Ear Tubes Day

We woke at 4am to get ready to take Connor to the pediatric hospital. It was the earliest that I had a planned wake-up for as long as I can remember. At 4:45 we went to wake Connor, taking extra caution not to wake him too much. We just needed to change his diaper and clothes and leave the house -- he wasn't allowed to eat or drink anything. We left the house at 5am, encountering a fog bank the whole way to the hospital. We arrived shortly before 5:30, checked in, and kept Connor calm. We were given a beeper/buzzer (like you get while waiting for a table at a restaurant). Once our buzzer went off, it was time to take Connor into the prep room, where they took his pulse and tagged his ankle. He stayed relatively subdued during the entire pre-op phase. The anesthesiologist came by to discuss the medications with us and how it would be administered. Then the ENT surgeon appeared to give Connor a final check before taking him to the operating room. It had finally come time. They took Connor away, while Renee and I went to a consultation room to wait. They would be giving Connor sevoflurane and nitrous oxide as general anesthesia. The little guy would inhale it through a mask for 15-30 seconds and be out for the duration of the surgery. They would make a tiny incision in each eardrum and place an ear tube to relieve pressure, promote drainage, and allow more air circulation. After about 15 minutes of waiting, the nurse brought us to the recovery room where we met Connor. Connor was a bit out of it, trying to recover from the medication, he was acting like he was both hungry and sleepy, and cried for about 30 minutes. We tried all we could to calm him, but we could only give him clear fluids like water and juice until he was discharged. He drank a little juice but he REALLY wanted his bottle. The nurse noticed that his behavior was indicative of Connor being in pain, so they gave him some pain medication. After about 10 minutes, he finally started calming down. Once we were discharged, we put him in the car and headed back home. As soon as I got in the car, I gave Connor his bottle, which he gulped down. Once we got home, we thought he would sleep, but he didn't seem to want to. He wanted to play and was in a great mood. We were grateful that the surgery went well and Connor seemed like a happy boy. Now we'll wait...and wait...to see if he gets another ear infection.