Guerrilla Tactics – Adult Tonsillectomy Tips
So you’ve read my top 10 tonsillectomy tips. Good. Those will get you through. But some of us like to operate outside of the conventional. The top ten are solid pearls of wisdom that anyone can benefit from, regardless of their personality. Let’s face it- not everyone is comfortable making demands on their doctor, pharmacist, employer, or family. For those of you who are though, I offer the following guerrilla tactic adult tonsillectomy tips.
Advocating for Yourself
The cornerstone of these tips is self advocacy. By researching the internet and finding this site, you’re already ahead of the masses. Like me a few years ago, most adults go into tonsillectomy surgery like sheep. They take the information from their doctor and perhaps nurse and press forward without questioning. Sometimes this works out fine. Some ENT doc’s and their staff do a great job of preparing their patients for tonsillectomy surgery and its subsequent recovery period. Some don’t. Some employers respect their employee’s judgement of what their needs are in regard to recovering from adult tonsillectomy. Some don’t. It’s up to us to make sure that we get what we need. Take those first 10 tips and you’ll be ahead of the pack. Take a few of these and lead it.
Work- Taking Time Off
I’ve researched the time required for adult tonsillectomy recovery. I can tell you that ten days is about the minimum. I would tell your boss that two weeks is the minimum. You may need two full weeks. You may not though. If not, you’ll look tough as nails as you come back to work ahead of schedule! If the boss gives you grief about two full weeks, refer him or her to this website. Let them read about the experiences people have. It will open their eyes the way it has yours.
Your Family- Asking for Help
This is a tough one. Most people struggle when it comes to asking for help. Get over it. You are going to be worthless for at least a week. Don’t spread yourself thin. You don’t want anyone counting on you. Have a heart to heart talk with your spouse, mother, brother- whoever might pick up the slack for you. You might be surprised. I was recently divorced with four children when I had my surgery. My ex wife and I were not on good terms. It was a jagged pill to swallow, but I asked for her help. She covered the kids for a full week and even took a nice video of a holiday concert I had to miss. Be direct. Be specific. Ask for help.
Your Doctor- Be Assertive
Here are few adult tonsillectomy tips that you won’t find in the literature in your doctor’s waiting room. They just might make your life a lot better though.
Medications:
- Ask for a steroid. I’m not giving medical advice here. I’m not a doctor. When you talk to your doctor, ask for a steroid. The first challenge most adults face after tonsillectomy is a hugely swollen uvula. No kidding- that thing can swell up so much that it’s hard to swallow and breath. Icing can help, so can gargling with ice cold water, but a steroid will do even more. Just ask.
- Ask for a stool softener. Narcotic pain medicines will constipate you. Many people go for over a week without a bowel movement.
- Ask for an anti nausea drug. Those pain killers that help so much can really do a number on your system. You won’t be eating much, so nausea is a pretty likely side effect.
- Get an order for ENOUGH PAIN MEDICINE TO LAST THROUGH RECOVERY. This one makes me furious. My doctor wrote an order for enough hydrocodone to last about four days. If you’ve read enough accounts, you know that that’s about the time the pain gets worst. I ran out in the middle of the night. I had to wait until morning to ask for a refill. The staff acted like I was some drug seeking junkie. Don’t accept this. I finally walked into the ER. The doctor there understood completely and thought my ENT was a jerk. He wrote a prescription to cover the next week. I did not become a drug addict.
- Ask for your pain medicine prescription to NOT include Acetaminophen. This is a tricky one. Most narcotic pain med’s contain Acetaminophen. That’s fine if it’s the only thing you’re taking. But at some point, you’ll want to ween off the heavy pain killers in favor of an over the counter pain medicine like Tylenol. (Acetaminophen) Suppose you try this and BAM- not cutting it. You’ll want to go back to the narcotic pain medicine. But wait, how much Acetaminophen do you have on board? Too much can be very dangerous. Keeping the two separate allows you to monitor this more easily.
- Ask for IV fluids. Yes, why not? A nurse on the forum suggested this and I thought it was brilliant. So many people become dehydrated while recovering from adult tonsillectomy because swallowing is so difficult. Knowing that she was seriously dehydrated, this brave and smart woman walked into an emergency room and asked for a bag of IV fluid. She got it and was no longer dehydrated. You might have a conversation with your doctor about this in advance.
- TETRACAINE MEDICATED LOLLIPOPS -I never got them but people rave about the relief they give. Ask your Doctor.
Well there you have it- the insider’s guide to adult tonsillectomy recovery. You may feel like a pain asking for these things. You may feel less pain because you do. I wish you well.
Do you have a Jedi mind trick or ninja tactic for getting the upper hand in tonsillectomy recovery? Please share in the comment section. Thanks, -Greg
Hi Greg! I have my tonsillectomy July 30th and it’s been a struggle to find any good quality information – thank you for this site! And thanks for all the comments people leave.
Hi Steven. Thanks and good luck !
31 year old female, tonsillectomy surgery 5/22, traditional cauterization method
I would like to thank the creator of this site. I researched the internet like crazy before my surgery and although what I read did scare the heck out of me, it also helped me to be prepare. This site was a big contributor to that preparation. I must have ordered $200 worth of stuff from Amazon (many of those items were from the shopping list provided here) and I truly believe that every penny spent was worth it and needed. Thank you.
Hello Katy- I am so glad that the site has been helpful to you and thnk you for the kind words. Best of luck to you in your recovery!
I’m 38 yrs old, Friday and surgery was on Wed, Along with having my tonsils removed I had a septoplasty, and additional trimming of skin in my throat. First of all, I am thankful for the steroids. After all I have heard and read I’m betting this has made sll the difference. I’ve been eating soft food without a problem, no issues talking (though I would not want to raise my voice), I have been staying on top of the pain meds and thankfully the pain hasn’t even compared to what I felt when I had Strep.
A few things I have been doing that I believe may be helping…prior to surgery I began to limit my sodium intake and continue to in hopes this will reduce swelling. While I was still in recovery I asked for the head of my bed to me raised, I have not layed down flat since, again hoping to decrease swelling. I’ve been chewing gum regularly to keep my throat from getting tight and remain moist. Everytime I wake (and the meds seem to keep me sleeping in 15 min intervals) I sip ice cold water. I am using a humidifer. Today I began using heated rice filled socks to relieve ear discomfort. I have been using saline and Afrin to clear my nasal passages and am thankful that I can finally breath through my nose today.
And really just taking it easy…staying in bed and not doing much more than get up for the bathroom, meds, and detox baths (warm bath with Epsom salt).
I believe all these things help but also think there’s quite a bit of luck involved with how relatively easy this has been this far. Really hoping I don’t get a surprise wake up call further down the road which is all the more reason I will be sure to continue what I am doing and not try to warrior through this to later end up paying the price for it.
Thank you for this site. It’s been very helpful and encouraging.
Hello ! I’m Kierstin 20yrs old from Kansas, USA ! I have a tonsillectomy scheduled for 1-3-14. It’s 11 days away and I already can’t sleep haha I haven’t had much time to prepare I’ve only known about the surgery for 2 days. Apparently my tonsils are that bad and they need to come out stat. Needless to stay I’ve absolutely freaked myself out watching all of the YouTube videos and reading the blogs warning me of my painfully horrid recovery. This is the only blog/tip website that is bluntly positive and strait forward And that I thank you for that ! This website has eased some of my fears.
But I still have one question,
has anyone experienced the horror movie bleeding associated with the scabs sloughing off ?? If so please do explain, and what are some tips for prevention
This is the only possible complication (besides death) that is absolutely freaking me out.
Thank you 🙂 ~ Kierstin
I (22 m) had my tonsils and adenoids out 12-18-13. Today I am on day 10 and can talk with an ease of swallowing and no ear pain. I had no bleeding. Though I would cough throughout the days yet it did hurt but to a level 3. I made sure to rinse my mouth with cold water every day, religiously. Day 2-3 sucked with a level 3 but I believe day 4 I didnt eat nor drink because of the discomfort of swallowing. Make sure to take sips of water to prevent dehydration, I had force myself, which the next days got easier to drink. Also have a humidifier. I used a warm humidifier. Make sure to ice neck and jaw. Brush teeth and tongue to prevent thrush. I would suggest sleeping with a neck pillow. I used it while sleeping on the recliner, comfy. Day 5-7 is when my scabs started to fall, though I choked but had to spit or swallow them, but I most spit them out. It scared me, but remember if it happens, remain calm. Just know the healing process is tiring yet rewarding at the end. Day 7 is when I decided to talk a bit. Day 8 I talked more until day 10. Throughout the process I had chocolate and vanilla pudding, green jello, then started day 6 with gravy followed by day 7-10 with a blended mix of mashed potatoes, shredded turkey, ham, crumbled toast, and gravy combined in a mug. It was delicious and tolerable for me. I barely chewed. I wanted to have nutrients and a good bowel movements haha.I also had cream pie. Make sure to drink to moisten the throat. As of day 10, I feel great knowing after each day will be better. Also avoid dairy products bc it’ll build up mucus and you wont like it. I did it for day 1 and regretted it. Once you feel well to swallow, start drinking water like crazy to hydrate. I started dwindling away from my pain meds around day 4 and stopped at day 5. The ear pain was not bad, probably a 3/10 when swallowing. It did not last long.
Enjoy the days leading to your surgery, especially foods and drinks and of course friends. Oh and if you get nausea from surgery or anesthesia, request a anti-nausea. Just to be safe, I recieved a 72 hour anti- nausea ear patch, which helped during surgery and recovery.
Good luck and may you have a tolerable recovery
Thankyou so much for your advice Henry ! I’m on day 2 as of midnight and so far so good I’ve eaten pancakes buttered noodles lots of ice oxycodone cough drops and Gatorade. If the pain stays this under control I’ll be great ! Definitely not as bad as I thought it would be, but everyone is telling me it gets 5times worse before it gets any better ! I appreciate this website and your advice to the fullest ! I’ll be submitting daily M.I.A tonsil pictures to Greg lol no bleeding so far just lots of ear pain !
Hi Kierstin- glad you found us! Did you say,oxycodone cough drops? -or did you just forget a comma? That would be a pretty cool innovation! Keep doing what you’re doing. It probably will get a little worse before getting better. Best of luck!
Yes I forgot my comma haha I’m starving but when I eat with the pain meds it tends give me a tummy ache, my doctor was not to thrilled about writing me a script for zofran to keep the nausea under control. I’m still worried about the bleeding but other than that stuff I’m thoroughly enjoying being off work and school for 2 weeks 🙂
Thankyou for your website and your support ! I facebooked you pictures of my tonsils for the tonsillectomy diary ! Would you prefer me sending them to an email of yours instead?
~kierstin
Rebecca, 37 yo. Day 4 of recovery: Scabs are schluffing off and it is more raw and swollen today. Called the parmacy yesterday to renew my liquid Vicodon scrip. They did NOT have it in stock and had to place an order. Order did not arrive today either. After spending the rest of my afternoon and early evening tring to find a pharmacy that had it in stock, I found out that the US FDA has reformulated the amount of Acetaminophen that is an acceptable lower dose to use with narcotics. As a result, what my doc perscribed is discontinued; lucky me! Hopefully, my doc will call in a new compriable pain med soon. Luckily I didn’t wait until I was out before tring to refill. I still have a couple of doses left to last me through tomorrow.
Tip: call pharmacy before you need to refill to find-out if your medication is in-stock and ready to fill when you need it.
Yes! The humidifier is my best friend!
“Foods” and liquids: Jello, pudding (made with Silk, soy milk), soft boiled eggs (room temp.), egg drop soup (room temp). Tried soft cooked elbow mac with butter. It tasted good, but it caused more pain then what I was ready for. Ice water, ice water, ice water. I also put some already set jello in the freezer. It made a nice frozen treat!
I’m also taking Prednisolone (liquid steriod), which is causing awlful acid reflux. Doc told me to add Zantac 150 2x’s day to relieve symptoms. It seems to be better today.