Our little Anna had a minor surgery a week ago. She had a small cyst removed from her left eyebrow. It wasn’t very noticeable and wasn’t a threat to her health, but it would likely get bigger as she got older and would need to be removed eventually (and it might be harder to remove once it got bigger), so we decided it was best to do it while she’s too little to know what’s going on.

We first took her to an ophthalmologist here in Conway, but we just weren’t happy with the consultation. The doctor came across as a bit cold, uncaring, and totally out of touch with kids (and their parents). Although he probably would have done a fine job, there’s no reason to put up with that, in my opinion.

We ended up seeing Dr. Wade Brock at the Baptist Eye Center. I went in thinking, “ok, he’s a surgeon, so he’s probably going to have that surgeon’s personality (or lack thereof), so don’t expect too much.” But I was wrong—he was SO good with Anna and knew how to interact with her, was very personable and easy to talk to, and was on the same page with us about our concerns.

When we got to the surgery center, I was very impressed with the nurses and the anesthesiologist as well. Everyone knew how to deal with a small child and make it as low-stress as possible. They went very slowly, gave her toys and stickers, let her play with stuff like the stethoscope before they used it, and did everything they could to make her smile. They gave her a sedative so she didn’t care in the least about being taken from us (the part I was most worried about); the anesthesiologist held her close to him while she fell alseep (isn’t that sweet?); they even put the IV in after she was asleep.

Aside from a black eye that is still healing, she’s been fine. She really hasn’t seemed bothered by the swelling or the stitches too much. The first couple of days her eye was swollen almost shut, but she just kept on playing and going about her business as usual. The swelling is almost gone, but there’s still a bit of bruising. But no one has called Department of Human Services on us yet, so we’re good. :)

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