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Original poster

Tonsils out as an adult? How bad is it

43 replies

mattwhit · 27/09/2022 22:26

Basically that... how painful? How straightforward is it?

Also recovery how long does that take?

I'm worried I'm going to start choking on everything as there's nothing to guide the food.

Probably not how it works.

OP posts:
MrsMorton · 27/09/2022 22:28

It's pretty grim. Painkillers up the bum grim. It passes though and you will be better off.

Enb76 · 27/09/2022 22:32

I was fine - bit woozy and weepy from anaesthesia but then pretty much back to normal after three days. No serious painkiller need. Probably depends on the person. I cannot guarantee you’ll have my experience.

Yutes · 27/09/2022 22:39

Who had painkillers up the bum?

they say it is worse the older you are. I was 25. It was painful. It changed how I tasted things for a while as well.

Diclofenlac is your friend and good oral hygiene.

you will not have problems swallowing, your ENT consultant should really tell you it doesn’t work that way

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General health
LBF2020 · 27/09/2022 22:41

I had mine out as an older child. I've had a lot of surgery and it is definitely up there with the worst for me :-( Take all the painkillers you can and keep on top of them, even if you don't feel you need them. It will feel like you have really bad tonsillitis for a week or so. Lots of liquid food, jacket potato/soup etc.
Although nasty at the time it is completely life changing for someone with reoccurring tonsillitis. Best of luck OP

YourLipsMyLips · 27/09/2022 22:46

It's survivable. I was ok for the first few days then had a really hard few days - actually, nights were the worst as I kept waking up with a very dry throat as the wounds had dried out.

I had to go back to the GP for stronger painkillers, but by day 8/9 I was back to normal, and went back to work.

GrumpyPanda · 27/09/2022 22:51

Had them done in my 20s. Couple of nights in hospital for observation which were pretty awful because of other patients. At least a week of serious recovery time - wobbly legs, etc. Pain was manageable with good medication.

Original poster
mattwhit · 27/09/2022 22:54

God this is not what I was hoping for. Days/a week of it!

I have a very young baby so maybe I'll hold off

OP posts:
wibblewobbleball · 27/09/2022 23:02

Wow - I thought it was fine. Painful when I first came round but then they gave me pain relief and I was fine within the week and carrying on as normal. Painkillers first few days but totally ok.

ClaryFairchild · 27/09/2022 23:05

A lot depends on what your tonsils are like normally. If you just suffer tonsillitis frequently but in between bouts your tonsils are small then you probably won't have much of a difference (still a painful recovery though).

If you have chronic tonsillitis where your tonsils are permanently enlarged then you possibly will have difficulties. I could swallow, but I used to choke on bloody air at times. Drinking water was a challenge for the first year as my muscles learned to work differently. But my tonsils were so large normally that when I saw a new medical professional they would think I was in the middle of a serious bout of tonsillitis even when I was feeling perfectly fine, they were so enormous and discoloured.

Thisbastardcomputer · 27/09/2022 23:08

I was 33, it was uncomfortable as you'd expect but helped massively I have had one sore throat since and it's 33 years since I had it done.

NoodleDoodleDo · 27/09/2022 23:16

I was 22 when I had mine out and found it hideous for about 7 days. I felt pretty ill and remember spending the last hour before the next dose of painkillers waiting for the time to pass. Sneezing was incredibly painful. Started to feel better after first week but wasn't recovered until 2 weeks
It was worth it though as i used to be ill with tonsillitis so frequently

VanCleefArpels · 27/09/2022 23:29

I had mine out as a young adult after a year of nearly non stop tonsillitis

It wasn’t great I’m afraid. Vomiting blood due to anaesthesia then terrible pain to the extent that I couldn’t eat properly for several weeks (at the time I hated things like soup) and lost a shit load of weight. So there may be an upside OP 😉

Mix56 · 27/09/2022 23:37

Had mine out at 19, not going to lie, it was pretty bad. 2 days in hosp. then at least another 2 basically horizontal, sipping cool tea... then all over pretty fast.

Milly717 · 27/09/2022 23:51

I had mine out at 31. The first two nights weren't too bad but a painkiller was needed. From memory nights 3-5 were the worst when I actually woke up crying in pain (the drying wounds!) and needed morphine to manage. After that it was gradually getting better. I had also lost my sense of taste for many weeks with sweet taste not coming back for about 9 months. Even though it was pretty traumatic I must say I much prefer my life without them and I'm glad I survived 😄

StillMedusa · 27/09/2022 23:55

Had mine out at 35 with 4 very small children to look after.
Worst pain I have ever had ..I was counting down the minutes to the next painkiller. First few days not so bad but then it starts to heal and every swallow was agony.
When I went back to the GP for a check up he admitted he'd had his out earlier in the year and was flabbergasted at the pain.

BUT after years of near non stop tonsilitis and humongous tonsils... it was worth it!!!!!

redlou123 · 27/09/2022 23:56

As others have said, it is pretty painful afterwards. Definitely take all the painkillers they offer! My surgeon told me mine were the worst he'd ever operated on though so my experience might not have been typical. I was told they should have recovered after 2 weeks but unfortunately the wounds somehow got infected and I needed antibiotics as well as continuing the painkillers for longer. I ended up being off work for 4 weeks in the end. Even with all the pain though, it was totally worth it. I had suffered with recurring tonsillitis for years and had it almost constantly for a year before I had them removed. It was amazing to suddenly be free of it!

Mingot · 27/09/2022 23:56

Mine was the worst pain I've had and I had 3 natural births with no pain killers

Sorry Flowers

Meseekslookatme · 28/09/2022 00:00

Milly717 · 27/09/2022 23:51

I had mine out at 31. The first two nights weren't too bad but a painkiller was needed. From memory nights 3-5 were the worst when I actually woke up crying in pain (the drying wounds!) and needed morphine to manage. After that it was gradually getting better. I had also lost my sense of taste for many weeks with sweet taste not coming back for about 9 months. Even though it was pretty traumatic I must say I much prefer my life without them and I'm glad I survived 😄

My experience was similar to this.
First couple of nights were a breeze, around 4-5 the scabs on your throat start to come away and its really harsh.
I was sent away with morphine and I definitly needed it.
BEST thing I ever did though!
I used to have terrible ear and throat infections. Not had one since! Mild earache and the odd sore throat. It's been life changing. I used to cry in pain when they were bad.
I had them out a couple of weeks before my 40th. My 40th was basically a 2 week bender so the actual healing process was quite fast really.

FirstFallopians · 28/09/2022 00:05

I had mine out when I was 25- they were dreadfully scarred, pitted and enlarged.

My god recovery was grim. I must’ve been on ridiculously strong pain killers as I just slept and slept and slept for the first week. They’d only given me enough prescription strength painkillers for two weeks- I had to go back to the for them to give me more, and to extend my sick line to three weeks as I still wasn’t capable of speaking for long enough (job involved a lot of talking.)

I lost about two stone (looked amazing, put it all back on though ffs) as I totally lost my appetite.

BUT the important thing is that it massively benefited my long term health. No more sore throats or tonsil stones, and my morning breath stopped smelling like death. I’m hugely glad I took the plunge and just did it- was worth the few weeks of pain.

Mumrey · 28/09/2022 01:19

In my experience, it was worse than childbirth, sorry. 3/4 weeks off work (it was years ago).

Original poster
mattwhit · 28/09/2022 05:08

My issue is tonsil stones, not tonsillitis. Really reconsidering now

OP posts:
YourLipsMyLips · 28/09/2022 08:10

Here's something that grossed me out: mine grew back!!

user1471538283 · 28/09/2022 10:03

I had mine out at 18 and it was grim. I had tonsillitis almost continuously for a year and it made me depressed. Apparently mine were starting to rot. I was very scared.

I was in hospital for a week. It was very painful. I had to eat chips, crisps, roast potatoes to keep on top of the scabs which was awful. But after that week I was absolutely fine.

It was the best thing I've ever had done.

steppemum · 28/09/2022 10:18

I had mine out at 21.
I had been unwell with chronic tonsilitis and long term anitbiotics for a year.

As soon as they were out I felt better, even with aftermath of anaesthetic.

You need rolling painkiller, ibuprofen and then 2 hours later paracetamol, so that you can keep going without a break in the painkillers. When they wore off after 4 hours it REALLY hurt, but with them it was OK. I would wake in the night when they had worn off and have to take the next lot.

You are supposed to eat from day one, and that was doable with painkillers. (don't be tempted to eat purees, you need real food to help the healing process apparently)

It took about 2 weeks altogether, but after a week the painkillers weren't as necessary, I could manage once they wore off at 4 hours.

But I am so glad I had it done, as overall I felt so much better. I had been sleeping 16 hours a night before. having chronic tonsil problems means that you are constantly fighting a low grade infection, and as soon as that is gone, you body bounces back

WildishBambino · 28/09/2022 10:22

Grim for the first week, got better quickly after that. Not a single regret, as I was getting repeated bouts of tonsillitis.

If you have a young baby do you have good support for the first few days as you'll want to sleep a lot IME? There's never a totally convenient time to have it done, so maybe it will be easier to manage with a baby rather than a toddler!