This is such a popular subject! I'm glad most of you are doing well. Those who are having pain and difficulties, hang in there--it WILL get better! I am 2 1/2 weeks post op and have done very well considering that I am 67 years young! I found that Instant Breakfast in a cup of warm milk is easy to drink and also you are getting nutrients that your body needs to heal.

Keep getting better everyone! :wave:

Here are links to the previous tonsilectomy threads. Enjoy.

Adult Tonsilectomy Part I:
http://www.healthboards.com/boards/showthread.php?p=1392964#post1392964[

Adult Tonsilectomy Part II:
http://www.healthboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=236357

Okay I see we are making these threads way to long but we have so much to talk about. Shipsbelle~ omg I am amazed at how well you have done for 67 years young. I am almost 3 and a half weeks post -op and am having a rough time and I am 24 years old. I had for the most part a okay recovery I was eating solids after just 4 days returned to work after 7 days.

nlh4msu~ Okay so I woke up this morning at 4:30 in the worlds worse pain it felt like a some one hit me in the face with a hammer. I got up and looked in the mirror to see that my whole face was swollen. I also had a headache(sinus) and so I laid down with a bag of ice on my face and went to sleep untill it was time for me to get up to go to work. I am now at work and have sinus drainage so I talked to some of my good nurse friends who told me that I still should see my dr. but it sounds like the discomfort in my throat and ear and entire left side can be from a really bad sinus infection. I am still gonna see my dr. to make sure but if that is the case then I should be okay as I am taking a tylenol sinus, all my allegras and my nasal sprays. Then on Thursday I go back to the allergist to get my 7 shots..ouch :eek: Well I am sure that this all started as I missed 4 weeks of shots due to this tonsillectomy.

Jtodd~ Do you have allegies or problems with your sinuses? I never thought that missing my shots....but still taking my meds would give me some crazy infection like this. I still am not a 100% sure that is what it is but right now it is the only thing that makes sense. Well I am still gonna go to the dr and see what he says when I find out I will let you know.

Well hope that Everyone is feeling a lil better. Well I gotta go do some work now so Take care! :wave:

Minmin- I missed my shots for 3 weeks. I only get one shot per week now. When I started back last week, they cut the dose in 1/2 and I went twice for the shot. I thought I had caught a cold, but it was from the shots!!! Good luck and have a great day.

I'm 24 years old and considering getting my adenoids taken out. My doctor mentioned nothing of my tonsils. Getting my adenoids out will hopefully allow me to breathe through my nose again (what a concept!). I'm scared of the surgery. Has anyone only had their adenoids taken out without having their tonsils removed as well? If so , how did it go. Can you breathe better?

ajcc-I have had several friends that had their adenoids out without a tonsillectomy. There was ZERO pain. In fact, they were told to take regular Tylenol after the surgery. They both returned to work within 2-3 days.(age 38 and 27!!) You would much rather have your adenoids out that your tonsils. When I had my tonsils out, they left my adenoids in!!! Good luck.

nlh4msu~ Thankyou so much for letting me know that. I am still in the beginning stages of allergy shot I get 7 every Thursday I have about 5 months left...yuck! Well Like I said I had not had them in 4 weeks due to the Surgery. I never thought that missing a few doses of shots can make me this sick. It is amazing that a sinus infection can cause me this much pain around my tonsillectomy site. Well I am gonna continue to take the over the counter Tylenol sinus then take my allegras then wait it out untill Thursday when I return to the allergist for shots. I am so glad that you told me your story as I have not met anybody else so far on this board who has allergies and is undergoing shots and had the same experience that I had. I am hoping that it gets a lil better so I can sleep....as I have been only averaging only two hours per night....which stinks because then I am so run down when at work. Well I think once this is taken care of I will be 100% better. Well Thankyou for responding....it was very comforting to know that somebody is going through the exact same thing. Well I hope you are doing much better.
Take Care Everyone! :wave:

To whoever brought up about just having the adenoids out I say go for it. I know people who had them out with the tonsillectomy and said that it was not that bad of a recovery. I am 24 and did not have my adenoids out but did have a Tonsillectomy and was fine after 4 days. I think when you are as young as we are we are able to heal a little quicker. I think that having them out will help you breath better and would benefit you in the long road....Well whatever you decide I wish you all the best!

i am on day 12 post op and i am 90% back to normal. it still hurts if i yawn and at night it hurts just a little/little bit when i swallow. i still have yet to eat the steak i have been craving, sticking to dr's orders about soft foods for 14 days. on day 11 is when i finally had a whole day with no pain at all when swallowing. i still have a little scabing on my throat. the most annoying thing is sometimes food gets caught in my "holes" and is uncomfortable.

i am 32 years old and i think i had one of the easiest healing processes i could have hoped for. the pain i experienced was about the same as a bad case of strep throat minus the fever and body aches. i never threw up or had any bleeding. i would have never feared this if i knew it was this easy for me.

a few things i think really helped:
1. never let the pain medicine wear off and always take it on schedule
2. always have something on your stomach when you take medication, even just milk or broth. make sure what you do drink has a high nutritional value, like boost or ensure
3. sleep with a vaporizor on
4. sleep sitting up with a "sit up pillow"
5. make sure your doctor gives you strong enough pain medicine, tell him you have a very low tollerance for pain
6. take it easy and relax and let your body heal

for those of you out there contemplating this surgery, like i was a few months ago, there are people out who have a very easy time!! :) :) :)

today is day 10.. yesterday was the worst day.. with fevers off and on all day .. i just felt like *****.. today is a bit better.. but the pain is still on that right side.. so i'm still on liquids... i'm totally frustrated waiting for that turn around day... i want to eat mac and cheese soo bad...

hersey02..my same day surgery budddy..where are you at.. how are you feeling?

Hey, Rajaraja1. I'm still surviving. I'm doing okay. I've got some pain in the right side of my throat but it's not constant. I'm still eating mashed potatoes (thanks for that suggestion!). I still haven't gone to the bathroom. Starting to get worried and thinking maybe I should take something. But otherwise I'm feeling pretty good. Going back to work tomorrow. Still can't talk, so it should be interesting. Hope you feel better today. That sucks that you had a fever. Anyway lets hope today is our turn around day!

Hi everyone, I am on day 2 of my tonsillectomy and deviated septum surgery and I am in a lot of pain! The roof of my mouth is what really hurts especially after I swallow. Anyone else have that pain? Also, should I be gargling or anything. I have managed to brush my teeth this am but was not sure if I should gargle with salt water or anything? Did anyone else have problems with Lortab pain medicine not working?

Absolutely do not gargle at this stage of your recovery. I'm surprised the doctor or nurses didn't mention this to you. You could dislodge the scabs and cause bleeding, which you don't want to do. Also, don't use a straw, as the sucking can also cause scabs to come off prematurely.

It's good that you brushed your teeth. Having a clean mouth makes you feel so much better. Chewing gum can also help to keep your mouth feeling fresher, but the biggest help that gum provides is keeping your saliva flowing so your throat doesn't dry out and it makes you swallow more often. Also it helps to keep your jaw flexible so it's easier to chew and swallow. It also helps with ear pain. Who knew gum had so many important uses for tonsillectomy patients!! :D

Hang in there--it does get better!

hi everyone,

well today is day four and things are starting to be better. actually, it's frustrating that each day is the same, but things are better b/c the doc has allowed me to up my pain medication. i'm still only eating ice chips and chicken broth. the tiny noodles are still unbearable to swallow.

i read somewhere that someone at a whole pineapple prior to surgery to help with the swelling. since i love pineapples, i thought i'd give it a try. i think it helped. =) thanks for the tip.

i'm starting to feel a bit lonely. i can't call my friends and chat and i thought i could study or do some work, but my mind isn't completely there. with only three hours of sleep at a time, i'm useless during the hours i'm awake.

thanks for listening. i hope all of you are getting better.

minmin - thanks for your encouragement and support. i hope you're feeling better today.

day 11..
yesterday's hightlight was i had like 4 spoonfuls of mashed potatoes!! first time i had anything other than liquids..
then it all took a turn for the worst at night..
the pain on my right side.. was unbearable.. and i had a horrific headache(i never get headaches) and i lost it.. started crying again, tasted blood and yup it was.. not much but it was blood. i lost it cuz i haven't been sleep that well and i'm hungry and just frustrated because of my right side pain that hasn't improved in 5 days. i need to calm down.

tomorrow is my post op appt. and the first time i'll be out of my apartment.

wish me luck tonight.. no more breakdowns.. and hopefully i'll be able to eat some candied yams and mac and cheese.

hersey02- hope you are doing better than i am today

hope everyone else is doing well

i'll check in after my shower.. hope that calms me down

Hi all -

Sorry I haven't replied to any of your posts since last week. My husband is doing much better, on day 9 now since his tonsil and uvula removal surgery.

He's down to taking 1/2 doses of the liquid morphin now. He was acting pretty strange on the morphine, staring for hours into space without blinking. lol.. I told him he was looking a little too drugged (like a zombie) and it was spooking me. He is also starting to run out of the morphine.. so he decided to cut the doses down gradually so he wouldn't just run out all of a sudden and end up in withdrawal from it. He has plenty of liquid tylenol w/codeine, so he's taking small doses of that to supplement.

He hasn't had a bowel movement yet.. and after 9 days, he's very concerned. He drank some grape juice, thought that would help, but it hasn't. I think we're going to try some exlax or something soon if he doesn't go by tomorrow.

He's been eating a little of solids, blended up in the blender.. Most of what he's eating/drinking: strawberry banana smoothies, gatoraid, oatmeal, soy ice cream sandwiches, sherbet, apple sauce, jello, and a lot of chicken and beef broth. He had some beef stew (blended up into a liquid) last night. lol He chased me around trying to make me taste it, but the texture looked nauseating to me.. YUCK

He said he feels really hungry now, but he's frustrated with not being able to eat pizza or chew meat.. his tongue is still swollen and he can hardly chew.

I'm happy he's doing better. The one thing that is driving me crazy is that he keeps getting up at around 3 AM every single day to go into the bathroom and look at his stitches and scabs and wakes me up when I have to go to work in the morning! I think he's paranoid that he's going to start bleeding or something. He spit out a stitch on day 3 and saw a tiny bit of blood when it happened but it stopped bleeding after he rinsed his mouth. Since then he has been doing this inspecting every night. :yawn:

He really likes drinking smoothies and I've been experimenting with different kinds.. He says that orange juice burns too much (even if it's mixed with yogurt and bananas and stuff). However, he can tolerate apple juice and soy milk, so I've been putting a lot of those in the drinks. One time I even threw in a large blueberry muffin. :)

Thanks for all of your advice here. I saw someone mentioned Chloroseptic spray and he has been using that occassionally before eating.. Thanks to whoever suggested that.

Hubby said he thinks the morphine is causing him to not be able to urinate all the way... He runs into the bathroom and dribbles and that's it. He does this throughout the day. Anyone else had this problem?

Also, has anyone had success with something bringing on a bowel movement (some kind of food or something) or have you just had to wait it out?

hey littlemissy.. i'm the one that wrote about the pineapple.. i'm glad it helped!!!! hang in there... it is frustrating.. believe me.. i just wrote about my past couple of days.. but it will pass.. i have to remember that and so should you... do whatever it takes to make you as comfortable as possible..

if you have any questions.. ask them on the boards and someone will write back..

here's to a speedy recovery!!!

Phoenixbleu- glad to hear your husband is doing a bit better

i didn't have a bowel movement until day 8 maybe.. and then had another one the next day.. and its day 11 and i haven't had another one since.. i was still on liquids though.. i have my post op doctor's appointment tomorrow am.. i'll ask my ent.. and i'll report back

hope things get better...

i'm sure its tough for you.. because i see the frustration on my boyfriends face when i break down or get difficult about eating or meds.. and i know he's doing his best and it hurts him to see me in pain..

hang in there... its hard on both sides

Hey all from a 32 year old 19 day post-op. I'm doing very well all and i was at total wreck, so hang in there...it gets MUCH better. This weekend i ate enough to gain all the weight i lost back and then some. i noticed that carbonated drinks and oj still hurt and there is still some discomfort, but it's better.

Rajaraja, i'm sorry that you're having so much pain. it's strange. maybe everyone's body heals very differently. you were doing much better than i was the first 3 days or so, and now at day 11 much worse. My frist week was by far the worst. the first few days for me were a living hell.

I also noticed that ice-packs, gum, cloroseptic helped a lot...and that the painkillers did me more harm than i care to go into. (vomit, halucinating, etc.)

Rajaraja1~ I am sorry to hear that there is unbearble pain in your right side. I still have unbearable pain in my left ear and throat and am on day 26 of my recovery. I have had breakdowns left and right as I haven't really slept really and have been rundown. I thought it was due to a sinus infection but I have been treating that and still have the pain on the left side. I have been trying my best not to let it bring me down...well anymore than it already has. I however now think I made things worse as I went out to a club downtown Saturday ( I live in Chicago and It was in the negitives) so now I think I made my self more rundown. Well I am taking antibiotics and am hoping to feel a lil better. I am still very swollen and scabbing at day 26 and still have that discomfort on my left side. My dr said that is common as It takes a full month to month and a half to feel totally recovered. I will tell you just to hang in there as It will get better.

Hope everyone is feeling better!

StrangeCookie~ It will take a while to get better. I was like you I was fine in the beginning then around day 12 it went down hill and even today at day 26 am in major discomfort on my left side. My dr said give it another week and if It ain't better he will look at again. He said that people are age take an average of a month to a month and a half to be fully recovered. Hnag in there too it will get better with time

rajaraja - I hope you're feeling better. how did the post op appt go? i haven't been outside once, and i'm starting to get cabin fever.

today is day 5 and things are one again...the same.
i have finally discovered a way to take my meds without the pain....mix it with milk...in my case chocolate milk. =)

i'm still sipping broth.

can anyone tell me when they moved onto something more solid? applesauce at least?

Also, when do the docs start taking away your pain meds? i'm scared.

thanks everyone.

hello everyone

today was my first time out of my apartment!!! i walked.. and drived and felt the sun on me.

today was my post op appointment. my ent said that i'm doing fine. i just started later end of the worse days and that part on my right side is just stubborn and is raw because its on that bridge part of the mouth so that's why it hurts to talk still and when i eat soft foods. no sign of infections in my throat or ears. he said to continue the pain meds when needed and that by next week i'll feel much better.

about the BOWEL movements.. he said that the meds and my liquid diet are keeping me from the movements soo he suggested a stool softener. so i got SUFACK stool softener, its sodium free and conatins no harsh stimulants that can upset your stomach.. figure that's best since there's hardly anything up in there.

lil missy- i'm still on liquids.. this is my 12 day and its because of where its raw on my right side.. so hopefully you'll be like the others and will be on soft foods soon.. hang in there with as my best friend and i like to call it "room-a-tizm".. tv, magazines, books, cds and dvds have been my best friend. you need your rest to get thru the tough parts.. hope you have a speedy recovery..

strangecookie and minmin.. thanks for the words..

hersey02.. how ya doing?

Rajarja1

I made it thru my first day of work okay. It was rough but I made it . I had one of the nurses at work start an IV and give me fluids which really helped. I was more dehydrated than I thought. My pain on the right side is a little better today so hopefully by tomorrow I'll try eating something a little more solid. I don't have my post op visit until Thurs. I'm going to mention my lack of bowel movement to my Dr also. It's almost been 2 weeks since I've gone to the bathroom. Is what you got over the counter or prescription?

hersey02-

glad to hear you are doing better!!!! that stuff is over the counter.. i got it at Sav-on

i hear ya on the dehydration.. i'm trying to up my water intake today as well, now that i can swallow more of it.

so i just had one scrambled egg!!!!!!!!!!! i'm sure it helped that i had just taken my pain meds.. but.. it hurt but it was bearable!!! yeah!!!! super happy!!! that means i'm this much closer to finally having candied yams and mac and cheese from M&M's soul food!!! yummers. my stomach right now is like "what is this, none liquid thing you have allowed to enter my domain" i want to start off slow.. and i don't want to gain all the weight back either.. but i'm sure i will..

solid foods seems sooo far away.. but its okay.. i've made it this far without them..

here's to the dream of solid foods!!!

hi everyone,
i was wondering, how much weight have you lost? since i planned the surgery after the holidays, i was a little more liberal with the helpings since i figured i'd lose it. today is day 5 of liquids and i'm shocked to see i've only lost one pound.

Day 15-

I wont be posting much anymore. But I will be lurking and reading on the occasion. I am about 95% normal as of now. Still a little swelling, but no pain, and have resumed normal diet. I am even back to eating the worlds hottest chicken wings, chilli, and beer.. lol. The ability for me to eat and breath through my mouth has already been greatly improved over when I had tonsils. It feels funny becuase as soon as I get some food close to the back of my mouth, swoosh its already down my throat! Compared to when I had tonsils, I always had to force my food between my tonsils.

I am never doing this again!! If my tonsils grow back, they will have to bury me with them.

I have been reading these threads since last week, but not checked for a few days. My daughter had her surgery Jan. 3. It was terrible for her until Jan. 13. She went back to college on the 11th and called me on the 12th sobbing so hard I couldn't understand her. I had to drive 2 hours to pick her up the next day. She really started feeling better that day and then was much better over the weekend. She went back yesterday and she's back to feeling more herself. She's finally started eating again, but is frustrated because she said nothing tastes the way it should. She said unless it is very salty, she can't hardly taste it. Is anyone else experiencing that? She's eating many more things now, but is still not going with sharp/rough things. She lost 15 pounds from her 130lb start (for lilmissy). I checked her throat and I can still see white patches and scabs so I know there is still more to go. She stopped taking her pain medicine (loritab) on the 12th and went to extra strength Tylenol (for lilmissy). You all have helped me with what to tell her along the way the last two weeks, and reading this morning that someone said it takes a month to a month and a half to get back to normal will be helpful to tell her too. I'll keep reading to see if I pick up any more tidbits to pass on even though she's on her way to recovery.

Good luck to all of you!

lilmissy- I too ate more than I should have during the holidays in preparation for losing weight. My doctor told me his adult patients usually lose 10-15 pounds. I'm disappointed to say that I didn't even lose the weight I gained over the holidays. That was suppossed to be my silver lining, didn't happen! :eek:

Okay katlynn~ that is strange because I lost 11 pounds and I ate solids on day 4...I think it may have to do with the fact that I ate smaller amounts then normal as it did hurt to swallow.

mgowdy~ I and nlh4msu were both of the ones that said that I takes a month to a month and a half for a full recovery in adults and I am experiencing that 1st hand. I had what you would call a pretty easy recovery...however along the way I hit some bumbs in the road. I still have scabbing and will be a month post-op tomorrow...however there is not as many as there were 2 weeks ago when I saw my dr so that is a good thing. Just tell her to hang in there it will get better and the taste will take a while to come back as everything just started getting its taste back.

Well I am at work and need to get outta here as I am sick and just wanna lay in my bed. Hey I have a very bad cold and bronchitis but am pleased to report that there is absolutley no irritation in my throat....so all of you reading this that need your tonsils out but dont wanna get them out because of the pain ....I would really encourage you to have them taken out because the pain goes away but the joy of having no throat infections is well worth it. To all of you still in pain hang in there as it will get better and when you are all healed and have no throat infections you will be so much happier

mgowdy and katlynn - thanks for the responses. katlynn- when did you have your surgery?

today was my first day out. i've been going stir crazy and felt well enough to make a trip out to best buy and walgreens. i was hoping to go to target too.
i think i overestimated my health b/c i nearly passed out in the dvd aisle.
i've never felt so weak. the car ride made me extrememly nauseaous. rajaraja - how did you drive the other day?
i think this is a side effect of the painkillers, but i can't imagine going off them at this point. the doc has given me two more refills, but at the dosage i'm taking, i'm going through one bottle every two days. yikes!
i think i am feeling better tho, or at least getting used to how things are.
mentally, i feel really sad for some strange reason. i think b/c the recovery is lonely...no one knows how you really feel except for the people on these boards...so thanks everyone.
my post-op appt is tomorrow. we'll see how it goes. i'm not planning on going back to work until feb. yay!
minmin- how are you doing?

lilmissy~ I am still sick....I actually have been running a fever all night It was at 103 but now is at about 100 so hopefully the meds I am on will get rid of this. I think that I have made myself run down because I think I pushed myself to much. I am glad to hear that you are not returning to work till Feburary. I returned to work on day 7 and could barely talk and I think that pushing myself that soon didn't help. I still get a lil exhausted when out for a long period of time....so just take it one day at a time. Well I hope that you are feeling much better!

i just wanted to check and and i noted something after reading posts. I think the weakness is coming from the painkillers for those of you guys taking them past day 5. i was in hell and my mom forced me to stop taking them on day 5 because i kept puking...but i must say that by day 7 i was really quite energetic even though it hurt to swollow. by day 11 i was fanatically cleaning the garage out. I also never had antibiotics because i couldn't keep them down...but in the end it seems my recovery was faster than most when i stopped the painmeds.

now it's been exactly 3 weeks. i did loose weight although i don't have a scale. I'd guess 5lbs, but i'm sure eating a lot now. i will try to stop that!

Energy I'm at 100%, but my throat still hurts to swollow a bit and certain drinks and food are icky. Carbonated drinks taste very weird as does wine...

Happy to report that this tonsillectomy made me a non-smoker. It's funny now i can hardly remember those posts from 2 and 3 weeks ago that were so awful i had everyone feeling quite sorry for me. oh thank goodness i'm so much better! You will be too very soon.

lilmissy- I had my surgery on Jan. 3rd. I was lucky, I was eating soft foods by day 3 and back to almost normal by day 8.

strangecookie - glad to hear you're feeling better. i think you're right about the painkillers. unfortunately, when i don't take it, the pain is unbearable...in my ears, throat and neck. at this point, i can't imagine not taking it. thanks for the advice tho.

katlynn- you are lucky that you had such a smooth recovery. i'm jealous!

i've been craving hot apple pie and ice cream....can't wait til i can eat.

.... the pain is unbearable...in my ears, throat and neck. at this point, i can't imagine not taking it.
Hey lilmissy :)

Are you chewing gum? I found that chewing gum kept the throat from drying out ( painkillers can cause the mucous membranes to dry out) and also the chewing movement relieved my ear aches and the pain under the jaw associated with it. If you haven't tried it, I urge you to see if this will help you. I was chewing a stick about every hour for several days. I'm 16 days post op and I can say that the gum definately brought relief and I still pop a stick a few times a day just for the jaw exercise. You will feel better~~it just takes a little while for your body to mend. OH, I'm 67 years old and today I went to Wendy's and had chili and a frosty :D !

shipsbelle - i have not tried chewing gum, but will definitely give it a try. 67?!! i feel like such a wimp compared to you. congrats on your recovery. frosty sounds delicious.

minmin- sorry to hear you still have a fever. hopefully you can take it easy at work.

the doc told me today that i need to cut down on the pain meds. i tried taking less and am in extreme pain from my throat and ears. but i will tough it out.

he was surprised that i hadn't lost any weight and said it was due to my inactivity. so much pain meds and all i can do is lie in bed and watch tv.

so i'm going to try and walk a little each day....at least get some fresh air.
thanks for the tips everyone.

oh..and regarding the bm....he suggested a OTC stool softener as well. b/c i still can't swallow the pills, i'll have to pour the gel into a tsp.

Well, my husband is on day 14 today.. On day 11 he finally had a bowel movement and that seems to be somewhat back to normal now. He is eating regular food again, just has to chew a long time before swallowing. He thinks he has lost a little over 5 lbs. (I think he lost much more because his face is thinner now). His breath has improved 100% so I don't hesitate to kiss him now, and he rarely snores now.

Thanks for the advice everyone. This surgery has been a success in my opinion and I'm glad he did it. Last post on this topic from me. :bouncing:

Phoenixbleu, that's great news!

If I'd had my operation done when it was set for, I would be on day 11 now.
My ENT doc decided at the last minute he wouldn't do it, as he doesn't think it will "cure" me. He said he doesn't like doing tonsillectomies on adults unless absolutely necessary. Gawd. So I may still need it done at some point, cos I am no better. Can't even open my mouth to yawn.
Oh well.

Not much being posted lately, maybe yer all much better now :)

Keep on keepin' on.

Hi all...I'm on day 3.5 after my surgery, and I am so glad I did it. The surgery itself was a breeze, so if any of you are scared of that, don't be. Afterwards, I was in quite a bit of pain, and I still am. But nothing nightmare-ish. My ears don't hurt, and that was one of my biggest fears.

My best friend lately has been my ice shaver/sno cone maker. It has really helped me through the process. I have been very careful about what I eat/drink. I didn't have any post surgery bleeding, and I don't want to mess that up now. Easy Mac and Cheese has served as the most solid type of food I've been able to eat. Baby food and applesauce have also been plesant surprises!

Now that the scabs are formed, I feel a different pain than I did the first few days. I guess that's a sign of progress. I also have a different taste in my mouth, but the doctor warned me of that.

I, however, can't chew gum at all. I'm much better off just "eating" ice shavings if possible.

I guess I'd like to say that this board really helped me to go into my surgery feeling educated. I knew what to expect from the best and the worst possible scenarios. To anybody new reading this, I truly encourage you to follow your gut feeling, and to not be scared. There are a lot of good doctors out there to help you make an educated decision. While many doctors have many opinions, I think it's best to see as many doctors as possible to make you feel comfortable with your decision.

Good luck to all, and congrats to all of you who are doing well!

I was wondering whether any of you experienced a swollen uvula prior to having your tonsils removed? Mine's all swollen and infected all the time, along with my bad throat.

GlassHalfFull... you seem to be doing great.. hope your recovery stays good. Your last posting helped eased my nerves a tad.. I'm sure I'm gonna have to have my tonsils out soon.


Keep on keepin' on.

Hello all!! I am a 36 year old and I am scheduled for surgery on Jan 31st. The doc is taking out my tonsils, adenoids, and uvula. To say the least, I am nevous as heck, and am considering canceling. I do have problems with sleep-apnea, snoring, and tonsillitis, but have noticed a reduction in those symptoms since eating right, dieting, and light exercise(lost 20 pounds so far). I have read some of your testimonials, and am frankly even more uncertain as to what to do. I am a stay at home dad with four kids to raise and my wife works full time and cannot take time off. Perhaps if I just take better care of myself, this would be unnecessary?!?!?!?!?! Anyway, I just thought I would put my "two-cents" in. Maybe I'm just being kinda wimpy, but this is obviously a big decision and .....well, I am just flat out confused.

i thought i'd check in here as it's almost 1 month and i'm feeling quite good now. i still can't drink carbonated drinks and somehow swollowing food is strange. anyone else have this?

other than this, scooch, wow, stay at home w/4 kids is pretty tough for this surgery. you'll definitly need help for a week plus. it's hard, but sleep apnea is really awful. you'll get through the surgery just fine after that first week and a half. then you'll be glad you did it.

Well, I am finishing up day 6 after the surgery and I must say today was the worst day I have had yet. I think the scabs are coming off, which is leaving my throat very sore and almost a raw like feeling. Talked to the doctor today and he said that was very normal. Nothing to worry about. I go for my Post-Op appointment tomorrow, so the doctor will get to take a look and make sure everything is healing ok.

It has been a pretty rough ride for me. Day 1 and 2 were VERY bad. Day 3, 4 and half way through 5 were ok. I was getting energy back and starting to eat soups that had substance to them. Then the rest of day 5 and day 6 came along and put me back out again. The pain today was actually the same if not worse than the pain I had on day 1 and 2. It is more of a "sore" type pain, but it really hurts! Plus, I have a headache and a slight upset stomach today too.

Hoping tomorrow will be better!

Hi everyone.

I am a 32 year old and scheduled to have my tonsills and adeniods removed Feb 3. I am so scared. I've never been put to sleep and I can't stand to be sick at my stomach.

After reading these posts I'm kinda agreeing with Scooch, I don't know that I really want to do this. Have you made up your mind, Scooch?

My doctor has been telling me to get this done for 4 years. Now I actually have a little hole in my left tonsill and Doc says it may eventually trap food and cause gross "cottage cheese" things. It my doctors words, my tonsills are "rotten".

I have been a stay at home mom to two kids for 8 years. I just started back to work part time last fall at a CPA firm and I love my job. My boss is not crazy about me being out of work during tax season though. My surgery is next Thursday and "she" thinks I could be back to work by the following Thursday. :confused:

I just don't know...

i would say that you need more like 10 days before going back to work. i'm now at 4 weeks and feel GREAT, better than i ever did pre-surgery. but i still cannot drink carbonated drinks and am a bit swollen inside.

Update:

I am a little over 3 weeks post op, and am completly normal. The swelling is gone, the scabs are gone, and am eating everything and anything in site. I can now be thankfull that I got this surgery!! I am so happy I had it done now and that I am healed. Would I do it again? YES!!!!! Did recovery suck? YES!! lol.

hey everyone,
well, it's been a little over two weeks and the recovery is going pretty well. i had a question for those of you who got an infection. what did it feel like? i felt like things were going great, but the past two days i've had a really bad sore throat...like i used to get when i had my tonsils! it's not the same as the post-op pain, which was mostly from swallowing. i also think i caught some type of stomach bug! yikes!
any idea with what's going on with me?
i'm still eating soft foods and almost everything tastes different- not sure if that's b/c of surgery or the fact that i'm chewing everything so slowly.
i hope all of you are getting better.

Shrk - Don't think 7 days will be enough. We thought my 19-year-old daughter would be well enough to go back to college on day 9 and she called me on day 10 crying to come and get her (not like her at ALL!!!). The next day she started to get better, but I'd say 10 days would be a good estimate to be off.

The Drs. don't really tell you how bad this is going to be. It is a hard recovery, but after that, it will be OK. You can live through it, and it sounds like you really need to have it done.

Hope you can get up your courage and also get the time off.

Good Luck!

lilmissy- My daughter is just starting to get her taste back and her surgery was Jan. 3. She said at first unless it was really salty, she couldn't hardly taste it and she still can't taste sweet things. We're thinking it will just take time. She forgot to ask the Dr. the other day about it.

Just a little piece of advice to those that will be receiving a tosillectomy.

My tonsils were removed with the harmonic scalpel. After researching online, it supposedly speeds healing and recovery. It proved to be true for me. I would recommend that others look into this option. I too was terrified going into the surgery, but it was not at all as bed as I thought.

After going through it myself and reading the experiences of others, I had a much easier time than 90% of those who post. I do have a high pain tolerance, but I was eating soft foods by day 4 and was back to almost normal by day 10. I had no bad tastes in my mouth or problems with things tasting funny. All in all it was about the same as strep throat without the fever and body aches. I was exhausted for about 7 days.

Others who already had the surgery- How were yours removed?

mgowdy - thanks. maybe i'm used to things that are bland. i love ice cream, but found it too sweet and sugary to eat during recovery. i hope your daughter is feeling better now.

katylnn- i had mine removed by electrocautery. it's supposed to reduce the risk of post op bleeding but can be painful.

i had mine out on the 12th and i'm still not 100%. I can finally say that the pain is gone today....except my sore throat which i believe is from a cold i've caught. but tonsils-wise everything is ok. it was only a two days ago that i felt like i could talk normally. i think you'll definitely need at least 2 weeks to recover. why rush and get an infection. better to be safe if you can help it.

Ok, real quick question for anyone who might hav experienced this.

Did anyone have it where your tongue was white or close to it, but right down the middle was what I would call a crease. The crease is almost the color of what your tongue normally would be but it is very red compared to the white part of my tongue.

Just curious.

Hey drummer04-That is probably from the clamp they used to hold down your tongue!!!

Hope everyone is doing well!!! Wednesday was 6 weeks for me. I had a little set back last week. I saw my MD last Monday, and he told me that I needed to rest because I wasn't 100% healed and still had swelling on the right side. I had to fly the next day (My doc told me NOT to, but I had to for work!!) Anyway, I completely lost my voice and came home with STREP THROAT!!! I was so angry!!! Anyway, I have been on augmentin for 7 days (3 more to go) and can now say that my throat is 100%. The only problem I am having is an annoying dry cough. I am back to normal as far as diet and exercise. I am burning the candle at both ends. My advice to anyone that works, is to stay off as long as possible. 7 days is not enogh time!!! Good luck to you guys!!

Well, I talked with the surgeon, and canceled the operation. I am so relived!!! I suppose the surgery seemed kind of "radical" to me, since they were also removing my uvula and taking out the soft tissue in my throat. If anyone is considering this as a cure for sleep apnea, I would suggest that they go on a portion control diet and exercise. I have lost almost 30 pounds now, and am sleeping much better. After speaking with my ENT doc, Sleep lab doc, and my primary care physician, they all had different advice, but the one common thing they ALL said was that losing weight would help clear my airway, however they did say that since my tonsils were a "top 3" largest of all time(I think they are all trained in Med school to say that to every patient) losing weight would not help reduce the size of the them(but would still open up my airway by losing fat in my throat), so I will probably get "just" a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy later in the year and keep my uvula and soft tissue. To those that are going through with the surgery, I wish you the best of luck and thank you for your input, it really helped.

Oh, as for you, shrk, the decision is ultimatly yours, it is YOUR BODY!! If you feel that it is not for you at this time, then DONT DO IT. I don't know how serious your condition is, but if there is a more natural solution, I would try it first, and do the surgery as a last resort only.

Good luck!

hello kids..

taste buds -
haven't been on here in a while.. i'm 3 weeks post op. last wednesday was my first time on regular food.. i was super excited.. but i can hardly taste anything.. totally sucks... sweet stuff taste sour... and everything else is bland. soo drepressing.. i live to eat!! spoked to my best friend and she's over a year post op and she said it might be while before i start tasting stuff. she says her's hasn't fully recovered. booooooo

scabs... i might still have a few left on my left side...

i'd say i'm 90% i get tired super fast. i went to my office on saturday just to read all my e-mails before monday since i had been out for 3 weeks.. i was there for 3 hours and i was pooped

tomorrow is my first day back.. booooo


good luck to those about to have surgery

and to those that are a few days into the recovery process... i promise it will get better one day.. hang in there

Well, to day is day 11 of post-op and things are going ok. Everything makes me so tired. Getting up and taking a shower and shaving wore me out. I have to go back to work tomorrow, so it will be interesting to see how that goes.

Eating has not been going so good. I threw up everything I had eaten yesterday. Today has been a little better. I can eat (or at least I feel like I can eat.), but I do not have a taste for anything. So, I have some potato soup for lunch. I am venturing out and having chicken with rice and gravy for dinner. I am praying that I can eat it with no problems.

My throat is healing good. The right side seems to be healing much quicker and looking more normal than the left side. That is probably normal with all of the bleeding problems I have had with the left side. I have learned a couple of new pain "feelings" today. Yawning and sneezing are horrible. Yawning is a dull long pain and sneezing is a qucik sharp pain.

Well, I am praying that the healing process continues to move forward quickley. I am really ready to eat some pizza! :)

Drummer, I hope you continue getting better too.

Sorry to post once then seem to disappear, but I've had a devil of a time getting logged back into this site.

Anyway. My surgery is THIS Thursday. Yikes! Has anyone else had the Coblation-Assisted tonsillectomy? That's what I'm getting. Also did almost everyone get sick from being put to sleep? Did anyone who didn't have that Zofran med? I'm more worried right now about being sick on my stomach than anything, which I guess sounds silly, but that's me.

Anyone else having their surgery this week?

I wish us all speedy recoverys!

Well, I'm back. I was scheduled to have my tonsils out over Thanksgiving last year. But, family issues prevented that. I am scheduled to see my ENT next week and I will be scheduling the surger.

The only thing that has changed is I have now been diagnosed as diabetic. I am not on any meds. This creates a special challenge as most of the smoothie concoctions and soft stuff that I will be able to eat are loaded with carbs and will elevate my blood sugars. I am not sure what to do about that. I also have to figure out how to not lose weight. I can't afford to lose any more weight. But, I do know this surgery needs to happen.

Anyway, I'm back and love this board and have learned so much. I wish all of you an easy, or as easy as can be, recovery ;)

I remember just last year having my tonsils out and being on this board. It helped out a lot good luck to everyone recovering or getting ready for surgery.

Yep, I remember reading your posts last year. Sounds like you are doing well. Seems like this board has cooled off a bit. Last year it was full of activity and great advice. :( I hope it picks up!

Hi all!

I am going to have my tonsils shrunk down in a few weeks due to reccurent infections from tonsil stones. My ENT suggested that I have them out...But at 36..I am afraid the recovery time will be too traumatic..Especially because I have a 15 month old.

I have to be honest I am terrified! Has anyone ever had the cobalation laser? How effective was it?

I still need to be put under anesthesia. He claims the recovery time is 1-2 days. He says it will feel like a sore throat.
I have to do something..I am going nuts from the feeling I have with the stones.

Any advice or experiences would be helpful!

I am so sorry that some of you have had such a painful recovery. I can only imagine what it feels like from hearing your posts. I hope everyone is doing better each day.

I am glad we can chat here! :)

Hmm. Seems everyone's forgotten about this board. Oh well, maybe it will pick back up. It's always been such a lively board.

Anyway, I had to cancel my surgery last year, but I have finally rescheduled and it's a good thing. Saw my ENT, yesterday, and he gave me antibiotics AGAIN.

I am scheduled for June 21. I would have it sooner but I am going through Physical Therapy for a rotator cuff injury. I want to have that finished before the surgery.

I am having to go back to the original thread and remember all the great tips from the folks like Lizzbeth and Jeffsgirl.

sydneysmommie--I don't know much about coblation but have a read a thread or two. Seems the recovery is easier that the electro thing that I'm going to have.

edited: wrong thread

AHH I can finally post!!! I'm SO glad I found this board! I had been looking for WEEKS for any information about adult tonsillectomy and adenoidectomies, but couldn't find much of anything reguarding recovery. By the way, my name is Cassandra, and i'm 21. :wave: I go in tommorow morning for the surgery! I'm so scared, i've never been put under before, and reading some of your stories is making me so nervous! Okay, so those of you who went though it already I have some questions!!! Also, any of your best tips would be much appreciated! So here goes the questions..
1) How long before you could talk?
2) How much weight did you lose? If any..
3) Did your voice change at all after recovery? My tonsils have been huge ever since I can remember, and my adenoids too. I'm hoping this will change my voice!
Thanks guys!! :bouncing:

Cassandra,

Go back and look at my old posts, because I know I published alot of advise to people who were getting this done. I think many of these things could help. I had mine out on January 3rd of this year. I am 33 years old and I was very lucky that I had a fairly easy time with it.

It was about 5 days until I could speak again. I lost very little weight, like 5 pounds, I expected and hoped for much more. And I was hoping my voice would change, that I would end up with a beautiful singing voice, no such luck, it is the same. Two months later, I am completely healed, exept my throat still makes a bizarre "croaking" noise from time to time.

Hi Pink4Flower. I wish you the best and make sure you post from time to time so we know how you are doing. :wave:

First, let me say that I am so thankful for finding this board. My name is Ava, I'm 35 years old and I had a tonsillectomy Monday, March 7th.

I was given liquid tylenol with codeine and vicodan. My first day out of the hospital, I was told by my ent to have soft pasta if possible. With the liquid tylenol, It was possible(though painful). Day two however, was much more of a challenge. The pain meds made me very nauseous and I didn't sleep well.

I'm sitting here on day three, with pain medicine coursing through my veins but able to swallow mashed potatoes and macaroni.

My uvula is HUGE. I can't believe it! My ears hurt but other than that, so far so good. I wish you all the best in your recovery!!

I was able to speak immediately.

Hi Justava. I hope you are feeling good today. It is good you are able to eat something. I have read that many people cannot attempt solid or semi-solid food for at least a week. In fact, my ENT said it will probably take me 10 days. So sounds like you are doing OK, despite the pain. :eek:

Keep us posted on your progress.

Hey,

Thanks so much for the response. My ENT said that the sooner you eat, the faster the recovery. I had some pretty thick garlic mashed potatoes last night and boy did that hurt.................back to the liquid tylenol.

I haven't taken any pain medicine since I decided to get up today. I had pus leaking from my throat. Are these the scabs? It didn't really hurt but it did weird me out.

~Ava

This is my first time to post but in doing my tonsilectomy research I even found archive postings here that helped me make my decision. I had my surgery on Tusday March 8 and so far and doing pretty well, no bleeding, a fair amount of pain swallowing, vomited once from the hydrocodone (vicodin) but the sorest thing of all is my tongue underneath, feel like everything is swollen 10 times the size in my mouth, I've decided they must have stapled my tongue to the floor to make me this sore :) Anyway, I have the urge to spit a lot today, I have no idea if its normal, I'm just glad I'm on the uphill side of dealing with these dreaded tonsils, I'm 46 and have needed them out since I was 6

Hi everyone. I'm 36 years old and I'm scheduled to get my tonsils out on the 17th. I am so scared. Some of these posts have frightened me but some have given me hope that all will be ok. I have read all the posts and it's good to know some of the issues that may come up. I have never had surgery before so I'm scared about anesthesia, and I'm also scared I will bleed to death. I'm just looking forward to a month or so from now and being glad that I no longer have to deal with them.

Hi Bev, I am 50 and have needed my tonsils out for some time. I am glad you are doing well. I won't have my surgery until June. But, in reading the old posts it seems the best thing you can do is drink, drink and drink some more. Also gum chewing will help keep the jaw from getting tight.

Keep us posted on how you are doing

Justava--I am glad you are able to eat. So many folks have trouble with that. Some folks say the Lipton noodle dishes are easy because the noodles just kind of slide down. :)

I'm also scared I will bleed to death.

Believe me, that's my biggest fear as well. My ENT keeps assuring me that the percentage of this happening is very rare.

That's all well and good, it still scares me. :eek:

Hi Bevs,

Looks like we had surgery one day apart. Congrats on taking this big step forward to a healthier you.

I had similiar experiences with needing to spit. It will pass. Have you been drinking water? That seems to be the most important thing.

So far, I have been sticking with soft pasta and cottage cheese and it seems to get easier. Keep at it girl!!

The meds are making me crazy though. I'm trying to only take them at night. My friend Bernard brought a humidifier over for me and that is keeping my throat moist.

Keep me posted on your progress.

Here's to feeling better,

Ava

Hi everyone, well its Friday, Day4 (surgery day being Day 1) and yesterday I called the doctor and told him my darn tongue was so swollen it was killing me, he called me in a Medrol dose pak. I had taken them before when I couldn't get rid of a sore throat, and I have to tell you I feel SO much better after only one night of the steriods. The swelling is going down, I even got up today and got dressed, went with my husband and tried a bowl of LaMadeline tomato soup which I love, well that was a bad choice I do think the tomato was too acid, but I'm so much better today. I have yet to have any bleeding at all. I was so fearful of bleeding to death too, but I did not bleed at all. I'm only taking the liquid vicodin at night cause it knocks we flat, and I got some childrens chewable tylenol and am taking that throughout the day, sucking on Jolly Ranchers to keep my mouth moist. I don't know when the scabs start coming off but really as far as the pain, besides the tongue being swollen, the actual sore throat pain hasn't been much more than when I had a bad case of tonsilitis. I'm drinking lots of water and gatorade and doing I think quite well. I'm hoping next week will be even better because I have 5-year old twins (yes, I did EVERYTHING late in life, tonsilectomy, children, etc.) who will be home on spring break and I'm hoping I feel like enjoying them. for those who haven't had it done yet, DO IT, its not that bad, I was getting sore throats every 6 weeks at least and some were so bad and felt like my throat was scalded, so if I can rough it out a week or two and know I won't have to deal with that I'll be happy. I often wondered if I was harbouring bacteria and then passing colds back and forth to my kids? Thanks to all for being there, I'm so glad I have support from these boards! Beverly

Hey guys! Just had my surgery yesterday, and I was scared to death. The hospital even gave me a shot in the butt to calm me down first! Anyway, i'm not feeling TOO horrible, but I did just look down my throat and it freaked me out. It looks ABSOLUTLY HORRIBLE!!! All white, and brown, and chunky! Its a bit scarey! Is that normal?? How long with this last?

Pink4Flower - it does look horrible down in there, I think Day 2 was my worst, the codiene just made me sick, but I had mine TUesday and today (Fri) Im up folding clothes (should have milked this illness a little longer shouldn't I) anyway, I'm certainly not 100% but I don't regret having it done. It feels like my scabs are rough now and sometimes I gag a little, drink lots of fluids, I had no bleeding whatsoever, I did feel really rough the first few days but it does it better, I got off the codiene and that made my better too, but you will need it the first few days, and I take it at night still so I can get through the night, but like I said the pain is not much worse than some of my sore throats. Hang in there. DON'T eat tomato soup, I think that really messed me up today when I did that and now drinking Gatorade hurts a little. I tell you also, I ate some Cheese Its, you know the little square crackers, I was so nausated on Day 2 that I ate some slowly, chewed them and let them get mushy and then drank some Diet COke that I poured in a glass and let the fizz get out, and that helped my nausea and it didn't hurt going down. BevS

Yeah, i'm not regretting it still... The pain is no thing for me, I can take pain like its nothing, whats really getting me is I have this mucousy buildup down my throat that I feel like I NEED to hack up, but obviously can't. Its making it a bit hard to breath. I'm drinking TONS and taking my meds on schedule, its just this mucous thats driving me insane! And I shoudln't have looked down my throat, that really freaked me out! I'll look back cause i'm sure some of you posted, but for thoes who havent, how big were your tonsils? I had my DR. take a picture for me cause I wanted to see em, he took a picture next to a ruler.. 2 and a half inches long, 1 and a half wide. EEK!!!

Pink4Flower - I don't know exactly how big mine were,but I did ask to see them and the nurse went and got them, I was still coming out of anesthesia and they were quite gross floating in that perservative, but I'd say they were about the sizeof an olive with the pt still in it, he said they ere "full of junk" and I would be glad I had done it. I know about the mucos feeling, I've been spitting a lot, just feel ike I need to, and I had drainge down the back of my throat and didn't want to clear my throat for fear of jarring something loose, I haven't had anything but childrens pain relivers today and I'm doing fine, but I will take my Vicodin tonight cause when I lay down I start draining and feel like I'm drowning in salvia, I've always salivated a lot anyway according to my dentist. I have been gagging a lot today, I don't know if the scabs are starting to slough, no evidence of it, it just rough back there on my tongue, and I feel like I want to spit. SOudns crazy I know. Does anybody know how to describe what happens when the scabs come off , is it going to be raw again? BevS

To the newcomer (I don't remember you name, afraid I'll never find my place again if I try and go back) but you said you had a sore throat, pain in jaw, etc. my tonsilitis was nothing like that, you need to see and ENT soon, I did have a sore throat one time that would not go away even after a round of antibiotics and he gave me a steriod pak to take and it took away the inflammation. Chronic tonsilitis is very evident to an ENT, you will have scarring. Even the day I went in I had tonsil stones on one of them that had been there over a month, that is what prompted me to go again, he had told me 3 years ago to get them out. But I actually didn't have a sore throat right before the surgery. DO get yourself checked out, and it he says you have tonsilitis he can give you something to clear it up, but if its chornic that is when you consider surgery.

BevS & Pink4Flower, it sounds like you are doing very well. Hope I will be the same. My surgery is now scheduled for the 21st instead of the 17th. What method was used to remove your tonsils? I'm not sure of the exact name of what I'm having but he said he will use cauterization. I read that that can be the most painful after and longer recovery. The mucous doesn't sound very nice. I have a lot of post nasal drip so I will probably have that too. are you able to get it up at all or is it just stuck in your throat? Bev, it sounds like you have your hands full with 5 year old twins! I have a 5 year old and an almost 3 year old. Please keep updating on how you are doing. I read this thread every day.

Hey guys! 2 days post-op, and i'm eating some mac n' cheese right now! Ahhh any kind of food is so good. Had some mashed potatoes last night. Having this surgery really makes you appreciate food! The pain really isn't too bad. Actually, It feels like the more I can eat, the easier swollowing feels! My only problem still is that dern mucous! I was going to ask, did any of you guys have the need to cough up mucous? Cause if I let it sit in there, I start to feel like i'm drowning, you know when you take a breath and you can feel and hear that grumble? My body has forced myself to cough a few times, but each time it scares me, I don't want to rupture anything! But so far, nothing bad has happened. I'm not sure exactly what method he used, but I know it involved "cobalation" or whatever that is. Not sure.

Is it normal for my throat to have a green color?? Thats pretty freaky.. I know, everything is freaking me out! I'm just a bit paranoid.. But I shouldn't worry too much considering i'm only 2 days post op, and not doing too bad aside from the cough. w/b and let me know where all you guys are at!:) Its SOO nice having this board to run to!!! :) Thank you all so much!

Pink4Flower and Mom22great kids

I'm not sure what kind of method, but it cautherized it as it cut or something, I didn't have any bleeding at all. Last night I tried eating a cheeto, bad move, this morning some of the membrane covering came off in one spot and obviously it wasn't ready, I didn't bleed and it was only a tiny amount but I can see really red flesh showing and it hurts a little more on that side, so i guess I better stick to potato soup, I'm just anxious to get on with my life! I do not regret it though cause the actual pain is no more than any sore throat. Sometimes I feel like gagging though, thus I spit a lot, I guess its just secretions etc. I actually had a bid of a cold when I had the surgery so I had drainage and would try to blow my nose, and finally just resigned myself that I was going to have snot in my head, but I guess the Amoxicillin cleared it up cause I don;t have the anymore, still taking my daily Claratin though, and sometimes I just want to clear my throat and cough and all, but I certainly don't want to break something loose and start bleeding, so I'm trying to ignore all those urges. Does anybody know in their research if this white membrane turns really dark when their ready to come off and on what day we can expect that and is it going to be super sore underneath?? My looks kinda green in there too and the right side almost black so I'm thinking its healing better and faster than the left, the left side is what is so sore. Oh yes, and I've had some of the deferred ear pain, but its just on occasion. I've found I like just luke warm water better than anything, seems like sugary stuff just makes me want to have to clear my throat. Thanks, you guys are so good to have, nobody understands this unless you have lived it.! Beverly

Hey guys,

I'm so happy to hear that you all are doing so well. I'm doing pretty good myself!

Right now, my biggest problem is going to the bathroom. I haven't in well over a week. Tonight, I'll be taking a stool softner, I hope that helps.

I haven't lost anymore scabs but I am having headaches when I don't take the vicodan. I guess I will have to ween myself off.

I tried eating jello and other sweet things but I had a really hard time so you aren't alone with that. It seemed to make the coating on my tongue twice as thick and gross. Mac n cheese, mashed potatoes, cottage cheese and peaches, and greens have been my lifesavers. Today my dad made chicken and dumplings and I ate it with no problem. I'm really excited.

I'm still having a hard time staying up more than two hours. The pain meds are really doing a number on me.

How did you guys get off the vicodan? I have been on them for going on four weeks!

Pink~ try sleeping sitting up. I know it sounds uncomfortable but when I elevated my head, it helped with the mucous. Let me know how that works out.

Wishing you all the best,

~Ava

Justava - When do the scabs start coming off, I looked in there tonite cause one side was bothering me and it look like just big chunks of yellow junk, I know its probably just the membrane, but the right side, it does not hurt at all, and its already turning black. The left side is really bothering me and that is where I have the ear pain, maybe the left side was deeper or something? I only take the vicodin at night, I just can't function on that stuff, I take tylenol or motrin during the day, and I'm still on the steriod. I don't want the scabs to come off too soon so I don't gargle or anything, when was your surgery? You said you had been on the Viocodin for 4 weeks, or did I misread that, cause I think you had your surgery shortly before mine on March 8. Are the scabs red or black when they come off and is it tender underneath the scabs? I had macaroni tonight and it went down well but my ear started hurting after I ate it and I might have to take some viocodin before bed, I'm still on the steriods too. Thanks, if you can answer some of those questions I'll appreciate it. P.S> The Vicodin will give you a headache thats why I quit taking it during the day, cause then the headache made me nauseated, just try backing down to half dose if you think you need to ween, if its been 4 weeks, by all means you need to get off, but I think I mis read that, if its only been 4 days and you still hurt I wouldn't worry about it. Bev

Hey Bevs,

Yeah, you read right, I've been on vicodan for four weeks. In August, I had a severe case of tonsillitiis with a peritonsilar abscess. Then mid February, I had severe tonsillitis again. They put me on steriods, amoxillicin and vicodan. So that's why I've been on for so long.

I had surgery the day before you and only one small bit of scab came off. It looked like pus basically. I didn't have any bleeding or anything. My ENT said that the scabs would come of between the 6th and 10th days. Nothing has turned black though.

Help - I'm feelin ROUGH today. I had a good day yesterday, then this morning (Day 6, surgery day being Day 1), I woke up about 6:30 in severe pain, I didn't want to take any Vicodin because I had to teach a make-up piano lesson this morning but I ended up taking some about 9 anyway. My throat on the left side is absoultly killing me today. I've been drinking warm water to soothe it, I haven't spit out any scabs and I looked in there and its still yucky yellowing looking stuff so I don't know if the scabs are trying to come off and the REAL pain is going to come after that or what but now I'm very upset and anxious about the next week or so, how bad this is going to get!!! I ate macaroni last night and it sort of hurt a little after that, could I be pushing solids too quick? The weather is sunny and warm here in Texas and I had planned to spend a fun day with my kids, now I feel like crap cause I took the viocodin, I think I'll go cry :(

justava - I can't beleive you have had to be on the Vicodin so long, poor you, that stuff is awful, sounds like you had some REALLY bad stuff going on before you got to have ths surgery, you must be worn out! I have a cold mist humidifier, do you think maybe that would help me at night, maybe I'm drying out or something. Sorry, I'm whining this morning but I feel horrible. I just want to be normal again. What is that yellow stuff, just dead skin I wonder? Lets just all hang in there together, surely we can get through this. Beverly

UUUHHH!!!! today is day 3 after the surgery, and DEAR GOODNESS IT HURTS!!! Time is going so darn slowly too... I ate some mac n' cheese yesterday, and some mashed potatoes, and I started to eat some artichoke but it started to hurt too bad. Now i'm thinking I shouldn't have eaten any of that stuff yet. I know I won't be today! My whole neck is sore, my tounge is sore....And i've had to cough a few times, pretty bad coughs which REALLY REALLY hurt, but I had no choice. My throat looks horrible. I'm worried that my recovery is going to take a lot longer since my tonsils were absolutely huge.. Ooooooh this sucks:(

Hi everyone,

I'm now 6 days post op and I am still shocked as to how painful this has been. I am 30 years old and I would take the recovery of a C-section or my two chest tubes for a collapsed lung any day over going through this pain again. This is the firt day that I don't feel absolutely awful. I've lost 12lbs in a week, mostly water I'm sure because after the first day I found it extremely difficult to even get water down. The ENT sent me home with liquid codeine but it was doing absolutley nothing so I went to a local clinic and the Doc there upped the meds to Oxycodone(morphine type) and all it was doing was knocking me out right away!
Question for everyone out there....is anyone else experinecing a massive amount of phlem build-up? I have to keep a cup by my bed and constantly spit it out! I know, gross! But I don't know why it's happening. Have only tried whipped potatoes so far for real food, even that still hurts, so it's mostly pudding and apple sauce. Found soy milk goes down pretty good and it has all that extra protein. Good luck to everyone else out there!

This just must have been our day.

I work up in excruciating pain this morning as well! When I looked in my mouth, some of the scabs had come off. I have been in the bed all day!

Until around 530pm, I didn't eat a thing. We just have too stay positive.

This just has to be over soon.

Your sister in recovery,

Ava

btw~ the humidifier helped me tremendously. In the mornings, my throat would be exceedingly dry and painful. For me keeping the throat moist eases the pain.

Mominpain!!!! I feel you on EVERYTHING you are saying! I've never been in such pain...I am constantly feeling like i'm drowning in my own mucous, and that damn liquid codene does nothing for the pain, just makes me tired. I've barely been off the couch for the past 3 days, nothing more than to go pee, or to get on here. I've broken down in tears so many times already, and everytime it just makes it so much worse. I'm glad that I didn't expect this kind of pain, I mean I read what other people had posted but always thought I was so tough when it came to pain, and thought i'd be able to handle it fine. Boy was I wrong. I have no idea how much weight i've lost, if any. I've been constantly drinking water, constantly have my humidifier on, and look forward to 10 o clock, 2 oclock, and 6 oclock, as that is when I get to take my meds. My throat looks like a corpses throat, slowly rotting. Its hard to look at...I brush my teeth constantly because my mouth tastes and feels so rotten, but it doesn't help much. I can't chew gum like alot of people suggest, because my tounge is very swollen, and when I chew I can feel my tounge rubbing against all the scabs and built up mucous. So in a nutshell, im absolutly miserable. When I do try to talk, it sounds like I have gobs and gobs of cotton in my throat too... But, like everyone keeps reminding me, once this is over, we'll never have to worry about it again! Stay stong! I'm trying to! <3

Ladies, this just must NOT have been our day, we have all had a miserable day. Mominpain - know what you mean, haven't had a chest tube but did have a c section for my twins after 3 weeks of hospital bedrest for pre term labor - heck, labor ain't SQUAT compared to this!!!!! I hope ya'll are smiling a little bid, I was miserable pretty much all day and we had some friends from Lubbock come into town and I went to dinner, had bisque, while everybody else had steak and shrimp - but I did get it down, it was kinda salty and burned a little. The lady of the couple we met is a nurse practitioner and had her tonsils at when she was 25 - she said "you are more woman than me" to be up and about, etc. She has had 6 knee surgeries and swears nothing has hurt like the tonsils, so I guess on the bright side, its okay if we complain cause by golly it DOES hurt. She did caution about those scabs coming off too soon and not eating too rough of stuff, hers came off too quickly on one side and she had to go to the ER they said they would "have to go back in there" she told them NO WAY so they packed her neck in ice - so lets all slow down a little and just eat our soup okay! I think a few scabs came off today. Mominpain I think you asked about the mucos, somebody did, I've been spitting like I'm dipping snuff!!!! Its gross but I just feel like I have to spit, so I do. Keep a little cup by my bed cause sometimes I wake up in the night and just need to spit. Gosh, is this just GROSS or what!!!! I did look down in there today, still looks like cottage cheese, with an extra glop of something on top, I see some little red streaks so I'm hoping that is NOT a bad sign, I've still not spit any blood. As far as the codiene I've been taking it at night only, except today, I had to take some during the day, but to be honest, I took 4 ibuprofen, cut them in half and swallowed them one piece at a time and I swear they did me more good than anything, although I think my post op instructions were not to take them, but just tylenol has never helped me even for a headache, the Vicodin is Tylenol with codeine in it. I am not advising anybody to do this though, cause if it thins the blood that would not be good if bleeding started. As far as the tongue swelling, on Day 3 I called and told the nurse I felt like they had stapled my tongue to the floor that it was so swollen I couldn't swallow and he called me in the steriod pak, I KNOW it helped a lot. Well, its late, I hope we all get some rest tonight, I'm gonna say a little prayer for all of us. I just said a little prayer for all of you, we all have families and committments and need a speedy recover. Sweet Vicodin Dreams.... Beverly

I'm really glad that I found this message board. It's been very helpful reading about everyone's recovery at different stages, mainly just so that I can reassure myself that I'm not experiencing something abnormal and that I'm okay.

That being the case, I'll post my info for others.

I'm 36 and had a tonsillectomy fourteeen days ago. I've been off the Hydrocodone for about four days now, but have been alternating taking Tylenol and Motrin every four hours for the pain, as I am still experiencing mild swallowing pain and moderate ear pain - the ear pain being especially bad if I try to lay down. Foods still taste weird to me and it's difficult swallowing semi-hard foods (a sandwich, meatloaf, etc...). It's not difficult to swallow because of the pain so much as just because my swallowing reflex isn't quite back to normal, and things sometimes get stuck half way down. My voice still sounds very weird to me and to others.

The only two things that I think I would change about my experience are that I:

A) Would have drank more water. I thought I was drinking quite a bit, but now realize that I could have ignored the pain a little better and drank a little more. And according to my doctor that would have helped in my recovery. I've now been prescribed an antifungal mouth wash that I might have avoided if I would have drank more water more continuously.

B) Would have gotten off the Hydrocodone a little earlier. I probably could have dealt with the pain a couple of days earlier with just Tylenol and Motrin. As it was, I was on the Hydrocodone for nearly eleven days and when I went off it I spent a couple of days really being out of whack. I had a general blucky feel and an overall malaise that I just couldn't shake as my body dealt with not being on the "good stuff" anymore.

Good luck to everyone and hang in there.

Reading the post prior to mine reminded me of something. The doctor told me that my uvula would swell and, because of the instrument they use to hold down the tongue during surgery, that my tongue would also swell and be sore. However, by late on day two my tongue and uvula had become enormous, to the point that I couldn't swallow. My tongue was pushing against the roof of my mouth and when I could use a tongue supressor to push down my tongue I noticed that my uvula was nearly blocking off my entire airway. All I could do was let the medicine or water just slide down the back of my throat as I tried - usually in vain - to go through the swallowing motions. So on day three, my wife called the doctor and they prescribed a steroid. It took a day or two for the steroid to really take effect but it did wonders.

Oh my goodness. This is sounding awful now. I am starting to think that maybe I should just deal with my tonsil problems :( . Hope you all are feeling better soon.

BevS and Pink4Flower, thank you for you understanding words and advice! It is nice to know that EVERYONE here knows what we are all going through. My husband is trying to be sympathetic but he never gets sick so I know he really doesn't understand what I am going through right now. I've got to start forcing more water down though and everyone else too! I went to put some makeup on for the first time in a week yesterday to go out for a walk thinking fresh air would do me good and I couldn't figure out what was wrong with my eyes until I really looked and realized they were sunken in! I asked my mother about it, she is an R.N and she said that is a sign of de-hydration. Yikes! I was going to attempt going into work today and of course when one thing goes wrong, everything does right? My youngest who's not quite 2 was vomitng ever since Sat. night and I took one look at her this morning and with a fever I knew I couldn't bring her to daycare, she needs Mommy's snuggles so I was barely able to get out on voicemail to my colleagues that I couldn't make it in again. Oh well, what can you do, health and your family need to come first right? Hope everyone else is slowly starting to feel better, I am bit by bit, still sticking to pudding, yogurt and applesauce to be on the safe side!

I think the steriods made a huge difference in my swelling, I don't know why they don't give them without question. I took my Vicodin las night and again woke this morning in terrible pain, I think I'm just drying out in the night so I'm going to try a humidifer tonite. Instead of the Vicodin I've continued to take the motrin and I swear it does much better for me, and I sip on warm water not cold all the time, it soothes me more. Zid you posted on day 14 , have the scabs come off completely? I still haven't lost many (day 6) and my mouth tastes so horrible - I look forward to getting to gargle with listerine. I've heard of people getting thrush with this, will the water help with that? Once I get up I do pretty good as long as I sip warm water all day, my right side does not hurt at all,only my left. I hope we all have a better day, I'll jump back on here tonight and see how everybody did.

Mominpain - try your best not to get your child's virus, that would just be the worst, just keep washing your hands all the time, you certainly don't need that set back. Beverly

So today is 4 days post-op, and the pain was getting worse, since the scabs were starting to harden, so I have started to take a little more lortab. The ENT told me that if the pain got worse or the medicine wasn't working enough, I could start taking an extra teaspoon, which has helped. I've been making sure to keep my humidifier full, and drink water constantly. Its strange, I can swollow water and everything okay, but I have a hard time swollowing my own spit, it just sort of sticks to the back of my tounge and doesn't want to make it down all the way. And then when I go to spit it out in my little cup, its painful and difficult. I can talk a little bit, but I still sound like I have gobs and gobs of cotton balls or something stuck in my throat. I keep looking in the back of my throat to make sure there is no bleeding, do you all have scabs through the middle of your throat? Like, not just on the back, but seeming to come from the top where the uvula is, and coming down almost like a scabbish netting (if that makes any sense?) I'm sure its normal, because my tonsils were covering the entire back of my mouth to the point where if I would say "AHH" they would touch, I think i'm just being paranoid because I haven't seen anyone elses throat! I can tell i'm going to have to re-learn how to swollow once the swelling goes down, I haven't been able to swollow properly in years. I can also tell my gag reflex has gone down, I used to gag when trying to brush the back of my tounge but now I can do that okay. Also, anyone else having trouble sleeping through the night? I wake up every few hours.. But I also take short naps throughout the day. Well, off to shower! I'll be checking up on you all later tonight!:)

Hi,

I'm scheduled for surgery on the 21st of this month (one week away, yikes!) I was wondering if you need to have someone at home with you during recovery...Are you bed bound for 2 weeks? Or are you able to move around...

Thanks!

cutsygirl79 - You need somebody with you at lesat the first 4-5 days, I would think. Its not that you are so overwrought with pain that you can't get up, but the pain meds make you goofy and you are in pain, I'm almost a week (tomorrow) and I still have pain but I'm not dysfuntional, but the first few days, yes have somebody with you. Good luck with your surgery, its not fun but it will be worth it in the end.

I'm still making okay today, believe it or not I went with my husband and ate chinese food, I ate an eggroll, very slowly, well chewed, and about 3 small pieces of orange chicken and a spoon full of rice. I hurt afterwards, but even when I eat soup I hurt afterwards, I'm taking it easy tonite with soft pasta, but it was sure nice to eat some real food. A word of caution, the tomato soup is still very acidy so stay away from it. My raw spot seems to be the outer edge of the palate, like where the uvala meets it and i don't remember if it had the membrane stuff on it or not, but I'm thinking when the scabs/white/yellow cottage cheese looking membrane stuff does come off that its going to be raw, mabe Zid could help with that since he is 14 days post op..... thanks for the input everybody, we can get through this. Oh and by the way, I would like to have some of your emails to follow up throughout the year once we get well... I would be very interested to see how many colds and sore thorats we all get... I'm certainly hoping not as many, I was getting them every 6-8 weeks without fail, so here is my email address if any of you want to email, but lets keep posting too cause I feel like if it had not been for this board I would not have had the courage to get it done... my email is [ please carefully review the posting rules - no emails ]

I'll check in on you guys later, gotta go teach a piano lesson. Bev

Bev,

Yes I still have one of those nice little white scabs back there.

Pink4Flower,

Yes, I also had a scab that went from my uvula like a net over to the side. It was only on my right side. My left side was just on the sides and towards the back. Of course, my right side was the one that has given me the most pain and it's the last scab that I have left, although now the "net" has gone away and it has receded to just being on the top and side of my throat. I've also noticed my previously very strong gag reflex being less than it used to be while brushing, I wonder if that will last? And the inability to get a full night's sleep also appears to be a common problem.

Isn't this a wonderful message board? If for no other reason than just to be able to see that everything we're going through is normal and we're going to be okay.

By the way, I'm feeling better from just last night when I first posted. After the first week, every day you can feel a little improvement.

Zid - where I seem to be hurting the most, I can raise my tongue and feel , its like at the top of the palate, it looks raw, could it be I lost the scab too soon. As the scabs come off is it like raw meat underneath, and thus intense pain with eating, or is it healed underneath? I ate pasta tonight and it just hurts to swallow but I think I do just as good on the Motrin than the vicodine. Do the scabs come off in hunks or just mucous? I seem to spit lots of mucuos, but not real hunks of stuff like a real scab coming off, maybe its just too soon? Thanks everybody. Beverly

Bev,

I cannot attest to your palate pain, but it seems to be a scab that came off. When they come off, the skin is blood red and ultra raw and sensitive.

As for feeling or seeing the scabs come off. Except for a couple of times while spitting out my anti-fungal mouthrinse, I don't recall ever seeing the scabs. I guess they just came off and went down with the food and water. I did feel a couple of them as they came loose however. I would get a tickle in my throat that I would have to cough to get rid of and, although I never looked at it in a mirror at the time, I just assumed it was a scab coming loose. There were a couple that were real pains in the rear, as I had to cough several times to get rid of that tickle, and you know how much fun it is to cough in this condition.

Thanks Zid, seems like I still have some pain to endure, if its blood red and raw than of course its going to be sensitive, that is how the palate by the uvala feels, I'm a little worried about taking Motrin becuase of the bleeding late in post op but man it sure seems to help, its just that Tylenol has never helped much with even my headahces, but I think I'll try just taking Tylenol, and not the Motrin, I'm also going to try a humidifier tonite, so I want be so sore in the morning, have you had any bleeding? Do you still have some white stuff back there?

Hope everybody had a decent day, all in all I have to say it was fair, I survived and every day we survive is another step closer to freedom from pain! My right side has not hurt one bit only my left, including my left ear, the mornings are what are so horrible, ear pain severe, dry sore throat, I took the kids to school this morning and came back and slept for 3 hours, but it was solid sleep so thats okay, this house work will all still be here next month, right? You guys have been great to listen to me complain, I'm wishing us all a speedy recovery!!! Lets look forward to Easter dinner, right?!! Bev

Hey guys! Today has been pretty miserable for me. I cant stop spitting, and usually find very small white chunks in my spit. I've had a low fever off and on, so i've been trying to drink more water but it is pretty difficult. I keep having to cough little bits at a time because the mucous/scabbing clogs up my airway, and usually when I do it knocks it loose and causes it to partially dangle down my throat which is driving me INSANE!! So far I haven't had any pain in my ears, but my neck has been really sore. I told my mom that during one of my naps I dreamt that I got an extra value meal from mcdonalds, as i've been craving real food, so she went and bought me a cheeseburger:) I've figured that I can eat almost anything, as long as I chew ALOT and take alot of time. I had a couple thin mint girl scout cookies last night. Well, can't wait for this horrid process is all over and done with! Have a good night everyone! Sleep as well as you can!

This is my first time posting, so i'm not really sure what to say. i found this site while i was searching the web to see if the look of the throat is okay. it was helpful to read about others feeling the same kind of pain.
this is day five after the tonsillectomy and i'm still not up for doing much. i'm starting to wonder if i can get all my spring break homework done on these drugs. but, from what i've read i don't think i want to try anything off the drugs just yet.
CAN ANYONE TELL ME WHAT THEIR THROAT LOOKED LIKE ON DAY 5 OR 6?
MINE IS COVERED IN WHITE AND BLACK AND IT SEEMS HARDER TO DRINK TODAY.
AND NOT ONLY THE PAIN BUT THINKING ABOUT IT IS KEEPING ME AWAKE.

Amtray, today is also day 5 post op for me, and my throat looks ABSOLUTLY HORRIBLE! I'm having the exact same problem!! I've been super worried that my throat looks worse than it should, and even asked my mom a couple times to take me to the dr. because I was so worried. But after reading posts from people on here, and after she reassured me, I guess its normal for our throats to be looking this horrible right now. The best way to describe my throat would be that it looks like a corpses throat rotting away. I woke up this morning in the worst pain i've had yet, and took a bit more than my regular dosage of the pain meds. I can't sleep for more than a few hours at a time because of the pain, and worry. Its actually a little helpful reading your post because I woke up so miserable, and thought for sure that this would be slowly getting better by now, but it seems the opposite. And going over alot of the old posts, it seems very normal for it to be getting worse before it gets any better. I know its alot easier to say than do, but try not to worry TOO much...try to keep your mind occupied...and if the pain is really really severe, go ahead and take just a little more of the pain medication. My dr. told me to do that if the pain got worse..so it can't be bad. And remember, once this is all over, its over for good and we'll never have to worry about it again!! Keep us posted!!

Wow, wish I would have found this site sooner. Quick history:
I'm 30 and my surgery was 3/7/05. Felt good the first day, horrible the 2nd and have been up and down since. Saturday I thought I was on the road to recovery...even went to Perkins for a Country Club Melt....something I had been craving...and then was blind-sided on Sunday. Sunday was perhaps the worst day of my life. I couldn't get out of bed, my neck was very stiff, my tongue was sore, I felt nauseous and I was so frustrated that I finally broke down into tears that night b/c I felt like I needed to throw up but was too afraid of the pain (and any consequences of doing so.)

My main problems at this point, would be neck pain (like a stiff neck), headache, the obvious pain in my throat, and some wicked semi-hallucinations. My guess is my crappy feeling is due to the liquid Vicodin which I have come to loathe (and I'm convinced there would be a lot less prescription drug addicts if everything tasted like that.) I have pretty much taken 2 tsp every 4-5 hours (although I was allowed 2-4.) In the beginning I was at 4, but have tried to stay at 2. Unfortunately, the hallucinations seem to come abrubtly and I cannot tell if that is from me coming off the Vicodin, or perhaps it's my body saying I'm taking too much.

Now, these aren't crazy-hallucinations, I guess, just my mind thinking weird things or dreaming while I'm semi-awake. I would also break out into sweats while trying to sleep during the day (but only during the hallucinations.)

After reading the posts I've asked my husband to get the Extra Strength Tylenol and I'm praying this helps.

The "good news." I've been lucky in that I've been able to eat at least a little something every day; had Mac & Cheese twice so far and I haven't had that type of indulgence for years. As far as I am aware, I have not had any bleeding. I have been drinking dilligently as I heard this speeds recovery.

At this point I just want to be well again. The frustration is almost unbearable at times, with periods of "ok....I can get through this." I had a kidney stone last July which, up to this point, was the most pain I've ever been in. But that is beginning to look like a cake-walk, compared to this.

So, with my fingers crossed that tomorrow brings a Vicodin-free day, I bid everyone a pain-free good night.

Questions for anyone who can answer: Did you have an appt. with your ENT and/or anesthesiologist before your surgery or do you just go over it with them the day of surgery? I'm scheduled to go in on the 21st but have not heard anything from them yet. Also, did you take an antibiotic before surgery as well as after? The antibiotic after, is it in pill form and if yes how do you get it down?

smnoe,

Wow, it sounds like you and Vicodin just aren't a good match. Everything else that you're dealing with sounds familiar, except for your reactions to the Vicodin. And eating a Country Club Melt on your fifth day? I couldn't have imagined even trying a sandwich like that on my fifth day.

Mom22greatkids,

No, I had no pre-op appointment, just the briefing right before surgery. I told the doctor to go ahead and yank 'em out on the 18th of January at which time they gave me my pre-surgery booklet - you know, no eating for twelve hours before surgery, etc... - and we scheduled the surgery for February 28th, and I didn't have any contact with them until the 28th when I showed up at the surgery center. And no, I didn't have any antibiotic before surgery, but I obviously had some prescribed for after. And no, it was a liquid. I would have punched my doc right in the nose if he had given me a presciption for pills.

Day 7 - This has been I think the roughest day yet, for some reason I have hurt all day, I ate soup for lunch and my throat stayed dry all day even though I'm drinking. Tonight at dinner I had eggs and toast, well the toast must have knocked something loose cause I started hurting really, really, bad, started crying at the table (hubby out of town, poor kids didn't know what to think), anyway, about 30 minutes after that, I coughed up a chunk of stuff and then I kept gaggin and spitting and a bunch more came up, I looked in there and I can definitely see a thinner layer now. I think tonight might be a rough night, tried the humidifier, couldn't tell any difference. Hope everybody is fareing better than me today. And I've had a terribly bitter taste all day, to the point it was just sickening. Still only trouble on the left side, very sore still. Do you think the mucuos is just thinning layers or is this stuff all going to come out chunky, anybody know? BevS

Bev- I've had a very similar day!! I made the mistake of heading out of the house, to go look at some model homes. Oh man, I had to run out of every house to spit up several times, the taste in my mouth was soo disgusting. I also spent about 10 minutes leaning over my toilet, because the taste and feel of the chunkiness in my throat was making me nausiated..My body actually tried to throw up a few times, which hurt like hell, but since there was nothing in there, nothing came up. I also started to get a horrible tickle in the back of my throat, like post-nasal drip..at first I thought it was absolutly horrible-I couldn't stop coughing, which obviously hurts like hell..but after all that coughing, i've noticed that alot of the crap that had built up in my throat seemed to clear, all without any bleeding. I've been pretty much staying on the couch since I got home from looking at the models, and have been drinking, eating, and chewing some gum. I can finally chew gum! There was so much gunk in my throat before that it would just make me sick to chew the gum, cause I kept feeling the stuff in the back of my throat rubbing on my tounge which made me sick, but since I've been coughing so much today, and so much has cleared out, I can finally chew gum now, which is keeping that disgusting rotting taste out of my mouth. So most of my day was horrible, but the past four hours or so have actually been really good. Who knows how i'll wake up feeling tommorow though, its all been so up and down, you never know what to expect. But I suggest, if you feel like you can cough without killing yourself, do so..its helped me alot! God i've broken down to tears so many times already, i've called my mom begging her to call the ENT and make sure everything I was going through was normal. The scabbing in the back of my throat was this horrible brownish greenish color, which freaked me out. But she did call, and he assured that it was all very normal. Damn, my surgeon wasn't kidding when he warned me that I would be in excruciating pain!! Well, stay tough ladies, we'll be done with this all soon. Here's to as painless of a night as possible!!!

ZID, thanks for the reply. I have not gotten any pre-op instructions yet because when I went for my appointment in Feb. he just told me to think about it and call when I decide. He did tell me no advil or asprin for 2 weeks before. Also I wanted to ask, did you get your prescriptions filled before the surgery? I just feel like maybe they should have more contact with me before Monday. Maybe I'm just starting to panic....

Mom- I didn't really have any contact with the surgeon until my pre-op appointment, when he gave me my prescriptions, told me about not eating or drinking, and listened to my heart and lungs. Then I had to go pre-register at the hospital. I got my prescriptions filled the morning before I went in for surgery. I didn't meet with the anesthesiologist until right before the surgery. One of the hospital nurses gave me a questionaire to fill out to give to her. Oohh.. I highly recomend, if you are really freaked out before going into surgery, tell one of the nurses and ask if there is anything they could give you to calm down. I was stressing out sooo bad, my pulse rate went up to about 135 BPM so they gave me a shot in the butt of something, can't remember what it was, but it helped ALOT! Made me feel really calm and sleepy..

Dangit! I want to know when things are going to start getting better...its day 6 post-op, and i'm still miserable:( My meds are starting to make me sick to my stomach, because i'm having a hard time getting anything in my stomach, and obviously you should have something in there before taking meds...but its so hard:( Last night I was starting to feel better but as it usually does, things went downhill when I woke up this morning:( AHH This sucks:(

Hi,

I was just wondering how many of you had a swollen uvula? And if it's really hard to deal with the scabbing....

I have a very sensitive gag reflex, and whenever my uvula gets swollen, needless to say, I gag. Same goes for the scabs coming off. Does it feel like tonsil stones? I'll gag on those too if they're protruding in a weird position.

(I'm scheduled for surgery on the 21st...and getting more scared reading about it! Maybe it reads worse than you guys have experienced?)

Nancy

Cutsy, the uvuala (sp) will most definitely probably swell, I've got a pretty good gag reflex though, and I got a steriod pak because I had so much swelling. I'm still pretty miserable though.

Pink - I'm on day 7 post op, and yesterday was the worst yet, then today I felt fair but after I ate a little lunch I just had a sinking spell and had to go lie down, I don't know what's up with that. I'm just ready to be well. I thought I would be much better by now, I still have this one area on the left side the hurts all the time, the only thing I can do to soothe it is warm water, ice water kills it and kills my ears. I'm still taking the ibuprofen but it seems to help me so much more, I just hope I don't bleed. Surely tomorrow will be better. Beverly

Cutsygirl, it looks like we will be going in the same day. Good luck to you. I hope things go smoothly for you.

HOpe everybody is having a better day today, I know I am. Still pretty bad in the mornings but today I had shrimp wrapped in bacon for lunch and some rice and I was able to swallow it without too much difficulty and pain. Hope everybody else has as good a day! Beverly

Uhhhh:( Well its 3:30am and I just woke up. Went to bed a couple hours ago. Anyway, I woke up with a very painful throat. I drank some of my propel fitness water, and took a little more of my lortab, and spit a little in my sip cup. Noticed blood. Not TOO alarmed since I saw a little bit of blood earlier after eating some pizza, I went to go look at my throat in the mirror and saw blood all over the left side of my throat. I freaked out and woke up my mom. I showed her, and she told me not to worry unless there was anymore blood coming out than just streaks in my spit. But i'm kind of a hypochondriac so I started to cry, and probably hyperventilate a little because for a second I got a little bit dizzy