Tonsillectomy recovery experience

20 years of age
Female.

I found this site quite useful before I had my tonsillectomy on 12/27/10- it has been exactly a week today. For years, my tonsils have been extremely enlarged. My doctor tried to avoid the procedure for as long as he could, promising how painful it would be. As someone who has quite a large pain threshold, I wasn't that concerned until I started googling "tonsillectomy recovery in adults," as I am sure many of you have as well.I am not going to sit and sugar coat it. Until today, it has been a rough ride. Reading about people eating solid foods from day one, respectably makes me question the validity of their stories. I cannot even imagine, but for those individuals, you are truly blessed.

Day one was uncomfortable. Not painful, but a very intense feeling. Day one gives you hope that maybe getting those tonsils chopped off isn't as painful as you anticipated. Well, truth be told it is a TEASE.

Day two-six: Were beyond terrible. My doctor prescribed me codeine for the pain, something that would intensely burn my throat as it went down. My ears were in unbearable pain, and my tongue was swollen to the point that I had teeth marks embedded in the sides because of my teeth. My uvula was at least tripled in size. I spent a lot of my time crying, and would curse myself for falling asleep because my throat would dry out completely. Water, was even nearly impossible to get down. I would have temporary relief once I took my medication, but only for two hours. I had to suffer out the following two until my next dose.
Today, I woke up feeling surprisingly better. Not great in any means, but able to somewhat function. Food until last night was not an option for me. I imagine it will be another few days until I completely able to eat certain foods, and around a week to eat things like chips. However after that week of hell, I will take any relief I can get.

Tips:
Avoid sleep if possible- sleep in small increments (recliners are fabulous)
Hydrate-Ice chips are wonderful
Ice pack your neck, especially in those times you feel as if your medicine is wearing off.
DO NOT RUSH eating- recovery is at your own pace, but once you hit about a week, at least try to get some soup down. It is partially mental.
Speedway ices are the bomb
I have not gotten sick to my stomach, and I believe that to be because I am on tylenol codeine rather than on something else much stronger.
Know that, although you feel as if you WILL NEVER recover. You will with time. It is one of the most painful experiences, but I keep telling myself it will all be worth it:)

Today is day 8, and I feel surprisingly alright. It just feels like a normal sore throat!

Good luck!

I'm 19, had my tonsils removed on the 24th and today is the 29th, overall it hasnt been TOO bad, in the end i know it will be worth it.. I have been drinking non stop just to be safe.. Im trying not to be active an talk. First 2 days all i had was ice cubes and popsicles, then i was able to eat some jell-o, soup and forced down some mashed potatoes soaked in gravy.

i just had my tonsils removed yesterday at 630 am and i think ive gotten 4 hours total of sleep so far and im not even in pain.. i just wake up at least an hour after sleep. maybe its the fact that all ive been eating is jello and italian ice. but even when i had my wisdom teeth removed i was able to sleep just fine.

Hi,

I had my tonsillectomy 14 days ago (26 year old female my experience / advice:

* Days 3 and 7 - 10 were the worst!  Severe pain, ear ache, upset stomach, painful teeth, tongue extremely bruised and battered* Try to talk as little as possible, even if you are able to speak, spare your throat!*I found the easiest things to eat were jelly (mix it with energade and rehydrate or something to replace your body's electrolytes etc) / plain pasta or noodles / biltong / plain scrambled eggs / plain biscuits (not too sweet).  I know that the doctors say that you must eat food that will scratch the scabs off but I'd eat soft food in the morning just to build up my energy and to be able to take my pain meds...once the meds kicked in I'd eat things like toast and crisps etc.* Do not take a very hot bath or shower - this will lead to ear ache and can cause bleeding.  Keep your baths/showers mild and limit it to only a few minutes.*Chew alot of ice, especially for the first few days, this will soothe your throat and will also prevent bleeding / infection.*I found warm foods and liquids to be quite painful up until day 6 but after that, lukewarm food and liquids were quite soothing (especialy peppermint or chamomile tea)* Stay away from dairy and fruit

* MAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE FOLLOWING:

      sufficient pain meds (I ran out on a Saturday evening...disastrous!)

      medication to prevent nausea

      ear drops and cotton wool

      anti-bacterial mouth wash / throat spray (rinse your mouth 3 times a day, alternating between anti-bacterial mouth wash and salt water, this will help your tongue to heal quicker and will keep your mouth fresh)

      oral ointment to prevent tongue sores and oral thrush

      drink water, drink water, drink water

      ice packs (I'd use these every morning, very soothing)

      warm water bag

      throat lozenges that numbs your mouth

      sleeping tablets (I wake up from the pain and then ended up only getting 3 or 4 hours' sleep...your body needs its rest!)

       I got some of that anti-snoring spray at the pharmacy, I sprayed it in my mouth and throat before going to bed, it keeps your throat lubricated so you don't wake up with that extremely dry and sore throat

On day 14 I'm doing much better but still have a very painful throat and quite severe ear ache. 

Hope this helps!Good luck with your recovery!

:)M

Hey , so I'm 20 and had my tonsils , adenoids and some tissue removed out of my nose 10 days ago . I'm able to talk even though I think I sound stupid but as far as eating I haven't been able to since the surgery. Lost a lot of weight and was hospitalized. I still go through a lot of pain. Sleeping ?? Yea that doesn't really happen either. I'm actually starting to have some depression with everything going on . Can't sleep , can't eat , the pain . But anyway I use numbing cough drps , a humidifier (get one) , cold water , ice pops , and chicken both is the only thing till this day I can drink so my experience isn't so good like everyone else . I hope it helped someone though . 

I kept burping as well?! No idea what would cause this but very uncomfortable

Has any of you felt depressed and can't sleep weeks after the tonsillectomy? I am 35 had been sick since May one round of tonsillitis after another and Sept 4 I had my tonsillectomy. I have been depressed, unable to sleep and no appetite since the surgery. Can anyone relate? I have a wife and two small children and I can't get everything done because I am so extremely exhausted.

Well its day 2 and im in complete pain, its not helping that i smell food I can't even ear. Im trying so hard to be patient. But im going crazy over here. Ice cream is a complete life saver.

I have been hiccuping to and burping idk why

I recently had mine removed. I'm on day 4 and the recovery isn't as bad as people say it is. I'm on a long lasting oxytocin tablet instead of taking something every few hours. I am a 19 year old female and I was dreading this surgery. The key is to rest a lot! Sleep is the best way to pass time. Also eat small bits of food throughout your day. I noticed that showers help my throat relax and make me feel much better. The physical pain of it sucks...but really it's about keeping a good attitude. I've been loving soups, oatmeal, and ice water. You must constantly drink! I wake up at night just to have a few sips of water. The worst day was by far day 3 so far. But the great news is that I was expecting things to be worse so even my worst day wasn't that bad. I just remember that I'll never suffer from strep again. Another thing is you should move your jaw and teeth around. They will be stiff after the surgery and it feels great when they relax a bit.

I am a 19 year old and I had my tonsils removed 14 days ago. Let me tell y'all...this experience is no joke!! The first 9 days were without a doubt the worst days of my life. Your girl was praying to God to escape the pain on some real stuff! Day 1 I was too loopy to comprehend what I got myself into, but day 2...it got REAL...real painful. I was unable to eat or drink but my dad forced me to drink water as that is the KEY to a speedy recovery. Days 3-7, I couldn't even talk y'all for real. My tongue was swollen and it hurt to open my mouth super wide. I was essentially a vegetable. Drinking yogurt out of a straw and what not, like what kinda mess?? Anyways, I was on prescription ibuprofen and Vicodin, but that was not enough. It didn't do a dang thing. I had to up my meds to Percoset!!! It got real. I'm not gonna say it stopped the pain, but it helped more. The only downside is it put me to sleep fast. ON GOD I fell asleep in the middle of a conversation with my sister. But anyways my diet was literally probiotic yogurt and maybe applesauce. All I could drink was water. You'd think sleep would help pass the time, but you're wrong. Sleep is the devil in this recovery process. When you sleep you're unable to stay hydrated so your throat dries out and you wake up in the Mohave Desert. It's that dry. Felt like if I swallowed I might crack my throat omm. It's also so important to eat because without food in your stomach, the pills WILL make you puke. YALL DONT KNOW PAIN UNTIL YOU PUKE DURING A TONSILLECTOMY RECOVERY. You might as well rob a bank while you're at it cuz your life is just about over with some intense pain like that. My goodness!! Homegirl was on the bathroom floor crying y'all! My sisters like should I call the ambulance? Haha oh man that was intense pain. Despite all this negativity I just forced y'all to read, I'm alive aren't I? A b made it! By day 11 it was on and poppin!! I was out and about again, I could speak, I didn't even need painkillers. As long as you drink water like it's going out of style, you'll be good! I had my final check up today and my doctor said I healed perfectly! She ok'd me to get on a plane (which is risky because it's so dry in high altitude and bad for your throat) and go back to college. It's lit!

Hi, I’m a 35 year old female 13 days post surgery. I’m still in a little pain but mainly depressed due to not being able to eat. Has anyone else experienced loss of taste? If yes, how long did it last? I try to force myself to eat but everything makes me nauseous since I can’t taste it. I’ve already lost 20 lb in 13 days due to not eating.

I had mine done 16 days ago and feel great but I followed the medication's schedule as prescribed. (I was on ibuprofen, panadol with codeine and antibiotics), I made sure I had lots and lots of water and coconut water to keep the area hydrated, on day 3 I started eating more solid foods (healthy stuff and I avoided anything with processed sugar/industrialized food) which I am sure it helped to clear the area, it was a bit uncomfortable to swallow and could not talk much for most of the days on week 1 but it was nothing like all the reviews I found on internet.
Maybe because I am a healthy person and eat a lot of healthy stuff, I am also very active but rested as doctor prescribed or maybe it was just luck but I would do this all over again if I had to...taking two weeks off work was also not bad at all.

Has anyone who had tonsillectomy with adenoids removed have any packing left inside ? We were not informed about it but the day after my son's procedure he started complaining something was stuck in his throat and started vomiting after a days of that feeling and gaging he brought up what looks like packing which we were not told about that being left and that he wasn't a bleeder. I haven't read any other things about them even putting packing in after that procedure.

Thanks man im recovering as well and my throat is really swollen and i cant sleep without drowing in my saliva...