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
I am someone who came to this site looking for information and came away completely freaked out by what I had in store for me in having my tonsils removed at 42 years of age. Well if you are here for the same reason I am that beacon of light. I am 9 days postop and am back to almost normal diet with very limited pain. Day one was pretty awful but mainly due to the anaesthetic which made me nauseous and then vomit, which felt like battery acid through my tonsils. Day two was a complete day of rest. I kept completely on top of my meds taking OxyNorm 6 hourly supplemented by soluble Panadol and Nurofen alternately every three hours. I also drank heaps and heaps of water plus other fluids which I really do feel is key. Yes there was pain but nothing worse than my worst case of tonsillitis and yes it hurt to swallow but I think it aided my recovery. By day three I was up and about and cooking dinner for the hubby and kids. I continued a liquid diet for the first 5 days then a soft diet for another 3 days. I am now eating most things (eg. bread, meat) but being careful to avoid anything that may trigger bleeding. There is still a little pain, moreso at night and in the morning so take some pain meds if it gets too bad. I know I may be an exception to the rule but have had a great recovery. Furthermore the lady next to me in the hospital, aged 38, is also on a similar road to recovery. Perhaps we were fortunate to have a great surgeon, or just plain lucky. Either way, there ARE good stories. Goodluck everyone with your recovery. Aussie Jo
Thanks for sharing a good recovery story, it’s great to read as I’ll be getting mine out in less than 2 weeks now.
Hey Everyone. My 13 year old son is in day 3 recovery. The surgeon said by today he would be feeling better and would be good in one week. Well he feels as crap and painful as he has since day 1. His pain meds run out tomorrow so im thinking of seeing our GP to get some more or see what they say. He coughed up some blood today but the surgeon said that was normal. I just wanted your opinion as what i have been told doesnt seem to add up. He is still in a lot of pain and taking his strong pain killers every 4 hours and i wake him in the night to have his dose. I am just concerned cos they run out tomorrow and he is still in a lot of pain.
Sounds like the surgeon was thinking your son would have the recovery similar to those of children, which is shorter and easier. But it sounds like he’s recovering more so like an adult, which is a little more painful and longer. Better to get more meds than have him sit in pain. Good luck!
Had my surgery exactly 1 week ago (June 24th).However I had a tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy and septum and throat reconstruction. I have had 3 prior surgeries to this one (hernia x2 and wisdom teeth) and this is by far the most painful thing I have ever gone through. Woke up from surgery feeling okay, no nausea which is a pleasant change from previous anesthetic procedures. Felt decent aside from the LARGE packing stuffed up my nose. Had zero sense of smell and taste so eating was not only unpleasant due to pain but extremely boring. Stayed over night in the hospital and was released 6am on Tuesday. Did not sleep much at the hospital and had a brutal time getting my medicine down. Nurses had to mix my perocets in apple sauce to make it manageable to swallow. Have been doing that since and it is the only way I can take my meds. When I got home my nose was constantly leaking bloody fluid and my throat was in a lot of pain. As the days progress I have seen little change in my condition. It sucks!!! To top it all off I started having excruciating inner ear pain, especially after taking my medication.
I have taken a full week off of work but I have no choice but to go back tomorrow so I have decided to switch from heavy percocets to xstrength tylonol while I’m at work so i am able to drive, not the most ideal switch but you gotta do what you gotta do.
A few tips!
-> take lots of hot steamy baths – it not only relaxes you but if you take a hot water soaked facecloth and put it to your face the steam feels wonderful down your throat and up your nose
-> use ice packs on your throat and put a COLD cloth on your head
-> when and if you develop ear pain, use a heated compress on your face, its magical!
-> while taking your meds, try no to think about the pain and just swallow really fast to get it in all at once
-> set an alarm of have someone wake you in the night to take your meds, you will regret missing it by even half an hour
-> the kleenex with the lotion will be your best friend (if you had any kind of nasal repair that involves leaking)
Hey everyone, another tip I just discovered is goner tea from the actual finger root. I’m on day six and I was in awful pain and discomfort this morning… To the point where I was going to cry, and I can handle pain really well. The ginger tea made the swelling go down so much and way easier to eat. I’m even craving chicken nuggets! Really try this! I notice the warm actually feels nice and the ginger yea has a slight tingly sensation on my threat but then seems to help numb it. What a life saver! Let me know if this works for anyone else.. Good luck all!
Ginger!! Not finger or goner lol
I am having surgery early tomorrow morning and am trying to get as much info as I can to help me as well as my mother (who is taking care of me) prepared as much as possible! Thank you all for your tips and sharing your experiences! I wish everyone a healthy recovery!
hi! hope all went well.. i am on day 7 of my recovery
check my recent post for a few tips i had 🙂
I had the surgery yesterday. I went and saw a movie last night and have been up and about today, but the doctor says that I still have the anesthesia in my body and will for a few days, so even though I don’t feel that bad now, I will later. The surgery went well. They had me on dilaudid right after and my breathing was very shallow. When I closed my eyes to rest, I guess I would stop breathing so the nurse would yell at me to remember to breath. That was a bit frightening. Now I’m on Norco, which is doing the trick for me now. My tonsils are already pretty white and scabbed up. I can’t have anything too grainy or anything that has any kind of acid in it because it is too painful. Even plain water feels a bit abrasive, so I’ve added a little bit of a powder fiber supplement to thicken it up a little. That has really helped it go down smoothly. The baby foods are a bit abrasive still, so I’ve been having milkshakes, ice cream and pudding. For real food, I had Campbell’s Chicken noodle, but I strained out the noodles and threw away the meat. The noodle I mushed up with a fork and was able to eat that and the broth at a lukewarm temperature. I have an ice pack on my neck as well. I will keep updates as the next two weeks go by.
Also, I’ve been able to talk. I could only whisper yesterday after the surgery, but today I can almost talk normally.
Glad to hear things are going well so far. Did you get the coblation method?
I’m not sure what that is. He said that he used a hot knife that cauterized the area as he took them out.
Oh okay, I was just wondering because I’m getting coblation. There are a bunch of different methods they use to take tonsils out.
UPDATE: I’m on day 5. I’ve been out of the house everyday thanks to friends (I have trouble being in the house all day). The Norcos were making me feel really nauseous and worn out, and were giving me a headache, so today, I got ahold of my doctor and was able to get switched to Tylenol 3s which are supposed to be not as strong. I spit up a blood clot last night and had slight bleeding, so they were anxious about giving me ibuprofen yet. It feels that my pain is stronger today, but still manageable. The scabs feels although they are bigger, as they are more uncomfortable and are currently a whitish green color.
UPDATE: I am on day 12 (including day of surgery). Yesterday I started on Ibuprofen, and only as needed. I needed my other pain medication until day 10. I have to say that day 9 and ten were the worst! Day 9 specifically (mainly because I over did it by trying to eat regular food and drank juice the night before, which was the fourth of July). I still can’t eat anything acidic, but I can finally scarf down bread, and some other heartier foods (oh, how I have missed food). I was woken up many times by coughing. I have this horrendous cough due to what feels like needles pricking the back of my throat. I assume that these are the scab that are coming of. I can finally see some pink coming through the green scabs, which is a clear sign of healing! I’m going back to work tomorrow, even though I am still quite tired all of the time.
ALSO: I had coughed up blood clots and scabs starting on day 8.
I did this morning and a little bit of blood yesterday, nothing too major.. I got mine done the 26th . so i am on day 7 is this normal? I know a lot of people don’t cough up blood but will i be okay? I do nnot want to it re burned i am NOT going through this again. tell me you didnt have to…lol sorry im scared, i work at a salon i just cant believe im still not better and things arent going easy as planned.