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
Day 6….had my worst night last night. Probably slept a total of three hours. Every time I swallow in my sleep I would wake up, which would prompt me to take a drink which is good, but the lack of sleep is really catching up to me. I’ve dropped 7.5 lbs so far….still eating soft foods and soup. I made myself a lightly grilled cheese sand which for dinner last night, which went down ok, because I was craving something with a bit of protein and substance. Still feels like I have glass shards in the back of my throat every time I swallow, but the worst for me is the ear, jaw and back molar pain! It burns and aches every time I eat, and when my pain meds wear off at the four hour mark. Can someone tell me that the ear/jaw pain will go away? I read the comment about nerve damage, and that kind of freaked me out. I was assuming that my jaw pain was being caused by whatever device they used to hold my mouth wide open during surgery, but maybe not?
I took this whole week off from work, and can take off time next week if needed. My husband has been here to take care of me, and I don’t know what I would have done without him!! I. Also had my mom here for the first three days, which helped a lot. I’ve notice that my voice sounds differently to me, and very Phlemie and hoping that goes away, although my family doesn’t say that I sound different to them, so maybe it’s just me. I am going to venture out of the house today to go to the store…I am getting sick of laying in bed all day. That’s my update….hope everyone else is hanging in there! 🙂
Try and avoid going out in public if you can, greatly increases the chances of infection. And as someone who’s battled post-op infection for the last week, believe me you don’t want it.
As to the jaw pain I had something I found worked well. I also worked on the belief as you have that it’s muscle stretching from the device they used to hold the mouth open. I used Voltarol gel, although that’s a brand name so don’t know how easily you’ll find an equivalent. It’s a diclofenac gel, which is an analgesic. It’d ease the jaw/muscle ache in a matter of seconds. I even took to putting some behind my ears and it helped there too, although that could’ve been placebo for all I know.
For days 5-7 I didn’t even attempt a regular sleep cycle. I have multiple pain meds which has allowed me to stagger taking them every 3-4 hours. I’d sleep just the final hour of each 3-4 hour pattern. This eliminated the ‘bad hour’, allowed me some sleep, but minimised the drying time caused by longer sleeps. It’s an exhausting pattern, but it helped break the back of the worst pain for me.
Thanks Ben…I may have over done it yesterday…..paying for it today. I had a bleeding episode, which was scary, so now I’m just staying in bed and resting again. Going to the store yesterday was not probably a good idea.
The jaw pain seems to be better today, so hopefully I’m over the worst of that. I’m using the ice packs which help a lot!
No signs of infection so far…knock on wood….and still taking my antibiotics every day as scheduled. I had a better sleep night last night…about two hours blocks which felt good, but may have dehydrated me too much.
I don’t think it’s nerve damage, it was explained to me that it’s the swelling pushing on the nerve which causes the pain. It is temporary though it will take time to go away. Mine went away for 2 days and then came back (although not as bad) today. I’ve heard using an ice pack against the neck will help with the swelling and thus alleviating the pain.
I agree with Ben on not trying to have a normal sleep pattern where you sleep all night. Instead have everything revolve around your pain meds and sleep when you can. It’s all about your comfort first, your body will let you know when it absolutely needs sleep. You can return to a normal sleep pattern later down the road.
Thanks Amy! I slept better last night, but today has not been the best day….still having the neck pain, but keeping the ice packs on really helps. It seems to be worse every time I eat….so I just apply the ice ASAP after eating, and the pain goes away after awhile.
Hello everyone. This forum is helping me prepare for what im in for, but also scaring the shit out of me. Im going in for my op on Monday- terrified about the recovery. Ill have my mum to look after me. I’m only 20 and still a baby so ill need her. I’m worried about the weight loss. How much weight should I be expecting to lose? Im already a little under weight, I’m 5 8″ and 47kg. Also wondering if you have all been going out at all? i get bored easily and was hoping to take short trips to visit friends with my mum and maybe go to the store as i need a few new house hold items for my apartment. Will I be able to manage this or should I be expecting to be bed ridden the entire two weeks?
Bed ridden, simply. At 20 though you may have an easier time of it than many of (it worsens with age).
You really want to avoid going out among people if nothing else, sure fire route to infection.
I’m not sure about the weightloss, because that’s depends on person to person.
Actually, though, you may not have to be completely bedridden. It just depends on how you feel on a day to day basis. I had mine out on Jan. 3, and I’m also 20 years old. By day 3, I think it was, I had made a trip myself down the road to the store to try to find me something to eat, though if you drive yourself, try to aim it towards the end of the break between pain meds. If you don’t, it may turn driving into an interesting experience, like I had. That was actually also the first day I talked except for immediately after the surgery. I think that week I had made 3 trips to the small store, and the end of week 1 I actually went to walmart with my mother to get more of my pain meds as well as groceries. By day 8-9 I was up and about, and even stayed the night with my brother who was in the hospital at the time.
It all depends on how you feel. Don’t overdo it, and if you go out, you can act like a germaphobe by washing hands and not eating or drinking after anyone if you want to make extra sure on limiting yourself to possible secondary infections. I myself didn’t do any of that, but I guess I just was luckier than half the people on here.
So basically, go in with the knowledge that you may be down for 2 full weeks, but it’s not guaranteed.
I am 5′ 7″ 48kg & I lost no weight in this last 2 weeks. I think if you already underweight it’s harder to lose the 10 lbs like everyone else dose. But then again my main food group was pudding followed by applesauce for the first week at least. So eating a pound of pudding a day doesn’t really lead to weight loss but nor gain if its all you eat all day. Me and my mom bought a ton boxes and flavors before then when I came home home just made big bowls with lids so I could serve myself as needed what flavor & amount.
Day 13 and still in a great deal of pain. Just left a message for the ENT to ask for more pain meds. I thinks if my ears would stop hurting it wouldn’t be half as bad. I’m 29 years old and this tonsillectomy has had me bed ridden for almost 2 weeks now. I expected bad, I wasn’t ready for horrible. I sure wasn’t ready what I thought was a death secene when a clot broke on day 4. I don’t regreat doing it because I had constant tonsil stone which are a horrible but right now it just like when is this going to end. I really want to eat something other then pudding & applesauce!
So today would be what… Day 10? I have to say everything was going fantastically after getting the second set of antibiotics and Tramadol. There’s a chance ‘was’ is an operative word there.
Woke up this morning to an incredibly swollen throat and neck, so much so I had serious difficulty breathing. Had to tilt my head rig back and open my mouth as wide as I could. I’ve also got a new red/swollen inflammation across the ‘arches’ at the back of my throat (either side of the uvula), with these areas stinging greatly every time I drink water.
I had managed to eat solid food on Saturday and Sunday (very small amounts mind), today I’m having difficulty drinking tea and can’t eat anything.
I’m having difficulty believing I’ve developed a new infection while on two different antibiotics for the last week (one of them being very strong), but that’s what the red rings look like. Both sets of antibiotics run out tomorrow but regardless I’m going to see my GP in the morning. If she tells me it’s nothing, just a dry throat causing irritation then fine, at least I know. If its something else, I know she’ll sort it right away.
Wow Ben….that sounds awful! Hope it’s nothing serious, and just some irritation. I gave myself two weeks to feel better after surgery, and its looking like ill need the full two weeks, based on what I’m reading people go through at day 10 and after. Hope you feel better soon!
Ben- I’m on day 11 and I just ran into the same thing you just described! I woke up and noticed my throat burning more than usual, I went to drink some water and realized the pain to my ears was worse. I looked in the mirror and notice a new thicker film of white and the extra ring of red around the surgery site like you said. I wonder if this isn’t all part of the pattern of healing…just like how most had a worse pain on days 5-7..? Just a thought…
I think that was a different Julie, Amy.
Also as to Ibruprofen, I was prescribed it for my swollen uvula, to be taken 3 times a day. However they mentioned taking it too regular can cause bleeding (internally too), so they prescribed me something called Lansoprazole (I don’t know if there’s an American equivalent), which apparently coats your insides with something that prevents the ibruprofen from affecting them. Would advise consulting your doctor if you plan on taking it often and haven’t been specifically prescribed it.
Yeah Lanzowhatsit is an acid inhibitor, I’ve got a box of the stuff for acid reflux/stomach ulcer I’ve got. Brufen eats through the stomach lining if you eat it on an empty stomach, repeatedly doing so is what leads to internal bleeding.
Had my surgery on 29 Jan.. today is basically the 7th day and the last 2 days have been miserable. At first i felt so drugged up that nothing mattered and i slept a lot. Now i am just trying to force water down my throat at all costs. Still have only ate applesauce and oatmeal but its satisfying.
My big question- I am stationed in Texas and work and live out here. My girlfriend was out here taking care of me for the first week but she had to go back to work. Would it be too painful to fly to California from Texas? My family is in Cali and they can take care of me there..
Any advice at all?
I’m not sure, but I think there’s a window of time after a surgery that you aren’t supposed to fly….something about it increases your chances of a blood clot? It might be better to see if one of your family can come down to Texas to take care you. I’m no expert but I’ve heard this said before.
It’s been about….seven months?….since my surgery. Just wanted to drop by to give you all an update since I know I liked reading them from people who had recovered when I felt my worst. ha ha ha.
This was totally worth it. I am having my first sore throat since the surgery. Prior to this I was spending almost entire winters with constant sore throats so I’m pretty pleased.
I had complications and I still have some residual weirdness. For the first month or so I had problems with food and water wanting to reroute into my sinuses if I swallowed too hard. This happened sometimes when my tonsils were super swollen, too, so this wasn’t foreign to me. My ENT said it is pretty common and wasn’t concerned, she said it should resolve shortly and for the most part it did. It still happens to me every once in a while – like once a month – not really sure why. But it’s not a big deal.
I lost a lot of weight. Not quite ten pounds but I am really petite so for me that is a lot. It took me probably a few months to consistently get back up to what I consider a “safe” weight. I only recently got back up to my post surgery weight – like within the last month or two. Again, my doctor reassured me this was totally normal, even for someone as tiny as me, so no big deal.
Some sound combinations still sound weird in my head when I say them. My husband says I sound normal so I think it’s just how the sound is resonating in my head (maybe cause it isn’t bouncing against giant tonsils? 😀 ) but it’s still a little strange. I have heard this is pretty common, too.
Good luck to all of you! This website was so SO valuable to me when I had my surgery. The advice from people who had been there (waking up every couple of hours to hydrate was HUGE for me), the pre-op shopping list, the support of other people who I could commiserate with, this surgery would have SUCKED without all of these things. Thank you all for the advice and taking the time to share it!
Thanks Julie! That was a big help for me and hopefully for other still here in the trenches. Some days you feel so bad it gets hard to think past that, so thanks again!