Surgery went well. Recovery, not so good.

Addison had her tonsils and adenoids removed on July 9th, a little over a week ago. The surgery itself was a breeze. After all the worrying I did beforehand (yes, I know. A tonsilectomy is probably THE most common surgery, but it's still surgery, and its my little girl), they had my little girl back to me in about 45 minutes. 15 minutes for the surgery and about a half hour for her to wake up from the anethesia.

She was a little puffy when they returned her to me, and of course, a little groggy. After looking around the recovery room for a bit she asked, "Mom, when is my surgery?" I told her that it was over and she had slept through the whole thing. She didn't like that. "But I wanted to be awake for my surgery!" No, honey. You didn't.

We had a little time to kill while we waited for our room to be ready over at Dell Children's Hospital (the surgery was performed at an outpatient facility connected to Dell Children's through an underground tunnel... pretty cool.). Overnight observation was required, due to the sleep apnea. I was a little concerned that the hospital stay might frighten her, so I promoted the event as a sleepover for her and I. I shouldn't have been concerned - she LOVED the hospital.

Actually, I loved the hospital. They did a great job with Dell Children's. There is so much for the kids to do to keep them busy. They had a playroom stocked full of toys, games and crafts, plays for the kids, and there were interactive displays distributed throughout the hallways. The courtyard was pretty amazing, as well, with a huge waterfall.

Addie stayed in her room just long enough to order and eat lunch (she was starving and ordered pancakes, macaroni and cheese, ice cream and apple juice.). As soon as she was done, she wanted to explore the hospital. You wouldn't have thought that the kid just had surgery. She was running all over the place, with me desperately trying to keep up with the IV stand.

Addison finally crashed around 8 o'clock, and boy, she crashed hard. The narcotics wore off and she started feeling the pain. This is the point where recovery went down hill.

Although she took the first round of oral meds very well, Addison refused any and all medicine after that. Our hospital "sleepover" turned into a nightmare, when the nurses came in every four hours to ckeck her vitals and give her meds. After begging, pleading, explaining and bribing all failed, I was left with forcing the meds on her, which did not go well (I think I had more medicine spit in my face than I was able to get down her throat). I vowed to find a new method after that first night, and from then on out, we relied mostly on popsicles (even at 3 am).

I knew she would be in pain (especially since she refused the pain meds), but I wasn't really prepared for the hysterical temper tantrums, the belligerent attitude, the nightmares and the sleep walking. Addison is usually an even tempered kid and she usually acts, and is treated, as if she is much older. I often forget that she is only 3. I was reminded this week.

It took me several days before I adjusted to our new, albeit temporary, "norm." It was killing me that she wouldn't let me do anything for her, she wouldn't even let me touch her at times, and once she even punched me in the face! (not hard, of course, and she started laughing once she did it.) So unlike her. I finally figured that there was nothing I could do. I just had to wait until the hysteria ran its course. At one point, she was rolling around on the couch crying like a mad person. When I asked her what was the matter, she screamed "I can't stop crying! I can't stop crying! Mommy, what's wrong with me?!" Nothing, dear. You're just hysterical.

It's been a long week and a half.

I'm happy to report that Addison is finally feeling better. There's still a bit of residual pain, but she doesn't mention it very often. She also slept through the night for the first time last night (she had been waking 3-5 times a night, wanting popsicles, me to sleep with her, or nothing at all). If it wasn't for Kris' snoring last night, I might have actually gotten some rest. ;-)

Although it was tough on her (and me), I'm glad we went through it. It made a HUGE difference in her breathing. I used to be able to hear her breathing from downstairs. Now, I have to lean my head close or put my hand on her chest to make sure she's still breathing. Once she recovers completely, I'm sure she's going to be sleeping much better.

Here's some pictures from Addie's surgery and recovery.