Kids who scream during the night

There is a big difference between nightmares and night terrors. There is no cure for night terrors, but they do not cause psychological effects and they tend to go away as the child gets older. We have been dealing with them for 4 years. They come and go. Some weeks he will have several every night. Other times, they seem to disappear for weeks. I almost hate it when that happens because I get excited thinking they are gone for good. They always seem to come back. I am hoping he stops having them at some point. It really inhibits the amount of sleep a child gets. They wake up and don't feel rested. They are sluggish and irritable the day after a night with night terrors. It can be really debilitated to a family. So if your child wakes up screaming and yelling, ask them the next day whether they remember the episode. If they don't remember, they may have night terrors. The more you know about the disorder, the better you can respond.

Here's an article from CNN. I was really excited to see this article from a doctor in Evanston, IL. I was hoping she was a night terror expert and would have some new ideas on how to treat them. After reading the article, I think she has the same advice as the numerous other doctors we have talked to. Bummer!

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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Nightmares vs. Night Terrors

I got this email today and realized I haven't posted the nightmares vs. night terrors story. We are still dealing with night terrors in our house and my son is 6-years-old! Most kids outgrow them. I hope that happens soon. He is having them less often now than he was last month, but that doesn't mean they are gone for good. They seem to come back with avengence every time I think they are over. They started when he was around 3-years old. There have been times where he would have 8-10 night terrors a night. Night terrors are related to sleep walking. The child doesn't know he is screaming when it happens and doesn't remember the next morning. It can be scary because they sometimes thrash and say things that don't make any sense.

I was told by a friend that you covered a story about children having either nightmares or night terrors? If so can you email me that story? or give me information on how i can get it?

Here's the story:

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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Tonsillectomy/Adenoidectomy a.k.a. The Big Day

I am a nervous wreck. My four-year-old is having his tonsils and adenoids out Tuesday. If you have never had to go through this, it is a big deal. It is a fairly common procedure, so I didn't realize the seriousness of it and the risks. I am dreading the tears as he asks me if he has to go back to the operating room. Parents are not allowed to go back there on the day of surgery. He has to go by himself. Ugh!

As you can imagine, I got all the information I could from the doctor. Here's my interview with Dr. Michael Gootee.

Jen: How common is this surgery?

Dr. Gootee: "Like a lot of things in medicine, it's a pendulum. Everyone was getting their tonsils out, , then no one was doing it. Now the children that have indications for having tonsils out do get it."

Jen: What are some of the reasons for getting tonsils and adenoids taken out?

Dr. Gootee: "Recurrent infections, airways obstructions, missing school due to illness, snoring, restless sleep and poor quality of sleep are the main reasons." Dr. Gootee said infections can include ear infections, tonsillitis and strep throat.

Airway obstruction is why my son is having the procedure. The doctor said his tonsils rate at a 4 on a scale of 1-4. They are very large. I tried to take a picture for the blog, but it was impossible. My son kept getting his tongue in the way and my camera wouldn't focus that close. This is a disgusting picture I found on the Internet, but the tonsils are about the same size.

Dr. Gootee: "I see more pediatric ENT patients than others in the area. I have been in practice for 13 years and I had 6 years of residency before that. I have probably done 4000 tonsillectomies."

Jen: What are the risks?
Dr. Gootee: "The biggest risk is bleeding afterwards. It happens in maybe 2-3 cases out of 100. Sometimes it happens about a week to ten days afterwards. In rare cases, you have to take a patient back in to get cauterized. It's pretty obvious when it happens. We ask parents to avoid foods with red in them just in case you have bleeding. We don't want parents to questions whether there is bleeding on just red juice."

"Sometimes certain foods that are really scratchy can cause bleeding sooner. I always use the analogy -If there's a scab on the knee and it comes off early there's bleeding. The kids who bleed more usually haven't done anything to provoke it, it's really more bad luck than anything else. There's no good way to prevent it. "

Jen: What age is common for a tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy?

Dr. Gootee: "Typically kids anywhere from 3-years-old up to 7 or 8 is a pretty common range. but a lot of the time we see it in the adolescent years too.

Jen: I have always heard the surgery is easier on your body as a kid than as an adult.

Dr. Gootee: "You are not at more risk when you're older, we just don't tolerate pain as well when we're older. You tell them(kids) you will have a sore throat, they live with it. And we don't heal as fast. Kids tend to bounce back quicker. Adults don't recover as quickly."

Jen: Do parents every push to have the surgery when it's not necessary?

Dr. Gootee: "Most of the time, not with the indications. We have a pretty good idea. This is a serious surgery. We say lets give it some time, most of the time if things don't add up, we will talk to the family physician. Most parents are not going to want their kids subjected to something if they don't need it."

Jen: What are the benefits of the surgery?
Dr. Gootee: "If the child has chronic infection, they can expect to see fewer. "

Jen: My son has airway obstruction. He can have 6-8 night terrors a night. (Night terrors are when the person is in a deep state of sleep and starts screaming or thrashing.) We are having the surgery to hopefully let him get better sleep.

Dr. Gootee: "Sleep apnea can be linked to kids not paying attention in class. Sometimes they are labeled as hyperactive. There's some thought that these kids are sleep deprived and they act out. There are certainly kids who have sleep apnea and when they get their tonsils out, they become different kids. I never promise parents their behavior will improve, but I am surprised by how many parents say this had made a difference."

Jen: I have had several people say to me this surgery is no big deal. (It's kind of offensive. Maybe I'm a little sensitive? Probably!)

Dr. Gottee: "Somebody once said it's only minor surgery if it involves someone else. Of all the surgeries we do, tubes and tonsils are the most common. It's not a simple surgery by any means, but the kids do well with it. "

Jen: I am concerned about giving a four-year-old general anesthesia.
Dr. Gootee: "Anesthetic concerns are understandable, but the anesthesiologists are really good. The ones I use are more geared toward pediatric anesthesia. With so many improvements in anesthetic agents, these kids recover much quicker than they used to. No more lingering sleepiness. That makes a big difference."

Jen: Can you explain the actually surgery to me?

Dr. Gootee: "The main thing we do is prop the mouth open and remove the tonsils and adenoids. The adenoids are a pack of tissue that sit behind the palate in the back of the nose. They used to use a blade and cut the tonsils out and cauterize the back. The standard of care over the last few years has changed. Now you cauterize the vessels themselves while you take out the tonsils. Coblation is what we're doing now. There's no painless surgery, but I think it makes the kids have less discomfort."

"Tonsils and adenoids are part of the body that fights infections, but we have over 300 lymph nodes, so we do just fine without them. The kids who have their tonsils out are actually less likely to have infections. That's because sometimes they trap bacteria in the tonsils."

Jen: Why do some kids have problems with their tonsils/adenoids and not others?

Dr. Gootee: "I don't know if anyone knows the answer to that. It may be genetic."

Jen: You put the kids on antibiotics afterwards, but that's not always the case.

Dr. Gootee: : "I have looked at studied that have shown kids have less post operative pain and drink more when they are given antibiotics. (They need to drink a lot afterwards to avoid dehydration.) It's a personal choice. There are some physicians who don't do that.

Have your kids been through this?

Anyone have any comforting words for me as I get ready to take my son for this procedure?

-NewsAnchorMom Jen