A collection of various experiences of adult tonsillectomy patients on their fourth day post op of recovery
From thousands of post comments to the tonsillectomy recovery forum, I have assembled a sampling of various accounts and impressions of tonsillectomy recovery for each day. Below I share comments about tonsillectomy day 4. These comments are taken from tonsillectomy patients who were kind enough to share their experiences to help others as they navigate the bumpy road of tonsillectomy recovery.
Please feel free to add your own experience with tonsillectomy day 4.
-Greg Tooke My short bio
Tonsillectomy Day 4
I’m currently at the end of Day 4 since my combined tonsillectomy, balloon sinuplasty, and septoplasty. I’m 25 years old This has by no means been a walk in the park so far, but it honestly isn’t as bad as I had feared it would be. Back in October I had an abscess inside my tonsil that I had to get lanced, and the pain from this recovery so far has not been quite as severe as the pain from the abscess. On the day of my surgery when I got home, I slept for 95% of the rest of the day. Woke up around 2am in a lot of pain and had to migrate from my bed to the recliner and continued to wake up every 45 minutes or so. I think this first night was definitely the worst for me because I had packing in my nose from the sinus surgery so I had literally no choice but to breathe out of my mouth. My tongue was like sandpaper (gross I know) even though I tried to drink as frequently as possible. I did not eat anything that first day and just drank water when I could. At 8:30 the next morning I saw my ENT to get the packing removed from my nose thank God. It took most of the second day for the congestion to clear up but once it did it was a big relief for me. Day 2 I would say my pain was around a 4 or so during the day. I was able to eat some popsicles and cream of wheat which tasted like heaven. Again, the middle of the night and first thing in the morning were the worst for me. I was prescribed liquid hydrocodone and a steroid for the swelling. I alternated the hydro every 6 hours with extra strength liquid Tylenol. That seemed to help most of the time. Day 3 was pretty uneventful, tried to incorporate mashed potatoes into my diet but it made my jaw pretty tired and sore. Went to bed, woke up at like 2am again in a lot of pain so I took more meds and put ice packs on my neck which helped me go back to sleep. Today, day 4, the morning sucked as usual but once the steroid kicked in I was feeling much better. Pain was probably at a 3 most of the day. Today I was also able to leave the house to grab a couple of things from the store and made an appearance at a family gathering. I was able to eat some more “real” food there which included potato salad and a roll. After being out of the house for about 1 1/2 I was EXHAUSTED. I guess I’m still building up stamina. Tomorrow will day 5 and hopefully things continue to go smoothly. I know a lot of people say the pain is worse when the scabs fall off so I won’t be super shocked if I start to go downhill but I’m trying my best to stay positive and am overall pleasantly surprised at how well I’ve been doing!
Tonsillectomy Day 4 post op : OMG! I am dying!
Tonsillectomy Day 4 post op: Oh, so THIS is the pain everyone’s talking about.
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : Well, last night was the best night so far – which is nothing to brag about. The ear pain last night was even worse; so far, that is the nastiest part of this recovery. I did however wake up coughing due to a tickle in my throat. As most of you know, coughing and clearing your throat is a no-no…but to me, it was a yes-yes. There was absolutely nothing I could do, but cough! I was drinking water, but it wouldn’t stop. Thankfully, that didn’t trigger any bleeding! The morning was alright minus the _ _ _ _ _ _ _. That’s right; you got it, the EAR PAIN! And I ended up thinking that I made the wrong decision about just sticking to children’s Tylenol. I decided to nix the child Tylenol idea, as it was doing almost nothing for me and moved to taking extra strength Tylenol – obviously I had to crush it up and mix with it with ice cream. I got my mom to call the doctors office to see if there was anything else I could be prescribed. The doctor faxed a prescription for Percocet’s to my pharmacy and I was extremely happy. At this point I could talk a little bit, but very low and even then it hurt, so I had a pad of paper and a pen with me at all times (I guess I’m lucky I got 100% on all of the spelling bees in elementary school)! My mom came home with the Percocet’s and I could have kissed her! It said I could take 1 to 2 pills every 4 hours, but decided to start with one because I heard that they were super strong. I couldn’t swallow it so I crushed it up into applesauce and consumed it that way. Not even 10 minutes later I started getting a stomach ache and got incredibly dizzy. So dizzy that I couldn’t see straight and my eyes felt like they were crossing. My mom called the doctor’s office up and explained the symptoms. He confirmed that it was normal. NORMAL? Is that what you call normal? I felt like I was seeing double (I have glasses, so would that be considered quadruple?) Nevertheless, if I knew of the severity of the symptoms I would have battled with the codeine! I decided to lie down for about 2 hours and woke up with pain still in my stomach; I guess the only good news is the dizziness was gone. Once the Percocet wore off, I dumped the rest of the prescription in the toilet (or the majestic bowl – however you want to refer to it). I ate some chicken broth today, with a cracker that I broke up into a million pieces and softened it in the soup. I got most of it down, so it was pretty good. The ear pain was getting a little hard to manage so I decided to use ear plugs and a heating pad. Both of them together helped to muffle and alleviate the pain. As of right now, I need 2 Tylenol every 4 hours, but it does work better than the children’s Tylenol!
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : 4th morning..and I was miserable…
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : 4 days post-op and overall it’s not as bad as it could be. As long as I take the Roxicet every 4 hours (even in the middle of the night) and the steroids every morning, the pain is bearable.
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : 4 days post op and today was the worst as far as just pain. I’m attempting Mac n cheese here in 5 min. But overall the pain isn’t too bad. 🙂 but then again I’m only 4 days out.
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : To date the hardest part of the recovery are the panic attacks i get. I believe they come from my inability to clear my nasal airway. My nose has splints in it to keep the septum straight, so along with the swelling my nose is constantly congested. The pain has not been an issue yet, but i did a little research and heard from the doctors office that the pain comes typically around days 5-10
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : Day four–out of anti-nausea meds, felt like sick again after taking pain meds. Decided to forgo the pain meds and take advil and tylenol alternating, like my doctor recommended. Throat hurt A LOT but I felt like a human being. Still not eating much, popsicles and smoothies too cold, soft boiled eggs were the BOMB!
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : Day 4- woke up in pain, felt better during day- night was painful.
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : Days 4-6: Very small, almost imperceptible, improvements each day. I was able to drop my Lortab doses from 15ml down to 10ml and even stop taking it during the days and just took Tylenol. The evenings were rough for me though, and I still needed the Lortab (hydrocodone and acetaminophen). Sleep was intermittant, and required me to get up and re-hydrate and take more Lortab. Food intake during these days was very very little. I did OK with oatmeal and instant pudding, but that’s about it. Make no mistake – these were difficult days.
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : I was able to sleep a little bit during the night. Taking the liquid benadryl helps. Pain was bad. Started to be able to feel the scabs in the back of my throat very well today. Ear pain increased a bit and chewing Dentyne Ice gum helps a bit for that. Had horrible diarrhea during the afternoon but was also relieved at the same time because it was the first time I was able to go number two since the morning of surgery. I was able to actually eat a bowl of cream of wheat today and ate some chicken broth with soggy oyster crackers in it. I get bad hiccups at times which hurt really bad. Swallowing is still very tough to do.
Tonsillectomy Day 4 : Day 4: I am out of pain meds and I want to cry. I have been taking 2 vicoden pills every four hours and it is barely helping with the pain. The pain meds are making me very tired and itchy all over so my husband has went to the doctor’s office to get me something different. The nurse at the doctor’s office told my husband that I was not going to feel better for at least a week. Wow, I feel hopeless right now. I was relieved when the hubster came home with Percocet. Percocet has worked a little better and now the pain is bearable.
So, are we counting day 1 as surgery day? I’m confused. I’ve been starting post op day 1 as the day AFTER surgery day. Anyways, to me, today is Day 4.
Day 1, my girlfriend drove me 5 hours to meet my Mother so I could spend recovery at her house (with my 4 yr old). I was good. Even ate at Cracker Barrel.
Day 2 and 3 were rough. Still not as painful as the horror stories I’ve read on here, but serious throat pain…and I threw up a couple times which was no bueno. My dr have me Percocet and told me 2 every 4 hours. I set an alarm and have been on top of the pain. But yesterday, I ran out of meds. My dr couldn’t call any in here in a different state so I had to go to the ER. The ER PA pretty much told me that even though she’s not familiar with this surgery, I am taking way too much meds. She wasn’t going to give me a refill. Finally she called my dr and he gave her the ok. However, she only gave me half the amount.
Needless to say, I’m trying to be ok without meds. Last night I didn’t wake up to take meds and I slept really well. But this morning was super painful. Although, after I did take my meds and ate some cereal, I feel better.
Hopefully this is a sign of healing and it’s not going to get as bad as I’ve heard.
day 4 – i’m 38 years old. During the night was the first time I started crying from the pain. I thought the pain was bad before, I stopped taking the prescriptions and am only doing extra strength Tylenol. I threw up all day on day 2, and anti nausea meds gave me terrible headache-migraine quality. I had to get a stool softner because I havent gone to the bathroom since surgery. So that kicked in this morning. My hears and teeth are throbbing. Am doing pretty good on drinking water, its the only thing that doesnt burn. so have been getting 60-90 ounces down a day but dont know about today. the pain has hit a new level.
My surgery was this past Monday 4/1/13. Im now on day 4 and its the worst by far. I was given hydrocodone but that didnt work to well, so my doc gave me Roxicet Sol. This seems to work much better its suppose to last 4 hrs but a good 2 hrs of comfort is worth it. My first night was pure agony it felt like I was going to swallow my uvula. It looked like a big water balloon and it kept getting stuck in my throat when i would try to go to sleep. So for the first few nights I slept with my head straight up and to the side. The 4th day is here and i can now lay on my back because my uvula is not as swollen as it was. My throat still has all this white and grayish green stuff on it which im assuming is a scab. I still having problems swallowing anything even my spit. I keep a spit cup nearby so i can save myself the pain of swallowing most of the time. I know they say stay hydrated but its hard when your throat is extremely sore. Not to mention my ear pain started on the 3rd day after surgery. At this point Im suffering from all the symptoms of a tonsillectomy….. lololol I asked for it. But I just sit here and dear not complain because I know I wont suffer with repeated sore throats, peritonsillar abcess, tonsilliths and all the other weird crap that came with bad tonsils. I thank God. Will keep you all posted on post op in a few days.
I am writing this all at my two week recovery point. I am close to 100%.
Day four began a rough patch for me. Per the doctor’s orders, I have progressed to soft food. I eat Mac and cheeses, mashed potatoes, or pudding with my meds (out of sheer necessity, not due to any desire to eat). Swallowing is still painful. Have regressed to small sips.
I began ear pain on this day, and the overall mouth, jaw, and throat pain have accelerated.
I am making sure I am drinking water at least hourly. Pain meds reduce the pain and help me to rest. Nausea pains were no help. I got sick again on this day. Vomiting can be dangerous, but the large amount if liquids helped there to not be any stress in expelling anything.
Pain throughout the day is a level 8. I cannot talk at this point, and make whispered phone calls to family to let them know my progress. Still suffering from sleep apnea. I went back to needing ice packs on my throat to fall asleep.
When I went for my consultation prior to sugery, they told me there would be a day where the pain would reach a high level (usually after days 1-3) and remain for several days. This has held very true for me.
However, I have also heard stories from others who swallowed nothing besides medicine (not even spit at times), and just had high pain throughout. I have a high pain thresh hold, and am hoping this is beginning the healing and scabbing.
Tomorrow is another day!
Im 33 and i also had nasal surgery at the same time as my tonsillectomy, big mistake!
4th day, Best day. I actually went shopping, twice. Short trips of course but I’m moving around and doing things. Trying to take it easy but I’m feeling so good Im active. Eat some more food processor Mac and cheese and some rice for dinner. Up till 11:30 and I sleep good. Pain meds spread out a little more, every 5ish hours, going long spans at night.
So, are we counting day 1 as surgery day? I’m confused. I’ve been starting post op day 1 as the day AFTER surgery day. Anyways, to me, today is Day 4.
Day 1, my girlfriend drove me 5 hours to meet my Mother so I could spend recovery at her house (with my 4 yr old). I was good. Even ate at Cracker Barrel.
Day 2 and 3 were rough. Still not as painful as the horror stories I’ve read on here, but serious throat pain…and I threw up a couple times which was no bueno. My dr have me Percocet and told me 2 every 4 hours. I set an alarm and have been on top of the pain. But yesterday, I ran out of meds. My dr couldn’t call any in here in a different state so I had to go to the ER. The ER PA pretty much told me that even though she’s not familiar with this surgery, I am taking way too much meds. She wasn’t going to give me a refill. Finally she called my dr and he gave her the ok. However, she only gave me half the amount.
Needless to say, I’m trying to be ok without meds. Last night I didn’t wake up to take meds and I slept really well. But this morning was super painful. Although, after I did take my meds and ate some cereal, I feel better.
Hopefully this is a sign of healing and it’s not going to get as bad as I’ve heard.
day 4 – i’m 38 years old. During the night was the first time I started crying from the pain. I thought the pain was bad before, I stopped taking the prescriptions and am only doing extra strength Tylenol. I threw up all day on day 2, and anti nausea meds gave me terrible headache-migraine quality. I had to get a stool softner because I havent gone to the bathroom since surgery. So that kicked in this morning. My hears and teeth are throbbing. Am doing pretty good on drinking water, its the only thing that doesnt burn. so have been getting 60-90 ounces down a day but dont know about today. the pain has hit a new level.
…and crying makes it worse. I know. Sounds like you’re doing things right. Hang in there!
My surgery was this past Monday 4/1/13. Im now on day 4 and its the worst by far. I was given hydrocodone but that didnt work to well, so my doc gave me Roxicet Sol. This seems to work much better its suppose to last 4 hrs but a good 2 hrs of comfort is worth it. My first night was pure agony it felt like I was going to swallow my uvula. It looked like a big water balloon and it kept getting stuck in my throat when i would try to go to sleep. So for the first few nights I slept with my head straight up and to the side. The 4th day is here and i can now lay on my back because my uvula is not as swollen as it was. My throat still has all this white and grayish green stuff on it which im assuming is a scab. I still having problems swallowing anything even my spit. I keep a spit cup nearby so i can save myself the pain of swallowing most of the time. I know they say stay hydrated but its hard when your throat is extremely sore. Not to mention my ear pain started on the 3rd day after surgery. At this point Im suffering from all the symptoms of a tonsillectomy….. lololol I asked for it. But I just sit here and dear not complain because I know I wont suffer with repeated sore throats, peritonsillar abcess, tonsilliths and all the other weird crap that came with bad tonsils. I thank God. Will keep you all posted on post op in a few days.
Thank you Earline. Hang in there!
I am writing this all at my two week recovery point. I am close to 100%.
Day four began a rough patch for me. Per the doctor’s orders, I have progressed to soft food. I eat Mac and cheeses, mashed potatoes, or pudding with my meds (out of sheer necessity, not due to any desire to eat). Swallowing is still painful. Have regressed to small sips.
I began ear pain on this day, and the overall mouth, jaw, and throat pain have accelerated.
I am making sure I am drinking water at least hourly. Pain meds reduce the pain and help me to rest. Nausea pains were no help. I got sick again on this day. Vomiting can be dangerous, but the large amount if liquids helped there to not be any stress in expelling anything.
Pain throughout the day is a level 8. I cannot talk at this point, and make whispered phone calls to family to let them know my progress. Still suffering from sleep apnea. I went back to needing ice packs on my throat to fall asleep.
When I went for my consultation prior to sugery, they told me there would be a day where the pain would reach a high level (usually after days 1-3) and remain for several days. This has held very true for me.
However, I have also heard stories from others who swallowed nothing besides medicine (not even spit at times), and just had high pain throughout. I have a high pain thresh hold, and am hoping this is beginning the healing and scabbing.
Tomorrow is another day!
Im 33 and i also had nasal surgery at the same time as my tonsillectomy, big mistake!
4th day, Best day. I actually went shopping, twice. Short trips of course but I’m moving around and doing things. Trying to take it easy but I’m feeling so good Im active. Eat some more food processor Mac and cheese and some rice for dinner. Up till 11:30 and I sleep good. Pain meds spread out a little more, every 5ish hours, going long spans at night.
Ps: writing this all on my 9th day