ENT

We took Keeley to the ENT today. It took us a month and a half and three different antibiotics to finally get rid of a sinus infection she got just before Halloween. She finished her medicine on December 23rd. That is too long to be on medicine! When we were getting her last round of antibiotics, her pediatrician made an offhand comment that we might end up having to have her adenoids removed later on down the road. I immediately came home and researched that (I ask less questions on the spot now that I usually have two kiddos with me). Two of the signs of enlarged adenoids are recurrent/chronic sinus infections and mouth breathing. Keeley is definitely a mouth breather. Instead of waiting until she got another sinus infection and putting her on more antibiotics, I decided we should have it checked out.

Keeley, Kayden, and I all went to the appointment. I was a bit nervous when Keeley was terrrified of the nurse. Prior to our trip, we talked a lot about meeting the new doctor, where he would look, why he was doing it, etc. I guess I forgot to prep her for a nurse that wasn't Ms. Rosa from her pediatrician. Keeley hid behind the chair while I talked to the nurse. The nurse took all the pertinent information and then said the doctor might want to take an x-ray. Fine by me I thought. I asked her how that was accomplished and she said the doctor would place a scope in Keeley's nose and take a picture of the area. I suppose the look on my face said exactly what I was thinking which was "you've got to be kidding" because she quickly told me it would only take about 20 seconds. I asked her how it worked and she said Keeley would sit in my lap facing out and I would give her a bear hug while the nurse held her head still and the doctor put a scope in her nose. She assured me that it wouldn't hurt and that it was fast. In my head I was thinking "this is not going to go well...and what am I going to do with Kayden while this is not going well...."

As soon as the nurse left, I started preping Keeley. I told her that the doctor was going to look in her nose, ears, and mouth like Dr. Frank (her pedi) but then he also had to put a crazy thing in her nose. I said that she'd sit in my lap and I'd give her a big hug while the nurse held her head still and the doctor put the crazy thing in her nose. We practiced with her doll (the prized Christmas present).

When the doctor walked in, she pointed at him and said "crazy" so I gathered that she had understood what would be going on. I instantly liked him - very important because it helps me stay calm which helps me keep the kids calm. Keeley got in the chair and was so patient and did exactly what he asked her to do. This included opening her mouth which I find impressive. Then it was time for the crazy nose thing. Keeley was fine - until the nurse came back in the room. She wasn't crying, you could just tell she was very uncomfortable. The doctor got the scope out and sensed her concern. He offered to do the exam on her baby first (Keeley was clutching her). This won him big points in my book.

The nurse was right, it was fast. I don't think it hurt Keeley but it certainly couldn't have been comfortable. She was perfectly still for the first half of the exam and then started to scream. As soon as as the doctor was done, she and I hoped out of the chair and I held her tight trying to calm her down. The doctor proceeded to tell me the results and Keeley turned around and waved at him saying "bye bye" over and over again through her tears. It was hard not to laugh.

So, the results are that her adenoids are blocking 75-80% of her nasal pasage. We will likely end up getting surgery soon. I thought I had healthy kids...but this will be our 3rd surgery in 1 year.

P.S. Kayden just crawled around on the floor during all of this. She was a little hestitant of the doctor after the screaming from her sister though....