It’s amazing to me how the pendulum of science swings from generation to generation. Years ago, it was quite common to have your tonsils removed at a young age. I can remember watching old TV shows where kids got to eat ice cream for a week after having them taken out. Fast forward to my generation and I cannot remember a single elementary school friend who missed school to have their tonsils out, much less a week’s worth of ice cream heaven. Breast feeding and formula have followed a similar path. Now, the pendulum has swung back and we are finding that there are a lot of valid health reasons to get rid of tonsils and adenoids at a young age. Time marches on.
A month or so ago, our son, Parker, had his tonsils and adenoids removed. The reason for his surgery was his airway. Upon looking into his throat, you could not see Parker’s airway. All you saw was two meatballs worth of tonsil tissue. It’s a miracle he slept or breathed at all. He tossed and turned all night, made wheezing sounds when exerted, he sucked his finger constantly to help open things up, and it seemed he always had a sore throat or sinus infection. In short, his tonsils and adenoids were keeping him up at night and causing him to be hyperactive and/or dead tired during the day. Something needed to change.
Any parent will tell you that any surgery on a child is a stressful event. I can still picture little Parker in a hospital gown, walking through the doors to the operating room, holding two doctor’s hands, telling them about his horses, dogs, and tractors. He hadn’t a care in the world and our hearts were breaking the whole way. Every surgery has risks and we were acutely aware of them all. In barely thirty minutes time, we had our little boy back. He was quite grumpy from the anesthesia, but after a little rest and a Popsicle, we headed back to Llano.
A few days later, Parker and I were up a couple of hours past bedtime. Mom and Peyton were asleep and we snuck into the kitchen for a bowl (or two) of ice cream. We stayed up and discussed life, pre‐school, the complexity of Neapolitan ice cream, and the merits of various super hero toys. The simple moments in life sometimes are the most memorable.
Until next week, keep smiling.
‐Comments can be sent to Drs. Parrish through their website: www.ParrishDental.com.
