I was mooching around the blog, tidying up some posts and I realised not only had I not really spoke about Theo's constant battle with ear infections, but I hadn't shared our journey to when he got his grommets fitted last year. Although ear infections are pretty common we had a really tough time and as someone who has never had one before I was completely bewildered by them, and the thought of grommets. So I thought it would be helpful to write a post about it for anyone searching for answers or just some help.
To start with, I'll explain how we got to the point of referral.
Theo had his first ear infection at around 4 months. He had them consistently for about a year every time he got a cold, which would then lead to weeks of antibiotics and his ears drums bursting multiple times. His temperature and the pain would make him so sick he couldn't keep anything down. As he got older they did slow down, but there was still months on end of ear infections and antibiotics. I eventually had enough when I had not long gone back to work. He had a bought of infections, one after the other, one of which resulted in him being sent to A&E with convulsions and being limp and floppy. He was off nursery due to his antibiotics and in the end I lost my job due to the absence.
We had been waiting for months for a referral and after many terrifying febrile convulsions I demanded one quite sternly. They offered me 2 treatments - We could either received a constant dose of antibiotics to avoid them which was less than ideal with his immune system and generally giving a toddler drugs daily. Or we could have minor surgery and have grommets fitted.
We then waited around 8 months for an initial appointment with a consultant. When we finally got the chance to sit down with someone I presented them with his appointment/prescription history. They agreed to go ahead with the grommets and we were waiting again for his appointment for operation.
In September, the day finally came. Before I go into detail of our experience I'll explain the general process, in case you're not aware.
Grommets are tiny tubes which are inserted into the eardrum. They allow air to pass through the eardrum, which keeps the air pressure on either side equal. The surgeon makes a tiny hole in the eardrum and inserts the grommet into the hole. The grommet usually stays in place for six to 12 months and then falls out.
The week leading up to the operation we had been reading various things at bedtime. We ordered a couple of Peppa Pig books about hospitals and also read him Rees Bear has an Anaesthetic which he still asks for now! I would definitely recommend if you have a slightly nervous toddler.
On the day of the operation, we had been nil by mouth since bedtime. Our appointment was at 10am so we headed to the children's ward and got comfy in our room - Fully armed with plenty of colouring and games on the iPad ready for the wait. As he was the youngest we were booked in to the operating theatre at 1pm. The nurse came and applied numbing cream for the cannula a couple of hours before. We then went to play in the children's ward play area whilst we waited for the anaesthetist. When he arrived we filled a couple of forms out and at 1pm we were able to walk him up to theatre.
Once we we're in there, they cleverly placed Theo's hand behind my back and inserted his cannula without him even noticing. It came with 2 teddy bears on and they explained that the teddy bears we're going to "have a drink" when they fed the fluid into them. We had a very big cuddle and then the second fluid knocked him out within seconds. It is actually quite scary to watch as he just dropped unconscious but perfectly normal and safe. I was then asked to wait downstairs and that they would fetch me when he was starting to wake up.
Around 40 minutes later, the nurse came to get us and by the time we got upstairs he was awake and wanting a very big snuggle. It took him a while to perk up as he was very tired after such a long day and in a bit of pain from the operation and the anaesthetic. He eventually ate something and finally, at 6pm we were allowed to go home, with our daily ear drops in toe.
After a week of ear drops, we were done. 3 months later we went swimming for the first time. Numerous colds and infections later and none has resulted in an ear infection, and I couldn't be more thankful! If your little one has been suffering then I urge you to push the doctors and if needed I wouldn't hesitate to get grommets again.
I hope this has helped anyone who is undecided or just generally needed more information.
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