Tonsillectomy Scabs- How and when do they fall off?
Regardless of the tonsillectomy method used, some sort of scab is going to form over the the area from which your tonsils have been cut, coblated, and/or cauterized.
It’s normal. It is normal. People often become obsessed with the appearance of the tonsil beds as they recover from tonsillectomy. Almost like a recently lost tooth, it can be hard to resist the temptation to explore the new landscape. This too is normal. I strongly advise against molesting the area with foreign objects. Those scabs will fall off on their own. Touching, poking, or scraping on them increases the risk of hemorrhage and you don’t want that.
Many Otoraryngologists, or ear, nose and throat, (ENT) specialists recommend eating a somewhat rough diet, (think dry toast), to keep the affected area clear of excessive tonsillectomy scab build-up. This advice is most often given in the United Kingdom and Australia. Most ENT’s in the United States advise a soft diet.
Which ever route you take, there will likely be formation of tissue that covers the tonsil beds. I recommend following the advice I give in other pages of this site; keep the throat moist, avoid sharp foods, stay hydrated, take pain medications on schedule, sleep upright if possible, and leave those tonsillectomy scabs alone. They will normally begin to slough of at about day seven or eight of your recovery.
What Happens When Tonsillectomy Scabs Fall Off
You may feel a sharp pain occasionally as the tonsillectomy scabs fall off. This is common. This is normal. There is a slight increase in risk of bleeding while tonsillectomy scabs fall off. If you do have some bleeding, try gargling with ice cold water. This will usually stop the bleeding. If this doesn’t work, and bleeding becomes profuse, call 911 or get to a hospital immediately. Don’t panic. In there relatively rare cases, health care professionals have great success at stopping the bleed.
Daily Photos of Throat After Tonsillectomy. Caution: Scabs
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21 year old female, had my tonsils out July 5th 2017 (so I’m on day 7) and it’s been pretty excruciating. First few days were painful but I slept a lot. By day 4 I was in a lot of pain and each day after that it progressed and each day I thought would be the worst of them but I was wrong. Day 6 was ACTUALLY the worst. I ate about 3 bites of applesauce all day just to be able to take my meds and any sort of talking, drinking or eating was hell. Cold foods never felt good so it didn’t matter what temperature just swallowing in general sucks. Doctor doubled my pain med dose bc of my pain but now I’m almost out of medication. I’ve lost 8 pounds and I only weighed 130 to begin with. I’m hoping things will start looking up soon bc all I can think about is pizza.
Okay so I’m 15 and had my tonsils, adenoids and tonsil stones removed on July 6th and the pain has been pretty bad except for day 1 and day 3. I’m on day 4 and it hasn’t been too bad except for this morning. I’m on Vickadin and Predisolone (prednisone). I can hardly swallow so i kinda have to force food down or i wont eat and ill lose weight. My mom is also getting me to take 3 Ibuprofen every 6-12 hours. I do sleep most of the time to cope with the pain. I can’t wait for the scabs to completely fall off.
I had mine removed the same day lol
You shouldn’t be taking any ibuprofen bc that can increase your chances of bleeding
Ibuprofen doesn’t increase the risk of bleeding – I thought it would too, so thoroughly checked it out.
I’m a 21 year old male and today om July 6th I had my surgery I was in an out in 4 hours, I think my doctor was amazing he is the head of the teaching department at the university of British Columbia so I think I had luck that I got him! I’m 6 hours after surgery and the freezing has worn off I have no pain at all ? Is this normal ? I have just a bit of irritation when I swollow but it’s nothing major will the pain get worse as the days progress ? I am so confused cuz I walked out talking and smiling and was even able to drive home myself like I don’t feel like I had surgery at all! So strange
I’m 21, too and had mine out on July 5, 2017! I have hardly had any pain. The first day was actually my best. I felt great and was talking fine out of the surgery. I woke up and they told me to rest, but I wasn’t even tired until I got home.
The past few days haven’t been “fun,” but they haven’t been horrible for me like a lot of people on here describe. I would say this site prepared me for the worst and I’m grateful for that, but it hasn’t been that bad.
As long as you drink a lot of water, try to eat, and take your medicine on time you will be fine. I’m currently on Day 5 and I’m actually laying by the pool, just taking it easy. It’s all about self care. If you take it easy and treat your body to what it needs, you will heal faster and with less pain. I have eaten mashed potatoes, Mac n cheese, soup, and of course popsicles and jello. (Mashed potatoes with cheese taste so good to me and help me feel more normal.)
I haven’t looked at my throat and I don’t really want to because I feel like it will worry me, but it feels wet back there which is a good sign. Anyway, I feel good and the only time I have any pain is when I wake up in the morning. I’ve been healing well, so there is hope that it will be easy to get through.
Update plz
I had my tonsils, adenoids and tonsil stones removed on the 6th as well. The second day was almost unbearable. 3rd day i could swallow, talk, and eat for a couple hours but today i can hardly do any. I tried hot showers, salt water gargle, and sucrets but nothing is really helping. Im 15 and this hurts some days
Okay So I’ve had my Tonsils removed on June 26th 2017, and it’s been 8 day’s and I’m not on any of the pain killer’s seem as if the pain gets worst at night…. Also i keep getting this burning Sensation around my left jaw line to my left ? and it’s still a little painful to swallow on day 8 but overall can’t wait til the scabs fall off completely… I’ve been talking Tylenol daily to cope with the pain that i am having… Still on a slidder food diet but I’ve managed to get down chicken nuggets hamburger even though i knoe i know they say dont do it but my ENT told me hey if you can get it down then go for it…. Still sound a lil funny when i talk also i guess when the scabs form and or are on their way to fall off Dont panic! You’ll probably feel like you have hair stuck in you’re throat… Stay drinking water!!! Hope this information was helpful……
I did live through it. It took about 3 1/2 weeks to feel 0 pain. He told me he was going to shorten my uvula. After a healed completely, I found my uvula completely gone. I have nothing hanging in the back of my throat. It is an odd feeling. When I drink any fluid, it feels like it tries to go into my nasal cavity. It reminds me of getting water in there while swimming. I am 100% recovered and am glad. For those just starting or thinking about it, it can be very painful and you wonder if there is light at the end of the tunnel. It will get better. Good luck.
You guys are so lucky being on your final days post surgery. I am barely onto day three and the pain is becoming intolerable. I have a high pain tolerance and have previously gotten my wisdom teeth out, and this is seemingly compatible to that.
I’m 21 years old and I’m hoping the tonsillectomy will all be worth it in the end.
The most stressful part is not being able to sleep and recover because if you choose sleep, you wake up with excruciating pain. And if you choose a hydrated throat you will never get better.
The hunger has gone away for me, which sucks because you need to eat when taking lidocaine, otherwise, headaches and earaches all day.
I’m hoping Day 4 goes better as far as eating, through I truly doubt it.
I just want some pizza and something spicy, but it doesn’t look like it’s gonna happen haha. Also holy constipation.
YOU CAN DO IT! My surgery was June 20 and Day 7 was by far the worst–my first day of tears–I couldn’t eat anything at all; it even hurt to drink water. So I just slept all day. The difference between Days 7 & 8 was like night and day. I did a complete 180 and even stopped my pain medicine. I’m now on Day 11 and have just a few scabs left! Still am not able to eat sharp things, but I can eat and after 9 days of popsicles, warm tea, and ice water I’ll take the W of eating other soft foods. But when I got really hungry I started a list of all the foods I would eat once I could and I started tackling it yesterday, it’s been great.
Quick update!!
I’m going into day 6 of post op days and I am shocked by how much of my tonsils have healed!! My right side of my throats is almost completely healed of white scab, my left side is the one causing most of the pain as the scab is still forming. The pain is maybe at a 7/8, and super dry a humidifier does nothing to moisten the throat. Luckily, day 5 was not horrible for me so I was able to pack in some calories for the upcoming days. I so far have been able to eat:
A hostess jumbo honey bun
Chili cheese fries from weinerschnitzel (unhealthy I know but whatever)
Soft pasta with bland meatballs
Uncrustable pb and j with some coffee
Warm to hot tea
I think my recovery is pretty fast compared to others tbh and I’m hoping that shows in terms of scabs. Just a reminder to anyone it there not to follow everyone else’s timeline for recovery, as we are all diffferent and THERE IS HOPE!!