tonsilectomy recovery time

hi, i just thought id write and let others know that although i sympathise greatly with those who have suffered horrendously, its not always the case. i am a 30 year old female and i had my tonsils out on Thursday (it is now Sunday) and after reading all these threads i was dreading it, to the point of nearly cancelling. i am not the best person with pain or illness and usually cry at the drop of a hat!! plus my mum is abroad on holiday so that worried me that i would be upset without her.

for me the worst time was in the hospital straight after waking up, but a few shots of morphine sorted that out. the only time i have cried was when i took my first sip of water and i think that was just from the shock and i was still a bit out of it from the aneasthetic (spelling?). i stayed in hospital over night - i admit i didnt sleep much but that was mainly to do with the noise on the ward. i left the next morning with Codiene, Ibroprufen and Paracetamol. these have definitely worked for me.

i take the codiene and paracetamol together every 6 hours (setting my alarm for 3am) and the Ibro in between for break out pain. i asked for the syrup form and it really helps instead of trying to gulp tablets down.

i didnt get any after care information from the hospital which i was annoyed about but after reading things on this site and others (especially seeing pictures of what it would look like) i have managed to keep pain free.

i admit waking in the morning and through night is pretty tough but a few sips of water and gallons of tea have kept me sane until the pain relief kicks in.

i have managed to eat normally, although a double cheeseburger from Macdonalds took about 20 minutes to eat, because i was nibbling! i am finding warm things are helping better than cold things. i havent tried anything spicey yet and am not going to risk it.

the back of my throat looks horrendous and im getting a lot of sympathy from friends and family but it is no where near as painful as i was expecting (and i cant believe im actually saying that - the wuss i am) if i hadnt seen pictures on the internet of the white/grey matter that covers your throat then i would have totally freaked out and gone straight to hospital.

its day four - and i know its supposed to go downhill from now so ill probably be eating my words in a couple of days, but the scabs are starting to come off and although it feels really strange its not too bad. i havent had earache as such, just a little bit deaf and feels like i need to pop my ears like when on an aeroplane.

it seems to get worse if i just sit around and do nothing, so i am keeping myself active, but not going out of the house - only outside to sunbathe and to boyfriends house.

i would definitely recommend propping yourself up to sleep as it seems to put pressure on your throat when lying flat. i havent felt or been sick (yet?) and have managed to talk straight away (although for more than 10 minutes can be a strain).

i woke yesterday morning (day 3) and had no jaw line as the swelling had come up but that has disappeared now.

good luck to everyone and i hope you all feel better soon. i will keep you updated. xx

mmm McDonalds, i want that so bad. I must say i thought you were slightly insane when i read that you could handle eating burgers!! im on day 4 of recovery and i have gone down hill big time. Im currently dribbling like a rabid dog from the pain! Anyways good for you im glad your enjoying your food, i miss the taste of a greasy cheese burger and im so sick of ice cream i cant be bothered to eat anymore. whaaaa!

i had my tonsils removed 10 days ago... i feel fine and ive been up and about for 3-4 days now... i want to drink alcohol.. what is bad with doing this?

I just had this surgery about two weeks ago, and it was not bad at all. I went in in the morning, they explained what they would do with the anesthesia, I waited for about an hour and then I went into the operating room. It took about 30 minutes, and when I went back up to my hospital room the pain wasn't too bad. It basically hurt just a little bit worse than having strep throat, and they gave me pain medication every four hours so it was very easy to cope with. I went home by 5:30 and I've had no complications since. The best thing to eat (I found) was ice chips- blend up ice in your blender and it makes it easy to get down. I found that swallowing big gulps of water hurt more than just letting the ice slowly melt and go down my throat. Even though I couldn't eat well the first few days, the doctor told me BEFORE the surgery that the key is to drink as much fluid as I could, so I ate tons of ice and drank hawaiian punch as often as I could- I never had to go back to the hospital due to dehydration. After a few days mac and cheese was the easiest thing to eat- pasta was a life saver. I'm still recovering, but it's a very mild pain on one side of my throat that I barely notice. And as for someone's question about eating rough foods- I was informed by the hospital that you should stick with only soft foods after the surgery for awhile- (I'm to eating almost completely normal foods at this point) because it's better for your throat to recover that way. I would definitely recommend this surgery- two weeks of mild discomfort is a very small price to pay in order to prevent me from getting infected with strep throat every few months!

Well I am 18 years old and I got my tonsils taken out about 5 days ago. I am still shocked at how many people say this operation was painful. Perhaps I ws just lucky but I woke up an hour early from my anesthesia and was able to talk to moment I woke up. I decided that I wanted to make this experience as pleasent as possible so from the moment I left the hospital I began to drink ice water. I drank to the point where I was going to the bathroom very frequently. However this was a good thing since I drank so much I kept my throat moist for a long time. Also my doctor told me to keep up on my pain meds and dont miss a dose even when I went to sleep. If you notice, the most you sleep the worse you feel because you are not swallowing as much. So what I did was I stayed up all night watching movies, drinking ice water, and taking my pain meds as much as possible. I took a few cat naps but never anything more than an hour. The next day I felt great. Granted my throat was a little swollen but there was no " excruciating pain" that so many people have described. Also I could talk almost perfectly. Everyone just said it sounded as though I had a slight cold. I ate mac and cheese and some frozen yogurt. And five days afterwards I am able to no longer take my pain medication. I feel almost normal.

THerefore my recommendation to all those undergoing a tonsilectomy is to drink as much water as possible. It will not only keep your throat moist but it will also prevent dehydration. Another trick of the trade is to CHEW GUM. By chewing gum, you are frequently swallowing without even noticing.

The experience is only as painful as you make it out to be.

I just had my tonsils out 10 days ago. I am 33 years old. I was prepared for the worst because of so many things I'd read on line, but it was not so bad. Because of what I'd read, and warnings my dr. gave me, I forced myself to drink right from the start. I did have prescription for a vicodin elixer that I took faithfully every 4 hours for the first 3 days, but I was able to give that up by day 4. For me, the absolute worst day was day 7 tied for a close second by day 3. I did start eating yogourt and ice cream on the frist day, and by day 2 was eating macaroni and oatmeal. I lived on those staples through week 1....but as week 2 approached, I have been able to eat almost anything as long as I take very small bites and chew it well before I swallow. The only thing I can't seem to handle is spicy food or really salty food is painful to swallow. Although I do tire a lot more easily, and I wouldn't leave home without my extra-strength tylenol to cope with some minor pain left,I am back to normal duties for the most part. All in all, I would say this is not a walk in the park surgery, but for me, it has not been near the nightmare i've read about so many times.

I feel compelled to reiterate the previous posters in saying that this surgery is not as terrible as it sounds. Granted every experience is different, but speaking from my perspective, it has been roughly what I expected. Really sore throat, coupled with swollen painful uvula (hanging ball) and sore tongue. There are times in which the pain in nearly intolerable, but that comes and goes with periods of relative calm. Drink as much fluids as you can. Yes, it will hurt swallowing so many times, but I really think you speed up your recovery time by doing this. As far as energy is concerned, I have been able to get up and move around since day 2. On more tidbit that is important to consider is eating plenty of small meals throughout the day. It's crucial to keep your stomach full so that you don't get sick off of your pain medications. The 2nd day I realized I wasn't eating enough because I began experiencing nausea. To remedy this I ate some mashed potatoes (good for your throat) and felt better almost immediately. Good luck to those who are preparing for surgery. It is not fun but definately not terrible!

i am 18 years old and am on day 10 after my tonsillectomy...and i do not think i have lost my scabs yet..although my throat really doesn't hurt at all anymore..its this normal if i still see the nasty white scabs on the back of my throat? sometimes i feel like i am losing scabs lower down in my throat because it feels like it is peeling away and burning..i'm just concerned and don't know if this is normal..also i am still not really able to eat anything because it gets stuck going down, even with the smallest bites. someone help me! :-)

hello, first of all to the lady that had to go through all of that with her child, im sorry but its your fault for not asking about that doctor, and you should never go into surgery without have atleast 2 other doctors agree.

I got my tonsils removed yesterday. its not scary, its not weird. Whats going to happen is that they are going to take you into a preparation room make you change into funny clothing and then they are going to put an injection in your hand leaving the water bag thingy hydrating your body (you'll see). Then whenever they are ready, they are going to take you into the operation room, they'll put you to sleep there. Next time you'll remember is waking up and being all like "WHAT THE HELL?!" and as for me i laughed because it was so fast. you will feel throat pain as im feeling right now. but from what i hear it'll take 15 days to feel better.

On the brightside, you get to be pampered :-)

I am a 27 year old female and just had my tonsils taken out today. I was really scared but knew the surgery was inevitable so I might as well get it over with. I was tired of the constant infections and the insane snoring. Strangely, my troubles didn't start until I was pregnant last summer. All of a sudden I could feel my tonsils touching each other and then after I had the baby is when the tonsilitis started to kick in.
When I woke up from surgery I was surprised that I was immediately able to talk, although I am pretty nasaly. The nurses were feeding me ice chips immediately after surgery and I have not stopped that process. I was only in the surgical center for about 1 1/2 hours after surgery. Now I spend most of my time, not to be crude, but in the bathroom due to the amount of water I am taking in. I was able to get down some jello and mashed potato today but the pudding was just too thick for me. I would say swallowing is the worst part but also being able to feel the scabs on my tongue is a pretty gross part. All in all, day 1 has not been horrible but after reading all of these posts, I am definitely not going to rush into normal activities as it seems that the recovery process goes in waves. Right now I just have 1 question, my little info sheet says that it is normal to see gray and white areas covering the throat but I also have a couple of small black areas, I am guessing that is just dried up blood but just want to make sure it isn't anything i should be questioning?? Also, I have a crazy amount of energy. I slept during surgery and then napped for maybe an hour this evening and here it is 12 am and i am still not tired. Wondering if my medicine is having the opposite affect on me, hmm?
I am believing God is going to get me through this and hopefully I will be pleasant to my hubby and one year old :-)

jbells, your initial anesthesia might not have all worn off yet. Don't feel too perky too soon or you will be in for a major let-down. I wouldn't worry about the black stuff in your throat.

Had my surgery yesterday. Last night was unbelievable. In NYC. Went to ENT hospital on 64th street. The doc who perfomed has written three books on the subject so we'll see what happens. Couldn't take apple sauce last night so living on ensure and ice pops for the suger. Water feels weird going down. Headache, but I guess that's from not eating. Was supposed to go back to work next Tuesday, but I doubt that's going to happen now. Amoxicillin gave me a rash so he's switching my meds. Take your pain killers on schedule. You'll be glad you did.

I would just like to post a positive response to all these really negative one. I read all these posts and nearly never turned up 4 my operation as i was terrified!! However when i came round in the recovery room was very disorientated and in some pain but the morphine soon put paid to this!!. The girl opposite me who was having the same procedure as me was next to me and seemed to be the same as me. Went back to the ward and was in no pain alot of dis-comfort yes but not pain. Was eating toast later on in the evening girl opposite me was 2!!. Next morning was painful however as soon as painkillers kicked in this subsided. Went home later on in the day and was eating cereal and toast. Now on day 5 still taking medication and these help me to lead fairly normal life, breath stinks and mouth looks horrible, still very tired. Diet is mainly cereal soup mash pot ect but just wanted 2 say this in not as painful 4 every1 maybe mine will get worse but please if you need this doing let yourself be the judge!! the worst part is the uvulva swelling so big you could nearly choke on it and the upset stomach from medication but keep with it :-D

Hi my name is Gloria and im 25 years old. I had my tonsillectomy yesturday evening...and today is the second day. Im home taking it easy, resting, drinking lots of water and ice, chicken broth, gatorade, lortab, and antibiotics. It does hurt but not as bad as they all say. Its almos like you have strep throat and it wont go away. It hurts me only when i swallow, but you got to keep swallowing, that helps alot.

I was pretty scared at the hospital of the whole thing, but it all went perfect. I woke up crying from the anesthesia i guess it was a side effect. And as soon as i went back to recovery room i started sucking on ice. Its not as bad as they say. Its like having strep throat.

I got mine out because of strep and cryptic tonsils you know the stones in them and they were huge. The thing i notice that i love is that i can breathe better than before.

Dont worry about the pain, it will be fine. If you bleed you go to the hospital and youll be fine.

Stay away from acids that burns your throat. Mix your medicine with gatorade. Rest alot.





Sincerely,


Gloria

I don't know what kind of mega tonsillitis you have had, but the pain of a tonsillectomy is far worse than that of tonsillitis. I had tonsillitis for two straight months this year and it was never as painful as this. I'm 29 and on day six (almost day seven now) post op, and my ears ache a bit but I had so many earaches when I was a kid that they don't really bother me. My throat doesn't hurt unless I'm trying to swallow--then it's 7 on the pain scale, but my tongue is bugging me and I can't talk very well. Really these ENT surgeons should be taught to be nicer to our tongues. All in all I suppose I could feel worse, but I wouldn't like to see if I actually could. I feel jealous of all you people who had pain meds that worked. I was prescribed liquid hydrocodone and it didn't work at all so I quit taking it after day 2. Actually I have a calcification in my ankle that's quite painful by turns and it worked great on that--it didn't do anything for my throat pain though.