Planning and Recovering From Tonsillectomy and Adenoidectomy
Let’s start with my own tonsillectomy recovery story. I wasn’t always this healthy. As a kid I ingested more penicillin than a corporate-raised chicken. I was in the doctor’s office several times each year with a sore throat. As the doctor or nurse peered into my mouth, the reaction was always the same: “Whoa, those are some big tonsils!” The diagnosis was usually tonsillitis, or strep throat. As the doctor wrote the prescription, he’d explain that years ago, tonsils like mine would have been removed, but, “these days,” we try to hang onto them. “These days,” were the 1970’s. I guess the tonsillectomy pendulum had swung back from the days when kids got their tonsils out because their brother was getting his out.
Aunt Kate’s reassurance helped, but I still wrote out some just-in-case instructions for my brother and hid them in my closet. I sheepishly told him where they were, just in case.
“This is temporary. You WILL feel better. Hang in there and stay hydrated!” -Greg Tooke
As an adult I continued to suffer from frequent bouts of tonsillitis. It seemed that I caught every bug that passed through my house or workplace. I guess those big ugly tonsils were a nice home for those nasties. It wasn’t until my 40’s that I also became aware that I suffered from something called, Obstructive Sleep Apnea -a condition in which a person stops breathing while asleep. I snored often and would awake abruptly, gulping in big breaths. I felt tired most days. After raising four babies, I had come to accept fatigue as a normal part of life! One day at a routine physical my doctor remarked about the number of episodes of strep throat and tonsillitis I’d had. We also talked about the sleep problems. While he didn’t formally diagnose obstructive sleep apnea, he suspected that I had it. He recommended a tonsillectomy, because of all the tonsil problems I’d had. As a bonus, I might find relief from the sleep apnea as well. If not, I’d undergo a sleep study. Forty four years old and father of four boys and a doctor finally said it: Those tonsils are doing you more harm than good! As much as I hated those tonsils, I was terrified at the thought of going under the knife. I started reading about tonsillectomy recovery on the internet and talking to friends. That didn’t help. “My cousin knew a guy who got a tonsillectomy and bled to death.” “At your age, tonsillectomy is dangerous.” When I met with the ear, nose and throat specialist, (an otolaryngologist), he told me that the risks are the same for an adult undergoing tonsillectomy surgery as for a child, but tonsillectomy recovery is longer and more painful. He was right about that!
Deciding to get a Tonsillectomy
I scheduled the surgery for the day after Thanksgiving. A traditional day of feasting in the United States. If it was to be my last meal, I planned to make it a good one! As it turned out, I was so nervous and scared that I could hardly eat on that day. I was recently divorced and had shared placement of my four boys. So many people counted on me that I began to question my decision. What if I died on the table? How reckless to leave behind a family, simply to avoid frequent tonsillitis? My aunt, a registered nurse reassured me about how simple the surgery was, and how far anesthesiology had come. I had nothing to worry about. Aunt Kate’s reassurance helped, but I still wrote out some just-in-case instructions for my brother and hid them in my closet. I sheepishly told him where they were, just in case
“My tonsils were like a 400 pound gorilla on my back. I don’t miss them at all. Ever.” -from the forum ________________________________________________________________________________
I took a week off from work, asked my ex wife to take care of the boys that week, and asked my uncle to drive me to and from the hospital. (a requirement with anesthesia) That was about all the tonsillectomy recovery preparation I did. I was about to learn a lot! Surgery went fine. I awoke in recovery with a serving of Jell-o in front of me. (“Jelly,” to my British friends) The nurse said that I had to finish it before I could check out. I swallowed it with great relish. It was divine! I called my uncle and we were out of there. I felt ok. I told him thanks and not to worry. I’d be fine. I believed this. Aside from a couple visits, I spent the next ten days alone in misery. The pain set in after about 24 hours. Streaming movies and television shows were my friends. Sleeping became my worst enemy. I’d wake up with my mouth dried out and my throat on fire. Oh my God. I was not prepared for this! I ran out of Popsicle’s on day three. I ran out of pain medicine on day five. The pain peaked on day seven. I broke down and cried in front of my brother on day eight- a combination of pain, drug induced depression, and sleep deprivation. Since then, I’ve read thousands of similar accounts on the tonsillectomy forum I created. It didn’t have to be so hard. If I’d known what I do now, I could have done so much to make my tonsillectomy recovery better. I hope to reach as many people as I can to help guide them through the tunnel. It has been my passion and taught me more about compassion and the amazing strength of the human spirit than any other life experience. When you shine a light for others, you also light your own path.
In the pages at follow, I’ll share tonsillectomy recovery tips with you that I learned from my tonsillectomy experience and years of coaching others through tonsillectomy and recovery.
Hello, I’m a 34 year old female. I had my tonsils out 2 days ago. I read all the forums etc before having it done, and safe to say I was/am pooping my pants! I got tonsil stones, and have done for years, so as much as I knew this was going to hurt, I chose it over having to live with these horrible disgusting lumps in my throat. So far it’s bearable. I’ve had 2 children with no pain relief, but I’m really not looking forward to this recovery. That being said, I’m determined I’m gonna do this! I’m taking liquid paracetamol and ibuprofen every 4 hours for now. I’ve been given some codeine too, but I’m saving that until it gets bad ? so far though the mornings are the worst, and in the night when your mouth is dryer than ghandis flip flop! But I find a nice warm cup of tea first thing and some medicine eases things. I’ve been eating 3 meals a day (small and soft meals) and drinking sips of water throughout. I’ve been gargling with half water and chorsydoyl. The doctor told me to eat normally, as that’s what will clean and clear the throat, so that’s what I’ve been doing. I’m praying it’s going to stay bearable
Hi, I had mine out 3 weeks ago today now and all good. Day 6-9 was probably my worst. It’s definitely the mornings that hurt the most. I was getting up and taking my meds as soon as I could. Paramol was the strongest over the counter meds I could get (UK) but does contain codiene which makes you constipated so clever idea to hold off these until you really need them. I have my check up tomorrow and all the scabs (white/yellow gunk) have gone. Feeling fine now to be honest but there were a few days where I struggled. Being a mum I think youre going to be fine. The first 2 days you are still a little bit numb, I was munching on toast and telling everyone how easy it was but it changes when your throat starts trying to heal. When it gets bad just remember it’s temporary and try and get as much sleep as you can. I also had the weird nose breathing thing when I lied down so slept propped up for the first week. Ideally you dont want to sleep with your mouth open if you can help it due to the throat drying up. The blocked nose thing dissapeared around day 10 and its all fine now. I had a humidifier in my bedroom on full blast in my face most nights, hard to know what difference it made though. Fave discovery was knorr chicken soup with noodles. The ones that come in a sachet and you just add water. My taste buds aren’t back to normal yet but I’m not panicking about it as I’ve read it can take a little while to return to normal. I must say that it’s crazy to see all the space back there is in my throat now the tonsils are gone. Who knew?!? Good luck! ?
Well last night wasn’t good. I stupidly thought I’d be OK on just paracetamol (because you have to eat with the ibuprofen) but boy was i wrong. I won’t be making that mistake again. I’m starting to get annoyed already that I’m not better yet! Lol. I knew it would take at least 2 weeks, but I’ve had enough of this already. I’ve only looked at my throat once (because it grosses me out) but when I did I actually thought the same thing! Wow there’s so much room! I didn’t think tonsils were that big! The soup sachets sound a great idea! I’ll get my mum onto that ☺
Also, did you gargle?
Hi,
I didn’t use any mouthwash. I did have death breath for the first 6 days but just gargled with room temp water. I was on the max meds from day 1 to about day 9 and then just used ibuprofen for a few days after that. I tired the nurofen that melts in your mouth and solpadiene that you dissolve in water but they hurt to swallow sometimes (really hurt in the morning) and tasted rancid and I ended up just getting tablets and grinding them with a few drops of cola on a spoon. I took me a while to get the right timing of my meds and there was sometimes when they just didn’t mask the pain and I would try and just sleep through until I could have my next round. I did..
Co-codamol as soon as I woke up 4am – 6am – worst point in the day!!
wait till they kick in then try and eat something
back to bed for a bit
ibuprofen around 8
co codamol around 12
ibuprofen and cocodamol at 6pm – best part of the day and you can usually eat something/anything
ibuprofen and cocodamol at 10pm – happy bed times
obviously go by your own prescription advice if different
Nic
Hi guys! Month-long lurker, first time poster 🙂
It’s so weird but I’ve never felt compelled to participate in any sort of blog until having this procedure done. I read lots of other sites before my procedure, just to get me prepared for the worst but hoping for the best. This is definitely the most positive forum, so I really appreciate being able to share my experience so far!
I’m 28 – had my T&A done on the 2nd of December, so I guess that makes me 6 days post-op. I really feel for ya’ll that had rough patches the first couple of days. I had minimal trouble – yes, the anesthesia did make me barf the day of surgery (which weirdly enough wasn’t painful – just all liquid), and yes, waking up was the absolute WORST. I think I was setting an alarm every 45 minutes to keep my throat moist the first couple of nights, which did definitely help; however, you get way less than the required amount of sleep. I think it’s worth the temporary annoyance, though.
My doc sent me home with some papers on what to expect over the next couple of days, most of which I either felt very minimally, or not at all. I have been waking up every morning though absolutely DRENCHED. I guess I’m running a fever each night when I sleep, and it breaks in the middle of one of my sleep sessions. Has anyone else been feverish every night? I don’t have a temp reader (don’t hit me over the head with a rock), but I feel very fine during the day so I really am doubting it’s a temp to be concerned about. Thoughts?
Day 5 was ironically the best day for me – I managed to have a soup-soaked grilled cheese, which was an absolute delight. Ran a couple errands with my mom (my caretaker for the day), and was able to talk relatively normally.
And then Day 6 happened 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
And I am in hell 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂
I opened my mouth as far as I could, and I could see itty bitty red rings around my scabs which is fresh, baby sensitive skin. Excited to know they’re finally getting ready to slough off, but not too thrilled so far with how everything feels today. I guess this is what I get for having a really issue-free first 5 days.
Children’s Tylenol is DELICIOUS (grape, duh) – if you prefer the liquid, the pharmacist told me that the average adult dosage is about one tablespoon. Really does help take the edge off (for me, anyway). I was prescribed anti-nausea meds and liquid oxycodone. Boyyy lemme tell ya – that stuff will be for absolute emergencies only. So unbelievably drowsy that I could barely keep my eyes open, which is honestly frightening. Lights were on, no one was home. Breathing slowed down IMMENSELY – the little I was able to sleep, I was jarred awake by the feeling that I wasn’t breathing (probably wasn’t for a few seconds). I think in my drug-induced panic I Googled “DYING FROM SLEEP APNEA AFTER TONSILLECTOMY” or something like that. No, girl. Just super scary, totally not okay, side effects. Bottom line: if you take them, be careful. If you don’t need to, Children’s Tylenol will help (and won’t make you Google stupid things out of fear).
Anyway, I’m happy to hear from ya’ll on this journey. I have a feeling the sloughing off part is not pleasant, but I really don’t have anything to complain about overall. It is totally temporary 🙂
Hello all, I had my tonsils removed on the 1st of this month, the first few days have been utter crap! Aching body! I fainted yesterday night was dehydrated! To those’s who are getting the tonsils removed be prepared for pain its not an easy ride! I’m on day 6 and still in pain!
Good luck to all
I’m a 17 y/o female and had my tonsils removed this past Monday the 28th. A little backstory- I had a crazy tonsil infection that was totally resistant to antibiotics. In about 3 months, I’d gotten the infection 9 or 10 times back-to-back, and I was constantly on antibiotics. I was feeling like total crap because of all this and the tonsillectomy was my only hope! Anyways, I will tell you that the week afterwards is not going to be fun. I’m on day 4, and honestly, the pain really hasn’t let up much. However, I have noticed some things that really help you to feel better and I’d like to share because this is such a painful thing to go through!!
Tip #1- DRINK WATER. Or any fluid like gatorade, crystal light, etc. I stuck with water most of the time and drank some crystal light when I got bored of that. It’s going to hurt to drink, but the water will help keep your scabs moist and give them a good environment to heal faster. When they get dry, the pain is even worse, and there is a greater risk of bleeding. Also, drinking water will help you feel better overall. You won’t be able to eat much (all I’ve really eaten since surgery is a bowl of soup today), so the least you can do is keep hydrated- you won’t feel as drained.
Tip #2- Take your pain medicine! Try as hard as you can to be consistent in taking your medicine. Most likely you will receive liquid oxycodone from your doctor which you take 2 tsp of every 4 hours. Even when you sleep, try to set an alarm on your phone every 4 hours to take the medicine. This will really help to manage the pain. Also, every 4 hours I took tylenol (I would alternate every 2 hours oxycodone and tylenol). This will help to ease the swelling in your throat and take a little more of the pain off. Don’t, however, take ibuprofen because it can increase your bleeding risk.
Tip #3- Be prepared for the anesthesia to wear off. On day 1 or 2 after the surgery, your anesthesia will start to wear off and it SUCKS. I had very bad body aches, was extremely nauseous and actually threw up twice that day (throwing up on an empty stomach with healing scabs in your throat isn’t pleasant). Some people have worse reactions than others, but if you can, try not to take too much pain medication while at the hospital. I had 4 doses of morphine and a vicodin before I left the hospital, which is probably why I had such a bad reaction when it wore off.
Tip #4- This goes along with the last tip, which is if you know you don’t react well to anesthesia, try to ask for a nausea medication before you go home. Most likely they’ll give you zofran, which you just let dissolve on your tongue and you’ll feel 100% better. Like I said, throwing up while your throat is healing is SO painful.
Tip #5- Get a humidifier! When you’re sleeping, obviously, you can’t drink anything, so it hurts more in the morning because your throat is drier. Having a humidifier will help to keep your throat moist whenever you’re not drinking anything, and this will help the pain and also help you heal faster.
Tip #6- Have an ice pack handy when you get home. It actually feels great to have an ice pack on your neck while you eat your ice cream or a popsicle. This will also help with body aches the day after if you get any.
Tip #7- Best foods to eat! Honestly, you won’t want to eat at all for the first few days. If you’re able, though, try to at least choke down something. You’ll feel much better with something in your stomach. Stick with chicken or beef broth, ice cream, applesauce, yogurt, popsicles, smoothies or milkshakes for the first few days- your mouth will probably be very sore and it’ll be difficult to open it wide or to chew (try to chew gum or open and close your mouth to exercise your muscles, then it will be easier to eat). Once you feel well enough to eat real food, still stick with soft things, but you can have something that will fill you up a little bit more. I’m eating a lot of soup (soups with vegetables, noodles or meat are good), just make sure it’s not too hot but warm foods or very cold foods will feel best. Good luck!!
I am 15 years old and I’m on day 9 of recovering from getting my tonsils removed. I have had strep throat countless amounts of times. So I decided to get my tonsils removed so I wouldn’t always have so much pain. I mean 1 week of pain and never having strep throat ever again sounded really nice. So I am going to be telling you my day to day experience and tips on what i’ve felt and what’s been getting me through this time.
DAY 1 – Today was the day I was getting my tonsils out. It was my very first surgery so I was very scared. But it was SO easy! I didn’t feel any pain and it was not scary at all. Don’t be scared to have the procedure don’t AT ALL. When I woke up my uvula was very swollen and it didn’t hurt it was just very uncomfortable. When I got home from the hospital I was asleep most of the day but when I was awake I would eat a lot of ice cream and drink lots of water.
DAY 2 – Today was very easy. I watched tv and was asleep a lot. My uvula was still very swollen but I got used to it. I didn’t like to eat noodles because it hurt a little and it felt like they were going to get stuck in my throat because of mu uvula. I slept a lot this day and was still very tired from the day before. I chewed little pieces of ice which felt really good.
DAY 3, 4 & 5 – I had very minimal pain these days. I just watched tv because when I walked I felt a little nauseous from the surgery and my meds. I ate lots of ice cream and ate a lot of soup. I also drank a lot of cold water. I took a nap for a few hours each day. My uvula went down a lot with the swelling to where it’s almost normal. Overall not too bad.
DAY 6 – I was in a little pain in the morning but after I took my meds I was much better. I even went to the beach. I just sat on the sand for a few hours and drank hot chocolate. I REALLY suggest going outside because I felt totally fine. Especially just being in the sun breathing in fresh air. I even played some ping pong with my friends at the mall lol. I also ate some mac n cheese for dinner and a few french fries. It was a good day. And I didn’t take a nap.
DAY 7 – Normally I wake up every 4 hours at night so I can take my medicine but I thought I just wanted to sleep through the night so I didn’t set an alarm to wake up. I woke up are 6 in the morning absolutely crying I was in so much pain. It was really hard to swallow ANYTHING including my pain meds. I only ate italian ice which felt really good. I barely ate anything and didn’t drink anything.
DAY 8 – Same pain as yesterday but a little worse. It hurts the most in the morning but once you take your medication it doesn’t hurt as bad. It feels like your throat is burning. This is because the scabs are starting to fall off.
DAY 9 – I woke up crying for the third day in a row. I also noticed that the right side of my throat was a dark red color and the left side was white/green. So I went to the doctors for my check up and he sad everything that i’m experiencing is totally normal. I ate more italian ice which is very soothing. I also tried to drink more water because I felt dehydrated.
It has definitely been painful at times but overall, I think it is going to be worth it. Here’s some tips:
Get a humidifier
Italian ice
Wake up at night to take medicine at night
Chew little pieces of ice
Put ice in a bag and just set it on
Go outside
Drink lots of cold water
Eat soup with little noodles
Good luck 😉