I have a tonsillectomy and possibly adnoidectomy set for this Friday 04/20/07 and am terrified. I am 29, pretty healthy, and have enormous cryptic tonsils. I know deep down that this is for the best, and will be well worth it in the end...but in the meantime....I keep thinking of reasons to call the hospital, and give some crazy excuse for why I need to cancel. The more I read online (general web searches) the more scared I get. Does anyone out there have any not so terrifying tonsillectomy experiences they'd care to share? Or perhaps some suggestions or recomendations to help speed recovery or at least help get through? I only know of one other adult that has had this done as an adult, and she had to go back to the hospital and was admitted for 2 weeks and almost died from bleeding. I know this scenario is rare, but it's the only personal account I've heard. Please share some stories, suggestions, anything that may be helpful for my upcoming surgery! Thank you everyone!

Jen

Don't cancel! You will be SO happy to be rid of your tonsils after the surgery!

I had a lot of the same thoughts that you are having, and was extremely terrified of the post-surgery pain that I'd heard so much about - it seems almost everyone has a tonsillectomy recovery horror story! Here's a brief rundown on my recovery (30 yo/F)... it was a piece of cake!

Tues, March 27 - surgery day. Woke up after feeling great. Not much pain at all. Read books & napped for the rest of the day.

Day 2-4 - Eating pretty much regular foods (crackers, pasta, Wendy's burger & fries), but slowly and in small portions. Drinking lots of water. No trouble swallowing, but the liquid pain meds taste horrible, so I switched to liquid tylenol on day 3. Not much pain at all. Did a lot of reading, watching TV, knitting, surfing the web, lots of napping.

Day 5-7 - Still eating normally, doing pretty much normal activities with lots of naps. The most painful days yet (ear pain, lower jaw pain, throat feels fine though), but it still isn't that bad. I'd say my pain level was about a 4-5 on my worst day. Tylenol takes care of it just fine.

Days 8-12 - Feeling pretty much just like my old self already, minus the tonsil stones and nasty tonsil-induced morning breath. Life without tonsils is fabulous! Doctor cautions me to take it easy, no strenuous exercise just yet.

I'm currently at 3 weeks post-op, and am completely healed and back to my normal routine - work, exercise, etc. I would do it again next week if I had to. It was so worth it!

Not sure what made my recovery so easy, but I think it had a lot to do with drinking a lot of water and trying to eat as much regular food as I could in order to keep my body nourished.

Hope that makes you feel better! Good luck with your surgery!

-Cyndi

DON'T CANCEL!!!

I am 51 years old and I had my tonsils out on March 2nd. I got dehydrated and ended up in the hospital for a couple of days but even that was a breeze. Make sure you talk to yur doctor about pain meds up front. I did and I am glad that I was given something pretty strong (Lortab Elixer). I never really suffered with pain at all.

I had a lot of swelling so eating solid food wasn't an option.

I had a humidifier going in my room all the time because a lot of people here suggested it and that helped keep my throat dry and pain free while I slept. I also slept with three pillows. Keeping my head elevated seemed to help the pain too.

Heck, my sore throats from strep were worse than this because I was never given any pain meds for my horrible sore throats! :p

All in all, if I had to, I'd do it again in a heartbeat. Its SOOOO worth it.

I am going in for my surgery on Wednesday morning. Yeah, I am kinda freaked out about it too! I have also thought about cancelling but I am trying to stay postive about it. I am not too worried about the surgery - it is more the recovery, but from reading things and talking to people I know that it will be tough but I will get through it. It is either this or end up in the ER once every month or two due to dehydration and pain. That has not been fun. If I can get through two weeks of agony hopefully it will be worth it not to take up all my days off at work and such with strep. So I will go into it knowing that it is going to be rough but I will take it day by day and I will be thanking God for the moments of relief from the pain meds!!! =)

I'm 26 and I am 15 days post tonsillectomy. I had never had a surgery before this and I was EXTREMELY nervous. You are put under and given something to numb your throat. I don't remember anything from the surgery really. I remember the anesthesiologist putting something in my IV and then I remember waking up in recovery.

Some helpful hints:

Ask for pain meds in the hospital right away; these meds are going to be the best you'll have.
Drink as much as possible in the hospital right away. Since you are going to be on the best pain meds, it won't hurt to drink as much
Take your pain meds every 4 hours (or whatever is directed by you physician). This helps with pain managment.
With liquid pain meds, it tends to sting the throat a little and taste bad. Drinking water immediately following the dose eases both side effects.
Some medications cause constipation, try taking a stool softner.
Use a cool mist humidifier to help keep your throat moist if your a open mouth sleeper
I don't recommend "grainy" foods such as Coco Wheats or Cream of Wheat, or even applesauce the first week. When you eat them it feels like the grains get stuck in the back of your throat and can make you want to cough or clear your throat, which will irritate it.


There is the possibility of post-op complications. On day 8 of my recovery, which also happened to be the most miserable day of my recovery, I started bleeding...profusely....I lost 24 oz in about 20 minutes. I was taken back into surgery right away and the surgeon cauterized the areas that were bleeding. I am now on day 7 from my second surgery and feeling pretty good. I am still sore and I also have canker sores in my mouth. These hurt worse than my throat. Keep in mind, not everyone will have post op bleeding and if they do the severity of it can be different.

Let's face it. It's going to be a tough recovery for any adult. Yes you will be miserable for at least 10 days, maybe more. I'm on day 14, and feeling pretty good. Only needing Tylenol maybe twice a day instead of every 4 hours, and I'm out socializing with friends, eating and drinking normally. I'm 30, and had cryptic tonsils too. I won't lie to you, it will hurt like heck, but it WILL get better in about 2 weeks, and just think... no more losing money because you're too sick to work... no more strep throat, no more tonsillitis. Hang in there! I wish you luck!

Read my thread "2nd day after tonsillectomy and feeling good"!

I'm a healthy 23 year old guy and I found that it wasn't half as bad as I expected. In fact, tomorrow it will be two weeks since the operation and I feel totally back to normal. It's just that yawning isn't as easy yet, and it's difficult to handle very very sugary things. In fact, from day 9, there wasn't any pain, it was more like 'tenderness'. Throughout the rough days (4-6 for me), the strong medication you should get prescribed helps a lot. I think the most important thing is to drink LOTS and EAT LOTS of VERY TEXTURY FOOD, seriously, no matter how insane that sounds at the time. It will make the healing process much quicker, compared to maintaining a soft-food-only diet.

IT wasnt as bad as i expected either. and my tonsils were HUGE

But i cant stress enough DRINK DRINK AND DRINK.

I am on day 5 and defiently dont think ive done as bad as many many of the stories ive read here....Last 2 days ive beenj taking less and less pain meds...you can do it..

Apperently im already not making as much noise when i sleep too

Hi,

I'm almost 3 weeks after surgery and I returned to work yesterday. I'm feeling good, but it was a difficult couple of weeks. The first week my doc told me to stay indoors, and I was allowed to go outside in the second week. Here's some tips for anyone recovering and those about to have surgery:

- before surgery, ask your doc what pain meds he will be prescribing
- after surgery, drink plenty of water. I'm still drinking 3 litres per day
- avoid citrus foods, sauces, tomato based products, chocolate. All of these sting the throat real bad
- use a warm mist humidifier. This stops the throat from drying out
- buy a kid's toothbrush because opening your mouth is not easy for the first few days after surgery
- eat as much as possible. My doc advised me to eat a normal diet but this was not possible. I was able to eat mash, pasta, scrambled egg, soft cereals. But all plain food with no suaces

My throat and tongue stung for 2 full weeks, and I have only stopped taking pain meds today. It is definitely 2 weeks recovery, and although I thought I should be doing normal things last week, my throat hurt more when I exerted myself too much.

Days 1-2: not in too much pain. Pain was like having tonsillitis. I was able to eat well enough.

Day 3: I knew the past 2 days were too easy! The pain got worse and eating became more difficult.

Days 4-9: These were the hardest days. I was watching the clock to see when I could take my next pain meds, and wishing the hours away. Talking became difficult as my tongue had sores on it. No amount of rinsing my mouth made it easier. Eating was difficult, and there were days when even drinking water was almost impossible, but no matter how hard it was, I did it because I was warned of its importance.

Days 10-14: Things became easier and I tried to ween myself off the medication, but this only made the pain worse again. Eating was still difficult at times, but I force fed myself.

Days 15-18: Little pain - only mornings and evenings now. Still getting my energy back.

Day 19: I woke up this morning with virtually no pain. My throat is still a little red, but so much better. I feel exhausted after my first day at work yesterday!

The op was definitely worth it. It wasn't as bad as I expected, and I have no regrets. I also lost 9lbs in weight, and I'm not too big so that's good!

Best of luck to everyone. I hope this helps someone who is recovering.

AC

THANK YOU THANK YOU!!! Everyone who responded my my post is awsome! I feel a little bit better about Friday now thank to everyone! I will take everyone's advise to heart, and drink tons of water and take it easy and ask the doc for the best pain meds they have! :) I will keep a post each day after my surgery and give my progress to everyone.

PS. Good luck to the sweetie that has surgery tomorrow, and keep my posted! God Bless!

Love,
Jen

Things I wish they'd told me:

1) Gum. Chewing gum. Don't know why, it just helps.
2) Stay on the pain meds. Don't wean yourself off because you think you're feeling good. Take them. All of them. And then ask for more!
3) Children's toothbrush. Soft bristles.
4) Humidifyer. I still don't have one but I know how wonderful one would be.
5) Straws. Totally underrated. Flourescent ones are great, cause you can see them when you wake up at 2 a.m. to take meds.
6) Don't look until at least day 4. Put the flashlight away. Cover the mirrors.
7) Puppy. Never woulda thought she'd be my biggest ally. She saves me from the "evil husband" to leans in to give me a peck on the forehead before he goes to work. What a great protector!

Thanks! I've already got tons of gum stocked up....I remember when my son had his tonsils out...he had the worst breath!

Thanks again!

Jen

My surgery will start at 9am tomorrow (central time) they said I should be leaving the hospital by noon... that means this time tomorrow it will be all over with. Bring on the pain =) I will definitly let you know how it goes.

Good Luck! Like you, I just can't wait till it's all over with. I have my pre-op at UW Hospital tomorrow, so I should find out what time mine is on Friday. I'll say a prayer for you tomorrow, girl! Take care and let me know how it goes!

Jen

Ok, so I had my pre op appt today at the Hospital and the RN that was going over what to expect, etc.. said that her brother (who is 50yrs.) just had his tonsils removed this past Easter, and everything was great! That makes me feel a little better knowing that I'm much younger (29yrs) and hopefully mine will go great too! :)

WOW... OK well Ya'll have given me a lot to think about!

I'm new here. My name is Kara. I have chronically swollen tonsils, and I have fought with bouts of tonsillitis alot over the past few years. It started more when I was working for McDonald's on the opening shift (4 am) and not really getting the rest I needed. Over the 3 months of winter in Illinois (VERY cold and humid), I was on 5 rounds of antibiotics for alternating bouts with tonsillitis and sinusitis. Since then I have had several go rounds with the tonsillitis, but since moving south it seems to be a bit better.
I lived north of New Orleans til Katrina came through and ended up moving to Shreveport. About 2 weeks after the move, I ended up very ill with a VERY bad cold and tonsillitis. I began my Z-pack (Zithromax) then. I only had about 2 more problems with the tonsils... until March. I guess it was about the 26th I got pink eye (that is what I get for working in the 2 and 3 year old classroom at church! lol). I believe one of the kiddo's was sick with a cold, which she passed to me in the form of pink eye, and then the day I went to the Dr (that Monday) my throat started hurting. That Thursday I called in and she called me in a Z-pack. I took all that, and got an ear infection in the process, which I am STILL fighting with. Today, April 18th, I woke up with a sore throat and swollen tonsils... again. I called the Dr, and she faxed me in yet another prescription for a Z-pack.
I HATE ANTIBIOTICS! lol I'm so ready to do something proactive for a change and attempt to have this fixed, permanently.
So, my question to you is this... what are the pros and cons to having this surgery done. I'm a little nervous about getting the ball rolling, but I figure that I'd better do it now, while I have some kind of insurance coverage.
To those of you that are having surgery now, or very soon, I wish you luck and I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers!

Thanks,
Kara

Kara,

Thanks for the post! I'm very nervous about Friday. Everyone that I've spoken to (and they've been adults) that have had a tonsillectomy as an adult, has not regreted it at all! They said it was the best thing they did, and now almost NEVER get sick, EVER! Plus, I don't know about you, but my tonsils are ENORMOUS, and they have these....I guess their called "crypts" in them, kind of like big holes from the chronic tonsillitis, etc... I am constantly looking at them in my 10x magnifying mirror cuz stuff gets stuck in them..YUCK! I don't know what I will do with all the free time I'll have from not constantly obsessing about my tonsils! :) I know in the end it will all be worth it. PLUS...I suspect that due to my tonsils being so huge, I'm prevented from getting a really good restfull night of sleep, since I've been told I snore, and if these big tonsils are blocking my airway at night, would make sense. Could this be why I'm always tired even when I get 10 hours sleep? Who knows. One way to find out though......Da dada da......TONSILLECTOMY!!! I will know tomorrow specifically what time on this Friday I will go in. I just want it to be all over and done with so I can move on with my "tonsil free" new life! :) I am going to start a new thread and keep a daily post about my status each day after the procedure.

It's something to consider, so it sure wouldn't hurt to talk to your doc about it. My doc told me that more and more adults are having them removed, and for all kinds of different reasons.

Thanks for the post and the well wishes! Watch for my follow up posts on Friday afternoon! Take care, and God Bless!

Love,
Jen

From myself and thirteen other.. wait make that fourteen other family members now..
YANK EM.. get them out! We don't need them and they only cause trouble..

We are now sinus, strep, ear, and tonsillitus free zones.

Sincerely,
MG

P.S. If my tonsils grew back.. or my sons.. I would yank them all over again.

ROFL Ya'll are great! Thanks!

I called an ENT doc today and have an appointment for wednesday. Unfortunately I may have to cancel. :( I got an eviction notice for not paying my rent (due to illness) today. They are going tomorrow (friday) to court. I'm going to call around and see if I can find a shelter to maybe stay in. I'm not sure how that will work though, since there are so many homeless in the area. Well I'm going to get busy looking for somewhere to live. Wish me luck!

Kara

tigger1979, I believe you are supposed to be given at least 30 days notice to leave when evicted? Is there some way you can contest it. Maybe this law is only in my state. Nevertheless, best of luck to you. Hope everything gets settled.

Hello everyone...

I am due to have my tonsilectomy tomorrow afternoon and also REALLY didnt want to have it

still not to sure ill go thro with :dizzy:

I have my pain relief BUT i couldnt find a humidifier as i only read this today and dont have time to get one...not even sure where to buy one! will they have one at hospital? (even tho im only in for one nite)

i have had tonsilitus so bad i had a quincy and was taken into hospital as i couldnt straighten head and neck and speak or breath hardly.....but still worry that this op will be worse :(

i think its more the worry of only staying for the day and being sent home to fend for myself on little relief

please advice more ,,,,

Hi Jen, I had my tonsillectomy 2 weeks ago and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I'm still not fully recovered, but I didn't have as much pain as some people have said. My pain never got any worse than the bouts of tonsilitis I had. The humidifier is a great idea if you have central heat and have it on as you place will be dry from it.
In Canada you are sent home within a couple of hours of the surgery, so I'm sure you will be fine at home after a night in the hospital.
Good luck and I hope things go well for you.

Hey... I hear your pain.
I followed thru with my tonsillectomy two days ago. At 49 and after having suffered two or three major sore throats per year, my ENT doc suggested it was time. It was. I'm finding the hardest part of recovery so far is patience.
Yes, my throat hurts; but it's honestly no worse than the worst sore throat I've ever had. I can deal with this for a few days. I hope. I was give
hydorocordone, which seems to alleviate a lot of pain, with just a slight nauseous side effect. I drink a LOT of iced water, suck on popsicles, that sort of thing. I'm getting tired of baby food and yogurt.

I look forward to being done with this. I'm fantasizing about my first meals.

Best wishes... hang in there.

Hi Jen,

I found your message from ****** and was just wondering how your surgery went? I am having mine this Friday and am getting very nervous. I am a big baby when it comes to pain. I've had horrible tonsils since I was a kid and they seem to be getting worse. I know once the pain is over it will be great, but i've heard so many horror stories about the surgery that i'm a little freaked out. Please write me and give me your advise.

Thanks,
Erin

Do it yank them! Get them out. Don't let fear stop you. I did it at 31. My son a few months before did it at the age of 3.5. A friends 2 year old just did it. You can do it and it will get better. If you expect the worst you will wake up and be going, huh? This ain't that bad. Promise.

Sincerely,
MG