Tonsillectomy scabs? I'm scared?!

I am on day 13 and am 52 yrs old. My pain was the worst about day 8 and the best today. It does get better. Think about managing the pain and not preventing it. I did not have one day without pain, but I learned to know what to expect. Coughing was ok, yawning was hard. Talking was tough in the morning, but better as the day when on and loosen up things. My tongue was both bruised and swollen. Ice packs on my throat helped - especially when I had some pain move up into my ears. Heat would not have helped me. Ask your doctor for an anti-nausea patch or suppository to help keep the meds down and allow you to eat. Suppositories absorb fast and therefore work faster too. if you can maintain a schedule for your meds it will help. Eat and sleep when you feel your BEST to help you get through the times you feel your worst. My scabs looked like the started to shrink. The white area got smaller with a dark red edge - so the edges came off first which exposes nerves in the exact spot where the food passes when you shallow so it hurts. Try a few different things - I liked jell-o and pudding the best. Ice cream was sometimes too cold. Let it melt on your tongue first before swallowing. Try to keep as much food in your stomach as possible. Also let water sit on your tongue and then gradually swallow until your mouth is moist enough to take larger sips. Feels like a dry shammy that then starts to loosen up. Be patient, this takes some time. Sleep upright but on your side to try and keep your mouth closed. You will also be constipated, so start taking miralax, keeping in mind that once off your meds, your bowels will start to move again (with a little force, i.e. you may explode a bit). I also had some days where the water tasted like metal from the surgery - normal. Changing the temperature of the water helped with that. You can eat soup, just puree it first. Fish is also a good option. If something doesn't taste or smell right, try something else. Don't give up and leave your stomach empty. Even noodles are good. Staying hydrated really helps keep the coughing at a minimum, your mouth moist and the scabs moist. My doc said 2-3 quarts per day, but I drank at least 2 gallons of water per day -- a few snips at a time. You end up having to make trips to the bathroom alot, but it really minimized my pain and made my recovery so much more manageable. The surgery is not fun if you are not a little kid, but at the end of week two the worst will be behind you.

All of these stories are horrific for me to read. My 2 1/2 yr old had his tonsils and adnoids out 4 days ago. He can only have Tylenol and motrin and he's so miserable and sad and I just can't imagine if it's going to get worse for my poor baby. :((

I'm 16 also and just had mine out a week ago, last Tuesday. I've been swallowing the scabs and trust me it's gross it tastes so bad you will know when it is happening. The pain mess didn't work for me either. I had a horrible recovery. I was throwing up day 3-5 and running fevers of 105. But it gets better. Hang in there

I'm a 23 year old female and I'm on day 5 post op including the surgery day. Wow I knew this was going to be a horrible experience but it's even worse than I imagined. My doctor mentioned to me that getting the tonsillectomy is very painful. Almost like he wanted to talk me out of getting the surgery. Right now I wish I wouldn't have gotten the surgery. With each day the pain has gotten worse!! I stopped taking my pain meds that were prescribed to me because they just made me super dizzy and nauseous and did nothing at all for my pain. I started taking extra strength Tylenol which seems to take the edge off. I can still feel the pain but it's not as bad when I'm on the Tylenol. I still have the scabs and can't wait for them to come off because they taste disgusting. If anyone else wishes to have this surgery, I am warning you that you will be in extreme pain at some points. So really think about it before getting it done. I know in the end when I'm fully recovered, all this pain, sleepless nights, and hunger will be worth it. But as of right now I really wish I didn't have the surgery. I hope to get well soon and best wishes to anyone else going through this as well.

Just wanted to give an update. The last time I posted on here it was only 5 days after my surgery and that was by far my worst day. Now it's 14 days after my surgery and I'm almost back to normal. I can eat whatever I want, I'm able to sleep and do not have to take any meds. The only thing is I still have a bit of a sore throat and I've been having some trouble swallowing. For some reason when I swallow my food it's been getting stuck in my throat and I have to follow it with a drink for my food to go down. Besides that I feel great!! I'm here to tell everyone that there is a light at the end of the tunnel!! Good luck for anyone going through this or is planning to get it done as well.

when did your scabs come off? I'm on day 7 and I don't think any of mine have. The taste is awful though, like a dead animal is just sitting in my throat.

Well here's how it's gone so far. Op was Thursday 3rd September. I have had various stages of pain:

1. Post op pain, came on through the first night. We were kept in hospital and I needed extra oxygen. Keep the night nurse on your good side!
2. First phase recovery over days 1-4 like severe tonsillitis and don't even mention the phlegm! Cocodamol and ibuprofen working well. Hours sleep =4
3. Second phase 4-9, this is the worst, scratchy throat, really off food and 8lb weight loss so far. Really bad ear ache, a heat pad or hot water bottle in a towel helps. Chewing gum also.
4. Where I am at currently. Scabs are starting to fall away, painkillers moved from every 4 hours to every 6 which works well with the ibuprofen dosing. Get more sleep and phlegm is easing off. Side effect of scabs falling off is they leave behind a seriously raw area that stings like hell, and painkillers don't help. Only thing I found eased it was sucking on a Stepsil.

Pain is worse in morning so schedule your dosing and sleep so you can go to bed on fresh pain killers and wake up before they wear off.

I'm on day 8 after my first, day 5 after my emergency fix up. I have lost my scab on the right and at first it hurt, but I can't wait for the left to come off. No more ear pain or discomfort on the right but everyday the left holds on the more it hurts.

I'm on my 6th day... My ent doctor gave me pain medicine. Which helped a lot. The first couple of days I took it every 2-3 hours now I just take it when I wake up and when I go to sleep. The pain should die down. Just drink as much water as you can. Stay hydrated. The pain in the ears are supposed to happen. Try to see if you can have any pain med prescribed to you.

To everyone with the ear pain the only thing that really alleviates jt for me is gettin In a hot shower and just sitting there for a bit. I've even had to take my meds in there because I'm much more relaxed in the hot steam. Luckily for me the ear aches
Were really bad for only Abt two days then after that it's been bearable I'm on day 7 right now. I also was unaware of how bad this was gonna be I figured if a kid gets in I'll be fine (23 y/o) and yea I have had few scabs come off during coughs. Tbh just ignore them and they will be gone don't check constantly or you'll go crazy I checked every three days and today I checked after cleaning my mouth which is way. Less smellier due to less scabs and there is almost no scabs left. However I ate solid foods on day and continued so even tho it hurt bc my hungover overcame my pain. But yea the best thing I can say is when I was so exhausted from not feel better I started to wake up w still ear pain but for less time and taking advantage to eat a lot when you feel you can. It's worth it in the end.

Today is day five. This is worst pain ive ever felt in my life. Im a 21 year old female. I havent eaten in over 24 hours, i cant keep food down or even swallow it without crying for that matter. I havent been able to take the liquid hydrocodone they gave me because it also makes me vomit. Im not sure If my scabs are comming off, i keep feeling this very mucusy feeling in my throat, like i have to cough but i dont want to cough. Sometimes i spit up whiteish brown chunks but only very small ones. I just want to keel over and die. Every day i wake up with more pain than the last day. Im so afraid.

I'm 18 I'm on day 6 yeah my pain gets pretty bad at some times but the pain killer they give you helps I've been sleeping alot and taking pain killer the worst part about this is the act of eating itself is what causes me the most pain ive barely eaten in 6 days thatvpart sucks ! But I haven't been couching and im in pain but its not as bad as eveyone says.. I read up on it before my surgery like everyone else and I got really freaked out and I was telling my mom how this is really gonna suck and she said most people make it sound worst than it is everyone wants a story of how it was the worst thing ever but they survived now I didn't say its not gonna hurt but its not as bad as most people make it sound like I said worst stuff for me is you have a bad taste in your mouth and for me personally looking at good like it was porn lol so you can do it dont be freaked out as any of your friends most people have this surgey done and the ansteisha gas was really fun for me I don't remember saying it but the nurse told me right as I was going out I said WoW! And started smiling all big so yea lol you can do it good luck!

I'm 17 had my surgery a Week ago and the first night wasn't bad but the second oh let me tell you. I took the pain medication every four hours it was the only way I thought I'd be ok. The pain got even more intense around the 4th and 5th day o would start having caught attacks and my ears felt like they were ringing off my head! Also my teeth were very sore , making it hard to eat. All I have been eating is Campbells soup and mash potatoes lots of fluids too, even though they hurt like hell. Currently on day 8 and scabs are falling out. Looks like an incomplete puzzle back there.

I'm at on day 9. And I've woken up twice in the middle of the night choking and coughing up pieces of scab. Coughing it up didn't hurt. It was sore after the fact.

I agree I never been in so much pain