Camden Gets His Tonsils Out

 A few years ago I took both Camden and Liv to an ENT to discuss possible tonsillectomy because they kept getting strep so frequently.  We decided to wait and watch but if they ended up with one or two more infections that year, the ENT thought it would be good to have their tonsils out.  Well after that the frequency of strep to totally decreased.  He didn't have it again for a few years and then only once a year or so.  However, his tonsils were quite big and he had a ton of problems with eating.  In nursery if they gave the kids marshmallows or M&Ms for a snack there were two incidences of Camden just stuffing his face too quick and then barfing all over the nursery snack table.  And that continued to happen through his life.  He learned how to manage it a bit.  Learned how much he could put in his mouth at a time and that he had to chew his food really well.  However, often he would still over fill his mouth and end up throwing up.  It happened at all the awkward places like wedding receptions, and restaurants.  It happened recently at Olive Garden and I just decided that was that and I was sick of it and ready to have those tonsils out.  When we went to the ENT he told us insurance wouldn't cover tonsillectomy for barfing.  They would for recurrent strep (which he hadn't had enough of as of late) and sleep apnea, so we decided to have him tested for sleep apnea.  He breathes quite heavy at night, but doesn't necessarily snore.  However, his test came back positive for sleep apnea which meant insurance would approve tonsillectomy.  We got this news right after the COVID pandemic really hit and they couldn't schedule the surgery for several months.  Then, we had to wait for summer baseball to finish up so we could adequately quarantine before surgery.  The poor guy had to have as nasal swab COVID test prior to surgery, but he handled it like a champ.  For some reason, he was super excited about surgery and posed for me in his hospital gown.  

They gave him this little stuffed doll in a hospital gown with an IV just like him to color before surgery.  It was a bit of a rude awakening when he woke up in pain.  He recovered great considering. He had lots of great friends that dropped off care packages for him.  This is him dressed up in his snake outfit playing a card game with me that one friend dropped off.  

 However, it was a good week of waking up in the night crying with throat pain.  We would give him medicine and let him snuggle in our bed until it kicked in.  Derek and I were dying.  It us back to the days of newborns and sleepless nights that we are no longer used to.  However, I have be convinced over time that this was definitely a good move for Camden.  He hasn't thrown up after eating once since his surgery and he has really expanded his diet.  He will now gladly eat meat (especially if it has BBQ sauce on it) which was a particular food group he always avoided before.