Sleep Issues in Small Children
I've thought really long and hard about whether or not to share this story. It's personal and opens us up to controversy which I honestly don't have the heart for right now. But I also think it's important to share. Every time I have pushed go on a personal post about my children I received countless emails thanking me for sharing. If this helps even one other family then it's worth it.
If you've read here for a long time then you've probably picked up on the fact that Tagg is a terrible nighttime sleeper. We followed the same sleep training methods as an infant that we did successfully with Wells. And they worked. His nature and personality are completely different from his sister so we varied some things. We also had a 17 month old that we didn't want to wake up so we varied a few of the key ingredients to suit our whole family's needs. And you know what, it worked. He was a happy dreamy sleeping baby by 4 months old. Just about a month later than his sister. He napped regularly during the day and gave us about 11-12 hours of uninterrupted peaceful sleep.
The summer when Wells turned two was the summer of sleep. She napped and slept 12 hours a night. Tagg napped twice and slept the same stretch. It was bliss. Then something happened. Around the same time Wells dropped her nap, Tagg stopped sleeping soundly through the night. That two years ago this fall.
We tried everything. Changing bedtimes, changing naps, changing clothes. It was always something. About that same time we diagnosed his food allergies and his daytime eating slowed drastically. So it took awhile before he wasn't hungry in the night again. And then his eczema flared with a crazy vengeance. It took a few months and a few staff infections to get that under control. That obviously affected his sleep as well. We learned that his nighttime dose of Benedryl was actually causing insomnia. Seriously? Isn't that the wonder drug for kids on road trips and nighttime? Not us. Fast forward to the past year. His sleep got worse. He goes to bed easily, minus a few age appropriate stall tactics, but has trouble staying asleep for long periods of time. He's not getting any of the good REM sleep he needs.
He snores. He coughs. He coughs so much he chokes. He tosses and turns all night long. He cries in his sleep. He gets super sweaty and sometimes needs a clean shirt. He cant' find his water bot. He needs more water in his bot. He needs nothing yet he whines. The other night I went in to check on him and he stopped crying and said, "oh, sorry Mom." Bless his sweet little heart, he's the world's crappiest sleepier. My number one struggle with motherhood is the lack of sleep and God gifted me with this child who can't. It took a lot of middle of the night soul searching to think of this situation as a gift. But it sure is one.
Bottom line. Tagg has sleep apnea. Google it, and that's him. Text book case. I only wish I'd googled it myself earlier. He's got monster tonsils that we're hoping are the route of his problem so they're taking those out next week along with his adenoids.
So here's where y'all come in. Have your children had this procedure? Tell me about it. Prep, recovery; I like details and the internet is a scary place when you try to get real life examples. It's full of worst case scenarios. I'm going to do a follow-up post after his surgery but I thought it would be beneficial to me to hear your stories too. Ideas for keeping them comfortable, food they ate. I'm guessing ice-cream and jello are only good for about a day. Although Tagg would probably be happy to eat scream and boo jewoh every day of his life.
Anyway, we'll be spending the weekend playing outside and staying away from heavy trafficked kids area. No germs please.