Christine’s Tonsillectomy – No Regrets
I had a tonsillectomy one year ago next month. It was the BEST decision and I have zero regrets. I am a 26 year old female (25 at time of surgery) and recovered nicely.
I read a lot about the recovery process (just like you are) and was worried about the pain peaking on days 6-10. On day 3 I had a migraine (I get them QUITE frequently), and if you know what it’s like having a migraine, you know that one of the best things to do is sleep through it. But if you know anything about tonsillectomy recovery, you know NOT to sleep; you’re supposed to stay awake and keep drinking water (I slept in 4 hour periods, setting an alarm each time) to keep your throat moist.
On that 3rd day I slept too long and the pain was excruciating, but after continually drinking and letting the liquid vicodin do its thing, I was back on track.
When days 6-10 came, I kept expecting the pain to get worse, but it never did! Unlike children, the sugar in ice cream, popsicles, and juice hurt too much. I loved warm, salty things like chicken broth, macaroni and cheese, and ramen. Those felt fine, tasted better than juice, and made me feel full. Two weeks and I was pretty much back to normal!
Now one year later, I still haven’t even gotten a cold. One thing that I noticed that still hasn’t been the same is that when I sneeze I feel like I’ve lost the ability to stifle it. My Dr laughed at me when I told him this, but it’s true! Snot just comes out of my nose but before, I feel like I was able to sneeze somewhat politely without having a tissue present and then without desperately needing one after. It’s a weird thing to say, but I swear it’s due to the surgery 😀
Good luck, be brave, if you keep drinking fluids, you will heal quickly and it will be SO worth it!
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Me too. I was 45 years old when I got mine out in March last year. I was really sick at the time of surgery, so bad that the anesthesiologist didn’t want to do it. My surgeon convinced him that we had to do it in order to save me and get me well. We had already postponed the surgery once because I was sick, and Only getting worse. I had been sick for about 16 months up to that point. Dr. said it would take me about a week to recover. But it took me about three weeks to fully recover, considering I was sick to begin with. I went back to work on the seventh day, but I was nowhere near ready. For my job I have to talk all day and it was really rough. If I had it to do all over again I would’ve taken two weeks off. I have not been sick since then. And I have been on airplanes, volunteered at school, and then around lots of sick people.
Best decision I made. I had mine out in Dec 2014 months ago at age 41. Recovery was brutal, but I have not had a single sore throat since (14 mos). If I get a cold, it’s gone by the next day (instead of several days). As a pilot, frequently exposed to dry environments, the tonsillectomy has meant a huge improvement in my quality of life. I ALSO now have the issue of being unable to stifle sneezes.