Loss of Taste After Tonsillectomy

9kids

Hi, Trish86. I'm so sorry to hear about what you're going through. I am now almost ten months post op and my taste is still off. But I have to admit that it has improved immensely and the improvement didn't even start till about four months after surgery. Very very slowly since then it has continued to improve. I feel really bad for you right now because I know that around two months post op is when I was really beginning to feel depressed about the whole situation, wondering if it would ever get better. I even wondered for quite a while after I did have a little improvement if I was imagining it because it was so slight of an improvement. It seemed like maybe I was only getting used to it. And I have to admit, you do get used to it to a certain degree and it makes things easier to deal with. Your brain forgets what things are supposed to taste like after a while and you appreciate what you CAN taste from any given food, instead of what it CAN'T. There are plenty of sweets that I can enjoy now, though chocolate still isn't anywhere near as wonderful as it once was and I honestly don't think it ever will be. Pop still isn't any good either, though I can taste the flavor now, just not too much sweetness in it. I'm simply counting my blessings that I can enjoy SOME sweets, and everything non-sweet is pretty much back to normal. Actually, it isn't, but it has improved so much and I've gotten so used to it that I don't notice the difference too much anymore and I don't get all depressed and upset about it anymore. I sure hope your taste improves too, though you may have to wait a while longer before you notice anything. It sure would be nice if you continued to keep everyone else posted on here about your situation. I still wonder what happened to everyone else on this post who have stopped writing. Keep your chin up! I know what you're going through!

Trish86

Hey 9Kids,
Thanks a mill 4 ur Reply! Yeah Not being able to taste really sucks! Its also a problem becos when u dont find food all that appetising you dont really feel like Eating! Glad to hear that your sense of taste has improved! Something to look forward to!!!
Im not feeling to depressed tho thank God, too many other things to be thinking of! Im more annoyed that the Specialist that I paid a fortune to see did not tell me that i wouldnt be able to taste after the operation!
I was just wondering if at any stage When you would eat lets say something like chips that the taste would linger in your mouth? And make your mouth taste rather strange?

yellowbird14

Trish,
My ENT didn't mention a THING about loss of taste, so boy was I in for a surprise when I sat down at Thanksgiving dinner (had my tonsillectomy Oct 17 last year) and kept asking my family if the turkey tasted strange to them. It tasted almost like someone sprayed a cleaner nearby and some got on the turkey - very chemical-y. Everyone said no, and then I realized, as I tasted some other things that they were strange too. I was angry that he hadn't mentioned it, but glad when it finally disappeared sometime before Christmas. So, about 2 months for me before it got better, and things are back to normal now. There is light at the end of the tunnel - I hope you are back to tasting regularly soon

Kszan

It takes time to get your sense of taste back after having a tonsillectomy. It took about 2 months for me to notice an improvement, and even then, it was only by degrees. What you all need to realize about this surgery is that it's a very long recovery. Even after you feel like you're semi-back to normal again, it still takes time after that for certain other things to get back to normal, such as your voice and your sense of taste. It just takes time and all of you need to be patient. The permanent loss of taste is extremely rare and there is no reason for any of you to think that you're in that tiny percentile that has had that happen to them. You just need to be patient and it will eventually come back again. I think you're all just expecting everything to go back to normal too soon. It really takes a very long time to recover fully, which is something no doctor or surgeon will ever tell you. But those of us who have been through it and recovered will be totally open an honest about it and let you know that it takes TIME. That's all that you can do is just be patient and let yourself heal. There's nothing else you can do.

countalmaviva

Hello everyone,

I am 31 years old, a male, and at 7 days post-op (tonsillectomy).

I have a metallic taste constantly in my mouth (even when not eating) and it seems to emanate from the sides of my tongue. The sensation is a sharp, almost painful one on my tongue, and it seems to overwhelm the taste of nearly everything I eat.

I'm not sure if certain tastes are unaffected as of yet. One weird thing is that I didn't notice this until about four days ago, three days after the surgery. That is, everything seemed to taste normal during the three days following the tonsillectomy, but then my tongue suddenly started acting up.

At first it was just an acute numbness to the sides of my tongue. That has mostly subsided now, and the main problem is the metallic taste. Perhaps the most annoying is that my favorite thing to drink, black tea, now tastes terrible. I certainly hope this improves, and most people's stories seems to indicate this will happen.

Best,
OH

lizf88

Andrea
Hi. I'm in the Uk searching for information about post op taste disturbance after tonsillectomy... my story is this, I had my tonsils out sept 2006 (here in the UK) at the age of 34 and suffered badly afterwards with pain and my throat closed up. Anyway i was quickly home again but wanted to die. the pain was unbearable and it continued unrelenting for three weeks, i was like a zombie on drugs. pretty quickly i noticed that my taste was not right, i could only eat a handfull of different foods, but was told to give it time.. anyway to cut a long story short 11 months on I can eat nothing with cocoa in it (i was properly addicted to chocolate) no cake, hot choc drinks nothing! it tastes so so vile i cannot bear it, and it also burns at the back of my throat. other foods are affected too. anything with a strong taste ie spicy, sweet some tomato based products, anything that has been chargrilled or bbq'd, there is loads. your story made me cry, you poor thing. i'm so sick of people telling me how lucky I am to have such a healthy diet. I cannot even enjoy a glass of wine anymore, though i have found some alcohol that i can drink, and my other complication is that my saliva glands overwork now, they tingle and my mouth fills with saliva constantly this started 7 weeks post op. i'm due to see my surgeon again in a couple of months, he said they would consider my taste/salia problems to be permanent after 1 year, i'm gutted and i could cheerfully punch the next person who says ooh no chocolate i need a tonsillectomy. the thing is it's so difficult to find any information about this problem, do you know where i start? I hope your doing ok, I would love to hear more about your taste disturbance... liz

lizf88

is anyone else suffering with taste loss or over working saliva glands a year post surgery??

Tia23

I had my tonsillectomy on August 9th. On August 17th I returned to the ENT for my check up and he had to cauterize the left side while I was awake. He said everything looked fine and I would be doing better by Monday. Monday... I wake up to feel blood squirting out in my throat so bad. I ran to the bathroom and blood just went everywhere from my nose and mouth. I was rushed to the hospital and I really thought I was going to die on the way. I ended up going in for emergency surgery to repair a broken blood vessel. I lost so much blood that I almost needed a blood transfusion.. they had the bags reserved for me. After a night in the hospital and a week of being scared to sleep, I am doing much better. I've lost 10 lbs. I've been eating things like pizza, hot dogs, mac & cheese, ect. They all taste great! I won't eat any sandwiches or anything like that yet because I'm still a bit scared. I tried soda (both pepsi and coke) and they have a lack of taste now. Also, I had my old favorite drink from Starbucks (Caramel Macchiato) and it was nasty! It really sucks. I haven't tied many other things but I hope this goes away...

MeterMan

Hello,

My female age 36 friend just had a Tonsillectomy almost a month ago. She complains that she has been unable to taste or smell since the procedure. She seems in despair, but according to this board only a very small percentage have serious taste complications. It appears that it takes several months for the throat and taste buds to heal.

I'm not sure what is going on with her sense of smell though, as there is next to no mention of it on this message board. Anyone care to comment?

wackytacky

i'm 17 days post op and i never experienced any loss of taste
nor the taste of metal---i've read several posts talking about that as well.
I wonder if it has anything to do with the type of removal they used for the tonsillectomy.

lizf88

meterman
I would be very concerned that her sense of smell has been affected, yes it's early days but that does sound worrying to me. She needs to go back to her doctor/surgeon and tell them, it could be a straight forward infection but it needs investigating.

lizf88

wackytacky
yes i've heard similar things about the way they remove them, but an interesting point maybe the size of mouth guard used, during the operation to keep the mouth open? i was told they can over stretch the nerves (like an elastic band) i'm very petite so i do wonder as to whether they used a normal adult guard on me?

lizf88

Tia
your experience sounds awful, hope your feeling better. As you can eat the pizza etc it sounds like your taste will be fine just give it time, the sweet stuff will take longer to be ok but it should come back. cases like mine are rare.

floret212

i had my tonsils removed on the 6th of sept. the next day i noticed that my sense of taste had gone. i wish the consultant had warned me of this, because i would have thought twic about the surgery. i am really struggling to eat properly and just burst into tears at meal times. some people are saying 6-12 wks before it comes back. others say 1-2yrs. i am so scared because i cant really imagine living normally without being able to enjoy food. i am 25