Pain after tonsillectomy is inevitable. Tips for easier tonsillectomy recovery from patients who have been through it. What to eat, dealing with scabs and bleeding, managing pain, and shortening recovery time.
Tonsillectomy and its subsequent recovery is no picnic, especially for an adult. Welcome to Tonsillectomy Recovery Resources. Whether you’re considering, planning, or recovering from the procedure, you’ll find all the information you will need to make the best decision about tonsil surgery. You’ll also learn how to get the best care after tonsillectomy. I’ll also help you prepare for your tonsillectomy by laying out simple steps that will make the day of surgery easier and help you to be more comfortable as you recover.
Together we are stronger. Share your experience. Read about why I got my tonsils out and what I learned
Top 10 Tonsillectomy Recovery Tips
Though I’ve added to the initial 10, these are my top tips for anyone preparing for, or recovering from tonsillectomy surgery:
- Drink cold fluids
- Continue to drink cold fluids
- Drink more cold fluids! This is perhaps the single most important tip to make life easier while speeding up your recovery period.
- Get a good cool air humidifier and run it all the time in the room you’re in. Consider having more than one for the primary rooms you’ll be spending time in. To monitor humidity levels pick up one of these. Enter the code: TONSIL for a 25% discount! Humidity Station
- Don’t worry about sleep. Forget the normal time convention. Sleep for short intervals, preferably in a recliner. Sleep can be your worst enemy. Sleeping a few hours in a bed usually results in a dry throat that hurts like crazy. It can take almost an hour to get the pain back under control.
- Keep a written log of your medications as you take them. It’s easy to forget what you’ve taken and when. If you would have problems that require help from the doctor, it can come in handy.
- Read about others’ experiences and share your own. (Check out the tonsillectomy forum)
- Plan ahead! Stock up on items you’ll need ahead of time.
- Take something with your pain medicine. Carnation Instant Breakfast or Ensure will at least provide a base in your stomach and reduce nausea.
- Drink ice cold liquids!
A few bonus tips- read on>>>>
A few bonus tips for a better recovery:
- Plan some minor events. Even a simple event like a walk or a bath can take your mind off the discomfort and help your mindset during tonsillectomy recovery
- Chew sugarless gum. When pain gets referred to the ears, and it often does, chewing gum can ease the ear pain. It also keeps the swallowing process active, which many believe aids in tonsillectomy recovery. A warm compress on the area can also relieve ear pain.
- Ice! Whether it’s a high-tech ice bag or a bag of frozen peas, applying ice directly to the throat and neck is a great way to reduce inflammation and take the edge off of break-through pain. (thanks Kate!)
- Those are my top tonsillectomy tips. For a detailed daily checklist, check out my upcoming book.
I’ve put together a collection of items that I think would be helpful, if not essential, to making tonsillectomy recovery a little more pleasant. Check out the General Store.
Some Extra Tips – After Tonsils are Removed:
- It’s REALLY important that you drink. I know it’s almost impossible at times, but you must. A trick I used was to use Cloraseptic (sp?) numbing spray. (There’s also a lollipop your doc or pharmacist might know of)- to numb the throat a bit. Then I’d take the medicine. Once the meds kicked in (1/2 hour?), then I’d try to eat. My favorite foods at first were Jell-o and creamed soups. (sweet potato or broccoli by V-8 were good)
- You must keep drinking. It helps your throat heal and keeps you hydrated. One reader, a nurse, said she went to an emergency room and demanded IV fluids. Wow! Maybe not such a bad idea!
About the author
My name is Greg Tooke and I’m a tonsillectomy patient myself. For most of my life I lived with huge tonsils with craters that the Ear Nose and Throat doctor called, “cryptic.” I got tonsillitis and strep throat several times every year. I snored at night and woke suddenly, catching my breath. Like many people, I had sleep apnea and didn’t even know it. Speaking of breath, tonsil stones were making my breath smell awful at times. I’d heard horror stories about adult tonsillectomy , tonsils that grow back, bleeding, excruciating pain, and even death. I was afraid.
Finally, with the advice of my doctor and a resolve to improve the quality of my life, I scheduled my tonsillectomy for the day after Thanksgiving. (a last meal??) You can read all about my tonsillectomy story in the pages that follow.
Greg
I am on day 9. I have been experiencing a terrible taste in my mouth that makes the little bit of food and liquids taste awful. I assume that it is normal, but wonder if it is.
It’s veryyyy normal! I’m day 10, and my doctor said the taste is normal . Your scabs might be falling off . If you can drink fizzy drinks believe it or not it helps the scabs tremendously . I DO NOT recommend eating toast it can cause bleeding but eat. The more you eat & drink the more it helps the scabs. The smell and taste will go away when the scabs fall off
Thank you. I thought so, but wanted to be sure. Do you have any idea how long it might take? I tried to drink ginger ale yesterday, but it was very uncomfortable. Hope you heal
Everybody is different in their recovery, I’d try pop around days 8-10 . And stick to soft foods you don’t want to rush the healing. You should be able to eat like, slightly normal foods day 10-13 just be careful.
I am 23 and on day 6. I’m miserable. It is as bad as they made it seem. I had my tonsils and adenoids removed but also had my frontal sinuses scraped, my nasal passages reconstructed, turbinate reduction and an air pocket in my turbinate removed! All in all I felt better today! Today is my first day off of my loratab. I’m only taking Tylenol! My doctor said no Advil or any other blood thinners… I have to irrigate my nose with salt, baking soda and water so when I irrigate it hurts my throat!! I can feel the scabs today which is very uncomfortable… The doctor have me some numbing suckers that were compounded and I would not recommend wasting the money, 1 out of the 3 actually numbed my throat! They were not covered by insurance either… I had a compounded steroid too I had to put under my tongue and take on third day. That gave me gives :(One thingnobody told me was that I would get constipated. Worst feeling EVER! I just went today, 6 days later! I just got my short term paperwork back from the doctor which puts me out for 3 weeks! For pain I’ve found a bag of frozen carrots works better than any ice pack! I put one behind my neck and around the front! Hope everyone is healing ok! I’m in quite a bit of pain so going to irrigate, take some meds and shower!
I have tonsil stones and have had a sore throat for more than a year now. I just met with my ENT Doctor and he said I could have my tonsils removed but warned me that the recovery is horrible. I have been looking up things online and found him to be correct. He said I can either live with the sore throat and coughing up these little balls or I can have the surgery, it’s up to me. After reading all the others experience I am scared out of my mind to have the surgery. I DO NOT DO PAIN. Please give me some advice, should I do it or not?
I’m 15. I just had mine out 5/29/14. It is BY FAR a pain in the ass and it’s MISERABLE. I am A 15 year old female and I handle pain very well . I fell through a fish tank getting a very large laceration to where you could see the bone they almost took my leg off, (I’m being serious, I almost bled out and died). And the pain from the tonsillectomy tops it all, BUT!!!!!! It is very worth it… All you gotta remember is DRINK DRINK DRINK!!!!!!!!!! Cold cold COLD drinks, and don’t worry bout eating so much. The first 1-6 days are the worst. But day 6-9 are a piece of cake. Then you get an uneasy feeling and tightness and nasty taste for a couple days untill the scabs fall of day 8-13. Then you’ll be fine. It is worth it… I’m day 10 and I’m breathing SO much better.., as much as it sucks, think bout your Health.
I’m on day 7 and its awful . I had to go back into surgery do to bleeding. I guess an artery burst in my throat. Lost quite bit of blood. I hope it gets better soon.
Ugh- So sorry to hear this Jon. Hang in there. It WILL get better!
btw, do you recall what preceded the bleed? Were you coughing or anything?
Throat was a little dry from waking up. Then I started to choke and spitting up blood.
I see. Thanks for sharing that. I’m always interested in gathering info that might help others.
I hope you feel better soon! Some things that my help, do not eat chips & hard food till about the third week or after your scabs fall off, another thing you can alternate advil & tylenol. Advil will reduce swelling. Codiene makes me kinda crazy so I try not to take it or only at bedtime. I am almost week 6 & I still feel like I have a huge cotton ball down my throat. It just takes time! Cool fluids like gatorade, soft foods like eggs, jello, or sorbet, warm or room temperature green tea, even putting an ice pack on your throat may help, but it just takes time! I slept in my recliner for almost 3 weeks & lost 14 lbs, but I do feel a lot better!