Tonsillectomy - why did you have one?

[Newusername099]

Hello, just here to ask those who have had a tonsillectomy, why you decided to have one? What was the catalyst? (If you don’t mind sharing)

Ive always had one fairly enlarged tonsil that was noticed by a consultant over 2 years ago. It wasn’t tooo much of a worry, but now I’m getting tonsillitis every January without fail, and that tonsil is still enlarged. I also seem to have a little wart like thing on it? After this recent bout of tonsillitis (I’m seeing the ENT team next week so will mention it there)

but I’m just starting to wonder whether I should consider a tonsillectomy, or maybe I’m just overreacting? Ive seen posts about people having one done and feeling so much better in general/having less illnesses, and wanted to hear people’s experiences if possible

tbank you!

I had 6 months of recurrent peri- tonsillitis. After being stabbed in the throat to test for Quincy and 5 rounds of antibiotics, both my GP and a consultant agreed that surgery was probably the best way forward.

Recovery was fairly nasty. Lost a stone as I couldn't eat a thing for 2 weeks and has a nasty bleed on day 11 but otherwise fine and glad to have done it.

I had one when I was 19. I got tonsillitis regularly through my teens but when I went to Uni it was every few weeks. It was very painful afterwards but I felt so 'well' when i recovered. It was as if the tonsils were low level poisoning me constantly😄. I know I would have suffered tonsillitis regularly if I hadn't had the op so have been forever grateful that I did it then.

I haven't had one but DD had it because she was getting tonsillitis repeatedly and she was sleeping really badly which ent put down to oversized tonsils. DS also has oversized tonsils, never gets tonsillitis but snores like an old man so is waiting for an ent appointment to see if he needs his out (school doctor was of the opinion that he does)
I've always had oversized tonsils and used to get tonsillitis frequently so I thought about it but now its calmed down by itself and I've only had tonsillitis once in the last few years so don't feel like I need it now.

I had mine when I was 17 after years of tonsillitis. Very painful afterwards.

I was about 6 or 7 when I had both my tonsils and adenoids removed after years of constant tonsillitis and throat infections. This was late 60s and they were more open to whipping them out then than they are nowadays.

After being stabbed in the throat to test for Quincy

Quinsy!

Quincy is a detective. 😂

My toddler had theirs out due to obstructive sleep apnoea.

I was about 10 in the late 60's when I had my tonsils and adenoids out. Up till then I had constant tonsilitis , was having roughly one week off school every couple of months and really ill with it.

I had mine out in my 50s as one was enlarged and growing. No pain before and recovery was not too bad ( they gave me the good drugs)

I was about 21, 2nd year at uni and getting 7-10 bouts of tonsillitis every year. I was so unwell with each episode l needed time off from studies and my bar job and it just wasn't sustainable. I had to have kiddies liquid antibiotics and painkillers because I had so little space in my throat to swallow pills when it was rampant.

Surgery was also delayed because of a national suspension of tonsillectomy surgeries which was bad timing for me! But it got done and I passed my degree.

Had mine out at 17 because I was missing so much school due to monthly tonsillitis! It took a lot of begging and “oh, we don’t usually refer people for this anymore, you’ll grow out of it” until I saw a GP who actually listened to me and saw how scarred and massive my tonsils and referred me to ENT, who agreed immediately that they should have been removed long before.

The recovery was dreadful, but so worth it because I got my life back and passed my A-Levels!

I was 37.

I'd been having quinsies repeatedly, which had put me in hospital due to the threat to my airway. The scar tissue they had left on my tonsils meant that there was constant low level infection that often flared into yet another quinsy. This infection couldn't be fully dealt with by antibiotics because they cannot penetrate scar tissue.

So the only solution was a tonsillectomy. Recovery was painful and difficult but within a couple of months I was totally fine again. Despite that, it was a game changer and honestly the best decision. It was 22 years ago now and I have not had any further throat issues since. Occasionally I might get a slightly gritty feeling if I have had a cold or something like that and I realise that this is what others call a sore throat. They are very rare and not a patch on the agonising ones I used to get.

Repeated bouts 5-6 times per year that were painful and debilitating and too much time off work

recovery from the op was grim but not regrets and tonsillitis free

I got mine done at 19 as I was getting tonsillitis at least twice a year and being off work for at least week each time in absolute agony. I started a new job about 3 or 4 days after the operation, so it was a pretty short recovery period (except I did vomit on my first day so probably should have taken a bit longer off work).

I almost never get properly sick from colds or flu now. If my family have it, I might get a slightly sore throat for a day and that's it. I never really put the two together until now, but we always joke about how I never get properly sick (touch wood).