My son snores.
At first, it was no big deal. Just annoying. And loud. But anyone who watches television has seen the ads: ⿿does your husband snore at night? Maybe he has sleep apnea!⿿ And then it goes on to list all the scary things that sleep apnea can do to you. So I worried.
Watch my son sleep. It⿿s like turning off a light. One second, he⿿s talking to me, snuggled in my arms, and the next? Boom. He starts to snore. His nasal passages are completely blocked, and he struggles for each breath. Sometimes, I can see his chest pulling for air, but nothing is happening, so I say to him, gently, ⿿Breathe, baby. Breathe through your mouth.⿿ Finally, he⿿ll take a breath and I⿿ll realize I⿿ve been holding mine.
No one⿿s getting much sleep in our house, these days.
It⿿s horrible in the winter, with the dry air wreaking havoc on all of us, but him most of all. I⿿ve tried vaporizers and Vics Vapo Rub, eucalyptus on his pillow and humidifiers by his bedside. I⿿ve tried propping him up, I⿿ve switched out his pillows for more or less height and support. Every time he crawls into the big bed in the middle of the night, I spend the hours until dawn worrying over every breath he takes⿿or doesn⿿t.
There are three possible problems that need to be addressed. I know something⿿s not working right in his nose, because he can blow his nose a hundred times and nothing comes out but if you close one nostril and ask him to breathe, he can⿿t. He might have a deviated septum, which can be fixed surgically (I don⿿t think shoving drinking straws up his nose would alleviate the problem, thanks for suggesting it, though). He might have enlarged tonsils, which can also be removed with a minimum of fuss, as soon as I stop getting freaked about anesthesia. Or it might be his adenoids.
Do you know what the adenoids are? I didn⿿t, until I began to research why my son couldn⿿t breathe.
Adenoids are hidden behind the nose and the roof of the mouth, and may help young children fight infections while their immune systems develop. There⿿s a chance my son⿿s adenoids are swollen and infected, and that a round of antibiotics might clear up the problem. If not, they can be removed, and a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy are sometimes performed together. Now, if only I could get his doctor⿿s office to pick up so I could make an appointment! Sigh. No time like the present.
Child health,
Mothering
