How do I explain surgery to my 6yo?

Ema of 5

Fri, Mar 01 2019, 1:52 pm

amother wrote:

Ema of 4, may I ask why you think it's important for a 2 year old to know that she has a v-gina & for a 10 year old to know about relations????? Mind boggling.

I will gladly answer your question. My two year old knows she has a va-gina becasue....well, because she has one, and when she or I talk about it, I prefer to call it the correct name.
My 10 year old knows about zex because an older schoolmate decided to enlighten her. Unfortunately she enlightened her incorrectly, so I had to straighten things out.
However, I don’t see anything wrong with my 10 year old knowing the basics.
This same schoolmate also told her about periods, but again gave her some wrong info, and she was very confused.
If you think your child won’t know becasue YOU didn’t tell him/her, unfortunately for you, you are most likely mistaken. I am honest with my kids becasue I would rather I know what info they are getting.

bigSmile

Fri, Mar 01 2019, 2:06 pm

One of these booklets from Boston Childrens' Hospital may or may not be useful, depending on your child and if he would benefit from it.

Here's how they describe them:
Check out our child-friendly, visual stories that help prepare children for every step of their visit or procedure. The stories include simple, reassuring descriptions and photos of different places your child may visit in the hospital, showing what the rooms look like, whom they might meet and what might happen. Please see the appropriate story for your child below.

http://www.childrenshospital.o.....story

amother

Papaya

Fri, Mar 01 2019, 2:34 pm

bigSmile wrote:

Thank you

amother

Cerulean

Fri, Mar 01 2019, 5:20 pm

My son recently had the same surgery. I had a few social stories printed from online that really helped him understand without giving him too much details.

FranticFrummie

Sat, Mar 02 2019, 11:53 am

OP, if your son doesn't ask any more questions, then that means that he is satisfied with the answers you've already given him. He's not stewing over it the way you are.

DD's biggest worry was if she would be able to keep her stuffed animal with her. The anesthesiologist let her take it with her until she was asleep, and then I took it to the waiting room. I tucked it back in her arms when she woke up, so for all she knew it was with her the entire time.

One word of advice - do NOT watch your child be put under, if you are going to freak out. It looks scarier than it is, because your child's muscles will be paralyzed, breathing will change, etc. I'm pretty tough, but for some reason this really shook me. I was told that when I came of of pre-op I was as white as a ghost.

Aylat

Sat, Mar 02 2019, 12:51 pm

Ema of 4 wrote:

Yep.

(Sorry, off-topic.) Refua shleima to your son OP, may the procedure be easy and successful.

amother

Papaya

Sat, Mar 02 2019, 7:03 pm

FranticFrummie wrote:

One word of advice - do NOT watch your child be put under, if you are going to freak out. It looks scarier than it is, because your child's muscles will be paralyzed, breathing will change, etc. I'm pretty tough, but for some reason this really shook me. I was told that when I came of of pre-op I was as white as a ghost.

Unfortunately this isn’t the first medical issue he’s had. I’ve been through much worse with him, like being in an induced coma, being hooked onto a respirator, (although he doesn’t remember much) so it’s not new to me. It’s just his age now that is new, with him being more aware of everything that’s happening to him.

Right now, I think the hardest part will be the few hours leading up to surgery. He loves eating and is irritable on an empty stomach. I’m nervous about keeping him in good spirits while he’s really hungry and begging for food.

mommy12

Sat, Mar 02 2019, 10:19 pm

My son had eye surgery at 6 on both of his eyes. It freaked us all out but we had to stay really calm for him. We explained the doctor was going to make tiny cuts to help strengthen his muscles so he could see better. The hospital staff was amazing! They gave him an anesthesia mask and bear to play with and keep, a sticker book to keep him occupied, and an iPad to play with while they took him back to put him under. Once he had the iPad he didn't care at all what they were doing to him!

amother

Papaya

Sat, Mar 02 2019, 10:24 pm

mommy12 wrote:

How did you/he handle the no-eating part?

mommy12

Sat, Mar 02 2019, 10:34 pm

amother wrote:

How did you/he handle the no-eating part?

If I recall correctly, his surgery was early enough in the morning that it wasn't an issue. We warned him the night before that it wasn't allowed the next day. He was old enough to understand that.