I had a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy done on November 11, 2009. I am now on three weeks and three days recovery and my throat looks like it's almost fully recovered. There is only one issue remaining which I'll explain below.
My problem is that I still have this feeling in the back of my throat that is not going away. It almost feels like there is a piece of food, or piece of hair, on either side of my throat where my tonsils were. It is very uncomfortable and I have gagged and thrown up from it multiple times already. When I go to sleep at night my throat is so dry and I wake up with white stuff on the spots where my tonsils were removed. I would think at this point that my scabs should be gone. As I go through the day and eat, the white stuff goes away, but the uncomfortable feeling remains in the back of my throat. I don't feel it when I am breathing and only feel it when I swallow. When I go to sleep the white stuff comes back, and I do it all over again the next day. I am wondering whether I have scar tissue where my tonsils were removed which this dead tissue would act as though something were caught in the back of my throat. I am worried that this feeling will never go away.
I am hoping that someone else out there has, or is, going through the same experience I am going through, and has some information they can provide me as I am losing hope at this point. I really hope that I don't have to go through the rest of my life with this feeling as I just can't deal with it. I went to see my doctor two days again for my three week post-op follow-up and he said to give it another 2-3 weeks and the feeling should go away. We shall see.
My problem is that I still have this feeling in the back of my throat that is not going away. It almost feels like there is a piece of food, or piece of hair, on either side of my throat where my tonsils were. It is very uncomfortable and I have gagged and thrown up from it multiple times already. When I go to sleep at night my throat is so dry and I wake up with white stuff on the spots where my tonsils were removed. I would think at this point that my scabs should be gone. As I go through the day and eat, the white stuff goes away, but the uncomfortable feeling remains in the back of my throat. I don't feel it when I am breathing and only feel it when I swallow. When I go to sleep the white stuff comes back, and I do it all over again the next day. I am wondering whether I have scar tissue where my tonsils were removed which this dead tissue would act as though something were caught in the back of my throat. I am worried that this feeling will never go away.
I am hoping that someone else out there has, or is, going through the same experience I am going through, and has some information they can provide me as I am losing hope at this point. I really hope that I don't have to go through the rest of my life with this feeling as I just can't deal with it. I went to see my doctor two days again for my three week post-op follow-up and he said to give it another 2-3 weeks and the feeling should go away. We shall see.
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hi there just wondering if you ever got better from this? i am exactly where you are now, 3 weeks and a couple of days after having my tonsillectomy and i have at the moment the feeling of something in the back of my throat. I still have a raspy voice and I dont want any of this to be connected to anything nasty. Did you recover from this after this post?I am quite worried and not happy at all about this feeling in the back of my throat and the white stuff on my tonsils when i wake up and during the day it goes away......please let me know if yo recovered from this and if so how long did it take you? :) thank you ***this post is edited by moderator *** *** private e-mails not allowed **
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I did eventually get better and it's actually been around a year and three months since my surgery and I have completely forgotten about this. You're going to have some scabs in the back of your throat that will potentially bother you for around 1-3 weeks from now. HANG IN THERE!!!! I wish the doctors had told me about the scabs as well as the fact that you'll get through it. I had some tough days with the scabs, making me gag a few times, and always weighing on my mind. It's tough when that is what you feel in the back of your throat all the time, but you will get through it and the scabs will do away. There was also some getting used to my new throat (for lack of a better term) and my uvula caused me some issues (strange feeling it back there sometimes) but I also got through that as well.
Let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. While I am not a doctor I can still help you and listen to any concerns you might have as I felt like I had no one there after my tonsillectomy to ask questions or address my concerns like this.
Like I said before, hang in there!
Let me know if you have any other questions or concerns. While I am not a doctor I can still help you and listen to any concerns you might have as I felt like I had no one there after my tonsillectomy to ask questions or address my concerns like this.
Like I said before, hang in there!
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Hello there. I also had problems with a black tongue, just like you and it seems to me that we are not the only people who had an issue with it. Anyway, when I saw that my tongue is black I felt so horrible. Since I was young, I was 13 years old, I had a feeling that my tongue will fall off so I called my doctor immediately. He told me that my tongue maybe was hurt a little bit with all those surgical tools that he was using and that this is one of the chance why my tongue is black. Also, a black tongue is not one of the very common tonsillectomy side effects and I am pretty sure that something can be wrong with it, so if you notice it...go to seek for help.
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Hi there,
I had my tonsils out 6 weeks ago and have tightness in my throat, feeling as a lump is there when there is not one, and a lot of times the symptoms are on one side. I have been to 3 different ENT's, including the one who did my surgery and they told me that it was scar tissue. They said it took 3-4 months for the scar tissue to soften. One ENT even told me that it could take 6 months for this feeling to go away but that it would go away. I was also told I have a swollen uvula. The one ENT who got voted one of the best in Denver told me to come back in 2 months but to be patient. Also, I had sinus issues that they never fixed before I had my tonsils out.
Please help and tell me I am going to feel normal some day. This is just awful. Also, why is it that some days my symptoms are just on the left side?
Any advice would be really appreciated. Also, I am 42 yrs old. Thank you
I had my tonsils out 6 weeks ago and have tightness in my throat, feeling as a lump is there when there is not one, and a lot of times the symptoms are on one side. I have been to 3 different ENT's, including the one who did my surgery and they told me that it was scar tissue. They said it took 3-4 months for the scar tissue to soften. One ENT even told me that it could take 6 months for this feeling to go away but that it would go away. I was also told I have a swollen uvula. The one ENT who got voted one of the best in Denver told me to come back in 2 months but to be patient. Also, I had sinus issues that they never fixed before I had my tonsils out.
Please help and tell me I am going to feel normal some day. This is just awful. Also, why is it that some days my symptoms are just on the left side?
Any advice would be really appreciated. Also, I am 42 yrs old. Thank you
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Hi there,
I had my tonsils out 6 weeks ago and have tightness in my throat, feeling as a lump is there when there is not one, and a lot of times the symptoms are on one side. I have been to 3 different ENT's, including the one who did my surgery and they told me that it was scar tissue. They said it took 3-4 months for the scar tissue to soften. One ENT even told me that it could take 6 months for this feeling to go away but that it would go away. I was also told I have a swollen uvula. The one ENT who got voted one of the best in Denver told me to come back in 2 months but to be patient. Also, I had sinus issues that they never fixed before I had my tonsils out.
Please help and tell me I am going to feel normal again. I am also 42 yrs old. Thank you.
I had my tonsils out 6 weeks ago and have tightness in my throat, feeling as a lump is there when there is not one, and a lot of times the symptoms are on one side. I have been to 3 different ENT's, including the one who did my surgery and they told me that it was scar tissue. They said it took 3-4 months for the scar tissue to soften. One ENT even told me that it could take 6 months for this feeling to go away but that it would go away. I was also told I have a swollen uvula. The one ENT who got voted one of the best in Denver told me to come back in 2 months but to be patient. Also, I had sinus issues that they never fixed before I had my tonsils out.
Please help and tell me I am going to feel normal again. I am also 42 yrs old. Thank you.
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I too had a feeling like a lump in my throat as well as symptoms on one side of my throat. My uvula looked like it was more to one side of my mouth and I really felt like it was touching my tongue and it really bothered me. I sometimes even felt like I had pieces of food, or something small, stuck in the back of my throat. I would gag sometimes from the scabs healing and it was a terrible feeling that I do know of. I know how it really bothers you and is tough to get your mind off of. I had went back to work which sometimes helped because I would get my mind off it, but the feeling was always there and very annoying.
It has been over a year now since my surgery Nov 22, 2009 and I'll tell you that I am 100% fine. Not a thought in my mind about my throat anymore. Here and there I get some food back there and it reminds me of how I felt, but I am back to normal now.
I also had sinus issues, specifically I would get many sinus infections throughout the year. Along with getting my tonsils out I also had my adenoids removed/scraped. This has drastically reduced the amount of sinus infections I have had since the surgery. I think I have only had one since my surgery which is fantastic, and it was so small that I chose not to take antibiotics this time and licked it naturally.
I visited my ENT, which is well known, around 3-4 weeks after my surgery and told him about the feeling I had. He told me there was nothing there when he looked back there. I personally think it was my uvula being enlarged, I had scar tissue healing, and the fact that the back of my throat had been completely and drastically changed forever. I have gotten through it all and wish that this gives you "hope" to get through this yourself. Hang in there and take care and try your best to remain positive even though I know it's really tough to do at this point. Looking back I think I started feeling somewhat normal around 2 or 3 months out.
Should you have any other questions I would be more than happy to answer them. I wish you the best.
It has been over a year now since my surgery Nov 22, 2009 and I'll tell you that I am 100% fine. Not a thought in my mind about my throat anymore. Here and there I get some food back there and it reminds me of how I felt, but I am back to normal now.
I also had sinus issues, specifically I would get many sinus infections throughout the year. Along with getting my tonsils out I also had my adenoids removed/scraped. This has drastically reduced the amount of sinus infections I have had since the surgery. I think I have only had one since my surgery which is fantastic, and it was so small that I chose not to take antibiotics this time and licked it naturally.
I visited my ENT, which is well known, around 3-4 weeks after my surgery and told him about the feeling I had. He told me there was nothing there when he looked back there. I personally think it was my uvula being enlarged, I had scar tissue healing, and the fact that the back of my throat had been completely and drastically changed forever. I have gotten through it all and wish that this gives you "hope" to get through this yourself. Hang in there and take care and try your best to remain positive even though I know it's really tough to do at this point. Looking back I think I started feeling somewhat normal around 2 or 3 months out.
Should you have any other questions I would be more than happy to answer them. I wish you the best.
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Thank you so much Sedeutsch- You made me feel hopeful. Yes, both of the ENT's told me that the tightness and lump feeling in my throat is from the scar tissue. They said it takes 3-4 months before the lining starts to form over the tissue. The last ENT said my uvula was really swollen and I can see that it goes way down and sometimes to one side. My throat does not really hurt per say but that lump feeling is almost unbearable. SOOO annoying and I am so glad you can relate. I do consulting and am interviewing next week for a job and the thought of working right now really worries me. I can barely function feeling like this. I thought that when I had them out I would instantly feel better. Frankly, the only thing that makes me feel better is having some wine or drinking. I know this is not good for healing but it sure make me feel a little better.
Sometimes in the morning, I wake up and feel better. But it only takes about an hour and the symptoms return.
So, I was reading other posts on here about the scar tissue being so bad that some people had to have it removed. I sure hope, no I am going to say that is NOT going to happen to me :-) The one ENT did say though that he has seen it even take 6-7 months for patients to feel that their throat is back. I am not a very patient person but as long as I eventually will feel normal, I will have hope.
So, did you gradually feel better, or was it quick after about the third month? I think my main issue may be my uvula as well. Did your ENT talk about the scar tissue? Yes they have scoped me and said I was fine as well and that it was definitely the scar tissue and uvula
I appreciate your support so much. I was supposed to move in with my boyfriend and I just can't right now until I feel better. It is nice to meet other people who have been through it. Someone I spoke to in the coffee shop yesterday said her friend had lots of problems too and did not start feeling better until month 4. Do you mind me asking how old you are? I have heard it is much harder as an adult. Anyway, look forward to your next reply. -Suzie
Sometimes in the morning, I wake up and feel better. But it only takes about an hour and the symptoms return.
So, I was reading other posts on here about the scar tissue being so bad that some people had to have it removed. I sure hope, no I am going to say that is NOT going to happen to me :-) The one ENT did say though that he has seen it even take 6-7 months for patients to feel that their throat is back. I am not a very patient person but as long as I eventually will feel normal, I will have hope.
So, did you gradually feel better, or was it quick after about the third month? I think my main issue may be my uvula as well. Did your ENT talk about the scar tissue? Yes they have scoped me and said I was fine as well and that it was definitely the scar tissue and uvula
I appreciate your support so much. I was supposed to move in with my boyfriend and I just can't right now until I feel better. It is nice to meet other people who have been through it. Someone I spoke to in the coffee shop yesterday said her friend had lots of problems too and did not start feeling better until month 4. Do you mind me asking how old you are? I have heard it is much harder as an adult. Anyway, look forward to your next reply. -Suzie
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I'm so glad I found this post! I had my surgery on 28/03/11, so I am now DAY 12 POST OP. I feel completely fine, no pain, energy levels fine and so on. BUT i have this feeling in my throat as if I have a hair or something stuck too and it's driving me insane. I called my doctor today and he said it was most likely scar tissue, but didn't mention ANYTHING about it taking up to 3 months before it healed properly. I don't know if I can put up with this feeling for the next 3 months.
Have any of you gotten over the feeling yet? Or any tips to mask it?
Adult tonsillectomys are truly horrific! My DAYS 1 - 8 were awful, could barely move my head due to the ear ache, then suddenly by DAY 9 i was perfect and back to normal, even went for a jog on DAY 9. I have my appetite back, but keep gagging when eating due to the feeling in my throat? After dinner today I threw everything up afterwards because I couldn't stop gagging.
Any tips or words of wisdom from people getting over this feeling sooner than 3 months would be greatly appreciated??
Have any of you gotten over the feeling yet? Or any tips to mask it?
Adult tonsillectomys are truly horrific! My DAYS 1 - 8 were awful, could barely move my head due to the ear ache, then suddenly by DAY 9 i was perfect and back to normal, even went for a jog on DAY 9. I have my appetite back, but keep gagging when eating due to the feeling in my throat? After dinner today I threw everything up afterwards because I couldn't stop gagging.
Any tips or words of wisdom from people getting over this feeling sooner than 3 months would be greatly appreciated??
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svantate, I am glad that you've got hope and really wish you start feeling better soon.
I started feeling better gradually, to answer your question. One thing to note is that I also had no hope at all and read forum after forum. I did get better and it's such a great feeling now.
I went to see my ENT and explained the issues I was having, when I had scar tissue, but he seemed to not even mention it, which always seemed strange to me.
I was 35 when I had the surgery and I also was a little unlucky as a got an infection which caused a nasty fever. Trying a different antibiotic helped with that and I spent the remainder of my time drinking lots and lots of water. Just try to stay insanely hydrated, which I know can be tough.
I hope you're already feeling much better. Please let me know if you have anymore questions.
Best,
Stephen
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********* Sorry, I replied first without logging in. Here is the same reply ************
I started feeling better gradually, to answer your question. One thing to note is that I also had no hope at all and read forum after forum. I did get better and it's such a great feeling now.
I went to see my ENT and explained the issues I was having, when I had scar tissue, but he seemed to not even mention it, which always seemed strange to me.
I was 35 when I had the surgery and I also was a little unlucky as a got an infection which caused a nasty fever. Trying a different antibiotic helped with that and I spent the remainder of my time drinking lots and lots of water. Just try to stay insanely hydrated, which I know can be tough.
I hope you're already feeling much better. Please let me know if you have anymore questions.
Best,
Stephen
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I'm so glad I found this post! I am 27 years old and I just had my tonsils out 17 days ago. The first 2 weeks were horrible! I couldn't eat anything, the pain in my ears was overwhelming, and I couldn't sleep at all. I was miserable, cried almost every day from the amount of pain I was in. It seemed as though the pain meds didn't even touch me! I'm now doing better and able to eat normal foods again. I still can't really drink anything carbonated because it bubbles in the back of my throat (feels like pop rocks).
I have the nagging feeling in the back of my throat that everytime I swallow it makes me feel like I'm going to gag. The right side of my throat hurts a lot worse than the left side of my throat. Last I looked (which isn't often because its gross to me), almost all scarring was gone from the left side of my throat. It also still hurts the right side of my throat when I yawn. I'm worried that the yawning thing is because I didn't for so long that it tightened up and its going to stay like that. I get that the rest of it is scar tissue, and I really hope that feeling goes away sooner than 3 months from now! I never thought such a "simple" procedure would be so horrible and take so much out of me! Let me know if anyone has had the issue with the yawning.
When I went to my ENT for my 1 week post-op, he said that I was recovering quite nicely...better than he had seen in a long time, but man this recovery is really affecting a lot of things in my life.
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Sorry for the late response...
I did not have any issues with yawning, but had some issues with the scarring and gagging. I don't think the doctors tell their patients about the scarring and gagging because some people, who would greatly benefit from the surgery, would opt out.
The most difficult thing is "toughing out" the scarring and gagging feeling because it's such an awful feeling, and it mentally effects you every day. I do want to tell you, and I am sure you read this from my previous posts, that the scarring and gagging feeling does go away. I know you'll have trouble believing that now, but trust me it will go away. Try your best to stay positive and you will get through it. I wish I had someone telling me that when I was going through it, but now that it's been over 1 1/2 years since my surgery I feel fantastic and it was well worth the pain and c**p that I went through.
I did notice that when I went to bed at night a set of white scarring tissue would form where my tonsills were. When I would eat during the day the food would take away the soft scarring tissue and I would always be worried that I would be making it worse, or prolonging the healing process. In the end I finally healed and was fine. You will get through it!
If you have any additional questions please don't hesitate to ask. I'll try to be faster with my response...I promise.
I wish you the best if I don't hear back from you.
Get better,
Stephen
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Hi Stephen,
I am sorry it has taken me so long to respond to you. Unfortunately, I have a horrible time with my recovery. I am at 6 months and still have scar tissue, although it does seem to have softened quite a bit. When I went a couple of months ago to the ENT, and trust me I have been to several for second and third opinions, he told me that I had more scar tissue on the left side and that I was looking at 6-8 months before it was gone. On top of that, I have excrutiating pain on that left side and sometimes down the middle. The one ENT offered to take the scar tissue out but wanted to wait and said he has never seen it not go away but that I was definitely going to be on the latter part of the scale.
I went to another ENT and he suggested I could have Glossopharyngeal Nuralgia (GNP) or Eagles Syndrome. However, GNP is characterized by intermittent, brief shooting pains on one side of the throat by the tonsil area, and those are not my symptoms.
I have pain on that left side but it also where a lot of the scar tissue still is. Didn't you say you had pain on the left side as well where the scar tissue was located?
Did the doctors ever say it was unusual to have that pain like they have told me? Did they ever say it was nerve related? The other thing is this GPN is soooo rare but so debilitating and the only cure is to have brain surgery to sever the nerve- soo scary? I do not think I have GPN, nor does the ENT I am going to see today. He thinks there has been a lot of trama to my throat and that the scar tissue is rubbing against the nerves causing severe pain.
I have been so depressed and just cannot believe this is happening to me from a tonsillectomy. I thought certainly I would be 100% by now. It has been hard for me to function and it has pretty much ruined my life for the last several months.
So, did you remember having that pain in the left side where your scar tissue was located? Also, I can still a little band of scar tissue going across the middle of my throat. Did your tissue eventually all go away so you don't feel anything at all and feel like you have a normal throat? Also, when did your pain all go away? When did your scar tissue all go away? I kow you said you felt better at 4 months so I am probably a few months behind your time given the level of scar tissue I had. I think I could deal with the pain a lot better if I did not have the dang scar tissue- it is so annoying. Oh, and how about all of the pushing and pulling and weird sensations the throat makes.
I am hoping and trying to continue to remain positive but I am ready for this nightmare to end! I am going on 3 yrs of not having a normal throat and I just want my throat back :)
I am hoping that I am just someone who is taking much longer in the healing process. Every ENT I have been to has said that I am definitely a rare case but that I am going to be fine. They actually said a month ago that I am just in the beginning stages of the scar tissue completely softening, etc etc.
There are days when I wish I had never had this surgery, but I had no choice. My tonsils were so infected as was my throat that I did not have an option. Do you think it is possible that along my journey back before I even had my tonsils out that I could have developed nerve damage?
I will get more answers today but keep hoping and praying that this nightmare will end soon. Thank you for listening and please respond to my questions when you have a free moment. Thank you so much and thanks for letting me vent. I would tell anyone as an adult that is considering having their tonsils out to not do it unless they absolutely need to have it done. This has been the worst experience of my life as I am sure you can relate. Hoping for better times! :) -Suzie
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Hi Stephen,
Oops I realized my post went under as a guest. This is Suzie. I hope this shows me as a member now :-) I hope you are doing well and look forward to your reply.
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