Tonsillectomy Recovery Day 11 and Beyond

Tonsillectomy Recovery after Day Eleven

 

At some point I hope to add pages for day 12, day 13, day 14, day 15, day 16, and another page for days 17,18,19, and 20.  For now, please share your tonsillectomy recovery experiences here.  I wish you the very best of health!



  1. ty
    Hey. Its me again. Had the surgery last week and OMG! The worst days of my life. I will make it but geeze!! This sucks bad. I had to read your comments again because I began to get depressed, lol. Im driving my husband and doctor crazy by keep asking them how long will this last. Its good hearing from someone that understands the process and pain. Your experiences are helping me through girl. Thanks again:)

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    1. Kate
      Horrible flashbacks reading your message Ty! I have just returned from a business trip, meeting lots of new people, and I didn’t have to worry about my breath: so liberating and confidence building. I discovered that one of my colleagues had her tonsils removed 2 years ago – when I happened to mention that I was just a few weeks on from my operation, she gave me a big bear hug because she could empathise with my more recent experience. You WILL eat, sleep and enjoy life again – I promise! Stay positive: you made the right decision.

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  2. Kate
    I am now four weeks post surgery (in the UK), and life is good! I had a tonsillectomy due to tonsil stones (I had small, pitted tonsils, and was unable to remove the stones myself, whatever method I tried) – private medical insurance and a past history of throat infections helped get me the surgery. I knew it was a drastic option, but I was prepared to do ANYTHING to solve my bad breath problems. I did nearly cancel when I read this forum the day before surgery though! But I didn’t, and I survived, and my tonsil stones and bad breath are finally GONE!Having found this forum so much help during the dark days post-surgery, I wanted to share my experience/what helped me. If you are about to have surgery, or are still in recovery, I can promise you it will get SO much better in a few days – hang in there!1. Don’t plan ANYTHING for the two weeks post surgery – and make sure you book at least two weeks off work. Days 5 – 8 were the worst for me, although in total I had about 10 days of constant pain/medication and sleep deprivation.
    2. I cried A LOT on day one – a mixture of the anesthesia/trauma, relief at getting through surgery, and pain! I had one night in hospital.
    3. Sucking on crushed ice helps a lot – make sure you have some in stock. I did not use a humidifier – we didn’t want to pump damp air into our bedroom!
    4. Take as much pain medication as you can – I used Tramadol, ibuprofen and paracetamol – you will not get addicted, and you WILL need them. But keep a drug diary so you can recall what drugs you took and when – you will not remember!
    5. Sleeping with my face/throat on a hot water bottle helped me a lot in days 5+: your throat muscles tighten up in response to the surgery, and I think this helped relax me a little
    6. The nights were the worst, as I would wake up in a lot of pain and then struggle to swallow more medication/get back to sleep. Listening to the radio really helped get me through the dark, lonely hours. My husband moved into the spare bed for the first 10 days, to ensure he could get some sleep and I could thrash around the bed as much as I needed to get comfortable!
    7. In the UK we are advised to eat rough food e.g. toast when we can. I did manage this a couple of times, but I mostly lived on soup (no bread!), fish in sauce (you can buy this frozen in handy microwaveable pouches), yogurt, porridge and hot chocolate. I tried making smoothies but the fruit was too acidic and hurt my throat. There were a couple of days when I could not face eating anything due to the pain. I did not get constipated, and I did not lose much weight – because I spent two weeks resting, and most of what I DID eat was high calorie!
    8. You will be too tired to read much – have a good set of DVDs on standby
    9. I did not have any bleeding. I felt so ill that completely resting in the first week was an easy option – and I made sure I had someone on call in the first few days, just in case
    10. I was able to speak on all days, although about half an hour of conversation was enough
    11. I went for my first short walk one week after surgery. Four weeks on, I am now exercising as normal – running, swimming and pilates.
    12. I stopped regular pain relief on about day 15, having gradually cut down on what I was taking.
    13. I gradually re-introduced different types of food after two weeks. I still have a sticky feeling in the back of my throat, which I expect to disappear over the coming weeks.My tonsillectomy recovery was the worst 10 days of my life. But ridding myself of tonsil stones is one of the best things I ever did!

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    1. Ty
      Thank you for sharing. I also have tonsil stones and thought I may be going to far getting surgery to remove them. I’m a married woman and nothing’s is more damaging to a marriage than insecurity. TMI, I know just wanted to say thanks for sharing your experience. I’m going forwadr with the surgery.

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      1. Kate
        I am also married (and 47 – forgot that bit!) and would not even discuss the problem with my husband. So I feel your insecurity! It will hurt a lot – stay focused on the goal and remember that in a few days you will be much better, and also liberated!

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  3. Ellen Howard
    Day 9 of my recovery.I’m not sure how relevant this will be to anyone because I’m not entirely sure how common it is. I’m just turned 18 and have been having a lot of problems with my tonsils for the best part of three years. One thing I always found when digging out those god awful tonsil stones was that my tonsils were extremely prone to bleeding – something my ENT surgeon also found out on the day of the op!He said no one in his experience had bled that much in a tonsillectomy procedure in years. I had to be stitched right up on my right side and let me tell you, we all know how sore recovery is without stitches right? Imagine being wheeled out of theatre with those bad boys in you. It’s been sore, for the first few days it was the actual space at the top of the back of my throat that was painful and white and scabby. I was throwing up old blood so frequently (and a lot of it might I add) that I couldnt keep anything down; not food, not painkillers. It was awful.But I powered through and ate as much as I could, despite the pain, because I thought ‘you know what I’ve put up with enough sh*t from my tonsils this time I’m gonna show ‘em what I’m made of!’ And after about day three or four the pain subsided from my tonsil bed area and is now a horrible stingy/achy feeling further down my throat, which apparently is due to the whole stitching procedure, I guess a lot of tubes were bumped around in this process and it’s seriously bruised me inside. I find the pain really hits me at night and I’m starting to get severe earaches to accompany that, which is nice! My co-codamol painkillers ran out days ago so I’m going strong on paracetamol and Diclofenac.

    I hope everyone else is managing to power through! Just think of all the tonsillitus and nasty tonsil stones that you’re gonna get to avoid for the rest of your life! Remember, at most this recovery process is going to take 17-20 days, which in perspective, is more than worth it to be tonsil free!

    Stay safe xxx

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  4. Lindsey
    I am a 24 year old female, I had my tonsils removed on July 23. I had my tonsils removed due to horrid tonsil stones. Let me start off by saying DRINK WATER NO MATTER HOW BAD IT HURTS!!!! Day 1: after procedure you’re so loopy from meds it flys by. I was offered a blue slushing and teddy Graham’s. 8 bags of teddy Graham’s later I am ready to keave!! After surgery I even had McDonald’s I don’t even remember eating it. Throat was numb all day long. I received percocet 5mg. All you will want to do is sleep. Have someone wake you up to drink and take meds!!Day 2: pain was still tolerable I started taking the pain medication every 4 hours so the pain doesn’t get out of control. I was eating mash potatoes ( the pre made bob Evans kind was the smoothest), I noticed ice cold water stung my throat so room temperature worked. I was drinking every 20 mins to keep the throat moist. Sleeping was horrible, I ended up sleeping on couch so my head would be propped up. Waking up every 45 mins to sip water, you get no sleep at all. I didn’t want my throat to dry out because it is so painful. I set my alarm every 4 hours so I would take my medicine.Day 3,4,5: Worst days ever! Extreme pain 10/10, that pain medicine didn’t help! Ear pain started kicking in. I had ice constantly on my throat to keep swelling down. Scabs were formed in back of throat very thick. Drinking water was a task. Everytime I swallowed felt like razorblades. I had to force myself to eat. Ended up getting a blood clot on my left tonsil on day5 and started bleeding. On call dr told me to drink ice cold water and it helped. Woke up after and blood clot resolved on its own. I was having mini hot flashes all day.Day 6: I felt like a new person. Pain was a 6/10. I was eating drinking taking my neds around the clock

    Day 7,8,9: scabs started falling off day 7. It feels like something is caught in back of throat when them fall off. Throat is very sensitive after they fall off that any liquid or food stings the throat. I have bumped my meds down to 1 pill every 4 hours instead of 2 pills. Sleeping longer through the night.

    Day 10 and on: pain has started to be controlled with Motrin. I feel 100% better!! I am starting to eat solid foods. I had PBJ sandwhich and it was easy to go down. I feel back to my normal self. Throat still hurts but just like it would as a sore throat.

    I think keeping myself hydrated non stopped helped with my speedy recovery. I go back to wk in a few days and feel comfortable going back. I still have to drink water so throat doesn’t get dry. My scabs are 75% gone. I’ve had someone with me the whole time and you DO need that. Milk never seemed to cause the phlegm in my throat as others posted. It soothed the burning. I lived off mash potatoes and chick n star soup mix for the first days. Keep taking medication when it’s due so pain stays under control!! Take the full two weeks off dr reccomends because you will need it. I would do this surgery again knowing it is going to cure my tonsil stones and stinky breath! Sorry this blog is all over the place my mind is going crazy! I hope everyone as a good recovery as well as I’ve had!

Check out our new tonsillectomy recovery video- Caution: Not always pretty

A collection of various experiences of adult tonsillectomy patients after their tenth day of tonsillectomy recovery
From thousands of post comments to the tonsillectomy recovery forum, I am assembling a sampling of various accounts and impressions of tonsillectomy recovery for each day. Below I share comments about tonsillectomy recovery after day 11. These comments are from tonsillectomy patients who were kind enough to share their experiences to help others as they navigate the bumpy road of tonsillectomy recovery.

 

Many will experience depression toward the end of of their tonsillectomy recovery.

Depression after tonsillectomy
Depression After Tonsillectomy?

-Greg Tooke 

343 comments

  1. Day 16:

    Wow this is rough. I guess it’s been 2 days since I got cauterized. The pain is definitely there, it’s hard to eat and swallow, I am really struggling here. I wonder how long this process will be and I worry I will bleed again but we wont know for another 10-14 days right? I keep coughing like something is caught up in my lungs

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    1. Hi I am on day 11 of my adventure. I have very little pain so far with the exception that I ended up with thrush which was not really pleasant. My problem is here on day 11 my scabs still have not come off. They say its the worst part but why are they not coming off. I stressed over bleeding I must check or have someone check my throat 20 times a day. I have not bled yet. They say it is most likely to happen when the scabs come off but i think mine are here to stay lol

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  2. I’m having my tonsils out on July 23rd. I have a camping trip planned for August 23-25. Is this out of the question?

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  3. Day 14

    I am the one that had the easiest recovery, I mean hardly any pain until day 9-10. I was back to eating everything by day 12 and gained voice back. I came back from a week-end trip where i relaxed most of the time and on my way to work yesterday (day 14) I started bleeding. The ENT office is across form my work so I stopped in for quick advice. He ended up cauterizing me in his office but it wasnt good enough even if bleeding eventually stopped, we did emergency surgery later on. And I have moved on with my life. Now he wants me on bed rest, not sure how I will afford all this. He said liquids only for 10 days and also that now the pain would be worse, he had to put stiches on and said that we started all over again:-( So I guess today is day1 or 15 and yes, the hyrocodone doesnt take the whole pain away but it makes in more manageable. Now I’ll get constipated again and all. He said it’s serious, this could happen in 10-15 days again. I lost 10 pounds, I am now 117, not sure I can afford to lose another 10

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  4. Greg THANK YOU soo much for this website!! Hoping you can help me. I am a 34 year old female and had a tonsillectomy 5/13/13, leaving me at 16 days post op. 6 days in I vomitted a couple times, ended up with 101.6 f fever next morning. Went to urgent care got 2liters of fluids and Iv antibiotics for elevated white count. This ENTIRE time I have had SEVERE pain 20/20, since day 14 it’s been about 15/20. The doctor acts like your crazy if you report pain past “expected” time frames (im also a 12 year RN in PACU with this docs pts on reg) So needless to say i stopped asking for pain meds and have only been taking motrin for the last5-6 days. I did EVERYTHING right, I still cant eat must past broth, my tonsil beds look great HOWEVER every time I swallow I have 20/20 pain deep in my throat or the back of my tongue!!!???? Any ideas what could cause such severe deep throat pain this far out and when I can expect it to feel better (as a RN I want to tell myself it’s still a scab, but REALLY that deep)

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    1. Forgot to mention cold like ice and Popsicles have always actually made the pain worse and now I can barely tolerate sips of room temp water!!! HELP!!!

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      1. Yes I set my water out to get room temp and the popsickles definitely don’t work. I am lucky if I am able to get 1bottle water down. This is truly sad. 🙁

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    2. Hi Heidi my name is Nicole. I am going through the same thing. I am on day 8. I went to my doctors office and the nurse told me that my scab and the area where the tonsils was is rubbing together and that is why I feel the sting so she gave me some Lidocane so that I can numb the area. However it is not working for me. It is very painful. I hope that you will be OK. I had surgery on may 31st. I just can’t wait for this to be over.

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  5. I am 3 weeks post op today from my tonsillectomy in Thailand. It has been a rough 3 weeks, but now I have a weird taste when I eat certain foods. Not all foods taste bad, but most do. How long does this last?

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    1. I’m about 30 days post surgery. I experienced the same with certain foods as well however, that seems to be gone now. For a while I did feel my tongue to bit a bit swollen and maybe even tough as if it got burnt but maybe by next week or so that will change for you as well.

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      1. Thanks, I hope it does get better soon. It’s really frustrating when I want to eat something only to find once I get it that it taste horrible and I end up not being able to.

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      2. I’m now 4 weeks post surgery and some foods still heave that strange taste. Sometimes it’s a metal taste and some foods it’s a sweet taste, but not in a good way. Has anyone else experienced this 4 weeks after surgery and if so how long until all foods taste normal again? Also I notice sometimes after I eat I get what looks like a blister in the back of my throat where my tonsils were is this normal? Being so far from home, I am an American and having this surgery here in Thailand I can say this site has been a blessing to me. Healing time for everyone is different, but make sure you get good medicines. Here they tried to give me children’s Tylenol which did not even touch the pain. It took 3 days before I got good medicine that helped. Thanks again for the site!

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        1. I’m now 6 weeks post surgery and only this week, was I able to yawn without any pain. However, I still get the funny taste, not only when I eat certain foods, but most of the day there is a funny taste in my mouth. Can’t quite put my finger on what it tastes like, but it is irritating. I also still feel like I am choking and find it difficult to breathe. But I’ve been told and all the research indicates that this is a normal part of recovery and I just have to give it time. Talking for long periods is still a challenge and unfortunately my job requires me to do alot of talking. But thankfully, I have a great support system at home and at work. I think I may have over done it 3 weeks post op, cause I was moving and against doctors orders, I was doing alot of heavy lifting that that may have slowed down my healing alittle. But God is good and all should be well soon. Hope this helps someone else who is 6 weeks out.

        2. I had my surgery 6 weeks ago as well. Same here with the yawning. Still certain foods irritate the back of my throat. Also, I feel like I might have a scab left…Is that possible??? Overall, my recovery has been good with the exception of an allergic reaction to pain meds (Loritab-hydrocodine) not a fan of pain meds anyway, so just took extra strength Tylenol starting at day 6/7…

        3. I am on day 12.. I feel like crap am cold yet sweating, no fever. I didn’t really go off the hydrocodone slowly, just lowered the dose and tyres going as long as possible without it. I don’t know if its withdrawals and no one else has really mentioned this yet? The pain when yawning isn’t really pain it feels like my skin stretching. Also my ear canals itch. Lol I am sure its just referred pain itchiness from them healing I dont know.. but I am defiantly over this constipation bs. I have IBS and already have issues in that department and honestly its more painful than the surgery was! Not sure if others have this problem but I highly recommend a dose of miralax within your diet/pain management/sleep schedule to make it easier on your system!

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