Nightmares after tonsillectomy?

Thank goodness for the web...   my son is 8 years old.  The T&A was performed on 10/4/2013 - he wound up bleeding 10/10, they tried to quarterize (spelling?) in the E.R. didn't work, he had to go back in to surgery.  Now 10/15 his throat doesn't hurt, he still has a fever and cannot sleep.  He doesn't want to talk about the dreams but stays up as long as he can.  When he does fall asleep he tosses and turns which is unlike my son.  I feel so bad and after reading these posts I realize we have to wait it out. 

I am glad you feel that way, we are on day 3 and I have regretted the procedure every minute after the surgery. My son (14 months) is having a really hard time breathing, so much worse than before, and has severe episodes of apnea at night, so we wakes up really scare. I never really consider that it could be nightmares, it really just seems like he can't breath (which makes sense when someone earlier posted that her son said that he felt like he was drowning) It just want to know if it get better, and after all of these issues, do parents feel like it was worth doing the procedure?? it your son's breathing better now??

Definitely not the codeine. I also never gave it to my son.

How long did they last for?

And you signed a consent for surgery? Did you read it? Did you ask questions about the surgery? Do you want to buy a bridge?

We are 6 days post op for t&a. My som has bern waking since days 2 screaming during the night. Days 3 he slept perfect but the rest have been a nightmare. How long does this last? Is anything a remedy? Losing our minds.

Thanks for this message. My almost 7 yr old just had same op & I've had night terrors for two nights so far. It started 5 days after op. So hopefully by 2 weeks post op it will stop. Looking forward to that! Can't wait for they light at the end of the tunnel..

who gives a 4 yr old an opiate like that? Its not even a painful surgery..

Thanks for your story! It has given me some relief. My 7 yrs old son had a tonsilectomy and adenoidectomy and a blood vessel in nose cauterised. We are going through same thing with every time he wakes up every 3 to 4 yrs night or day, mostly night. He wakes up screaming and crying & thrashing around.he had surgery 7 days ago. He still has not eatren and won't. The neck pain and not eating we took him to Primary Care Dr. They said neck pain from Surgery and showed us his throat She said that's why hr won't until ready. I am so worried he's lost like 5 lbs. Head and neck ache holds his head and crys . It's heartbreaking and we are concerned for his life. PC acts like you just have to give it time.But now I'm extremley ' worried afterr tonight and waking up 2 times so far and the not eating.This is the most horrible experience Ive had and my son as well. Calling Dr in the morning and letting them know whats going on, I've done it once alrea5 and taken to P C Dr, but this child can't go on like this. He's also on the narcotics as well. After I call Dr going to ER.! Has anyone else gone through this? They say child can go through not eating but need to drink. Going to ER tomorrow. Has anyone else gone through this and especially the not eating. I'm scarrd! Thanks for any imput. PC Dr , yesterday was like let your child decide when he's ready to eat. That can't be! From a very concerned worried Mom Any input or what would you do and he's anyone gone through what we have a nd what did you do

I'm on day 6 post op with my 7 year old. He's having nightmares I'm sure. He doesn't remember them at all. He is extra clingy. He is dehydrated and refuse food and fluids as well. Day 3 into post op we had an ER visit too. It perked him up and he ate. The very next day he started going down hill again. I really don't want a second trip to the ER but it may have to come down to that. He is now complaining of his throat hurting. His voice sounds like he has hit puberty...very soft and screechy. Just wondering if anyone else went through this.

Hello. I know that your post was over a year ago, but it's exactly what we're going through with my 2 1/2 year old daughter right now. I just wondered how things progressed with your son and whether the night terrors went away completely? If so, how long did it take? Any help/insight you can give would be greatly appreciated!

This is so terrible. It's been probably 4-4 years since my daughter had her 2nd set of tubes and had her tonsils "burned". She woke up starting that night every night for a week or so with the most horrible night terrors. It scared us so badly. She wouldn't snap out of it - she would cry and scream in her sleep. It broke our hearts and I'll never forget it. I have always wondered what happened to her back there. I HATE that I ever agreed to it. :( It's been probably going on 4 years since we've had any medications (even OTC) in our home, as we've gone all natural and haven't regretted it for one second. I'm so sorry for you. :( And I understand.

I was so glad to find this site and hear that others have experienced the same thing. My six-year-old son had surgery on Monday, January 16, 2017. Today is the Friday after and we have been having these same sleep issues since day two. He had trouble sleeping the first night but I believe that was due to the hydrocodone. We stopped the hydrocodone The second day because it made him so sick. After that we just used Tylenol with good results for pain relief. However the night terrors have continued. I don't look at the clock but it feels like he wakes up every 15 minutes moaning and crying. When I ask him what's wrong sometimes he says he scared and other times he says he doesn't know. But his reply only comes after I try talking to him for a few minutes. Prior to that it's like he's not really awake. It's exhausting for my husband and me so it must be exhausting for him even more. Our pediatrician and the nurse at the ENT clinic, who used to also worked in a pediatric clinic, seem to know nothing about these sleep issues with patients after surgery. Our pediatrician did, however, tell us to use Benadryl for about a week to help him sleep more soundly and hopefully give him time so that the experience is not so fresh on his mind. I hope and pray these night terrors in soon. We are all exhausted and it's so hard to see our son this way.

You need to disrupt the REM. I found an article on it when my 3 year old grandson went thru this 1/3/2017. I only wish i found it sooner! It has something to do with the brain they think and the pain meds. It wasnt until almost a week after going thru the nite terrors every 2 hours. What i did was to wake him at 1 hour and 50 min once he was completely asleep. A slow rubby of his back and i told him a story. He kept his eyes closed, but hed shake his head when i asked him questions. He then fell back to sleep. I set my alarm again, and followed the same thing. I did this 4 times. The next nite i did it twice. He slept the rest of the nite and from then on. Now i cant say it will work for everyone, but it was just too easy after suffering for a week. Doc claimed the terrors could go on for 2 weeks but once he didnt need the strong pain med and we went to just motrin and tylenol, it completely ended. His full appetite came back at 9 days. I sure hope you get the results sooner than we did! That first week was really rough up every 2 hours and not being able to console him..good luck!

My 4 year old just had her tonsils and adenoids out and the first night went better then expected. No major problems, just meds every 4 hours to manage the pain (we alternated between Advil and Tylenol). However, the next night came the NIGHT TERRORS! At first we just thought she was waking up due to pain but quickly we realized what they were. She was totally distraught, sweaty, inconsolable, crying for me even though I was right there. I would try to hug her, but she would push me away. It was crazy since she never had them before. She was waking up 3 to 4 times a night frantically crying. Luckily it was only for about 5 minutes until she would fall back asleep. It was awful. That's when I started to research online and found this website. This was not something that they warned us about at the hospital! I was so worried that it would continue on for weeks. My husband and I both work and we weren't getting any sleep. It was horrible. I was literally a walking disaster. It was like having a newborn all over again without the perks of staying home. Anyways, the good news is the night terrors stopped!!!! Yes it actually happened! After a very long week my four year old slept quietly and soundly the whole night!! Why they started or how they went away, I have no idea. I just wanted to pass that on to all of you parents that are experiencing the same thing, and don't see the light at the end of the tunnel. Just hang in there!