Tonsilectomy -- Ear Nasal Throat rec? and BF ?

raceyrae

My family dr. referred me to an ENT today for an issue I've been having with my left tonsil -- I have a white spot on it that's been there for about a month.  This happened about a year ago too and it just went away.  I decided to get it checked out.  The ENT recommends I get a tonsilectomy in order to make sure it's benign (which he thinks it is). 

I would like to get my tonsil out given how many problems its given me over the years but I'm concerned about doing this procedure now because I'm BFing Claire.  He said it's outpatient surgery but I'd probably be out of work for 10 days and not be in the mood for BFing (he obviously doesn't understand what goes into EBFing!). 

So my questions:

I'd like to get a second opinion -- any recommendations for an ENT in North raleigh/Wake Forest?

If I go forward with the surgery, I could have DH/nanny give Claire a bottle for the first day and hopefully be up for pumping, and then hopefully the following days go back to nursing.  Do you foresee any problems with getting Claire to continue nursing after something like this?  Anyone have surgery and it mess with your milk supply?  Or DC not go back on for nursing if they spent too much time using a bottle (if I can't nurse right away within the first few days)?  The OB already said the medication I would be taking after would be ok for continuing BFing.

akspriss

I dont have any actual advice on the situation but I'd put a call into your LC at Jeffers and Mann and talk to her about it and see if she thinks it could possibly affect your nursing with claire or supply issues. good luck with everything!

MereD19

Is this something you could possibly do when Claire is a tad older? I got my tonsils taken out, and I can remember just sleeping a LOT - it took so much out of me. Granted, I was younger, but I can still remember it being painful and such.

jenwill

I'd be concerned with the anesthesia you receive for the surgery and how long that would hang around in BM. Having had surgery before (not tonsillectomy, but carpal tunnel release), after being put under-you sleep that whole first day away. The second day you're still pretty exhausted and still feel a little woozy. If I had been BF'ing at the time, I wouldn't have been able to do it I don't think.

Mrs.LLG

Having your tonsils taken out as an adult is a bigger deal than having them out when you're younger - or so I was told. Its not as easy a recovery as you would think it would be. You'll most likely be very tired for a few days and your be on meds for a few days too. I'd check with your lactaction person to see what they think like PP suggested.

flamencogal

There's an ENT group at the WakeMed Northplex just off Falls of Neuse near Durant.  Scott saw Dr. Michael Ferguson for his ear surgery and he was phenomenal!  We had some wait times in the office but other than that I could not have been happier with Dr. Ferguson.  In fact, DH and I wish he was a pedi too!  He obviously does pediatric ENT and I'm not sure if he does adult ENT but I know people in the practice do (Ferguson is the director of the practice I think).  If you google his name and WakeMed, the website will show up.

uncharch7

i had mine taken out in '08 (i was 25).  feel free to email me for details, uncharch7 at hotmail dot com, or here is the link in my blog.

now, what little i do know about BFing, i'd have to imagine it'd have a pretty big effect on your supply simply because you just aren't in the mood to eat.  i had a hard time making myself eat even 1000 calories because it just hurt.  any food i did have was high in sodium to make me thirsty so i didn't get so dehydrated. surgery was on a thursday and i finally went back to work on saturday the week after, but only for a couple hours.

bobsbride2006

I had hernia surgery 10 weeks pp and continued BF without problems. The biggest thing with tonsils being removed is making sure you're drinking enough water so your supply doesn't drop off. 

mrslsb

No advice, but I just wanted to commisserate and say I'm sorry you're dealing with this right now.