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.
Okay. I think I’m doing this backwards. As I’m reading the already-posted comments, everyone’s saying that today was the day things started going downhill. However, my case has been the exact opposite.
Today I was able to eat McDonalds!! (A $1 cheeseburger, fries, and a mocha frappe). For breakfast, I also had some french toast pastries filled with cream cheese. YUM! After not eating for four days, I was in heaven.
The pain in my throat was also barely noticeable; only when I swallowed or spoke, and even then the pain was barely there. The night cap of day three was easy; stayed in bed all night. Not to say that I didn’t wake up, because I did a ton, but I was able to roll over and go back to sleep eventually. Waking up wasn’t the torture I was expecting. I just took some advil and went about my day. I even spent most of the day in the kitchen with my mom making tamales (which I plan on eating tomorrow), and I wrapped presents upstairs!
I was perfectly okay with today. If I keep making process like this, hopefully I’ll be almost good to go before Christmas comes around! (I want that turkey dinner!)
TIPS FOR DAY FOUR:
1. More ice water! I know you’re tempted to drink something else because water is boring, and personally I hate the taste, but it is probably the best thing for your throat.
2. If you can eat, EAT. I felt very weak on days two and three because I hadn’t eaten anything substantial since the day before my surgery. After eating, I felt better immediately. And I’m not exaggerating.
3. Rest your voice. I made the mistake of talking too much on day two when I was all doped up from the vicodin, but I payed for it during the following days.
Good luck!
You are in the war zone with the pain. A cold wrung out wash cloth helped me absorb heat from neck. I lived on Campbell’s noodle soup and applesauce. There is nothing like the pain and no one undserstood I wasn’t ready to go to Christmas parties on day 8. I am on day 15 and have been pain free for 4 days. Just know “This too shall pass” doesn’t seem like it but hang in there.
Day 2: Didn’t sleep well at all. Between having to pee every hour from drinking so much liquid and the discomfort, it was pretty rough. Finally slept a bit toward dawn but pain woke me up. Did fine after taking pain meds. Got my other prescription pills down. Actually feeling much better than I thought I would considering what I’ve been reading here. Ate some scrambled eggs and drank chicken broth. Feels a little different swallowing.
The only issue has been a case of the hiccups for the last couple of hours. Not bad but really annoying! Tried honey (which is awesome on the throat) and have been drinking to no avail… any suggestions?
Day 4, pain is increasing a little bit, had to get a refill on my Lortab as I’m still taking it every 4 hrs around the clock. Getting harder to swallow geltabs like the stool softeners, my synthroid, etc. but otherwise ok. I’m able to eat applesauce, popsicles, soup with soft noodles, etc. Sleeping a lot and only when propped up on the couch. Laying in any other position seems to clog up my sinuses and makes me mouth breathe which dries out my throat and only causes more pain. Still a better recovery than I anticipated but getting anxious that it could take a turn for the worse rather quickly over the next day or two.
hi my name is Alyssa i am on day 3 of my surgery im sitting here with a container full of mashed potatoes trying to eat but its just so hard to swallow, i squint my eyes everytime i swallow it hurts that bad, making me not even want to drink water. i just took my 3 teaspoons of codiene wich barley helps with pain it just makes me sleepy. i cant wait to eat chicken wings and a nice juicy ribeye again, im so thankful for finding these blogs i thought i had no one else to relate to, though some sound like they can eat a lot which i cannot . today when i woke up i was choking i had saliva all over and i guess the choking woke me up, i have this thick film in the back of my mouth it wont go away which makes everything i try to eat harder to swallow even water. i have not been able to go number 2 since the day before surgery so it has now been 3 days (sucks) i cant really brush my teeth either i only did a tiny bit but i cant even open my mouth up so i did my best. im trying to get the swelling to go down but it doesnt want to. idk anyone have any suggestions?
Hi Alyssa just like you I am also on day 3 of my surgery today my biggest pain was the ears and my jaw besides the obvious sore throat. My doctor told me to drink as much water as I can so I have been surviving in pure water no matter how badly it hurts to swallow the last thing I want is a trip to the ER. I’m on Percocet and can only take 1 every 5-6 hours because its really strong just yesterday I threw up because I took two and that pain intensified my sore throat. The constipation is due to the pain meds unfortunately. I am able to brush my teeth but not to perfection since my jaw hurts and I have a tingly feeling in my teeth. Te first two days ice cold water and Popsicles helped me a lot with the pain but today I am very sensitive to cold liquids. The best advise I can give you is to drink lots of water and take your pain meds as instructed by your doctor when the pain subsides a little try to eat. I wish you a speedy recovery!
Okay. I think I’m doing this backwards. As I’m reading the already-posted comments, everyone’s saying that today was the day things started going downhill. However, my case has been the exact opposite.
Today I was able to eat McDonalds!! (A $1 cheeseburger, fries, and a mocha frappe). For breakfast, I also had some french toast pastries filled with cream cheese. YUM! After not eating for four days, I was in heaven.
The pain in my throat was also barely noticeable; only when I swallowed or spoke, and even then the pain was barely there. The night cap of day three was easy; stayed in bed all night. Not to say that I didn’t wake up, because I did a ton, but I was able to roll over and go back to sleep eventually. Waking up wasn’t the torture I was expecting. I just took some advil and went about my day. I even spent most of the day in the kitchen with my mom making tamales (which I plan on eating tomorrow), and I wrapped presents upstairs!
I was perfectly okay with today. If I keep making process like this, hopefully I’ll be almost good to go before Christmas comes around! (I want that turkey dinner!)
TIPS FOR DAY FOUR:
1. More ice water! I know you’re tempted to drink something else because water is boring, and personally I hate the taste, but it is probably the best thing for your throat.
2. If you can eat, EAT. I felt very weak on days two and three because I hadn’t eaten anything substantial since the day before my surgery. After eating, I felt better immediately. And I’m not exaggerating.
3. Rest your voice. I made the mistake of talking too much on day two when I was all doped up from the vicodin, but I payed for it during the following days.
Good luck!
You are in the war zone with the pain. A cold wrung out wash cloth helped me absorb heat from neck. I lived on Campbell’s noodle soup and applesauce. There is nothing like the pain and no one undserstood I wasn’t ready to go to Christmas parties on day 8. I am on day 15 and have been pain free for 4 days. Just know “This too shall pass” doesn’t seem like it but hang in there.
Day 2: Didn’t sleep well at all. Between having to pee every hour from drinking so much liquid and the discomfort, it was pretty rough. Finally slept a bit toward dawn but pain woke me up. Did fine after taking pain meds. Got my other prescription pills down. Actually feeling much better than I thought I would considering what I’ve been reading here. Ate some scrambled eggs and drank chicken broth. Feels a little different swallowing.
The only issue has been a case of the hiccups for the last couple of hours. Not bad but really annoying! Tried honey (which is awesome on the throat) and have been drinking to no avail… any suggestions?
Day 4, pain is increasing a little bit, had to get a refill on my Lortab as I’m still taking it every 4 hrs around the clock. Getting harder to swallow geltabs like the stool softeners, my synthroid, etc. but otherwise ok. I’m able to eat applesauce, popsicles, soup with soft noodles, etc. Sleeping a lot and only when propped up on the couch. Laying in any other position seems to clog up my sinuses and makes me mouth breathe which dries out my throat and only causes more pain. Still a better recovery than I anticipated but getting anxious that it could take a turn for the worse rather quickly over the next day or two.
hi my name is Alyssa i am on day 3 of my surgery im sitting here with a container full of mashed potatoes trying to eat but its just so hard to swallow, i squint my eyes everytime i swallow it hurts that bad, making me not even want to drink water. i just took my 3 teaspoons of codiene wich barley helps with pain it just makes me sleepy. i cant wait to eat chicken wings and a nice juicy ribeye again, im so thankful for finding these blogs i thought i had no one else to relate to, though some sound like they can eat a lot which i cannot . today when i woke up i was choking i had saliva all over and i guess the choking woke me up, i have this thick film in the back of my mouth it wont go away which makes everything i try to eat harder to swallow even water. i have not been able to go number 2 since the day before surgery so it has now been 3 days (sucks) i cant really brush my teeth either i only did a tiny bit but i cant even open my mouth up so i did my best. im trying to get the swelling to go down but it doesnt want to. idk anyone have any suggestions?
Hi Alyssa just like you I am also on day 3 of my surgery today my biggest pain was the ears and my jaw besides the obvious sore throat. My doctor told me to drink as much water as I can so I have been surviving in pure water no matter how badly it hurts to swallow the last thing I want is a trip to the ER. I’m on Percocet and can only take 1 every 5-6 hours because its really strong just yesterday I threw up because I took two and that pain intensified my sore throat. The constipation is due to the pain meds unfortunately. I am able to brush my teeth but not to perfection since my jaw hurts and I have a tingly feeling in my teeth. Te first two days ice cold water and Popsicles helped me a lot with the pain but today I am very sensitive to cold liquids. The best advise I can give you is to drink lots of water and take your pain meds as instructed by your doctor when the pain subsides a little try to eat. I wish you a speedy recovery!