Tonsillectomy Recovery Time
After a lifetime of tonsillitis, it was time. I made the appointment. Was I scared? Yes. Was I prepared for tonsillectomy recovery? NO. Can you be? YES!
Planning for and recovering from a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy procedure, (often referred to as T & A Surgery), can be daunting experiences. The days leading up to your surgery can be frightening. If you haven’t read up yet, you can find information on tonsillectomy methods, risks, costs, adult tonsillectomy, sleep apnea, and numerous tips for tonsillectomy recovery on the other pages of this site. I’ve even added pictures of a post tonsillectomy throat by each day. Study, talk with your doctor and consult with your friends about the decision to undergo tonsillectomy and adenoid surgery. Explore the pages created here to aid in your journey.
If you should decide to have tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy, let us help you through the entire process. Whether due to problems with sleep apnea, chronic tonsillitis and strep throat, tonsil stones, trouble swallowing, or a combination thereof, you can benefit from the experience of others. My own experience taught me that, as patients, we need to advocate for ourselves. Ear, nose, and throat doctors are, by and large, extremely talented individuals. However, very few of them have experienced an adult tonsillectomy, and the subsequent recovery. I have. Many others have too. We share our experiences here at the adult tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy recovery resource center. As you’ll read in the tonsillectomy recovery forum, everyone’s experience is unique. There are many factors that influence the level of pain you experience, as well as the length of time required during recovery. The method, and skill of your surgeon can have an affect, but there are also many things within your control that will reduce pain and recovery time. I’ve tried to include as many helpful tips as possible within the pages of this online resource. Tonsillectomy recovery can be pretty rough, especially if you are unlucky enough to be an adult! It takes longer for an adult to recover from most things. Tonsillectomy is no exception. There are many things you can do to make it go more smoothly. I’ve published numerous tips here on various pages. I encourage you to read up BEFORE you are in the throws of tonsillectomy recovery.
Talk with your doctor, friends, family, and work as you prepare. You are not alone in this. Like you and like me, many others are facing or have faced a tonsillectomy recovery. I created this forum for you. The community of adults or parents of patients will amaze you and warm your heart. I read these comments every day and every day I am humbled by everyone’s story and their compassion for others in the midst of recovery, or the anxiety that often precedes a tonsillectomy. Please join in. Hundreds of other people, perhaps in your same situation, have shared their wisdom, concerns, tips, and questions about tonsillectomy, as well as their tonsillectomy recovery.
-Greg My short bio
Do not change your mind. I too had nothing wrong with my tonsill’s apart from tonsil stones. Despite the recovery process it was the best thing i could of done no more pulling stones out 6 times a day. Please don’t let any bad stories put you off. The sooner it’s done the sooner you can start your recovery. 🙂
I am 56 and suppose to have my tonsils out in 2 days. Mine are not infected at all. I just have food getting stuck in one cause Dr. said they are like honeycombs. I do not have any pain though. I don’t think my slight discomfort is worth all the pain you are all talking about. Did everyone have adnoids out too?? Is that why tongue and uvula were swollen too?I was not worried at all till reading these blogs. I don’t think I knew what I was getting myself into. Please reply soon cause I do not have much time to change my mind!
Hi Jane. I am 26 and had mine removed on October 11th due to tonsil stones. I didn’t have any pain either, was just so damn sick of getting food stuck in the crypts and the terrible breath it gave me. I am going into night 6 right now and yes I am in pain, but I still do not regret the surgery. Knowing I won’t have to deal with that nastiness anymore is what is getting me through the pain. That’s just my opinion!
How is everyone doing? I am on day 5 now and doing surprisingly well. This morning was really tough, the 4AM and 8AM doses were difficult after sleeping. I haven’t quite gotten the hang of what to do in the morning. Does anyone have tips? I try and take a sip of water, then use chloraseptic spray, then have a small snack, then take meds. This process is quite painful though. Does anyone else have tips on what to do after waking up?
Also, does anyone know when it’s safe to gently gargle either with hydrogen peroxide solution or saltwater solution? I wasn’t prescribed antibiotics and am worried about getting an infection.
I’m 56 and on Day 8, and also doing surprisingly well. I was prescribed antibiotics, pain meds, and Xylocaine Viscous to gargle – [same as Lidocaine, I think]. Waking up is the worst time for me too. What I do is dip a cotton bud into the Xylocaine ‘gel’ and GENTLY dab the back of my throat area. Repeat twice. Then tilt my head back, for about 15 seconds, then swallow. Even this small amount swallowed is enough to ease the “razor-blade” pain. AND, because the rest of my mouth is not numbed, I can eat without accidently biting my cheek or tongue. This works WONDERFULLY !! for me. Also, when taking meds, I poke them as far back on my tongue as possible, then drink as much water as I can, because I find water hurts a lot. So I get plenty of water with only one lot of pain! Then I do the ‘dabbing’ thing. [P.S. – It’s okay to swallow the solution, as my Xylocaine label says – can swallow 5 ml – but I haven’t found this much necessary]. Hope this helps. ♥ Pat
Hi Pat, thank you for your insights. Unfortunately I wasn’t prescribed anything other than pain medication. I do have that chloraseptic spray which is supposed to numb the throat but it doesn’t work so well for me. I’m just finishing up day 7 and feeling pretty good. It’s just those middle of the night/morning times that really are tough for me. Today I saw a streak of blood in the back of my throat and got really worried but I just drank a lot of ice water and haven’t been spitting any blood so fingers crossed it was nothing!
Hi Petra. Glad you’re feeling better. If you do start to get more pain [with the scabs coming off], your doctor could possibly prescribe a Lidocane gel. When I wake up in the middle of the night with the pain, I do the Xylocaine [Lignocaine hydrochloride] ‘dabbing’ thing, and can go back to sleep straight away. It’s expensive $30 [Australian] for 200ml, but I haven’t even used a third of it yet, so I think it’s worth it. Good luck! ♥ Pat.
I don’t think a ‘streak’ of blood is of concern, but keep an eye on it, because bleeding can occur many days later, after Op.
How are you doing today Pat? I am on day 8 and feel like I have really turned a corner! Starting to feel so much better. No pain other than the nighttime/morning and slightly in my left ear right now.
Leona, don’t feel silly. I suffer from very bad anxiety too – it kept me from having this surgery for about 10 years! I am 6 mos post op and I was shaking, literally, on the gurney waiting for my surgery. When they got the IV in I asked right away for something to relax me and they gave it to me. I remember talking with my husband and then just waking up in recovery. He said I said good bye and we talked more before they wheeled me away but I don’t remember it. Never feel foolish. Anxiety is very real and someone who doesn’t suffer from it will never be able to understand how it can be very crippling at times. I would suggest talking to your doctor (have you since the surgery?) and see if you can reschedule and just explain what you told us here. Most doctors will understand. You are going to be fine. I was TERRIFIED of this surgery but it turned out to be much less scary than I’d anticipated. Don’t let any horror stories frighten you unnecessarily. Hang in there! 🙂
Ask them about giving you versed. It is a benZo and calms you down. It also causes amnesia so you will not remember the abethesia. You wake up what seems instantly in recovery. I am not going to lie its a good two weeks of hell but you will get through this. One thing to know is you should not mix any beNzo with pain pills. It can suppress breathing. Also speak to your doc about whether your ssri can be crushed or if a liquid form is available. You will not want to swallow whole pills for the next two weeks if you can avoid it. Just let the docs know about your panic condition as I did and they will make you comfortable. Doctors kept me in heart monitors for the over night stay more or less to comfort me that I had survived the procedure. An over overnight admission is adviseable in my opinion.