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Original poster

tonsils removed - what is it like for an adult?

24 replies

gigwig · 31/05/2006 14:01

DH is going in for his tonsils out in a few weeks time. It is an overnight stay followed by 2 weeks off work. Does anyone know how bad it is - apparently is painful in adults?

OP posts:

agalch · 31/05/2006 14:20

I had mine out when i was 19.It was really sore but bear in mind my throat did become infected so may have been that.Glad i had them out after yrs of misery getting tonsilletis(sp)once a month for yrs.Hope he gets on ok

nicnack2 · 31/05/2006 14:33

had mine out when i was 13 and it was sore. Hardest thing as adults is that we understand where pain comes from and with tonsils it is important that you swallow. good thing is you get to indulge in childhood memories of ice cream and jelly, hope all goes well :)

Lact8 · 31/05/2006 14:37

I had mine done at 16. No more sore throats was worth the pain. IIRC the worst paet was an aching jaw as they open it up so wide.

Jelly and ice cream weren't on the menu for me though, the hospital wouldn't let me go home til i'd eaten i'd eaten dry toast!

nicnack2 · 31/05/2006 14:40

ooouch!!

Lact8 · 31/05/2006 14:43

It turned into a bit of a stand off between me and the nurses, me refusing, them insisting.

In the end i threw the toast out of the window and prtended i'd eaten it!

3 days in hospital not good for my social life when i was 16!

nicnack2 · 31/05/2006 14:46

lol visions of hospitial cheap brown toast flying out of window

Chocol8 · 31/05/2006 18:13

Urgh, Gigwig - I have to have mine out soon too. The consultant told me (your ds is gonna love me) that it is worse for adults as the area where the tonsils were is (obviously) larger than a child's therefore leaving a bigger raw area - followed by a large scab.

A week after the operation, the scabs fall off, which 90% of the time, leads to haemorrhaging (sp?). This means that you would have to be admitted back to hospital immediately as it can be serious.

I can't say i'm looking forward to mine, but then as Lact8 says, better that than the constant pain of tonsillitis.

I heard you have to eat crisps before they let you out these days, but it's probably an urban myth!

Please let me know how he gets on!

agalch · 31/05/2006 18:41

when i had mine out i had to eat a roast dinner and crumble and custard ouch!! the nurse stood over me and watched me eat the whole lot,wouldn't have let me out otherwise.

Gem13 · 31/05/2006 18:49

DH (who was 31) would say 'very'. He was out the next day too but had a really painful evening when I rang the emergency doctor and got a prescription for strong painkillers.

It wasn't helped by the fact that we were in the middle of buying a house at the time and had to keep talking to estate agents, solicitors, etc.

He's glad he had it done though!

poppiesinaline · 31/05/2006 18:59

glad I found this thread. >Now tell me, I have always suffered from tonsillitis. Got it 8-10 times a year as a child - GP said I would 'grow out of it'. I am better, but still get it at least once a year, every year. DS2 has it and I feel like I am coming down with it AGAIN (2nd time this year). GP says that there is no point removing tonsils if they are healthy and doing their job. I will just get another infection instead ie pharyngitis etc. Is this true?

Not that I particularly want my tonsils out btw! but am just getting fed up of keep getting it.

Tonsillectomy I have heard is very painful and they apparently make you eat dry toast now (not icecream) :(

chjlly · 31/05/2006 19:05

I had mine out at 22 - I don't remember it being that bad other than when I was trying to eat the toast!
My Mum would give me bags of crisps to eat & would sneak them into my sanwiches so that it wasn't so scatchy on my throat!
The worst bit was feeling so knackered from the general anesthetic for about a week afterwards

Tinker · 31/05/2006 19:08

Had mine out at 23. Worst thing is that can get am infection afterwards.

Poppies - my GP recommended it because said I would become resistant to the anti-biotics.

poppiesinaline · 31/05/2006 19:29

OMG I hope I don't!!

Kidstrack · 31/05/2006 19:35

i thought it was horrible the pain was not nice, i was 21 and ended up with infection and all sorts, but it did take about 2 weeks for me to feel better so maybe if you give some loving sympathy to your dh that would help him recover more quickly!

Gem13 · 31/05/2006 19:40

poppies - this was the argument the consultant gave my mother too (worse infections, tonsils first line of defence, blah, blah).

By the 3rd time we saw him (and my mlid mother was about to hold a sit-in!) he agreed to take them out. I'd had tonsilitus at least 4-6 times a year from toddlerhood to the age of 9 when they came out. I had no more colds than anyone else during my teenage years and attended more school than when I was a child.

I have had pnuemonia twice as an adult though and bronchitus recently so have self-diagnosed a weak chest! Quite possibly due to all the antibiotics I lived on as a child!

MumtoBen · 31/05/2006 19:42

I had mine out at 17. Was painful and they wouldn't give me any painkillers. Had to eat dry toast, which was very painful! My sister had hers out a few years later and faired a bit better as they actually gave her some painkillers.

It was a massive relief to have them gone though, as I had continuous tonsilitis for 2 years before the op.

I seem to remember you have to keep away from work for 2 weeks as there is a risk of infection.

mistressmiggins · 31/05/2006 19:47

I had mine out at 26 and IT HURT !!!

I was told by specialist that you dont grow out of tonsiltus til you are in your MID FORTIES - Id still have 10 years left of misery

am glad I had it done but my experience is that the older you are, the harder it is. A guy at work same age as me had it done few months b4 me and was off for 3 weeks. "Great - easy 3 weeks off watching TV" I thought....no no no - I would say I started to feel better in the 3rd week. It was so painful to eat; the tablets were HUGE and I stupidly drank orange juice - was like drinking acid

good luck to your DH

poppiesinaline · 31/05/2006 19:58

mid forties!!! 10 years of misery for me too then! But at least theres a hope I wont still be getting it at 60 though.

mistressmiggins · 31/05/2006 20:07

htats what I was told

my last episode was awful and I nearly ended up in hospital cos my throat was so swollen

was worth it - although I now suffer with asthma but that could be due to moving area

Original poster

gigwig · 31/05/2006 20:29

dont know whether to show these comments to DH!
Though knowing it will be rough may help him.

As it is, knowing how men can be, I am going to no doubt 'suffer' alongside him...and I expect he will have the most painful time that anyone has ever had or ever will have!

(I will be caring and sympathetic really...though his friends have been persuading him to get a bell so he can summon me from whereever I am in the house!...)

OP posts:

jellyjelly · 31/05/2006 21:42

hAVENT READ THE REST BUT HAD MINE TAKEN AT 17 and my throat was fine but my ears really hrt for days and days. Dont regret it though and havent had tonsil probs since.

countrylass · 31/05/2006 21:49

gigwig

I had mine out a few months ago (am in late 20s). It hurt alot but only for about 5 days and mainly in the morning, because obviously waking up with a dry throat makes it worse. However, its not correct that 90% haemorrage (as one poster put) - the chances are very low. I attended a course at work 5 days after I had mine out and returned to university within 10 days. I also returned to working out within about 10 days (obviously with caution). It is painful but compared to some operations it is a very minor procedure. Your husband will be fine.

littlelamb · 31/05/2006 22:13

poppiesinaline- if you are in any doubt, INSIST on being referred to a consultant. I was admitted to hospital three weeks ago because my tonsils were so swollen I couldn't breathe. I have never been more scared in my life, as I was alone with dd, who had to ride in the ambulance with me, while I was gasping for air. The stupid thing is I'd been to the doctors for two consecutive days before this, explaining that I got tonsillitus a lot, and I could tell it was really bad this time. The second day I went I couldn't talk and my tonsils were very large. Both times I was fobbed off, being told it was not their policy to prescribe antibiotics. The staff at the hospital were appauled at the way I had been treated. I now have an appointment to see a consultant, who WILL remove my tonsils, after 7 years of almost constant infection. I am now on my fourth lot of antibiotics trying to clear up this latest infection. If you get this frequently, you really should put some pressure on your doctor.When I saw my consultant when I was admitted, he told me that this was an accident waiting to happen- it is sad but true that it will generally take quite a serious incident to get taken seriously :(

poppiesinaline · 01/06/2006 10:36

littlelamb. That must have been terrible. I am also that the GP wouldnt prescribe antibiotics. Poor u. You must have felt awful. I have just been to GP cos I can feel tonsilitis starting (DS2 has it) and I shot down there before it really got going. I was half expecting her to turn me away and tell me to come back when I had a pus ridden throat but she was very kind and gave me antibiotics. 'why suffer' were her words as she handed me the prescription. :)

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