and drink before surgery.

Day 1 - Surgery Day

We arrived at the surgery center at the time requested. However, we had quite a long wait before our surgery. Our doctor was running behind, so we were called back 3 hours after we originally arrived. This was very difficult on my son, he was hungry and thirsty and we could not give him anything to eat or drink. He was also very nervous about the procedure. We kept him busy in the waiting room with games and books. After we were called back tot he pre-op area, we had more waiting to do. The nurse asked us some questions and checked Cameron's temperature and his vitals. She had him put on a hospital gown and then we waited for the anesthesiologist to come and talk to us. The anesthesiologist explained how they would put Cameron under the anesthesia and asked us the standard questions regarding allergies and reactions to medications, and family history.