The Student Room Group

This discussion is now closed.

Check out other Related discussions

Tonsillectomy

I have a tonsillectomy coming up soon as I almost constantly have tonsillitis (only thing that stops it is penicillin) and I was just wondering if there was anyone who has had one and could tell me what to expect.

I feel kind of silly for being so scared of it but I have a phobia of needles and the whole thing really terrifies me, fear of the unknown I suppose.

Therefore if I knew what was going to happen then I'd probably less scared. The main thing I'm interested in is how did you find the whole experience. Another of my worries is that I won't actually get better (I had M.E. about three years ago and so I don't want anything like that to happen again).So I was wondering did it completely cure you? Obviously you can't get tonsillitis anymore but do you get ill more than other people?
I had mine out on my 13th birthday, and i had to stay in hospital for a couple of extra nights because i got infected. I wont lie, it is the most horrible feeling in the world. its fine when u first have them out, coz i think ur doped up, but when u get home, and u have to eat to scrape you throat down, it hurts like hell and u just dont want to swallow. this lasts for a few days, but because of my infection it lasted nearly 2 weeks!! on the plus side, i lost loads of weight!!

i dont get ill more than ppl with their tonsils, i actually get sick a whole lot less then i used to do because i dont constantly get infected tonsils!

its really not that bad, and if u stock up on icecreme and painkillers, its fine. it will be uncomfortable, but it passes quickly, and its worth it in the long run because u dont get tonsilitis every 3 weeks!!
Thanks for replying

I have been ill in some way or another since about age eight (I'm 16 now) and so it's almost unbelievable that I might actually get better!

What was your expreience of the operation like?
Reply 3
personally i found it to be one of the most horrible experiences of my life! i have a phobia of needles and when they put the drip in i just wouldn't stop screaming, to such an extent that they had to give me drugs which made me laugh! weird...

and i woke up bleeding from my nose and the nurse was horrible and wouldn't let my mummy in and it was just awful! then the recovery period...they say it takes between 2-4 weeks but i was laid up for SEVEN weeks. SEVEN. i couldn't eat, i had a fever constantly and the taste in your mouth is awful due to the scabbing going on in your throat.

blegh. i'm so glad it's over and done with, sorry if that wasn't very helpful but if you prepare for the worst you'll at least know what you could expect. although most people's experiences aren't as bad as mine.

oh, and the WORST thing...they tell you you get to eat all the icecream you want, but that's a filthy lie because you don't WANT any icecream :frown:
My boyfriend had this done and it reduced him to tears it hurt that bad! Plus he got an infection after the operation, making it even worse.
Well, my experience wasn't that bad!
I had them out when I was 13ish. Stayed in hospital overnight. The operation is completely routine.

The drugs they give you are strong however they do wear off. I went through a couple of days of pain. But it DOES get better.

Also my advice is not to go out for 2 weeks afterwards (the advice of the doctors anyway) - I did, thinking there would be nowt wrong with it, and I got an infection. Don't risk it!

Either way, it was one of the best things I've ever had done - no more tonsillitis. It'll seem crappy for a couple of weeks but it's sooooo worth it. Don't worry, the pain isn't excruciating.
:ditto:

I had mine out when I was around 16, when I looked in a mirror to inspect the damage afterwards there were two big gaping holes in the back of my throat.
The pain afterwards in undescribable. They encourage you to eat pretty much straight away afterwards, but instead of going down my throat, it was getting stuck in the craters where my tonsils used to be. The whole area was yellow with pus and the pain did reduce me to tears a times.

Having said that, I had a terrible time with tonsilitis when i was younger.. Not just the sore throat, but that groggy, tired, lethargic feeling you have when you are infected.
Also penicillin gives me diahorrea and stomach cramps so it was a godsend to have them removed. Its well worth it..

It almost completely heals within a week :smile:
Thank you guys, just knowing what to expect helps me A LOT. It's going to be ****, with the pain and all that but at least I can be normal and healthy afterwards. The tonsillitis has started to really get me down as I'm really fustrated as I've to put up with it for near on three years (I was going to "grow" out of it aparently) but over the last six months it's got a lot worse, just as I meet my boyfriend... sod's law eh?

Thanks again, I'm feeling less nervous now :smile:
I had mine out when I was 21 and it wasn't as bad as I expected it to be, although it does take a few weeks to recover from it. The worst thing I found was not being able to sleep and when I got up a few hours after I woke up to go to the loo I was so dizzy I fell over and got sick everywhere - ewww.

I can definately think of more fun things to do with a couple of weeks but you forget about it once it's over....kinda like childbirth I believe lol
Reply 9
It really does depend on how the prcedure is carried out. There is a new clinical method we use in the states now that is called a "Powered intracapsular tonsillectomy." I'm not sure if it's in Europe or not yet, but it is a breeze.


You can find more information here:www.itonsil.com

It's the site I used to do research before I had my tonsillectomy done, amoung a few others.

Just for the record, the above stories are probably done with less advanced techniques and sound like the worst case scenario. Mine hurt, but it wasn't as bad as these unfortunate peoples'. Good luck with your surgery. It's worth it in the long run.
Reply 10
The worst thing for me was waking up and having dry blood in my mouth. I then wasn't able to have a drink for several hours...I had to suck on a damp flannel. Hehe.

It's very painful but also routine and you'll be well looked after. I don't think I've had a sore throat for years and I don't have breathing troubles anymore either. I had abnormally large tonsils and one of them seemed to have a hole in it and was all manky...I'm so glad I don't have them anymore!

Skylark, I find it slightly odd that you were given jelly, ice-cream and orange juice. I wouldn't have thought they would give you orange juice when the wound is still fresh...ouch. You were only 5 though, so maybe times have changed (and maybe it's a bit kinder to let a littl'un have some soothing food). I was advised to have lots of toast and food with rough texture rather than ice-cream and jelly so that my throat would heal faster. It was very difficult to swallow!

Also for a few days I could really kind of taste the staleness in my throat. I'm sorry, I know that's rank, but it was like I could taste the dry blood. It was kinda cool though.

Anyway, it only took me 2 weeks to recover. After that I wasn't in any pain whatsoever. The pain isn't that bad anyway, it's just like having a bout of tonsillitis without the fever. I was 12 when I underwent this procedure and it didn't really phase me that much at all to be honest.
Reply 11
I had it about 3 years ago and it was horrible! I had a really low blood pressure and kept puking up blood that i'd swallowed! I also couldnt eat, drink or swallow and *shock horror* talk. Once its healed its fine so it's worth it in the end but that initial pain is excrutiating. I dont like needles either but it was fine.

Ive found that I still get sore throats but not as bad and it's nothing like my tonsillitis used to be so its all good!
i've had one.it was ok,can't remember it much (Was when i was younger) but it's far better than having tonsilitis itself :smile:
..oh, and i had to come to terms with sounding like a man for about 3 weeks!

Its different for everyone I suppose
the first thing they made me eat was soup and toasted sandwiches! Was I impressed, i think not!!!!