second act

Reese and I took a little visit to the ENT yesterday. Sweet boy is still being plagued by ear problems, and his frustrated Mama has had enough.

Our ENT is a super nice guy, very aware of my anxiety issues, and great with Reese. He has two sons, one of whom is Reese’s age. It also doesn’t hurt that I work with his Mom. We talked for a long time about Reese’s situation and our options moving forward. He checked Reese’s ears and found that the right ear was completely plugged with mucus. Because of the plug, the antibiotic drops we have been using aren’t able to reach the infection, hence why we are now back on an oral antibiotic. The tubes are still in place.

Reese had to have his ear suctioned out which was a little traumatic for both of us. I had to lie on a table and hold him, while one nurse held his head still, the doctor used the vacuum, and another nurse welded a light and some drops. It was horrendous.

The ENT and I are in agreement that our current plan is not working. Reese takes and has taken allergy medicines of various kinds for the past year. He continues to have problems despite that. The runny nose doesn’t bother me near as much as the problems the runny nose causes.

One option is for us to continue on the treatment plan we have: allergy medicines, drops for his ears, antibiotics when needed. Then we just hope that eventually he outgrows some of this, although my research indicates that isn’t likely.

The second option is for Reese to have his adenoids removed. The ENT went over the surgery with me, but for a mama whose only experience with surgery is childbirth, I was overwhelmed. From what I understood it is a fairly simple procedure. Similar to tubes he would be put to sleep, although an IV is necessary. They go in through his mouth and scrap out the adenoids from the back of his throat. We are on the borderline {in age} of whether the procedure would be in patient {hospital overnight} or out patient. The recovery period is about four days.

Lofton and I talked at length last night and did some research. Evidently your adenoids are not necessary, much like your gallbladder. In infancy the adenoids filter the germs that enter your sinus cavities. As you age, they shrink because your body is better able to fight infection. The inverse is the adenoids can also trap germs in your sinuses, which is our current issue.

So, there you go-- an overview of our situation.

We head back to the ENT Thursday for a check-up, and to have more discussion about surgery and/or other options. Lofton is going to go with us this time. Until then I’ll be lying awake at night, pondering what we should do. Once again I’ll say—Who knew parenting was this hard?