Adenoid

The word "Adenoid" was first introduced to me 2 days ago at the munchkins' doctor's clinic, and it got me all anxious and a little depress till now. So be warned. This is a rather depressing post...

En's bout of cough didn't go away since Christmas. After 3 visits to the same doctor, he decided to administer antibiotics which is standard protocol for fear of infection. 3 days after that, En developed high fever. Very unusual for one who is on antibiotics, so I suspect antibiotics resistance and brought her back to the clinic for a 4th time.

I spent some time with her doctor going through the signs and symptoms we observed in En:

• loud breathing (close to snoring) when she's asleep;
• takes a long time (compared to Xuan) to finish her meal;
• wakes up coughing in the wee hours of the night, hence disturbed sleep;
• occasionally throws up her milk when she's coughing;
• sensitive nose (similar to my allergy rhinitis);
• unexplained bouts of fever after she turned one, etc.

Then the doctor wrote the word "Adenoid" on a piece of paper and asked if I know what it is. I bet ??? was written all over my face. After his careful explanation and sharing with me his personal experience with his own child who had similar condition, he suggested I get En a proper diagnosis and got us a referral to an ENT specialist.

My mind was in a state of confusion when I left the clinic with the letter in my hand. As told by the doctor, I googled "Adenoid" the same night and had a better understanding of what it is. But I was still very anxious about the visit to the ENT specialist the following day. though I did feel a lot better after praying and exchanging SMSes with friends who are my praying partners.

Yesterday, I packed some of En's favourite stuff before we left for the clinic. Thank God my sister took the morning off to join us (Di couldn't make it due to work commitment). It took 4 adults to hold En down when the nasoendoscopy was carried out by the specialist. And yet, the results were not very encouraging. Her nasal passage was 3/4 obstructed by her enlarged adenoid, hence her difficulty in breathing when infected and her frequent wakes in the night. The conclusion - have her adenoid surgically removed.

While we are now waiting for her infection to clear up before we could schedule her for the day surgery, she seemed to sense my anxiety and what's in store for her. I haven't seen her laugh after the nasoendoscopy yesterday. She returned to school today and when I spoke to her teacher and principle this afternoon, both commented that she's been extremely quiet, moody and kept to herself. That nearly brought tears to my eyes...

Nevertheless, I'm thankful for the wonderful staff in the school who are taking extra good care of her now. The principal called to ask me to bring her some formula milk in the late morning when En refused lunch. She later called to inform me En finished her formula milk and that put my mind at ease because En had refused all meals yesterday and didn't quite want to have her formula milk as well.

Even now, my heart still ache at the thought of her going through the surgery and then probably another round of nasoendoscopy for post-op review. And I hate to see her so moody and withdrawn... I don't know how long this will last but I certainly want to believe it will be over soon.

You know, its strange how one could have faith in miracles when sick, yet tremble at the thought of their own kids being wheeled into operating theatres??? I used to think "losing my mobility (or freedom)" would be the most devastating thing that could ever happen to me. Looks like there is more than just that that is capable of robbing me of my peace - MY KIDS...