RECOVERY AFTER TONSILLECTOMY IN ADULTS

HI all

I am a 29 year old guy on my 6th post-op. First of all i want to than everyone for sharing their experiences and telling the stories. I felt more confident about my own condition.

The operation itself wasn't too painful. But in about an hour after the surgery I started to feel the pain. My doctor told me not to take painkillers for first few hours or at all if possible. He advised to suck on ice and ice-cream, to drink water and swallow, swallow, swallow no matter how hard it is. The quickest way to recovery is to drink a lot of cold/luke-warm milk, water, soups, fluid and eat food - potato mash, macaroni, noodles (all boiled).

As soon as I got home i was in shocking pain, I had a little bleeding (1-2 spoons) Couldn't talk at all. I took Analgin, but it didn't have any lasting effect. It didn't even completely isolated the pain. Than my mother remember that my sister was taking Dexalgin when she was operated and it was very effective. The moment I took a single pill of it I didn't feel the pain. I know how you all feel wishing that pain would go away at least for some time and to sleep at least couple of hours without being in pain. What I love about this pill is that it has a long lasting effect up to 9 hours!
That gives me a time to sleep in peace. I so pray that this will help you too. And first thing I do in the morning is that I take this pill again and I feel so much better.

I will give you a little info about this drug as I am afraid it might not be know in USA or UK under the same name. I come from Tbilisi, Georgia. In ex-Soviet countries this pill is very popular under the name of "Дексалгин" (Dexalgin). It's international name is "Dexketoprofen" - Maybe you can ask your doctor about it. I am not sure if this is exactly the same thing that is sold here, but give it a try.

The reason I got on net and started browsing the sites about Post-tonsillectomy and recovery was that on my 5th day I felt little more pain than usual, I cried when I woke up in the terrible pain, it was so bad I was all in tears before I could reach to my painkiller and it was really painful to swallow it. I was Ok in 5 minutes. But I can feel that pain is so bad that even with the painkiller i feel some pain in the throat that spreads to my ears too.

I can't imagine eating or drinking without taking meds. I still can't talk. I am only able to whisper few words. I am hoping this doesn't get any worse. Right now, as I am typing a feel a little discomfort in my ears. I can imagine what pain would it be without meds. So thank GOD for painkillers.

I want to wish you all the quick recovery and remember that this will soon be over and there's a healthy life ahead without nasty tonsils! My God be with you and help you with all the troubles that you are going through - including me :-))) 8-|

I will check back later.

I am 18 years old and I just got my tonsils removed this past friday. The experience overall I thought was slightly melodramatic on the result of my ENT doctor because he said I would be experiencing the worst pain possible. Everyone responds differently to tonsillectomies for the most part because everyone's tonsils are shaped differently. THe amount of pain from person to person will always be inconsistent because the attachment sites of the tonsils will always vary. My tonsils took over 70 percent o fthe space in my throat, however the pain was somewhat minimal because the attachment sites were very small. It is important to stay very hydrated especially since you be extremely drugged the first day. I had Vallium, Anesthesia, Tylenol, Codeine, Amoxiciallan and Morphine all in the first twenty four hours. These drugs are going to leave you feeling very disoriented and for the first two days or so you won't want to anything but sleep. But the more active you are, the less your body is dependent on the drugs because activity gets your immune system active. You will also notice very small trace amounts of blood, and you will have a lot of phlegm in your throat, DO NOT TRY AND FORCE IT UP. Spit as often as you can, but try and maintain normal activity. Cold liquids and ice help, but do not try to eat solid food afterwards, as they numb your throat and it will be extremely hard yto swallow and the pain will intensify afterwards. I noticed most of the pain came after the surgery. It actually takes longer for the prep and recovery than the actual surgery does, and that most of the pain resolved itself in the lower throat where the breathing tube had been inserted the deepest. Good luck to you, everything should resolve itself smoothly, try not to talk too much also

Hey Guys!!!!

Im 17 years old and im on day 6! Im FINALLY getting some closure from the pain! Everyday before was horrible! Initially when I got the Tonsillectomy I was kept in and put on morphine and Tylenol 3 to keep me from screaming the whole time (Though the c**p hardly worked!) When I got home they prescribed me this "Acetaminophen/Cod Elixer" (This didnt work either!) My breath is terrible, the worse I think its ever been in my life!

I havent had any scabs come off yet. Can anyone tell me whats that like?

I'm 18 years old and decided to have a tonsillectomy kind of spur of the moment over Christmas break. I had been sick for about a month total just in this fall semester, and as a theatre major, I really needed to be able to depend on my voice being there for me. So, here I am on day 5. The pain hasn't been that bad, but I've been on Tylenol with Codine this entire time. Right now I mostly just feel like there is food/mucus stuck in the back of my throat, and it is nasty. I have horrible breath, and no matter what I do I can't seem to get the taste of rotting food out of my mouth. Any suggestions? My scabs haven't come off yet and I have had no bleeding so far. I was able to eat about half a piece of pizza yesterday, but that ended up being a horrible idea as I felt sick afterward. Also because of an all liquids diet I have lost about 5 pounds, and hopefully they will stay away.

Anyway, my biggest problem right now isn't the pain, that is under control. It is the bad breath, bad taste, and discomfort from the scabs in the back of my throat. Good luck to the rest of you!

Dear Guest!



I am on my 12th day post-op and I'm 21 yrs old and I was very disturbed by that bad breath and rotten food smell you're talking about. It got even worse when I ate: i ate bread with cold cut meats on it and also bread with jam and I felt like I was gonna have to throw up every time I exhaled thru my nose. It was the foulest stench I had ever smelt and it was physically in my head, at the back of my mouth.. well, my advice is, you'll get over it :) It only lasted for two days. Then it went away, just as easy as that sounds. I, too, had the rotten smell and I, too devoted my Xmas break to getting rid of my tonsils :) and I had the bad breath exactly on day 5. So don't worry about it. Just try to breathe thru your mouth, not the nose. And once it's gone, try to forget the smell.. it's the hardest part of the job i guess, you don't wanna remember your head rotting :D



Other than that... I really don't think the all liquids diet is a good idea... I ate toast and meat right on the 2nd day, and it helped a lot. But don't start with pizza, that's stupid! It even hurts me on day 12th. Dip some toast into water, wait till it's real soft and then swallow it. It cleans the throat and makes you feel better. Well, I love to eat, dunno how it is with you :)



Happy new year, buddy, let me know if you still stink ;)



Dave

I'm considering a tonsillectomy to take care of my tonilliths (little stone like things that form n the crypts of the tonsils), but reading these posts really gives me 2nd thoughts. One thing I haven't noticed people mentioning is which procedure they had. Some doctors use lasers to remove the tonsils, while others cut them out and just cauterize the cut points. What I've read is that the laser removal is the one that causes most pain. So I was just wondering from the the folks who had the extreme pain, and those that didn't, which procedure they had?

ErikR,

I had the coblation procedure done which is what most ENT's use today. I virtually ZERO pain but I also took my meds on time. Talk to your doctor about the techniques he can offer and what will work best for your throat, as well as condition. Some techniques cant be used on certain people due to size of tonsils, etc.


Best of Luck to you!

Katiria

I called the office today since I needed to postpone the procedure, and it sounds like my guy does it the old fashioned way. Cuts them out and then cauterizes. I looked up Coblation and it didn't sound anything like what my guy explained the other day. But I'm dealing with an HMO and all the doctors I seem to get still believe in the 4 Humors in determining someone's condition. :-P

Im 18 and just had my tonsils taken out.
Todays my sixth day and so far i havent experienced any horror stories that ive read or heard about . i do however have a high pain tolerance.
Ive mainly had the sore throat and the hard time swallowing. EVEN ICE CREAM. i wouldnt even recommend ice cream for awhile becuase it causes flem. I have had alot of that though. ALOT OF SPITTING. and i havent read that anywhere i hope thats normal. That is really the hardest thing for me . Feeling wise i feel ok. but where can i go if i half to spit constantly.id recommend warm tea and popcicles for the first few days. i also put a warm wash cloth on my throat when it starts getting more sore. also try and sleep pretty propped up. Oh also i got liquid vicodin from my dr. and ive never had any problems but with this ive had . My frist day i only had one teaspoon and was okay. but obviously my second day i did TO MUCH. ( it wasnt that painful i dont know why i did) . but anyways i was sick puking all night. sO BE CAREFUL of that. because you realy have nothig in your stomach. as of today my sixth day i am okay i can eat things like potatoes and last night had a few SMALL bites of pizza. but im still taking it slow.im down to maybe one teaspoon of vicodine a day and some days none. GOOD Luck with ur surgery and i honsetly didnt think it was too bad. I had my wisdom teeth done in Sept. and that was far worse....

I am 19 years old and on Day 3 of my recovery process. I only had one tonsil out because it was three times larger than the other, but the surgeon shaved down the other tonsil so I have a lovely scab over both of them. I never even get strep that often; I had it out because of this nasty crypt that was filled with tonsilloths constantly and produced a sulfur taste in my mouth that was nauseating.

Upon immediate wake up from the surgery, most people feel fine because they are still under anestheisa. I was being chatty to the nurse and thinking wow this is not that bad! I couldn't pee all day though because of the morphine. It causes urine retention and was horrible because I had to go so badly.
It really only hurts when I swallow, so all yesterday I was just keeping my mouth open and it would dry out and then I wouldn't have to swallow. But this is really bad, because once you finally swallow it hurts like 10 times worse.
Cold foods have worked the best for me. I eat lukewarm soup, popsicles, and applesauce. These things slide down much easier than creamy foods like ice cream. Actually my mom brought home a pot roast from a restaurant and put it in the blender to make a disgusting beef smoorhie, but it was sort of like soup...I guess?
They put me on liquid hydrocodone, which I'm supopsed to take every 4-6 hours, but it usually runs up after the third hour and I start counting down the minutes. I would honestly rather just swallow a capsule because the liquid burns my throat SO badly as it goes down.
It really isn't that bad most of the time. Drink drink drink, get some flavored waters because they go down easier and keep them refrigerated. Even putting them in the freezer overnight and allowing them to dethaw so they're really cold is fabulous.
My biggest annoyance is that I can't speak. My uvula is swollen up so large that it gets caught in my throat and I choke on it when I try to talk. It's so strange. I also hate the constant mucus in my throat. I have a box of tissues just to spit it out into and it looks just like it came out of my nose...
I just hope it gets better from here instead of worse, but I definitely don't regret my decision yet.

Hi All--
I'm an over-50 teacher who just had my tonsils removed before the Christmas break. I took a few days off before the break for the surgery and have used every day of my break for recovery. I still feel like I've been run over by a big truck. The first two days after the surgery I had virtually no pain. On Day Three I got the big whammy smack down and the ear pain and throat pain was just horrible. My tongue seemed to swell twice its normal size. If it weren't for the Vicodin and the Lidocain gargle, I would not have been able to stand it. When the scabby things began to fall off, that was just about the worst pain ever. Finally, on Day 15, I called the doctor to ask for relief and he gave me some liquid steroids to take for 3 days. They worked immediately. I'm not usually one to advocate steroid use, but it sure helped. Still feeling weak and puny and since I'm not much of a languisher, I'm finding this difficult. I can, however, tell a big difference just having those calcified tonsils gone. I'm sure once I feel like my old self again I'll be thankful I did this. To anyone over 50 who is contemplating this, just know that you are going to have a lot of pain.

I came on here because im nervous about getting my tonsils out in less than 3 weeks. Mine are coming out because i get those weird tonsil stones in the crypts and i get tonsillitis at least 5 times a year and it just knocks me off my ass i get so sick.. I was looking forward to them finally coming out, ive been put under before 2 years ago when i had my wisdom teeth out and i was pretty sick the 3 days after but i think thats because the oxycodone they gave me was way too strong for me... i recovered fast and was back to work in like 5-6 days.. I am now 20 and i know it is harder to recover as you age.. but after reading all the recoveries im scared sh*tless now and i wouldnt mind some positive stories to read!!

Hi all,
I'm 18 years old and only on day 4 of recovery. Ever since surgery, its been downhill; my pain has increased and so has my swelling. I've been able to eat some solid food, mostly over cooked pasta, but only because i have to or else I get violently sick from the pain meds. Vitamin water is my savior, I just drink it with tons of ice. Popsickles are good once in a while, but the sugar is overwhelming and I find myself spitting up allot of mucus after. Also I keep an ice pack on my throat as much as possible, bags of frozen peas/cranberries/blueberries work well! I try to keep on a regular routine with my pain meds, but my mom is paranoid about narcotic addiction so she keeps making me cut down how much I take, which means I am pretty much in constant pain.

I have a question though, as of recently I've gotten large white patches all over the back of my throat and I'm wondering if it is a sign of thrush? Reading other posts I got the impression that if it was thrush that the white patches would be all over my mouth? Is this true? Would it be worth swinging by my doctor's office just to be safe?

Any advise would be great! Thanks!

hi there, im sure this will seem like a pretty random post but i am having a tonsillectomy tomorrow and i currently have tonsillitis!
i was just wondering if anyone knows if this will prevent them removing them as i have heard they do not like operating when someone is sick. im not sure if this counts in this circumstance as i thought many people may have tonsillitis at the time of having them removed...
kinda evidence of how badly i need them taken out!
any advice would be great =)

I just have to share my thoughts. I am a 33 year old teacher who thought it would be good timing to have this procedure done over the holiday break in order to reduce the amount of missed work. Well, I anticipated that this would be my last day of recovery. What was I thinking??? This is absolute hell. I only feel better when I get on here and know that so many other people are in such agony and that it's normal.

I had the cold radio-wave-type procedure done to remove my tonsils. The paperwork that I was given told me how it reduces pain and speeds in recovery. All I have to say is "seriously"? I am on constant pain meds. The hydrocodone that they are giving me makes me incredibly nausous, so I force myself to eat cold foods. So far I have been consuming slimfasts as a standby because they are easy, over cooked mac and cheese, runny mashed potatoes, and creamy soups. I found that the sodium in chicken noodle burned my scabs. Anyone else experience this?

I am glad someone commented on their tongue swelling because I thought that was just in my head. The back of my throat has gone from being painful to now feeling like I have just downed a gallon of battery acid. My jaw is sore and my teeth ache. I have to sleep upright because my ears get worse if I recline in the smallest bit.

I have found that "sleeping" with an ice pack across my neck keeps me from choking as much in the night. I am sure that when the scabs finally fall off things will be easier. Part of one fell out the other night, and I will have to tell you I could feel the opening up of my throat! It was easier to breathe, and the world was a better place. Unfortunately, the scab reformed and I am back to the old crappy feeling.

How much longer do I deal with the scabs???

As far as regretting this, I am not going there right now. I am too bitter to comment on that. I will say this though: So far, I have not had a single issue with my sinuses since having the procedure. I used to wake every morning with a nose full of mucous. None so far... I am praying that this was a good choice.