Last Monday one of James’ therapists gave him some of those temporary tattoos. Now all three of us have tattoos.
Tuesday was a bit interesting. Stacy took James to see the ENT to discuss replacing his ear tubes (one of them is working its way out), talk about his congestion and breathing issues, and to get his thoughts about a trach (which was brought up at a recent pulmonology appointment). He didn’t really push a trach. Instead, he basically said that if James needs a trach, then we should do it. Of course, we will always do what’s best for James. If there are other options other than a trach, then we will explore those, first.
So here’s where it gets interesting. After their discussion about the trach, the doc proceeded to examine James’ ears, nose and throat. Yep, the tube in the right ear is coming out so we’ll replace both of them. Don’t see any issues with his nose. Then comes the ‘huh, well, James’ tonsils are huge and touching…he can’t be breathing right.’
James has been struggling to breathe for weeks now, and now we know the reason. He is scheduled to have new ear tubes put in, and have his tonsils and adenoids removed next Thursday. WebMD says that “the adenoids are a mass of soft tissue behind the nasal cavity. Like lymph nodes, adenoids are part of the immune system and are made of the same type of tissue (lymphoid tissue). White blood cells circulate through the adenoids and other lymphoid tissue, reacting to foreign invaders in the body. We all have adenoids at birth and in childhood, but as we head into adolescence they start to shrink. By adulthood, most people’s adenoids have disappeared.”
Although the adenoids are not currently causing James and issues, there is a chance that they could become enlarged due to infection and can interfere with breathing. Since he will be going under for the tonsillectomy (removal of the tonsils) and ear tubes, the ENT recommended we have the adenoids removed at the same time. The doc said that James would spend the night in the hospital after the surgeries, but maybe longer depending on how James does.
