Prep Work

Knowing my little guy like I do, I knew that springing the procedure on him the day of would not go over well.  But we also wanted to make sure we weren't dwelling on it either creating unnecessary anxiety.  We talked about it a few times in the month leading up to it but saved the detailed discussions for the few days before the surgery.  Seattle Children's Hospital sent us a great prep book talking about the procedure and what would happen from the child's perspective.  Not sure this would have worked too well with a toddler but for my 6 year old, it really helped him visualize what he would experience.  The prep book also prompted decision points for my boy... things like what smell would you like in the gas mask? or what would you like to be doing when you fall asleep?  Looking back now, giving him some control was key.  He was part of the procedure rather than having it done to him.


So, taking that theory a step further, we allowed him to come up with the types of foods he would like to eat after surgery.  Even took him to the grocery store the day before surgery and let him pick whatever he wanted.  Sky was the limit.  He had a ball at the store and giggled when he picked out not one, but TWO kinds of ice cream.  He sure thought he had pulled a fast one on me. 


We also came up with signs for things like pain and things he may want after surgery.  My little creative boy came up with lots of silly signs for pain, like pretending to pull his finger off when it really hurt.  


I had read on a website that giving your child a present to open after surgery would give them something to look forward to after waking up. Nothing huge obviously but the anticipation of something positive after they wake up is a great distraction. My son is huge into BeyBlades at the moment so I picked up one he'd been eyeing as well as a small little stuffed animal and wrapped up with a big bow. 


Other than that, we just kept the tone very positive but also made sure he knew how to communicate with us if he needed help or something hurt. Giving him a picture of what would happen as well as giving him some control over what was happening was the best thing we could have done.  Oh, and the BeyBlade didn't hurt either. :)