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 have a question…has anyone experienced sneezing?? i feel like there is gonna be one coming but i am soooo afraid….any thoughts??
Don’t hold it in…..i found when i sneezed out loud it did not hurt the way i thought it was going to…..God Bless u! Lol
Thanks Whitney!! I still haven’t but today felt like a strong one was coming…we’ll see what happens!!
Matt– Maybe I should have been clearer. I wasn’t suggesting that anyone go out and buy the crunchiest/spiciest/acidic foods there are. Of course you’re going to have to use some common sense when recovering from any surgery. I just was just saying that people need to force themselves to eat/drink the foods that they are limited to by their doctor/hospitals. Your body needs fuel in order to heal itself and even though it involves a great deal of pain (which I experienced)– that’s the only way to speed up the healing process. Here I am 20 days out and aside from a dry mouth– I’m doing really well. Of course this all depends the type of procedure that was done– I had a newest coblation procedure (which uses lower temps and results in less post-operative pain/bleeding).
Matt, of course people need to be careful about rough foods but swallowing is essential, be it water, pudding, whatever. Some people feel so much pain they don’t want to even swallow their own spit (ive been there believe me) It’s mind over matter. My doctor as well as some others’ doctors on this site said that swallowing frequently will help recovery along. Avoiding it will not.
Absolutely, I was simply tempering the statement because I could see someone running off trying to eat something like chips or pretzels. I have been pushing what I eat during my recovery but and it is good. It just needs to be done carefully.
-Matt F.
Well especially after reading poor Jarrowe’s situation! They probably did not give them any food restriction info. It’s awful. I still find it interesting that rough foods are encouraged in the UK after tonsillectomy (??)I agree soft is best in the beginning for sure. Hope you’re healing is going along well-hang in there Matt!
Jarrowe – I am very sorry you are so upset. I can certainly understand why. It is absolutely ridiculous that the health services did not tell you and your son that the recovery is, indeed, more painful for older children and adults. May I ask what state or country you live in? My ENT explained to me that it would be a very painful recovery but, and this is important, the RISKS are no different no matter what age the person. So please do not feel as though you put your child at more risk than if he’d had it done at a very young age. The surgery is the same process regardless of age, it’s just that very young kids tend to rebound pretty well (though some have a very difficult time too).
You did NOTHING wrong. You simply relayed what your personal experience was without knowing it would be any different for your son. I can sense in your post that you are beating yourself up. Please don’t do this to yourself. The surgery is done now and your energy is best spent making your son comfortable and getting him through the healing.
That being said, the pain is not an indication of problems. ALL of us have had painful recoveries (most, I should say) and it’s just a part of the healing. If you can view the pain as a part of healing and not as something ‘abnormal’ it helps a lot. It’s the body’s natural way of responding to the tissue being cut. Just as any wound hurts, this will too. If you son is not doing well on his pain meds, call the doctor ASAP and ask for something different. Vicodin is weaker than Percocet. If he can tolerate being very sleepy and out of it, the Percocet would provide better pain relief. If he cannot tolerate either, there is a newer pain med called Nucynta that is better tolerated by those that cannot tolerate codeine type pain meds. Is he allowed to take ibuprofen?
Some on here were ok’d for it, some were not. If he’s allowed, this can help a lot to reduce inflammation since it is anti-inflammatory and Tylenol is not. Ice, ice, ice…..provide ice for his neck and keep it coming! It will help with swelling and discomfort. Please read all of the tips on this site. They are incredibly helpful. Use what works for him.
One of the most important things is swallowing. Even though it’s painful, he must be swallowing regularly (and not avoiding) it to encourage healing. The swallowing sloughs off the areas that need to be sloughed and it helps the throat heal. Do not worry about his voice. We all sounded muffled and odd after this surgery. My tongue hurt so bad I sounded awful speaking but I just kept on talking. 🙂 His voice will return to normal and is the LEAST of your worries right now. It’s would be odd if his voice did NOT sound strange.
It would probably be wise to speak to his surgeon and express your strong feelings about the fact that they did not prepare you or him for the pain after surgery. Either they are not experienced or they were trying not to ‘scare’ either of you. But it was wrong that they did not prepare all of you better. Just flat out wrong. I would write a letter to the head of the department or whoever you feel you need to contact and express your dissatisfaction.
All this being said, he is going to heal and be fine. It’s just a few weeks of being uncomfortable in the course of a lifetime of relief for him (infections and whatever other reason he had the surgery). Hang in there. You have a lot of support on this forum and great advice. Read, read, read and please, do not beat yourself up. He knows you would never have intentionally misled him. Just love and support him through his healing. That’s all you need to worry about now. 🙂
Jarowe: I am so sorry that your family is having a bad experience with your son’s tonsillectomy. You said that your son had his surgery Tuesday, August 6th, but today is Tuesday, August 6th. Did he have it last week Tues, July 31st? Well, I had mine last week Wednesday, Aug 1st, and I am a 54-year old woman. It has been an up and down week, sometimes a lot of pain, and then sometimes its tolerable. My doctor completely informed me of the pain and complications associated with an adult tonsillectomy, and even put it off until 8/1 due to the fact that we we going to Puerto Rico in June, and he did not want me to have a miserable time while on vacation. But please don’t beat yourselves up, you were only trying to do what you felt was best for your son. Even though my doctor and his office staff informed me of the difference between adult and childhood tonsillectomies, I went online, and read a lot of information and I read some of the blogs that other people were writing about their experiences. It did scare me, alot, but I was even more scared of the possibilities, if I did not do the surgery. Today is just day 6 for me, and although this is not a very pleasant situation, I am determined to get through this, and I know it will get better. The best thing you can do it to be there for your son. Keep his mind off of his pain by reading to him, or playing cards or games with him, if he likes that sort of thing. My doctor told me to eat ice pops, one after another, and that really helps. If you didn’t already, get him a cool mist humidifier, it really helps! And make sure he does the nose rinses and gargles with a saline solution. Believe it or not, that really helps. I hope things get better soon for him, and for your family, and hope the surgery was worth the pain and suffering. Will check on you both later.