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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I had mine taken out august 10 and it’s now the 18 I feel fine scabs are falling off and it feels like I’m choking I get earaches those don’t really feel good
That’s what I’m scared of the scraps coming off ? How do that work ? Did u bleed a lot
I’m 20 and I am now on day 10 and I feel great now . I won’t lie after the surgery , when I was in recovery I was in the worst pain you could imagine I would say it was a 9/10 in pain for me . Docs tried to get me to eat sandwiches and I couldn’t and I couldn’t drink either but eventually gave me stronger tablets and I managed ice cream. Day 2 to 8 I would say was the worst days of my life where I wished I never got the surgery and I thought I was close to dying. I couldn’t eat, drink or talk I had to suck on popsicles but doing that was hard too as my tounge was swollen. I was also scared to sleep at night because waking up was the worst and being so dry so I had like 10 hours sleep in 6 days no joke. I haven’t noticed or felt any my scabs falling off but I’m on day 10 and I’m so glad it’s over with now. I take meds in morning as I wake up with a little sore throat still but take them and I’m fine and can live again 🙂 but if I can get this surgery I can do anything as it was the sorest pain I have ever felt in my life! And don’t wish it upon anyone .. all I say is it’s hard to start with and gets worse before it gets better. When u get to the end your so relieved and just want to stuff your face. Glad it’s done with. Good luck everyone!!
thankss..you does motivated me..pain is unbelievable..i hope its get over soon..
Thanks u gave me a lil hope, I’m ok Day 2 only 5 hrs of sleep it hurts so bad at night I be scared to sleep
I’m 24 had my tonsils out on the 3rd of August so I’m on day 8, yesterday morning day 7 my scabs fell off ! It wasn’t pleasant at all but since then I have been feeling much better and have nearly stopped my pain meds, I only really need them for during the night ! My surgeon recommended eating rough foods and I believe this has helped! There has been days I haven’t eaten at all as the pain has been so bad! But when I can I have been having a slice of bread with butter. Highly recommend it ! I’m hoping the pain will be completely gone in a few days !
How was it when the scabs fell off ?
Something may be wrong, I’m 19, on Day 8, and feel no pain whatsoever. Scabs are still there and have been eating fine for a few days. After going through all these comments i’m very confused.
Day 4 and 5 were agonising, I ate nothing for the first 3 days and survived off water and pain meds, but now everything seems fine. Is this just the calm before the storm?
im 16 and on day 7. Day 1 was probably the easiest and every day up until this point was pretty bad honestly. i’ve been on hydrocodone and motrin the whole time but i now switched to tylenol instead of hydrocodone. Today my scabs began falling off which came with some pain and spitting up blood. I lost 8 pounds so far and haven’t been able to take much food down up to this point but im hoping the pain will diminish in the next few days