Ryanne, my 10-month old, had to get tubes in her ears this week. Even though we’ve been parents for over 5 years now, this was a totally new experience for us. Jake had a handful of ear infections but nothing that even brought mention of the word “tubes”. So having made it almost all the way through winter and the first 9 months of life with only one minor ear infection I thought we were good to go with Ryanne as well.
That was until she most recently suffered from a chronic ear infection that went on for 6 weeks and after several rounds of antibiotics, shots, etc, it just was not clearing up. You could definitely tell she was not herself (apparent by the picture taken of her head on the table during a family vacation) and I hated seeing her so miserable. So when we finally got the referral to the Ear, Nose and Throat doctor from our pediatrician I felt a slight sense of relief but also a bit of anxiety. Our visit to the ENT Dr confirmed that her ears were bad and she needed tubes as soon as possible.
Among nurses, friends, sisters, fellow moms alike, the comments were all the same. “Oh it’s such a simple procedure”, “It goes by so fast, you won’t believe it”, “It’s the best thing we ever could have done”, “Our child was a totally different person immediately following the surgery … happy, talking, etc”. Even knowing all of that, NOTHING can prepare you for that moment when the operating room nurses come and take your baby out of your arms to “go under” for even a simple surgery. That was the longest 20 minutes of waiting for the doctor to come out and tell us everything went great and then to be able to go back and see her awake, and out of the anesthesia! And now that we’re on the other side of it, I can say yes, it was a simple procedure, she’s doing great and seeing the difference in her demeanor even that same afternoon, I’m glad we did it.
I will say though, the whole process affected me in a way I couldn’t imagine it would. Even though it was such a simple, routine procedure, I found myself completely distracted and consumed by it. As a parent you want to protect your child from anything that could harm them and keep them healthy and safe. Luckily, we were in great hands and I need to give a quick shout out to Dr Blumer and all the staff at Charlotte Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat. They made this experience so much easier for a worry-wert parent like me!
Do you have any similar experiences to share? Do tell!
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13 comments
Dr. Blumer is an absolute God-send! He has done 3 sets of tubes on my son and removed adenoids. He bedside manner is amazing. Seeing Dr. Blumer is one appointment that we don’t mind going too, as he is just so wonderful!
I can totally relate. Sending your baby off to surgery is really tough, no matter how minor/routine the procedure. Dr. Blumer did a tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy on my son and adenoidectomy and tubes on my daughter, and he was great. Both of my children were so much better off after their surgeries.
Tracy,Henry just got tubes a month ago and is doing great! I was stressed going into the surgery too, but it really is just a simple, quick procedure. Hopefully we’ll all be free of those annoying ear infections. Henry goes in for his check-up and hearing test next week…I’ll keep you posted :)Katie M
My girls both had sleep apnea (something I never realized until we traveled together and they were tossing and turning all night long!). It’s no wonder they were taking marathon 3+ hour naps! Not to mention, their tonsils were touching. We too went to Dr. Blumer and he was awesome. I have to say, anesthesia is a freaky thing with little ones. Mine were crazy when they came out of it. Actually, they asked for daddy and it broke my heart. Here I was the one who took care of them 90% of the time and when the going got tough, they wanted him! I got over it fast though:-)
My twins got tubes and adenoids removed at CEENTA with Dr. Compton right around Christmas. It has made scuh a difference for my little buddies! I also went to an allergist to see if there were other issues causing excess mucus, and found out they have moderate seasonal allegies which I now control with antihistimates and they have no runny noses. We are poised to enjoy a fabulous spring and summer as a result!
thanks for this post, feel like tubes are pretty common these days. my daughter (then 19 months) had them a few months ago and it really was so much easier than i could've imagined. we should've done it earlier. Even the part where they "took her away" was fine, at least for us, because they had already given her a sedative/"happy potion," that made her pretty much unaware/unaffected by the takeaway. no ear infections since, but I guess time will tell. We went to Mecklenburg Ear, Nose, & Throat and saw Dr. Caldwell who demeanor really helped us relax!
We used Dr. Eric Mair at CEENT for my daughter and he was wonderful but it was still an emotional experience for my husband and I. The hardest part was watching her wake up after the surgery. She was disorientated, sore and breathing really heavy. I hated seeing my girl like that.Unfortunately, tubes doesn’t bring the end of ear infections. But you do get less numb to them. I find myself saying: “Oh, she’s just an ear infection.”
We are headed to the ENT with out 7 month old on Monday and are expecting that she will need tubes. Having had a son that had constant ear infections (and thus impacted speech), I will welcome tubes.Be forewarned that kids with tubes can still get ear infections but the care for it doesn’t usually involve antibiotics (other than ear drops). Our son actually had a second set inserted and we will probably have a 3rd set in the near future.But I agree, having your child taken from your arms and into an operating room out of your reach is scary. Glad to hear that you are on the other side now and hope for ear infection free results!
This is such a puzzling situation for me and I have to ask… were all the babies with these tubes being breastfed? And by that, I don’t mean a few months, but for at least a year? I have found that the incidence of ear infections and the consequential surgery is almost non existant in those babies who are breast fed for a year or longer.
my daughter was breast fed at least a year exclusively. she had many many ear infections and then tubes.
Please be aware that older kids can get tubes/adnoidectomy, too. My 5 year old just got them last month by Dr. Stephen Clyne at CEENT. Davis had 1 or 2 ear infections from age zero to 4. But this fall, at 4 1/2(when his seasonal allergies started in full force)he had either one that wouldn’t go away for 8 weeks, or a series of ear infections that were treated with every antibiotic under the sun. (We ended with Rocephrin shots…which were a nightmare.) We managed to make it thru the winter witout another one, only to get one more this spring. That was it for us. We are managing the allergies with prescriptions and are hoping that tubes/no adnoids will help eliminate the fluid that kept pooling up in one ear and sitting dormant. And, not that it is relevant at age 5, but he was breastfed exclusively for one year!
Watch out for signs that your older child might need tubes again. My twins both had raging ear infections as babies. One responded well to antibiotics, the other didn’t. Dr. Blumer (also want to say – amazing, love him) did tubes in just one twin. Not a single ear infection again for either!!Until… second grade hearing screenings. The twin with the baby tubes (long since fallen out) had moderate hearing loss. That was quite an ordeal. Dr. Blumer did tubes again and removed adenoids. It’s three years later now and the hearing loss seems to be gone, just a sensitivity to loud noises. I have to keep earplugs in my purse when the music at contemporary church services bothers her!! At least I won’t have to worry about this one going to wild concerts :-)I would just say to pay attention to any signs of temporary hearing loss. We didn’t even had infections with the second round of tubes.
Breastfed for over a year and my son still had to get tubes. I do not think there is a correlation at all.I also think there is no correlation between breastfeeding and kids being sick. Myth is that children get sick less frequently when they are breastfed. It seems that so many kids are constantly getting sick even when parents breastfeed for even up to two years. I think most of this is all just luck.