Adult Tonsillectomy & Adenoidectomy Surgery - Part 4 is continued here.

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Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Moderator BAC

Wow, I hope everyone finds there way over here.

I'll be going to the Doc in a little while so I'll let you know what he says.

Everyone who's getting ready to have this done this week, just hang on we'll get through it together. The best thing is to learn from everyone's experiences and hang on to the idea that long term health benefits will be worth it. :bouncing:

Hey Everyone.

I read back thru many of the posts here. Great to see all the support you are giving each other.

I am having my tonsils out in a week. I am not looking forward to it at all but I know I will get thru it. I am having them out for tonsil stones I always get and my tonsils always seem to be swollen and crusty. I don't get many soar throats just discomfort. Time to clean things up in there!

My friend who is also 30 got them out this year. She said it was painful but not too bad. She only got Tylenol 3 for the pain. My doc is going to give me that plus Perceset and a mouth wash that numbs some pain. Hopefully that will help.

For three years I have had tonsil issues so I just try to look forward to when its over.

I will let everyone know how it goes and I hope everyone here does well!!!

James from Canada.

Hi James! Welcome to the april tonsillectomy club! ;)

Hi James. Welcome aboard. If you have any questions please ask. We are all learning from each other.

Hi guys

I am 8 months post-op and Charlaton I had the same problem with my uvula..I do think it is normal. 12 days is still early when it comes to healing in the throat. I had the extreme though because I also had a hole in my soft palate as well. If you can imagin the soft palate healing, mine never quite connected up with the side on the throat. Anyway my uvula was swollen for well over a month, but like I said before I had soft palate damage which was irrated when food would get stuck in it. As for the pain I am really impressed with how everyone is handling it. I was in soooo much pain for 10 days that I couldn't even work a computer much less post. :angel:

Hi everyone,

I am the one who posts here and there, but I do read everyones posts everyday faithfully!

Sounds like most of you are doing pretty good, considering. ;)

Hi Charlatan! :) Sounds like you're NOT doing very well. Maybe I can relate to you.

I am almost 5 weeks post-op and am still experiencing a few things. I have quite a bit of tightness when I yawn, I talk funny because my soft palate has dropped so much, and I have lost some or most of my taste.

My Dr. says that it may take 2-3 mths for everything to go back to normal and I went to see a psychic (not for that reason, just for fun!!!!) and thought I'd ask her and she says 2 more mths. Kinda strange since I didn't tell her what my Dr. said. Not sure that I believe in that stuff, but it was interesting.

Anyway, I hope you are regretting your decision because I was at your stage. It will end and you will feel alot better about things. I am not regretting my decision and I am hoping for the best because I am starting to taste a little bit better I think??? :confused: Either that or I am just getting used to it. It doesn't matter, I'm just glad I don't totally regret it anymore and I'm sure you will be the same soon.

Take care everyone and I'll be checking in often! :wave:

Damaja--Day 10 was the turn around day for you? Was that when your scabs were finished coming off? Did you have throat spasms when you tried to talk? I'm on Day 7 and the pain is unbelievable. Just looking for some relief until I hit that magic day.

Forgetful-- 2-3 months to get back to normal. Arrrgghh! I guess it will be worth it. I still don't regret my decision if I know I will get back to normal and resume life as I know it. :bouncing:

dbaum.. honest to donuts, that throat spasm pain is temporary, luckily! The after pains and discomfort that I'm having now, seem to drag on though, from what I see here. I assure you, dbaum, a couple of days and that spasmodic pain will ease! I know it's terrible, there's really not much you can do but drink and keep up with the pain meds at the moment. Eating helps, but is near to impossible, I know! I was squeezing my BF's arm or hand so tight, every time I went to swallow. It was torture.

Damaja and Forgetful - thanks so much for posting. I guess the palette dropping thing is permanent then! I just hope the uvula shrinks a bit and stops dragging on my tongue! Did you get that too and does it still do it??
Also, Damaja, how did you get the hole up there? Did the surgeon do it, whilst operating? That sounds terrible! =(
I suppose 12 days post-op IS still early days, I just expected to be a lot better by now than I am. I can't yawn and it feels constricted at the back there and weird.
Anyhoo, it's good to have people who have healed to still be coming back to post and advise. So cheers!

Hah! dbaum.. when I was 6 days post-op and in that pain you're having now, I was out and about in town, in the afternoon, with my BF, as he wanted to get some photos done, to take home with him. So we set the ****** up with my digicam on it and snapped some pics of us together and OMG.. I look awful! LMAO!! The pain was really bad and I was grinning and baring it.. literally! I wish you could see the pics. I had sunglasses on, too, to hide the tears of pain in my eyes. ;( In years to come, though, we can all look back on this time and smile. FINGERS CROSSED!

edit - ok, apparently the thingy with three legs that you stand a camera on, isn't allowed on here, for some bizarre reason! :confused:

Goodness gracious! I can't imagine going out and about feeling the way I do. I hope your BF appreciates those pictures. ;)

I'm off to see the Doc so we'll see what he has to say.

What's really bugging me is my neighbor gave us several pots of antique roses and I really, really want to get out and play in the dirt. I have such a great idea and want to go outside and add to my garden areas. But, that's not going to happen. LOL Geez, I'll be back to work before I feel like digging holes in the dirt.

Kewl, post again when you return from the doc. You'll soon be feeling up to gardening again. Hope you have better weather than us. It's not terribly warm, considering it's almost May. I don't know how I managed to go out and do those photos either. I did look sickly and pale, though and the smile does look a bit fake in some. LOL!!! We did have to come back home early, cos I needed my drugs!
Look at it this way, dbaum, if you're at the intense spasmodic pain stage, it's a sign that things are about to turn around for the better!! Lose those scabs and you'll feel much better.

Hey dbaum.

How many days since your surgery? Do you feel the wait and worry was worse than the actual experience? I keep imagining all the things that can go wrong and then stop myself.

James

Hi everyone, I am back for a bit.

Yes, it has been a painful process for me. The chance of dropping the painkillers and using just liquid tylenol was not even a choice. I am extending the time between doses by alternating them and that seems to work, as well as drinking. The nasal drip still annoys to no end and keeps me hacking and trying to clear my throat. I have not been able to sleep except in a reclined position, which I do not enjoy.

I feel like the scabs are loosening, but it is too hard for me to see and it all looks horrible back there anyway! I do feel a bit better today, but am not looking forward to the throat spasms or the more intense pain that is coming.

I consider this to be my Day 5, starting on Day 6 after 5pm, so I know that there is so much more to come. I do have a feeling of numbness in my tongue that just started a few hours ago. Seems like that is the way this all goes, it changes just a tiny bit at a time.

The dizziness is not as bad as in the beginning, but I do find that both the medicine and the liquid tylenol knock me out. I don't sleep much, but I take whatever I can get.

As for food, I have stayed mostly with popsicles, ice chips, ice cream, pudding and mashed potatoes. Yesterday I managed to enjoy a bowl of chicken noodle soup with a few crackers (fully soggy!) and I want to have that again today.

So far, I have lost 11 pounds since Wednesday. It scares me to lose that fast, but my doctor said NOTHING but soft food for the full 2 weeks. He said that I had a rough surgery and would be dealing with a lot of pain, the tonsils were huge with extremely long roots, but no bleeding.

Well, I am off to go make some soup and curl up on the couch. Got plenty of movies and magazines to keep me busy for a while.

Talk to you all soon.

Scott -- So good to hear from you. I was getting concerned that maybe you were dehydrated or something. Hopefully your pain levels will decrease and you'll turn the corner soon. I'll be thinking of you.

And, dbaum, I also wonder (along with James) whether the waiting and worrying were worse that going through the whole experience itself! I have anxiety issues and can literally worry myself sick. I am waiting to hear from the hospital about when I'm supposed to go in tomorrow and am really getting VERY apprehensive about whether this will all be worth it. :confused:

James--I had my surgery on the 12th. As for the wait and worry. I don't know. I found this board very early on so I felt I was well-prepared. I was worried about the procedure because of the risks and complications. Don't stop yourself from having this done. I came close to cancelling but after my Doc's visit today I am glad I didn't. I'll post about this further down.

Scott--Glad to see you are up and about a bit. 11 pounds is a lot to lose and the next few days are going to be pretty rough. If you can stand the slight thickness of a shake I would highly recommend the Atkins Advantage Shakes. They have protein and are nutritious. You need to keep up your nutritional intake any way you can. I have only lost 4 pounds by doing this. If they are a bit too thick, try and thin them with some water. Also, you can use Kern's Fruit nectars, like the peach and pear. This will give you calories and nutrition.

OK here's what my Doc had to say. First of all he says what I am experiencing is normal and will take time. He says where I am at right now is the worst part of it. I also asked him about the swelling and uvula and soft palette receding back up. He said the uvula usually drains to the sides but after a tonsillectomy the uvula does not have this area to drain to so it must drain up. This takes time but the uvula will lose the swelling. The soft palette will slowly go back up as well but not until some scar tissue is formed. All in all, this part of the healing will take the longest.

I asked him about the pathology report and it came back with no malignancy. He did tell me something about my surgery that was just gross to me. He said the tonsils were not that oversized but they were very, very deep. He said that right before they start the cut on the tonsil they hold it up a bit for support. He said when he did that my tonsil just exploded. It was so full of puss and infection. How gross is that? Do I regret having this procedure done? After hearing that I am glad I had it done.

He told me to eat whatever worked for me and in another week I should be feeling like a human being. ;)

Spashop, you are prepared and you know it's not going to be a picnic. But, I believe it will be worth it.

Ya dbaum sounds like you made the brave and good choice. In a weird way I envy you. You are half way thru it. Look forward to a great summer free of tonsil problems!

Spashop & Jamesg, for me the waiting and worrying was worse than going through it. My tonsillectomy was 4 weeks ago. I was so nervous I almost cancelled several times, and even the day of surgery I wanted to cancel. I went through with it and I'm so glad I did. With the exception of the first three days I had a pretty easy recovery. I had surgery on a Monday and by that Thurs. afternoon I was getting very restless and couldn't stay in bed any longer. That Friday I was up and doing things, and it got better each day. Drink lots of water and keep up your nutrition the best you can. When are you going in? Try not to do too much research because it will only scare you more. These boards are good for support but I suggest you don't go beyond that. I wish I didn't waste my time reading so much about it. It didn't do any good. Only scared me more. Think positive, you will make it through!

Dbaum, it sounds like you are doing well overall! Sorry to hear you have had a setback though. Hope you are feeling better soon. Yes, that is gross about your tonsil exploding!!

I forgot who asked but my uvula is still swollen a little but slowly getting back to normal.

Ewwwww!!! dbaum, I can well see why you're glad you had it done! Yuck! I wish I had been able to speak to my surgeon afterwards, to find out what mine were like. He was probably in hiding, after butchering me. Haha! Oh well, it's done now, so did you get anything else for the pain? Or did he basically say to tough it out?

What's this about the uvula draining? I didn't understand that bit, sorry. I thought that the uvula was just to stop stuff going up the nose when swallowing?

If I had thought there was another way around all this, so I wouldn't have had to have mine taken out, I would've gone for it. I did it because I was desperate and need to be well again to get on with living a normal life (although I feel miserable right now and can't see that day ever coming.)
I do think it's an operation adults should only have done if there's no alternative and it's absolutely necessary. It IS a big deal to go through. But hopefully, we will all come out the other end, feeling so much better for it.

HI Mom22. Twas I who asked about the dang uvula. It's making me feel miserable, for sure. You did have a really good recovery from your surgery, I remember. Good to see you're still about the place and are doing well.

I do agree with you... before I found this board, I wasn't really worried about having it done, but scared myself witless, reading all these posts on here. It does you no good to worry about it, but at the same time, it's nice to know you're fully prepared.

Charlatan--Here's what I know about the Uvula. The uvula has been shown to have the ability to produce and secrete large quantities of thin saliva. So now we know where all that excess saliva is coming from. It's got nowhere to drain to. LOL. My Doc gave me more Percocet and Phenergan suppositories. So, I have plenty of pain medication. I can't wait for the next week to pass and start feeling "human" again. :)

Oooh righteo, didn't know that. Thanks for asking your doctor about all that. I suppose you're having the same problem as well, though. Ewww.. when I tip my head forwards, it falls against my tongue and it's sooo not nice!

Anyway, you'll be starting to feel better real soon now, chook. Then you can spend the summer pruning them there roses. :)

Mom22 -- Thanks so much for the words of encouragement. Believe me, it is very comforting! Did you have much pain when the scabs came off? It sounds like the de-scabbing process is more painful than the initial few days, at least for many on this board.

dbaum -- I'm sorry if you mentioned this but i can't recall. Did you doctor recommend a medicated mouth/throat rinse to dull your pain? A friend of mine used that during his recovery and said it was miraculous.

I'm going in tomorrow morning at 10:30, surgery's scheduled for 11:30. Any prayers/good thoughts y'all feel like sending my way will be much appreciated!

Aww. Break a leg tomorrow, spashop! You may have it easy(ish) like Mom22 did. Not everyone has horrible experiences. But it does get worse before it gets better. Good luck and come back and post when you feel up to it. Will be thinking of you.

Spashop--No, my Doc never mentioned any throat rinse. But have no fear you will do OK. You're gonna fly through this. My Doc said I was at the worst point and guess what? I managed to eat, very very slowly, some mac n cheese, salisbury steak and a biscuit for dinner tonight. I took a pain pill but yesterday I could not have eatten all of that. It will get better. You will be in my thoughts. Let us know how you are doing just as soon as you are up to it.

Thanks, Charlatan. I appreciate it!

Listen to this one: I just talked to my doctor, and asked if he would be giving me Percocet or Oxycontin or something like that. He said that they give liquid Tylenol with coedine and expressed surprise that I would ask for Percocet since it only comes in pill form and can be difficult to swallow. I know many of you, including dbaum, have been taking this. You're taking it in pill form, right? (My doctor said to "stay away from" Oxycontin, which I have no problem with.)

Spashop--Yes I am taking Percocet. My Doc said he gives the pill form because it's stronger and he also said until I could swallow the pill to crush it and put in applesauce or something that you are able to eat. That's what I did for a couple of days. Since then I can swallow the pill as long as I put in something like custard to help it slide down. Remember if you are not getting pain relief ask him for the Percocet. You can take it crushed. It's pretty bitter but it's worth it. As for Oxycontin I agree with your Doc. That's some scary stuff.

Get some sleep and try to relax. You've done your homework and you know what to do to make your recovery a success. You will have rough spots but we're all here to help you through them.

{{{{{Hugs}}}}} to you, my Tonsil Buddy!

dbaum -- Thanks so much for your reply. I've spent the last 15 minutes searching for Percocet entries to determine if it is available in liquid form (which it does seem to be). I am definitely going to get a script for it. It will make me feel better knowing that i have it.

Oxycontin is really bad. Where I live (in southwestern Connecticut) there are a number of treatment facilities that are filled with people recovering from their addictions. I guess it's like "street heroin."

How are you doing? I hope you are feeling better -- much better.

I will post after I'm out of surgery. :wave:

Wow! Is oxycontin that bad then?! Hehe! I'd not heard of it before, til my BF asked the ENT doc in the hospital to gimme some, to take home. (Remember, I got sent home with crappy painkillers. Even in the hospital, never got morphine). So my BF asked the doc if he could prescribe me this oxycontin stuff and the doc said he didn't think the hospital pharmacy would gimme it!!!!!!! Like DUH.. HE'S the DOCTOR, NOT the PHARMACY! Jeeez!!! Anyway, bottom line is, I didn't get any oxycontin, but was told it would be soo good for the pain.

Spashop, you may not sleep too well tonight, as you'll be dead nervous, I know. Just concentrate on 1 month from now and how much better you'll be feeling, with this all behind you! Hopefully catch up with you tomorrow, if you feel up to typing. Think happy thoughts!!! (White fluffy clouds and lil lambs skipping and jumping in meadows and that pair of new shoes/boots you saw in the shop and so want to buy! ARF!!) You'll do juz fine!

dbaum- for me the terrible pain stopped around day 12, that is when I had my first semi-meal of pancakes. I couldn't talk for 10 days and yes I had the spazims(Sp) which would generate up to my ears which were awful!!! My scabs started to fall off on day 7 and I started to bleed and had to go to the hospital. I really didn't feel painless for about a month.
I was wondering if I could share with you all something. I am not asking for pity but all of you can and will be able to related how it feels to be post-tonsillectomy. Everyone around you can not even to begin to relate how painful and uncomfortable it is. Well on day 5 for me I had to rush to the hospital to be with my Dad when he died. You can't even imagine the endorphines I was running on. Needless to say no words can describe the pain I felt and you all can relate that crying reallllly hurts your throat so I tried not to cry. I was in bed for the next 5 days in agony until day 11 which was the service. I looked like a walking skeleton because I was really pale and I could hardly speak. Thanks for letting me share this with you all

Oh damaja, I am so sorry about your father and the timing of it all too. Yes, I can well imagine the pain of crying (and trying to hold it back as well), especially when you're at the most painful stage, too. That must have been real tough on you. Sheesh!
I wish you all the very best for the future. xx

spashop-i was given hydrocodone(which is tylenol with codine) b/c it is liquid but since i wasn't able to eat much it made me terribly nautious. the taste is not so good. so i called my ent and he gave me darvocet. they were pretty big pills so i bought a pill spliter and was able to swallow half pills. at first i even split them in fourths until i could get used to swallowing them. i'd be curious to know what the difference between darvocet and percocet is? does anyone know. day 17 post-op for me and i am back to eating whatever i want but still can't fully yawn or clear foods out of the side of my mouth with my tongue(you know, like on the facial side of your teeth). i even went to a mexican restaurant for lunch and had (lots) of chips and salsa.

HI Mom22. I do agree with you... before I found this board, I wasn't really worried about having it done, but scared myself witless, reading all these posts on here. It does you no good to worry about it, but at the same time, it's nice to know you're fully prepared.

Oh I agree about being fully prepared. What I meant was don't look up things on the internet constantly like I did. I spent so much time looking up things (statistics and stuff like that) and basically coming up with the same information every time. This board is great for getting everyone's individual experiences. I couldn't have had the recovery like I did without reading everyones experiences and what to do and what not to do.

Damaja, I'm so sorry about your father. It must have been awful to go through that and the tonsillectomy at the same time. :(

Thanks, Charlatan. I appreciate it!

Listen to this one: I just talked to my doctor, and asked if he would be giving me Percocet or Oxycontin or something like that. He said that they give liquid Tylenol with coedine and expressed surprise that I would ask for Percocet since it only comes in pill form and can be difficult to swallow. I know many of you, including dbaum, have been taking this. You're taking it in pill form, right? (My doctor said to "stay away from" Oxycontin, which I have no problem with.)

I was given Tylenol with codeine and also Roxicet which I understand is the liquid form of Percocet. I was only able to take a few doses of it though because I got so sick every time I tried it. I stopped trying after the second day. Now I have a full bottle sitting in my cabinet.

Edited to add: Spashop, I'm in CT too!

Hello again everyone :)

I posted last night about my tonsillectomy coming up on April 20th. I'm glad to read that others were considering postponing theirs. It makes me feel better that I'm not the only one thinking of chickening out.

I think what is making it so easy for me to consider backing out is that my tonsils don't actually hurt, they're just swollen constantly, and I'm always sick and completely drained of any energy. When I think of the pain of a tonsillectomy and the recovery period, that little voice in my head keeps saying...being sick all of the time and tired isn't THAT bad, is it? lol

I WILL be going through with this, mostly because there is no way that my husband is going to let me back out, he's tired of me being sick all of the time, as well (boo hoo for him). He just doesn't get why I'm freaking out. He had his out when he was six, and barely remembers it. Not quite the same!

I'm so glad I found this board. I feel better knowing a little of what to expect. :) Thanks everyone!

Sabrina

sabrinaleena - Hey you sound like me. I dont get soar throats much either. Just swelling and around those times I feel achy and sick. So I am having mine out apr. 25th.

We will get thru it. A few weeks it will be over and then you can get on with a healthier life!

PS. My friend who is 30 just had hers done. She is fine now. 2 weeks of some pain but after a month she has aabsolutely no side effects. And if i do say so...she is a little wimpy.. so if she got thru it and said it was all worth it I have hope for me. ( jenn if you ever find this site I owe you a dinner for that comment ;)



James

Hi,

Charlatan...My uvula was swollen for almost 4 wks and still might be a little.

Damaja...So sorry about your dad. I lost my dad when I was 7 mths pregnant, so I really feel for you.

Glad everyone else is doing well.
:wave:

hey everyone..and hello to the newcomers! im sorry to hear everyone is in so much pain..i am really freaked out about the whole palette/uvula thing..my uvula feels swollen as it is..i constatly feel like something is in the back of my throat. I hope i wont back out at the last second..im getting so nervous now. I am basicaly getting them because the same problem dbaum found out he had..my ent said that when he pressed on my tonsils he could see all the puss..i currently have a seprate ball forming off my tonsil that is driving me nuts...its like my tonsil has a tumor. my ent pretty much comnpared my tonsils to a zit if you pop one..yuck! ive had these every other day for th last year..i always knock them off with a qtip and they are back in a day..but my tonsils arent swollen ever..and i dont often get sore throats..so im not sure i want to chance possible permanent palette/uvula/taste problems..but at teh same time its annoying to deal with when you are hacking these stones up all day! damaja i am so sorry to hear about your dad...i lost my dad to a massive stroke 8 months ago and am still dealing with the loss..i couldnt imagine that happeing at the same time..i have so much going on now that it will be hard to relax after surgery(brother in iraq, losing my house(cant afford it anyomore), grandma with alzheimers is suicidal) im afraid i may hemmorage from stress alone. Plus I have a weak stomache..i cant handle antibotics, somas..they both make me throw up..and im sure what they give is stronger..plus i get dizzy easily(motion sickness)and i know scott had a problem with that..GEEZ look at me going on and on and i still have a week to go..were all you guys this scared to and still went through with it..i think i read into too much and now im freaked! any advice?

Yep this is scary and it makes you want to run away. But, be thankful for this board and remember that knowledge is power. Use what you have learned from this board to take charge of your healing/recovery and come out a winner. ;D

Hi everbody. I'm going in tomorrow to see about getting my tonsils taken out. I've had tonsiloliths since I was twelve (I'm almost twenty). I've decided I'd rather have a week or two of straight pain then a day out of every week for the rest of my life that I can barely talk. I wouldn't mind it so much if I didn't talk on the phone for a living. How long does it usually take until you can talk again? From what I've been reading I may have to take more time off from work than I was planning on.

Don't know how long until your voice is back to normal. I am on Day 7 and I can only talk for very short periods of time and then it really hurts.

Good luck on your surgery and let us know how you are doing. If you've read this board and learned from others, you will do great.

Moanin' all.

dbaum, 1 week on... so how are you feeling today? Pain spasms still just the same? How much scabbing do you think you have left? I hope that the spasmodic pain is starting to ease a bit now.

Scott, I hope you're not suffering as much as you were. Keep us posted when you can. :)

A bit of a babble.:
To those about to have surgery who are thinking of running.. If you read back to just over 2 weeks ago, you'll see how much I wanted to run! ;P
Thing is, I'd known for over 6 months I needed to get it done, but the prospect of this surgery terrified me, to the point where I really had nightmares about it, a few times every week.. waking up in a sweat! You know it's not a nice thing, to have throat surgery, but then you just have to think whether the short term pain and suffering will outweigh the long term gain, make the decision, and go for it. Yes, there are small risks, as there are with most any other surgery, especially under general anaesthesia. But thank your lucky stars you're living in the 21st century, with modern medicine. Imagine before they even HAD anaesthesia, and this kind of surgery would be done whilst you're conscious and feeling pain! LOL!! Seriously though, you gotta weigh up the pros and cons. Only you can make that ultimate decision.

For the first time just now, I have been able to actually open my mouth just wide enough to get the dang tootin' toothbrush in to clean my back teeth! Usually, my uvula sits on the back of my tongue and I'm heaving. Hope this is a sign of things to come!!!!

Ahhhhh!! I'm a "Senior Member" now. How pawsh. I guess this means either I'm a knowledgable person, I babble too much, or I'm a hypochondriac. :D

Moanin' Charlatan--I woke up this morning and my throat was stinging so much. I'm still drinking and eating somewhat so that's good. I'm going to try and space out the pain meds and see how that goes. I hope today is better than yesterday. Still too early to know about the spasms. I will let you know as the day goes on.

I looked in my throat this morning and it seems I still have quite a bit of scabs left to come off. The Doc said it will take extra time because he had to go so deep. I can't imagine all the scabs will be off in a few days. I suspect it will take at least the rest of the week. My breath is starting to stink, is that normal?

I had some peach nectar early this morning and that went down OK. It seems that warm things do feel better and the heating pad does help with ear pain. Yep, I still have that in both ears.

I honestly believe it will get better. After my Doc told me what happened during surgery I really think it's a very good thing I had this done.

I hope everyone is doing a bit better today and can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I wouldn't have dared reducing my pain meds 7 days post-op. The pain was still very bad. But day 6 or 7 and I was eating tortilla chips with salsa dip. I did as the doctor instructed and lost the scabs quickly with no blood loss. But I do still have a lil bit of scabbing in the deepest part of the tonsil beds, I believe. The tonsil beds themselves are of no bother to me now. It's still the palette/uvula prob.

Hmm... I don't know about stinky breath. I think I'd lost more scabs than you have, by that point. No one said my breath smelled when I asked them. I'm still having a bit of ear pain, but heat pads never did help me. I do believe that eating helped with the spasmodic pain. It would be so hard to swallow, then it would be really easy and painless for a wee while, then the pain would return suddenly. But after a few days, the length of time between spasms grew longer and that's how I knew it was coming to an end.

dbaum, you're still thinking positively. Good for you. I bet by tomorrow, things will have noticably improved for you.

Charlatan--I am going to try some chips today and see what happens. :)

ROFL!!! Then come looking for me with a cast iron skillet in hand, if you start to bleed!
I accept the fact that we are given totally opposing recovery instructions. All I can say is, I did as instructed and ate the toast, the chips, the cookies and stuff, and it worked for me. In fact, I always found eating food - whether it be soft food or toast - a lot easier to swallow, than drinking!!! I don't know why.
I never did touch any of the baby food I'd bought. I don't know anyone with a baby either, so I guess I'll toss it all in the bin today.. unless the cat will eat it!

An afterthought, regarding the stinky breath... although I never had that problem, I still wanted to keep my mouth as clean as possible, to reduce the risk of getting an infection and since brushing my teeth was so difficult, i bought some alcohol-free mouthwash, which helped.

Don't worry I won't come after you with a skillet. LOL I'm going to be careful and Doc told me to do whatever worked for me. I'm willing to try anything. I do know that ice water makes the throat constriction and spasm feeling worse. Luke warm coffee does nicely.

Charlatan, don't torture your cats with the evil tasting baby food. I would toss it or donate it if you have a community food bank or something like that.

Hahaha! I'm so mean!!! One of the cats was happily eating her saucer of canned cat food just now and I tipped some of that baby food mush on top of it and she sniffed it and walked off! Crikey.. makes you wonder how babies can stand to eat this stuff.

morning everyone
desireedp-i was able to talk the whole time, although not very loud. i went back to work on day 11 and seemed to do fine. i had mine done on a friday so i could have the two weekends plus an entire week to recover.

dbaum-i know where you are coming from with the stinky breath. i had it too, its from the scabs and i think the medication. my tongue looked like it had a thin white layer on it. i work in a dental office so i'm a phreak about oral hygiene, so i definately brushed 2-3 times a day, flossed, and used a tongue scraper and it was still there, yuck.

to the ones getting it done, good luck to you. if you are thinking of not doing it b/c of the pain, you just have to decide what would be better for you in the end. i don't regret it at all. scott, ariane how you doin?

I am doing pretty good today. Not really sure if the scabs are coming off, but I think so. It hurts too much to really open wide and look at it. Still, no throat spasms yet, but a little ear pain. I am really staying on the meds and it makes me sleep ALOT. I don't mind, since our bodies heal better when they are at rest.

Swallowing, of course, is painful. And I do feel something going down as well, such as scabs. Still, today is a much better day than all those before. The humidifier is a must for those about to do this - really helps when you try to sleep. And the sinus drainage has pretty much stopped, so I am thankful.

I am no way near ready for resuming a normal life yet, but I do see the end of this thing coming. I know its gonna get worse (maybe even today) but I am enjoying this moment for now!

The most food I can get down is a bowl of chicken noodle soup with crackers. I'm not even trying anything else, as that is working fine for me. As for dehydrating, I have done that twice before and know how painful that is on its own terms, so drinking as much as I can force myself to.

Hope everyone else is doing well. Today for me is Day 6. Got a long way to go, I know!

hey everyone! for now i decided not ro run lol im sure i will go back and forth, but my fiance will be with me the day of tonsillectomy and i know he wont let me run! he somehow thinks its gonna be somewhat of a walk in the park lol! i just look at the amount of post dbaum and charlatan have! my goodness know wander you are senior members! you have a lot of advice and we are all thankful..how everyone is doing well and to the others getting it done God speed ..didnt spashop go in this morning or is that tommarow?

Yep. Spashop went in today, I believe. My BF, as you know, travelled 6000 miles to be with me for my operation and THAT was what stopped ME being able to run! He thought it would be easy too and that I was being a drama queen. MEN!!! lol!
Glad to see there's some advice in amongst my babbling on here. It's just so nice to be able to type, when it's sore to speak properly.

Scott, good to see yer doing ok. You'll get through it juz fine, don't worry. You're pretty lucky to be able to sleep so much. I wished I'd been given drugs to make me sleepy too. ;(

Waiting for a progress report from dbaum, after he's eaten his chips and comes after me with his skillet.

Charlatan, you are cracking me up! lol

I hope spashop does well today. I should get my check-in time today, for surgery tomorrow. I don't have thoughts of running, as I'm totally determined to do this. But I'm still preparing for the worst, and finally getting my will signed and all that (I've been putting that off for months). Planning on having steak tonight as my last meal - hopefully that won't bite me in the a** as constipation issues later (no pun intended - ha ha ha!)

Coming down with a little cold today. Apparently my tonsils wanted to go out fighting and get me sick one last time. But it shouldn't be so bad as to put off the operation.

Hi all. I hope spashop is eating a popsicle as we speak.

Scott, you sound so much better today. One day at a time and we'll all get to that wonderful healing place. At least that's what they keep telling us. LOL

Charlatan-- Just an fyi dbaum = Deb! LOL. I have not eatten any chips yet, but I did get some more eggs, potaoes and a biscuit down quite nicely. I have found at this stage that gum chewing tends to cause more pain. It's helpful early on but I don't think so much now. Also, iced anything burns my throat so room temperature or warm does the trick. I am still alternating Percocet with Liquid Tylenol and I am doing pretty good. Stil have a hard time talking for a long period of time. It feels like my throat is going to spasm shut.

All in all I am better today. Last night I had Mac n cheese with salisbury steak. Took forever to eat but it was worth it. I think I can see the faint sign of the light at the end of the tunnel. I still have quite a bit of scabbing left so I will be trying the chips later this afternoon.

Oh one more thing. My taste is almost back to normal. YAY!

OK, I'm laughing hysterically here (Painfully too). dbaum, I could've sworn that, WAY back, you had mentioned your wife? If I was hallucinating, I apologise profusely. I thought you were male, I'm sorry. Skillet me.
*Looks for embarassed emoticon*

Lucky you for having your taste back to normal anyway!!! Jeeez!! Now I'm going to worry more so that mine's left like this permanently. Waaaaaaahh!!!!

Sugarbeth is female, I know. I can't get this one wrong. Sugarbeth, I hope that you don't get a nasty cold, as that would be hard to deal with, immediately after surgery, I'm sure. Enjoy that steak!! I'm just drinking some orange juice and can barely taste it. it will drive me insane if this is permanent.

Charlatan--I think you were hallucinating. But that's OK we're all entitled to a good hallucination once in awhile. LOL. Tried to find a skillet swinging emoticon but it didn't work. LOL

Okay, I thought dbaum was male, too! LOL

Oh dbaum, u gotta laugh, else you'll cry. Just be careful of those scabs as you laugh.. don't want you cracking your face at this stage. :)
I'm actually tempted to scroll back through the threads to try and find the post where I thought you had mentioned your wife looking after you. lol! Prolly got it muddled up with someone else's post.

Sugarbeth, did you find out yet what time you're due in tomorrow?

Ooooh! I have just realised something.... a week or two before I went in for my operation, I was suffering with a sinus infection, I think. Well, my sinus hurt anyway.. enough for me to have to take painkillers. But i've only just remembered about it and realise that since the surgery, I've not had any trouble with it! Kewl eh?

Also, as I sit here, eating my dinner, I'm wondering whether my tongue is actually still swollen. I'm 2 weeks post-op now, so wouldn't have expected it to be still. Maybe it's just from talking too much. Will shut up now and go back to my corner, since I've already made a complete *** (donkey) of myself on here once today.

Charlatan you sound so good. I hope I'm as chipper as you are when I am post-op two weeks. The post you might be talking about is where I mentioned my Mom coming down to stay with me. She wasn't able but that's OK. Anyway, no harm. We all had a good laugh and sometimes that's the best thing.

Hey, all -- I'm back! Everything went smoothly and I'm completely zonked from the meds. Drinking ice water (and burping!) like a fiend. I'll post more later.

Sunskater, as I recall you are going in tomorrow. God bless you and best of luck -- I know you will do fine.

Good for you Spashop! Get some rest. We'll be here when you wake up. :)

Still waiting on that phone call about my check-in time...

Glad to see you back, spashop! Rest up!

dbaum, sorry your mum couldn't make it. I do remember the post you said about her coming down, but also, before that, I really thought I'd seen you mention about your wife taking care of you... which obviously was a mistake on my part. I didn't realise you were all on your own. *Hugs* You've just about come through it all and out the other side now, though.
I do feel good sometimes, but I'm still needing painkillers every day, which is bothering me. It's for the palette/uvula thang! Sometimes I feel down, thinking I'm doomed to stay this way forever.. and without my sense of taste back as it should be. It makes me feel sad.

Spashop, hope you're doing OK. Welcome back. Take loadsa drugs. :)

Sugarbeth, sheesh... your hospital like to keep you in suspenders til the last minute, eh? I don't know what time it is where you are, but it must be getting late in the afternoon. I hope they soon call you to give you some details.

Hi all.....i just thought Id drop a funny hint. I had my tonsils out at age 38 and I am now 52. I didnt have sore throats but just felt something in my throat all the time and it turned out to be abcessed. ANYWAY, I remember beign SO hungry and nothing tasted or felt right...until I ate garlic bread made from Texas toast!! The salt and garlic were very healing and I ate the middles out of neary a whole loaf. I think it helped. Good luck to all you guys. Oh and the recovery heals in waves, but it gets better little by little.

Jeez! Finally got my check-in time - 6:45am (PST). At least I won't be too starving by then!

I'll try to post tomorrow if I'm not too out of it so that you all know that I survived. ;)

Good luck for tomorrow Sugarbeth! You'll be in my thoughts. Try to stay calm. Tell us how you're doing, as soon as you're up to it. :)

Charlatan: I am just starting to get my taste back...very slowly though!!!!

I'm sure that it will happen for you too...I am 5 wks post-op. Do you notice if your tongue look like a layer has been stripped from it?...Mine does. :rolleyes:

Spashop, I hope you are doing well. Stop in and let us know.

Sugarbeth, I wish you the best of luck. Relax and believe this is the right decision.

OK I'm having a bad moment. I am just about finishing up Day 7 and I just can't wait until this pain goes away. There is still a significant about of scabs left and I have to take pain meds regularly. What really kills me is the pain when I wake up after sleeping a couple of hours. It's like my throat is on fire and the ear pain is so bad. I know I am whining but darn it I am in pain and have to go back to work on Monday. I'm having a hard time dealing with the pain right now. I will try and be more upbeat when I post again.

Thanks for just listening.

hey everyone! okay i just wanted to say i thought you were a guy to dbaum lol..im really sorry too..anyways your advice has been great and i hope you are doing okay. spashop- i hope you are feeling okay.. i dont go in untill monday the 25th..im the last of the bunch..i believe my appointmaent is at 1pm..so i will have to starve..i decided to work a 10 hour day on sunday so im not sitting around worrying all day..and then im stay over my fainces(so i cant run) and he is makeing me meat loaf..scalloped potatoes and homeade chocolate cake(he's a chef). sugarbeth..good luck tommarow!
when you say taste loss do you mean its so bland you couldnt taste the difference between apple and orange juice? talk to you all soon..scott and ariane how are you 2 doing?

thank you all for your kind words. Dbaum for the record I always thought you were a woman :) Anyway I feel for you, you never think the pain will go away, but it soon will. And I also remember the morning the first thing I would do is take the meds. If you take them every 4 hours the pain will be less, at least that worked for me. Charlatan my ENT had never seen a hole in the soft palate before, (I am so lucky :rolleyes: ). Anyway after many months with the hole he tried to stitch it up when I was fully awake which was soooo awful. Needless to say the stitch opened up after one day and the hole became 3 times bigger. I just had the last operation (totally under) about a month ago and he removed almost my entire right side of the soft palate. The only thing I have to say is that it is finally over after 8 months!! I think I might have been the one who caused the hole by using a straw the first couple of days after the tonsillectomy. I did a little research and found someone else that it happened to . Her DR said that it is very dangerous because using the straw creates a vacuum in the mouth which causes damage. Good luck to everyone and my one word of advice to control the pain.....take the drugs!!!

Hi everyone:) I have been told by my ent that i need a tonsillectomy and that my soft palate (sp?) is too thick and needs to be trimmed back. My tonsils have always been huge and I choke on everything. I never had much trouble with sore throats until January. Since jan. I have been sick 5 times with sore throats, sinusitis and bronchitis. I am absolutely exhausted all of the time and am wasting my life sleeping it away. My ent wanted a sleep study done first to check for sleep apnea (which i had done last night) now I have to wait for the results of that before my surgery is scheduled. I am terrified to have this done and like everyone else want to say, "forget it!" My ent said that I am lucky because my tonsils hang like a childs (I am 28). He said as an adult tonsils usually grow into the sides of the throat and have deep roots and mine dangle, so I am hoping this will help in my recovery in some way. What I am also worried about is the soft palate. What am I looking at recovery wise in having this trimmed? has anyone here had this done? Please forgive me if someone has already posted about this as I am exhausted tonight and have only read 6 pages of this thread. Any ideas about this tonsillectomy/soft palate trimming surgery and recovery would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Cindy

Sunsetsaker and Damaja--Hey what does it matter. Man, Woman???? On this board we're all just a bunch of yucky tonsils. LOL

Spa and Beth I hope everything is going well. Scott, how's it going.

Well here we are beginning another day of pain. I can hardly swallow. I am trying to force it but the pain is unreal. I am taking drugs every 4 hours. The minute I try to swallow the pain turns to intense burning and goes right into my ears. I'm getting concerned since I have to go back to work on Monday. This is Day 8 for me and I'm trying to remain positive but it's getting pretty darn rough.

Forgetful... I can't say what my tongue looks like, as I can't stick it out far enough to take a good look. lol! I start to gag on my uvula when I do. :( If this continues, i'll ask em to cut out my uvula!!!!!
Food just tastes weird or has lost some flavour. I can't describe it. But I'll know if/when it's returned, because water will taste like water (whatever water tastes of). It still has a sweet icky taste.
I am 2 weeks post-op today. Thought I'd be well by now, but still taking painkillers before eating meals.

dbaum, sorry you're still suffering bad with that awful pain. Is still the spasmodic pain when swallowing? I had it worst on day 5 and couldn't even drink anything for about 36 hours.. swallowing was unbearable. It did only last 3 days though, then got better. Hang in there!!! Remember that, however bad the pain, swallowing WILL help you.

damaja, crikey!! I don't think I could have gone through all that, not on top of the tonsillectomy. And as for stitching it with you awake?!!! Evil!!!! Anyway, at least now it's all behind you! I started using a straw to suck through when I was about 6 days post-op. I don't THINK it's caused me any harm. Maybe that's why my palette and uvula are now causing me grief.. lol.
Oooh, when I was still in the hospital and the nurses were trying to coax me into drinking water, they PUT A STRAW in the cup, thinking it would help me!!!!! I had to tell THEM that's the worst thing they could do!!!! (Welcome to socialised medicine.)


Cinderella.... I have seen people on here who have had that surgery, but not just lately. Maybe someone who's had it will pop back on and fill you in. At least recovery from your tonsillectomy shouldn't be to painful.

Hi, everybody -- I'm doing okay. I had a rough night last night due to the swelling of the tonsils, which the doctor had told me would occur on days 2 and 3. It wasn't painful, exactly, but a very scary feeling of waking up and feeling like I was choking. I just tried to stay calm and realize that I CAN breathe fully through my mouth.

Damaja, what pain meds did you take? I'm trying to figure out what I can take that won't make me vomit.

Also, it really broke my heart to read about what happened to you. I lost my dad not too long ago and I can't imagine having to go through that while recovering. I am so very sorry.

dbaum, you WILL feel MUCH better soon. My ENT (who is a throat 'n sinus god with several major degrees, including dentistry) said that the descabbing process last a couple of days and you can't believe it and then suddenly it's over. Take those painkillers. By the way, I tried taking 1/2 tab of Percocet last night and promptly felt like vomiting. I did better with the Tylenol with codeine but was afraid to take it last night when I awoke becausue I had nothing in my stomach. Do you always eat something before you take the pain meds? Many thanks and hang in there.

Hey Spa, you sound good. I am happy for you. I wish this process would end soon. I am taking Percocet every four hours and a phenergan suppository every six. It get the Percocet down I mix it with some flan. For some reason the thin custard works very well.

I've managed 2 protein shakes today and 3 flans. I am drinking but it really does hurt. I'm still eating because I have to. I checked and those darn scabs are taking their time.

Spa, don't forget to drink a lot and chew some gum. But, for me I found out the gum does not help too much once the descabbing starts. But early on drinking and gum do wonders. Have a great day my Tonsil Buddy.

daum -- Thanks, Tonsil Buddy! I think you will be fine by the time you go back to work. i'm scared to take the Percocet again because I HATE getting nauseated by I will try your flan idea.

One thing I meant to ask: didn't you doctor give you a steroid (maybe prednizone) to help with the swelling?

Also, can I blow my nose? i'm dying to spray with saline and blow, but I feel like maybe I shouldn't.

Spa, Yes my Doc gave me a course of methylprednisolone for swelling and the fact that I was having post nasal drip so bad it was choking me and causing congestion and causing me to cough. It worked a bit.

Spashop - I was only given Vicodin. My DR told me to only take one every 4 hours and to take Tylenol in between if needed. I have a weak stomach and would always feel nausous , so I was perscribed Promethazine HCL plain syrup on the 2nd day and it does wonders. It eases the nausea and also helps you sleep. When I went to the hospital on the 7th day for bleeding the ER DR took one look at my throat and gave be another perscription for more pain meds and told me to take 2 every 4 hours and that helped sooooo much. Don't get me wrong, I was still in pain but it felt much better compared to taking only one. In hindsite, I think the first 4 days you are coming off the anathesisa(sp) and this was what made me have so much nausea. I just experienced this recentley with my last operation with the soft palate. Also I never ate much, just jello, italian ices and pudding in the beginning. What I would do is crush the pills and put them in the jello...it tasted disgusting but it did the job. Good luck :angel: One more thing...don't blow your nose.

Thanks, Damaja. I too have major nausea coming off of an IV drip or anesthesia. I'm going to ask my doctor to give you some of that stuff you recommended. The liquid Tylenol with coedine has been working quite well for me so far, but I'm scared to try another Percocet after last night's experience. I have never taken heavy-duty painkillers before so I'm polling all of my friends who have had multiple surgeries to see what they recommend!

Sugarbeth -- I got you confused with Sunskater! So sorry! You must be done by now and I hope you're doing okay. I'll be thinking of you.

One thing I have been trying to do in coping with the pain is staying "mindful" -- instead of freaking out (which, believe me, is my tendency) and immediately rushing ahead to how I won't be able to handle this, etc. etc., which makes me tense and immediately in MORE pain, I consciously tell myself that I only have to get through this present moment. It really has helped me.

Hi Spa. You are right about just dealing with the immediate and not looking too far down the road. :)

I talked to my Doc today since this pain just seems to be getting worse. I wanted to know how long this descabbing process will take. He told me that I will take longer because the tonsil beds are so deep but he also told me the reason I am having intense pain right now is due to the edges of the tonsil beds being very inflammed. He said the scabs came off too soon in this area and that's why I have so much pain. There isn't much that can be done except ride it out. He did tell me to take 1 1/2 Percocet tablets until I get past this part.

The Percocet does make me nauseous but I am so glad I had already asked my Doc for Phenergan suppositories. They work really well and as long as I take the pills with Flan or some Carb Control Yogurt (this brand is thinner than regular yogurt) I am doing OK.

So, I just have to suck it up and get past this point. At least I know why my pain was so bad.

Sugarbeth I hope you are eating a popsicle as we speak.

Hang in ther dbaum and spa! It will all be over soon!

Hey James. I'm hangin' :bouncing: What else can we do. I just keep hanging on to the idea that this will be worth it. I do believe this will be worth it in the long run. I do know I can already breathe better so that's a good thing. :D

Hey all, I'm back. Not much for posting, but I thought I'd check in. Working out the anesthesia seems worse than the pain. Everything seems too bright. Back later.

hey everyone..just got back from my pre-op. I told my doc that it feels like my throat is closing up..i found out that i have tonsillitis again..and that my uvula is swollen and touching the back of my throat..its irritating..i hope it wont swell much more after surgery..the doc also said that i worry too much and ill be fine...i asked what kind of meds ide be getting and he said all surgeons are different and that they will answer any questions the morning of and also that i will be monitored in the hospital and they will determine then what they think i need. I just stopped at wendes for some fries..its going to stink not being able to eat anything salty or spicy..i dont even like sweets all that much! well take care everyone and i will talk to you soon. hope everyone is doing better today than yesterday!

Welcome back, Sugarbeth. Good to see yer alright. :)

Sunset.. my uvula was already swollen before surgery, as well. I don't think it swelled much more from the surgery, but it WAS bruised and did bleed just slightly at one point. I guess it's hard for them to have the breathing tube down the throat AND be working in the throat at the same time and not abuse the uvula to some degree. Not much room back there. Just before they put me to sleep, I pointed my finger at my surgeon and told him to watch himself around my uvula and to be gentle with it! He just laughed and said it's really unavoidable, as it's in the way. :rolleyes:

Hi Sugarbeth. Glad you're back. Get some rest and pop back in when you feel like it.

Charlatan--I think everyone's uvula takes a beating during this surgery. I know mine was swollen and really off center. Kinda wierd looking.

Well, I've tried the increased pain med dose and it does help. Just gives me a bit of a headache but that's OK. If I can take enough pain meds to get through this I'll be home free. It's getting better it's just a real pain right now. LOL

Sunset--I know what you mean about the sweet stuff but believe it or not you'll be able to handle salt (light salt) pretty soon. Even though my throat is hurting so much I can still handle a bit of salt. That tastes good to me and makes the taters go down easier. :D

Oooh if you can handle it, salt is good for the healing process. My doctor said to eat salted corn chips and when I did, I soon lost my scabs and felt much better for it. It didn't sting, either, but I suppose everyone will have different experiences. Just go with what you feel most comfortable with.

Well, let me just say - I am ready for the pain to go away! I could never have imagined how rough you'd feel from doing this. I just always thought that getting your tonsils out was no big deal, but it is. There is no describing the number it does on your body.

The pain medicine makes it all bearable, but I still feel it for just a bit right before my next dosage. I try to time it so that I won't, but somehow, I never manage to get it right! At least the meds do a great job!

I am on Day7. It was this time last Wednesday when I was walking in the door from surgery. I know that I have put in alot of time so far and that the next few days will be rough and then should improve. The scabs are still there, but I can see the pink underneath in areas so I assume they are falling off, just painfully slow.

Dbaum - I agree with you on breathing. I can breathe through my nose so much easier and get fuller, deeper breaths. I am amazed, and not even recovered yet. I know this was all worth it, just needs time to mend.

I'm still sticking to soft foods, soups, etc. I don't care for the sweets anymore, but I am doing fine on what I have. I do look forward to a real meal soon and hope that comes sooner than I think!

To everyone who just went through or are just about to do it, good luck and try to rest. My meds keep me knocked out alot so I feel the sleeping helps tremendously. Although today is tougher than yesterday, it has gotten better. My worst times are between midnight and 8am. After that, I feel like I have a better hold on it all.

Scott--I agree the midnight - 8am are horrible. At least we can breathe. :) You're on 7 and I'm on 8. Not too much difference between us. I think if you squint real hard you'll see the light at the end of the tunnel. :)

Hi dbaum. I saw you wrote not to blow yer nose. I was wondering whether you were advised not to do so and if that's the case, were you told the reason?
I ask, because on day 5, I was reduced to tears because of the pain and so had to keep (gently) blowing my nose. No one said not to.

Hope everyone who's going through bad pain gets through it quickly. I know it sucks.

Charlatan--That was Damaja that mentioned no nose blowing. I was not told anything about blowing or not blowing. :)

Haha! Well, I've dosed up on NyQuil, ya can't expect me to get everything right. ROFL!!!
OK then, well maybe Damaja can answer then? ;)

You know if you think about it we're all pretty drugged up. Considering that; we're doing pretty good. LOL

lol yeah! As long as we don't all end up in rehab, we'll be OK. :)
I'm not impressed I'm still on pain meds after all this time though.

ARGHH!!!!! I've now got hypochondria!! I've just scared meself and now won't sleep tonight. I've just re-read the sheet that the hospital sent me home with, about post-op care and it says not to drink through a straw for 2 weeks! I had a McDonalds drink (of course, with straw), 6 days after. Oh gawd, I think that's what's made my soft palette drop like this. *kills self*
I'm going to see my GP tomorrow.. without fail!

Hi, Scott -- Glad to hear that you are improving rapidly now. Could you tell me what pain meds you've been on? I took Tylenol with codeine today, which seemed to work pretty well, but it doesn't last long enough.

hey all glad to see everyone is doing okay. I was wondering if anyone else has ashma? and if it was especially hard to breath after. I went into the docs today and i was fine but tonite when i got in the cold air i started wheezing like crazy! my ashma isnt horrible but it is set off easily by dust perfume and cold weather. i have been on and off steroids for it but this year has been decent. take care tonsil buddies =o) cheers to a speedy recovery !!!!

Maybe it would have been better to say "don't blow very hard." My Dr. mentioned that blowing the nose hard because it could cause damage the first couple of days. I still blew it but very gently.

Hi everyone,

I am improving slowly but surely. This is day 16 for me I think. The last 2 or 3 days were about the same, I had pain and discomfort but it was only slightly worse than strep felt. Stilll had the scabs and wasn't able to eat normally. Today I went out and took some liquid tylenol before I went, and it didn't help. My throat was more sore than normal for most of the morning, but by the time I got home in the afternoon it barely hurt at all. The medicine had worn off by then but my throat was the best it'd felt since before the surgery. Looked in my throat and a lot of the scabs had come off, without bleeding (yay!) There's still a good bit of scab to go but it's good progress.

So after that I managed to take a pill because my allergies were really acting up today, and then I had some pizza for dinner. This was my first real meal since the surgery and it felt like an amazing victory. I ate slower and less than normal, and it didn't taste anything like it was supposed to, but I was still quite happy with it :) My throat was a little sore after but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel finally.

My sleep schedule is still a mess from all the meds and because I still need to take naps, but I will gradually get it back to normal.

Hey good to hear from your Ariane and you had pizza!!! You are doing well and I'm so happy for you.

Day 9 for me and what a huge difference this morning. You know my Doc increased my pain meds and that has really helped. But the biggest difference is the amount of scabs that came off last night. I lost so much it was amazing. The pain is still there but different. If I can get the overly raw areas to heal (the ones that lost their scabs prematurely) I'll feel so much better. But, I think I've turned the corner and it should get better from here on out. :bouncing: :bouncing: :bouncing:

Ariane and dbaum -- Yeah!!! Glad to hear you're both doing so well. :D

Would anyboy happen to know if taking allergy meds (I take Claritin) is permissible during recovery? I've had a really awful headache the last couple of days and, while it may be attributable to the anesthesia, I think it might be my seasonal allergies kicking in. Of course, I suppose taking anything that dried me out would be a really baaaad idea.

I finally looked at the back of my throat last night. Really scary-looking. I am NOT going to show my mom!

sunset-i have very bad allergies and asthma and i didn't find that breathing was difficult. suprisingly my nose seemed to be clear so i could breathe through it pretty much the whole time. I'm on singulair and advair for asthma so the day before i made sure to use the advair in the morning and night(usually i just do night if i'm not feeling to wheezy) and took my singulair at night as normal. Post-op i was able to swallow my singulair i think like the second night. i don't know if you use advair or not, but it is a powder inhaler which you have to suck in pretty hard. i didn't even attempt that until about day 8 or 9 b/c i couldn't imagine trying to use my throat muscles in that manner...i really felt ok though. i think my body somehow knew the trauma i went through and didn't act up on me, thank goodness. hope this helps

spashop-my ent said something about the alavert i take and how it might have some effect but i don't remember what he said so i didn't take any of it for the first week and a half...i would maybe just give your ent a call.

Hi Spa--As for the allergy meds I would check with your Doc. They should be OK as long as the ingredients don't thin your blood. You don't want to risk bleeding. Give your Doc a call and see what he says. If you can't reach him you can always get good info from the pharmacist.

Spashop, I take Allegra 180 for my allergies. Before the surgery I had year-round allergy problems and I was on it every single day and I got horrible headaches if I missed a dose. I got horrible headaches anyway, but it was markedly worse if I missed my pill. Anyway, I took one the night before my surgery and after the surgery my breathing improved quite a bit and I had no headaches. I did not need or take a pill until yesterday. Yesterday I had a runny nose, lots of sneezing and I was stuffed up. So I went ahead and took the pill and I feel fine now. I think it'd be ok if you took it, just take it with something to make sure it goes down and be careful. I'm hoping I will just have regular Spring or Fall allergies now and I might not need the Allegra every day of the year but we will see.

Edited to add since you just had your surgery you might want to call your ENT to make sure it's ok you take it. I know the Claritin pills are pretty small and you can probably get it down but you may want to make sure it's safe for you to take it first.

Ariane, lol... good to see you're doing so well now. I take it you aren't having trouble with your palate/uvula anymore?

I usually have to take antihistamines for my cat allergy. But I don't think I can whilst taking these painkillers, so I've just had to not pet the cat as I would normally. But I agree, I would ask my doctor first, just to be sure it's ok to mix the meds.

dbaum, I bet you're feeling relieved today, now that you have turned that corner. Good for you! :)

Hiya Charlatan. Yep I'm still having the palate and uvula problem but it looks like they have come back up a little. I'm not sure if it's that or if the swelling in my tongue has just gone down so I can see it better now, lol. Still hoping it goes back to normal eventually.

Does anyone know how long it takes before we can drink a soda again? I tried one last night since I was able to take pills and eat pizza and all and it was very painful and I could only do one sip. I really miss soda. My ENT told me before the surgery it might be a month or longer on carbonated drinks but I can't imagine going that long even though I'm halfway there.

Ariane and Charlatan - Thanks for the advice. I have put in a call to my ENT and will have to see what he says. The Allegra-D that I normally take is quite drying, but these sinus headaches are so bad. I'm actually in far more pain from the headache than from my throat. Or maybe I just think that because I have something to distract me from my throat!

Spashop if the ENT says not to take your allergy meds right now, you might get some relief from liquid Tylenol. It helps with headaches a little bit.

hey all! Magilla thanks for the advice about ashma..i do take advair and i thought it might be a problem taking in deep breaths plus i figured the powder would bother my throat...i do have albuterol too..but i usually take advair in the morning or night when im wheezing really bad. I guess ill have to ask the doc about it. ariane glas to see yu can eat somewhat normal again..are you back to work yet?

Spashop, have you tried some warm or cool compresses to your head?

I had a soda yesterday, although I was sipping it slowly and had ice in it, which melted, diluting it a bit, but it was OK. It felt weird, though and the taste wasn't quite right, but I was dying to drink some! ;)
I'm glad you mentioned about a swollen tongue, because I think mine might be swollen still, but thought I was being silly, as it's been 2 weeks now, but hey.

Leave a soda out in the air a while, so it loses some fizziness and then try it.

dbaum -- I have been using ice packs and heating pads, often at the same time on different parts of my body! For some reason, it feels very comforting, possibly because it's a distraction. I did try an ice pack on my forehead this morning and it helped. I've been sleeping at night with a heating pad clutched to my stomach. Thanks for the suggestion.

My ENT says I can take Allegra D. I went ahead and swallowed one of those big ol' horse pills. I was actually kind of surprised at how easily it went down.

Charlatan -- I've been drinking flat ginger ale and selzer since plain ice water was making me nauseous. One thing that has helped me to de-fizz the soda very quickly is pouring it back and forth from one cup to another about 10 times.

Hey Guys, it's the day after surgery for me, and I have to say, I am feeling really good. I kid you not, I am in no pain right now, just a bit loopy sitting up like this. Eating some yogurt while I type this out.

Surgery was easy peasy. Anxious at first, but the anethesiologist was great and made me feel at ease. Told me to think of my kids, which brought a few tears, but then I was out and dreaming of doling out parenting advice. Then I was up and shivering, but I got lots of warm blankies.

I got percocet (oxycodone) and tylenol, both in liquid form. Also asked for an antiemetic. Surgery was at about 8am, and I felt crappy most of the day - not from my throat, but just from shaking off the anethesia. Once I got past that, I could sleep.

I was taking two spoonfuls of percoset every 3 hours, which seemed just perfect to deal with the pain. I had a wave of nausea, so I took the suppository for that. A few hours later I ended up hurling anyway (thank goodness my husband quickly interpreted my hand signals). I think I puked because my stomach was still not awake yet - all the broth and juice I'd had all day came back up, so it's obvious that the stomach wasn't working. I haven't been nauseous since, and I haven't taken any more suppositories.

Last night I had a hard time sleeping. Not from pain, but from the soft palette drooping thing. So every time I choked on that (like every 10 minutes), I'd take a few sips of gatorade, and recite, "kick, kick, kick, kick". This morning at 7 am I switched to tylenol, my soft palette seems to be less of a nuisance, and I slept a great 2 hours. Yay! And like I said, now I just feel great. I plan on keeping these scabs moist so when they come off it won't be so bad. If the rest of my recovery goes as well as this morning, this will have been cake!

Best wishes to you all!!

Heeey Sugarbeth! jeez, yer doing so well, that's kewl! Make the most of it, before the pain comes. lol! Hope you continue to have minimal pain though, obviously. ;)

Sounds a good idea, spashop, the soda thing. Will have to try that one.

Just got home from seeing my doctor. He can see my palate has dropped quite a bit and said it's cos there's no longer any big ole tonsils there, holding it up. He said the scar tissue has pulled it down, or summat, and that it will stay that way. :(
He said that, as I have an ultra-sensitive gag reflex, I'm noticing the uvula on the back of the tongue more.
Over time, he said it will settle down a lil bit and it will adjust and I will adjust to my "new throat" and won't even notice it anymore.
He did mention that operation, where they cut out the back of the palate and uvula, but doesn't recommend it.

Ariane, are you talking normally now and able to open your mouth wide? I'm still having trouble.

Hi Sugarbeth--You sound great, but Charlatan is right. Enjoy this time before the pain comes. It will as you have read. I didn't think I was going to make it through the pain but today (day 9) has been my turn around day. Still a long way to go but I feel amazingly better.

Charlatan--So it seems we all just have to adjust to our throat remodel. LOL. My uvula is a bit lower and I really notice it when I lie flat. Still can't do that without choking. My ENT told me the scar tissue will help pull things up instead of down. Who knows for sure, I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Sugarbeth - Glad to hear it went so well and I hope it keeps going well for you. I am up on Monday so I hope I have the same experience.

I am a little freaked thinking its so close now. I am more worried about my gag reflex than the pain. But I know in the end it will be worth it.

James, you will be all right. It's not that bad, I haven't been a walking gag reflex, or anything, you will cope fine with it, I'm sure. Don't worry. It's just a big shock to me, as I did used to have a super view down my throat before, like I said, down to my epiglottis. Now I can't see anything, that's how much it's altered. So it's bound to feel really odd.

dbaum, are you eating much better now? I'm glad yer over the really bad painful stage. Haha! When I was at my Dr appointment this evening, I had a go at him... he was the one who talked me into getting the operation and told me it wasn't really painful or anything and that I'd feel better with a week! I told him off for saying that and he laughed, saying if he had told the truth, he knows I would've backed out! lol!
It's not the most painful experience, but it DOES hurt a lot and seems to go on forever.

For those about to go through the most painful stage, the pharyngeal spasms (you'll know it when you get it ;) ), I really recommend you eat as much as you possibly can. Swallowing yer food really helps get those throat muscles sorted out and working properly, so will aid healing and pain.

Yep, eating will help the spasms. Also chewing gum helps as well.

Yes I am eating better but since I have those areas where the scabs fell off too soon I am staying with soft stuff. I had some eggs and potatoes this morning and some mac n cheese for lunch. It's easier to eat now and it doesn't take forever!!! LOL

James, you're going to do fine and if you have read through the posts on this board you will be well prepared. It's not a walk in the park but you can get through it. I'm far from healed but I can breathe so much better it's amazing. I can't wait for my energy to return. I was always so fatigued from the constant infection and my white blood cell count would never come down even after antibiotics. I am excited and can't wait to reap the rewards of this agony. :)

Hey I just was on here showing my friend this site because she wants to have them out because hers are very large I just want to say to everyone that it will be okay I had my tonsills out in December 3 days before Christmas actually@the age of 24. It did hurt but by the 4th day I was eating Lasagna and other things It took me a full month to fully heal but so far I haven't had a sore throat and I also have been ablle to eat better. Also james I have bad gag reflex they gave me a med to help with the gaging and coughing so I wouldn't irritate the throat. Well If u want more of my stories go back to the 2nd and 3rd board for my stories however it is under my other name MinMin630. Well hopeeveryone is doing well!

Hey I just was on here showing my friend this site because she wants to have them out because hers are very large I just want to say to everyone that it will be okay I had my tonsills out in December 3 days before Christmas actually@the age of 24. It did hurt but by the 4th day I was eating Lasagna and other things It took me a full month to fully heal but so far I haven't had a sore throat and I also have been ablle to eat better. Also james I have bad gag reflex they gave me a med to help with the gaging and coughing so I wouldn't irritate the throat. Well If u want more of my stories go back to the 2nd and 3rd board for my stories however it is under my other name MinMin630. Well hopeeveryone is doing well!
Hey you do start to feel better in a week I was back to work only 4 days after surgery!

Thanks MinMin I will ask my doctor about any medications for gaging.

James -- You are going to be fine. I was an anxious mess before I went in and it was so unnecessary. One good piece of advice I got from somebody else on this board was to use the board for support but to not spend hours Web surfing about tonsillectomies since you will inevitably come across stuff that will upset you and then you'll start feeling that you will have a horrible experience. So don't worry, and don't spend all your time thinking about the tonsillectomy the way I did! you will do great.

Sugarbeth, you are doing GREAT. My experience with the Percocet (the one time 1 took 1/2 tab) was almost identical to what you experienced. It's so unpleasant barfing water and apple sauce at 3 a.m. (or anytime, really). So are you now able to take the Percocet without needing suppositories? I've been trying to save the Percocet for when I really need it and wonder if I should get those suppositories.

Spashop--When I hit the descabbing process I really needed the Percocet and by having the Phenargin suppositories it really, really helped. My pain was so bad I was taking 1 1/2 Percocet tabs every 4 hours.

dbaum -- That's exactly what I've been saving those Percocets for!!! This may be unusually early in the process for me to be experiencing this, but I'm already getting those spasms. I just force myself to keep drinking/eating through them and they go away.

The Tylenol with codeine works fine so far so I am going to stick with it for as long as possible.

When are you going back to work?

Thanks Spa - I think that advise is good. I am pretty sure that the wait is worse than the reality of what I face. I know it will be painful but like public speaking once im up there its not so bad.

:)

James -- I do think the wait is worse. Once you're actually dealing with the situation, it's a huge relief compared to the worry and anxiety and just sitting there thinking about it all endlessly. The painkillers do work. I have found that taking the meds just before I know they're going to wear off helps tremendously. People have extremely varied responses to surgery and illness. I have a friend who had her tonsils out several years ago and she was done with her painkillers by day 5. She told me that, compared to the acute chronic tonsillitis she experienced, the surgery truly was less painful, and after the first several days, she just continued to improve. (I know her pretty well and she definitely does NOT enjoy pain!) She obviously had a very good, easy recovery . . . but it's nice to know that it's possible, anyway.

sunset-i forgot to mention about the albuterol, it was a "fuzzy" week for me. i do remember being able to use it a couple of times when i felt some tightness. like i said earlier though, i wouldn't attempt advair for at least a week, just b/c those muscles are still really tight. i hope you are still doing ok. if you have any more questions let me know. i know where you are at with the allergies and asthma, i've had them since 2nd grade.

its weird that alotl of us tosil people have something else in common, it seems we have lost a parent. i lost my mother to cancer the day after my 20th birthday, after i had moved away to college. i don't know if it's a good thing that i saw her take her last breath. i can't imagine what it would be to lose a parent and go through this surgery at the same time. thanks for letting me get that off my chest, you guys(girls...dbaum i also thought you were a guy, lol) are great.

Hello again everyone! :)

Had my tonsillectomy on the April 20th as planned. I have to say that I'm in more pain than I bargained for, though! :(

Although, today is day 2, and I do think it's a bit better. But after the numbing agents that they use on our throats wore off, there was some intense pain!

I'm a bit put out with my ENT who did the surgery. They prescribed me this huge bottle of liquid Tylenol with Codeine, and three refills on it, as well. The problem is that it wears off after about 45 minutes to an hour. That leaves me three hours of alot of pain (especially in my ears, of all places lol). I called the ENT to see if he could prescribe me something that lasted longer than just an hour, and was told that they never prescribe anything other than Tylenol with Codeine for these types of surgeries. And then he went on to tell me just take the T3 as often as I wanted?? That can't be good. As it stands now I'm finally to the point where I can take it every three hours, but yesterday I was taking it every two hours. It's totally inefficient.

Well, since I've seen a noticeable improvement today in pain, and I'm not letting it get out of control before I take anything, this may not continue to be an issue, but I got the feeling that he has no idea how painful this surgery can be, especially since his method is cauterization(sp?).

Thanks for letting me vent. And sorry for any misspellings, my brain feels totally zoned from the codeine. That's probably a good thing :P

Sabrina

Good morning. Just a day 10 update. I am doing better but I still have to eat soft stuff. My biggest problem is during the night and my throat dries out. Oh my goodness does that hurt. Even sipping water burns like fire. It calms down once the throat is moist again, but it sure does hurt when it dries out. I can't imagine how much it would hurt if I didn't have a humidifier running.

Slowly but surely I am getting there. Monday I have to go back to work. :)

Sabrinaleena -- Congratulations on getting through the surgery. I had mine on the 19th. I, too, was prescribed Tylenol with codeine, but my ENT agreed to give me a prescription for Percocet as well. (i've only taken 1/2 tab of Percocet so far since the first time I tried it I threw up!) I am surprised that your ENT wouldn't agree to prescribe anything else. I'm trying to shift today to over-the-counter liquid Tylenol but, if it doesn't work, I'm going to go right back to the codeine version. I don't know if your ENT told you this or not, but my ENT mentioned that days 2 and 3 can be tough since the throat swells up. Mine certainly did but I can feel that it is less swollen today. I've forced myself to drink liquids semi-constantly and I really think it makes all the difference. Hang in there!

good morning
dbaum-you are getting so close to returning to normal, at least thats how day 10 was for me. day 11 was work day number one.

i have a question/problem i forgot to mention and wondering if any of you had this problem. starting around day 6 it seemed like everytime i would swallow, especially if it was food, it felt like there was a spot on the top of my head that would tighten, like someone was pulling at the roots of a small section of my hair. it was like i had a nerve they have cut that would pull this said hair. it was the wierdest thing. so eating was difficult b/c of everything else plus that. i dont have it now but it lasted for about 5 days. anyone else have this happen?

sabrina-that is what my ent gave me too, and i agree with you about it wearing off too fast but i couldn't handlet he taste of it either. it made me nautious. i called my ent after 3 days and told them about how it was making me sick to my stomach. if nothing else you could tell him that and maybe he will give you something that doesn't have codiene in it.

three weeks ago today i was dying for a bowl of cereal right now. i'm not sure why but the whole bad breath thing has returned and i'm not too thrilled about it. hope everyone has a great friday.

dbaum -- I've been thinking about this problem of the throat drying out during the night. This might be insane, but I'm wondering if it would be possible to use Aquaphor (a healing ointment originally developed for burn victims) or something like that to coat the back of the throat before going to bed at night. Several years ago, I started putting Aquaphor into my nostrils when I had really awful colds so that I wouldn't awaken with that painful dried-out feeling. It works amazingly well, though I imagine any trained professional would be horrified.

It just seems that our ENTs should be able to come up with something -- a rinse or protective cream or something -- that would help to alleviate this problem. I find it hard to believe that there's NOTHING they can do to help with this, you know what I mean? As with so many "temporary" conditions, I think the stance of many physicians about tonsillectomy recovery pain is "yep, it hurts, it won't last forever, so just be grown-up and deal with it." I kinda wonder how many of them have undergone this procedure themselves. It's extremely annoying!

Spashop--That's an interesting point. My ENT is very conscientious to the pain. He knows how much it hurts and will do what he can to help get you out of pain. If I am still having this problem I will ask him about it on Tuesday. You're right, you would think that there would be something that could be done.

dbaum -- It does sound like your doctor is extremely conscientious about pain management issues. I know that my doctor would prescribe something if I needed it, but I am surprised by how proactive I have had to be. If I hadn't found this board, I wouldn't have had a clue to ask for Percocet, or Phenergen suppositories, or the numbing mouth rinse. I would have just taken the Tylenol with codeine and figured "well, I guess that's all he can give me!"

Spashop--You are right. This board is very empowering. I have learned so much from everyone and even though I have had some serious rough spots I know how to deal with them.

Hi all.

Good to see no one's having any major disasters going on.

Sabrina, do try and eat... it will line the stomach for the pain meds and also will aid healing in the throat. But then, you know this. ;)

Magilla, not heard of that happeneing before, with the hair. As you say, it sounds like a nerve thing, from when they did the surgery. If you mention it to your doctor, I'd be interested to hear what he says. Weird for sure.

Well, it's 6pm here and my first day yet of having no pain meds and eaten lunch and dinner, slowly, but OK. I do think I'm going to be alright, now, but think it's just going to be a slow process before I feel back to normal.
Was surprised to learn I'd only lost 4 or 5 lbs in weight in the last 2 weeks, but then, I never really STOPPED eating, just ate less.

Keep drugging up and enjoy those codeine-induced comas, peeps! :)

Hi all. Day 3 here. Still doing pretty well, not a whole lot of pain in the throat area. Woke up this morning with fullness in my ears, though. Not too painful, a shower helped that out a bit.

Alternating between percocet and tylenol. Use the percoset when I want to sleep, tylenol when I want to be awake enough to eat a little. I have to pump breastmilk too, so I can't be sacked out ALL the time. ;) Boobs will explode if I do.

Mostly just weak from not eating, but I try to get as much down as I can. Will try some lukewarm soup next.

Had a look in my throat yesterday. Wouldn't recommend that. Looked like a hideous case of thrush - all red and white all over.

Best wishes all - I need to lie down again.

Ya I dont plan to look into my throat as first. Might freak me out.

Hi everyone,

I'm new, and wanted to know if anyone out there had any long term discomfort following their tonsillectomy? I had my tonsills out in on oct 8th 2004, and my throat still feels swollen, uncomfortable, phlegmy, and some words are even hard to say!! Its really getting me down... has anyone had anything similar?

Thank you in advance! Matt

Hi Matt.

Thats not good to hear. Have you beem back to your ENT doc. ? Maybe try another if you are not getting help. I know from the few people I know who had it done they felt 100 percent after a month.

Good luck !

Hi Matt.

Are you sure that it's because your throat is swollen? Could it be that your soft palate has dropped down at the back, like I've been describing mine has done?
It feels weird and I can't talk properly and a lot of the time (this sounds funny), but I have a bubble in the back of my throat, which can be heard in my speech and I have to keep clearing my throat.

Charlatan this is still happening to me as well. I have trouble saying certain words, and sometimes I'll be talking away and my voice will still completely give out on me out of nowhere. The back of my tongue still hurts quite a bit also.

:wave: Hi all hope everyone is doing okay! I am a stay at home mom (31) and I have been reading the boards for awhile to get myself ready for my tonsillectomy on the 27th. I appreciate all your stories, info and strategies I know this info will get me through this. I'm glad I found this place because if it wasn't for this board I would have had a freezer full of popsicles and ice cream and would have never even considered chewing gum lol. Anyways I just wanted to introduce myself since I plan on posting for support and hope to help others along the way. Take care all and I'll be seeing ya!

LOL!! Hiya Ariane. Sorry, but I am glad it's not only me. I had no idea this might happen after surgery, really didn't expect it. Hope to God it does get better. I'm having trouble with my "k's" - even though I have been repeating "kick" over and over, as dbaum suggested. But my boyfriend's called Kirk and I've just got off the phone to him and was having trouble saying his name... so he's allowing me to called him something that rhymes with Curd but begins with a T, until I can say his name properly. :D

Hi Sunny. You'll get tons of support from here and there are people going in for their operation around the same time as you as well (can't remember who goes in when though), so you can all come on here and whine together and compare pain levels. :) Lots of uselful info, in amongst the babble, on here, so hopefully it will all be helpful for you during recovery.

Since I'm the post-nasal drip queen, I've had problems with clearing my throat and sounding like I'm coughing/strangling for years anyway! I've been doing the "kick" thing over and over again. My voice sounds just revolting. I'm definitely talking through my nose but it's the only way I can talk without getting really uncomfortable. I think that longstanding vocal difficulties are quite rare, however. One thing that's been kind of fun in this is that I can't talk to people for work -- sorry, just had my tonsils out, no can do! Gosh, I'm sorry! Heh heh heh. my job consists almost exclusively of talking, and I work with some extremely irritating individuals, so I must say I am enjoying the break.

Heheh!! Nice one, spashop. That must bring a smile to your face, through all this misery. I have the post nasal drip thing too (and did before surgery), so that's where this bubble in the throat is coming from, I think. Just makes me sound daft when attempting to speak. And since I still can't really cough or clear my throat as I would normally, it just stays like it.
Oh well, things can only get better for us all. Got to keep looking on the bright side.

Ariane you said "I have trouble saying certain words, and sometimes I'll be talking away and my voice will still completely give out on me out of nowhere. The back of my tongue still hurts quite a bit also"

This is exactly what I am feeling. It's so annoying. Charlatan, you still have this don't you? I am working saying the work kick. It's harder when I first wake up than it is later in the day.

Sometime, when I eat the food will hit certain spots of my throat and the burning is horrible. I have to hurry up and drink warm water to calm it down.

Sunny--You'll love this board. It's the best thing for support and gaining knowledge as you get ready.

Matt--I would go to a different ENT to find out what's going on. That just doesn't sound right.

Crikey, dbaum, everything's just wacky right now. I wouldn't say m