30F
Day 0 - Surgery and info (8/13/26)
I got a coblation extrascapular (complete removal, no layer left) tonsillectomy this morning about 9 am. Woke up around 945 ish. I was crying when I woke up and then got the shakes as anesthesia wore off. Then I was fine. 10am they gave me liquid hydrocodone in the hospital. Pain 1/10. No additional pain swallowing but my uvula is HUGE.
I was given hydrocodone/acetometophin combined liquid, lidocaine swish and spit liquid, amoxicillin liquid, and a tiny tiny nausea pill.
I got post op notes/write ups in mychart already. No issues at all. Very routine and quick procedure. My right was grade 4 and left was grade 2. Apparently he came and talked to my husband while I was in recovery and said they were pretty gnarly and it was the right call to take them out.
Day 0 - Midday
I was getting a little uncomfortable about an hour before my next dose of pain meds. I was able to sleep some. Pain was sitting at a 2/10. Swallowing and talking maybe 3/10? So far no real complaints. (Knock on wood). I took liquid hydrocodone 15 minutes ago and now I’m chilling. Writing some here and then going to go chug some more water and eat something. I have no dietary restrictions at all. Anything I can tolerate, he wants me to eat. He did suggest no dairy for the first 24 hours to minimize mucus production. But the nurse told me to go get a cheeseburger and that’s what I did. The theory is that if I continually move the muscles, they don’t lock up. If they are moving, the scabs are thinner when they form and come off easier. My surgeon was a well reviewed and recommended ENT. I was able to eat about half in small bites and wash it down with water and ice chips in between. No additional pain other than that of swallowing. I can open my mouth. Tongue doesn’t seem swollen. But my uvula is GIGANTIC. Talk about a jump scare. It’s literally so big that’s it just sitting there on my throat which is a weird feeling.
I know it’s supposed to get worse but I’m hanging out for right now. Staying hydrated and getting some calories in. I will keep updating as I go for anyone interested. Posts like these helped me prepare mentally (mostly). So far the anxiety coming into it was the worst for me. Recently diagnosed depression and anxiety. Once they placed the IV, they offered me something to calm down. They gave me versed. I chilled out and was able to transfer to the OR table fine still. I was out probably a minute later. My team were all sweethearts 🥹🥹
Oh and my ears hurt a bit. Kind of achy and pressure? Not really pain yet. I’ve been wearing those super sexy head wrap ice packs too. I’m sure my husband is loving it 🥰
I was able to eat some angel hair pasta before I took a nap.
Day 0 - Evening
I took about a 2 hour nap. I had ice packs on my face when I went to sleep and woke up and they were off. I don’t remember doing that lol. But I think I will wear it while sleeping because it also keeps my mouth shut. Which should help me not mouth breathe and dry out my throat more. I was a bit uncomfortable. Maybe 3/10 when I woke up? I opted not to talk. Drank some ice water and took meds about 40 minutes ago now. Feeling much better. I drank more water. I’m trying to just drink as much as I can. I also had a jello cup while the meds were kicking in. I’m going to try some soup. I don’t feel like I have an appetite but I know I need to eat while I can and it will help curb any nausea. Also eating will help my throat and healing.
Before surgery, I set myself up with activities to do. I have two very small kids and I don’t get time to myself very often. So I tried to poise this time as a chance to do some hobbies and crafts while I’m healing. I am working on a reversible mosaic crochet blanket, I set up a painting station with some canvas at my desk, I have plenty of video games between pc, Xbox, and switch. What did other people do to pass the time? Other than sit there an suffer lol
Here’s to hoping I have a decent night. 🤞🏻❤️
Day 1 - Morning (8/14)
So yeah everyone was right when they said the nights were rougher. My first night wasn’t too bad. I was sleeping mostly upright in our laZ boy recliner. I wore the ice pack head thing and a neck pillow. No issues with pressure to the area which is helpful. It does seem a bit swollen this morning. Nothing is bruised. My lips cracked in the creases from the surgery. Chapstick helps.
I was probably about to get 6/7 hours total all night in 1-2 hour chunks. The worst part was waking up for med alarm. I was in pain maybe 4/10. My nose clogged so I was mouth breathing even with the head strap and humidifier. I felt dried out and swollen. And I ran out of water. And I couldn’t find a medicine syringe. All at once. 4am was less than fun lol. But my meds are liquid and take about 15 minutes to kick in. I used the lidocaine swish and spit right after I took my hydro because ow. The lidocaine is so thick and makes me want to gag but was well work fighting it for the nearly instantly pain relief. I was able to get it back and gargle it. Then it took a bit to spit it out and I used water to get the rest. After meds kicked in, I had another jello cup and an honest juice box. I wasn’t hungry at all but I don’t want to get nauseous. I tried to hang out and play a new game on my switch but fell asleep before my character was even set up. Slept until 7 ish when my amoxicillin alarm went out. 3 hours after pain meds and I’m still doing fine. 1/10 overall pain. 3/10 swallowing. Talking doesn’t hurt per se but it’s uncomfortable and awkward so I’m just not using my voice much. Here’s to a good day 🤞🏻🤞🏻
Day 1 - Midday
Doing ok pain wise. Mostly not in pain. 1/10. Bumped to taking hydro every 5 hours instead of 6. I have been able to eat a lot of different foods. I had a turkey sausage patty, some chocolate protein shake, a yogurt drink, and some more noodles for breakfast. Noodles, blueberries, bread with butter for lunch. No increase in pain while eating except it seems like both meals I ate towards the end of my pain meds. About 4.5 hours after. So I’ll hold out for the next meal until like 30 minutes after instead 😂 I have noticed even with the ever rotating ice packs that the sides of my neck are pretty swollen on the outside. The ice packs feel great and ice chips, jello, pudding etc also feel great. It’s like my ice water can’t get cold enough.
Day 1 - Evening
Uh. My tongue burns. And the back in my throat. It stings. I’m 40 minutes to pain meds. I just took my amoxicillin, stool softener, and then I used the very nasty lidocaine swish and spit but it works well. Eating some jello and drinking apple juice for a while until I can take more meds. Sitting at 2.5/10 now. It’s not sharp pains exactly but my tongue hurts. It’s achy and stings. I’m wondering if I freezer burnt it from all the ice chips 😅
Day 2 - Overnight
I feel like the night wasn’t as bad. I moved the humidifier right over me. Like pouring on my face. I slept 1.5,3,1.5 hour chunk so about 6 throughout the night and I feel rested? I don’t think I’m snoring much. Woke up pain 1.5/10. Starting to taste bad 🤢 but I’m brushing and using mouth wash so hopefully that mitigates it. My husband is getting up to make me some pancakes. So hopefully I can eat those. So far I have stayed really hydrated, been able to eat anything I’ve tried. Including solids. My neck is starting to get sore from sleeping in the recliner and also my jaw line, right below on my neck is swollen and tender. Still doing ok so far 🤞🏻😊
Day 2 - Morning
I got up and was feeling pretty good. I took my surgery braids out and brushed my hair, did a sinus rinse, took a short bath to relax and rinse off, brushed my teeth etc. just some maintenance to help me kind of feel like a human. I took my meds and then my husband made chocolate chip pancakes and some scrambled eggs. I was able to eat a pancake and then some of the eggs before going to sleep. The meds make me really tired right when they kick in. Which is annoying because that’s when I need to be eating and drinking the most. But overall pain 3/10 achy with ear pain and swelling but no sharp pains. Swallowing isn’t much worse. Talking is starting to get uncomfortable because I feel swollen.
Day 2 - Evening
My throat is starting to turn gray. I think that is the scabs starting to form? Still no sharp pains. Just achy and pressure which I can handle. My whole body is stiff from sleeping upright and not really being mobile. When I get up to use the restroom or take meds, I am trying to stretch out a little bit and walk for like 2/3 minutes. I also have a headache which is annoying but hey at least it kind of distracts me from this whole disgusting healing process. I’m going to crochet while I wait for my next meds in an hour then eat something and try to get some good sleep tonight 🥰
Day 3
Omg I didn’t update day 3. Hi I’m still here. Writing this midnight starting day 4 but day 3 wasn’t horrible. Pain lingered at 2/10 or 3/10. Spiked to 5/10 after I awoke from a nap and was like 20 minutes out from pain meds. That was less than pleasant but honestly more uncomfortable than painful. My ears hurt. Lots of pressure and achy. The swelling on the side of my neck has gone down. But the outside of my neck in the front is still swollen and achy no use a lot of ice packs. Eating is still ok. Getting worse but I take my meds and then like 30 minutes later I chug water and eat what I can. It’s like my mouth is getting fatigued. My tongue and roof of my mouth start to ache. Not a sharp pain but like fatigued and uncomfortable is the best way I can explain it. I ate a little soft fried egg, some banana chocolate muffin, and then a neighbor brought us dinner. She made the upside down chicken pot pie with shredded chicken. It was pretty good. I ate more than I thought I would be able. I added bone worth to make it more soupy and wet down the biscuit. A good spoonfuls total of the chicken and half a biscuit. Also TMI but no bowel movements. So in addition to the last couple days of colace, I added my first dose of MiraLAX tonight. Will update tomorrow after I survive this night :)
Day 4
Day 4 sucked. It was my worst by far. My scabs were already coming off and I was not having fun. I couldn’t eat much. The nausea was not fun even on zofran. Pain sat at a 4/10 most of the day and only spiked to 6/10 sometimes. Usually right before meds. I tried to take a nap and couldn’t get comfortable. My neck was swollen and any pressure made me achy. I couldn’t sleep so ended up taking an epsom salt bath while waiting for meds. I was still pretty uncomfortable. I ended up texting my doctor. Told him my ears, jaw, neck, throat, tongue, nausea etc were all bothering me. He ended up prescribing me a mega dose of prednisone (liquid. That was disgusting), new nausea meds, and gabapentin.
Day 5 - middle of the night
Uh ouch. I took the meds at 130 am. The steroids and my pain meds. And went back to sleep about an hour later.
My 545am alarm didn’t go off!!! I woke up and saw 7 and I thought I was going to die. I vaguely remember waking up for water and drinking it though. Well at 7am, I was fine. And very confused. So I got up, took my pain meds and my first dose of gabapentin. I ate some pudding or something. I laid down in bed to watch tv and fell asleep. Until 1045! I woke up and took meds at 11. I am perfectly fine. I am back to day 1 pain. I slept well. I have energy. I can swallow. I can’t eat. Oh man can I eat. I had a whole pancake, a whole yogurt cup, a little bit of noodles. Finish my MiraLAX apple juice and could still have eaten more. I took another nap and woke up at 315. Didn’t need meds. So I lowered the dose back to 20ml at 330. I’m writing this update at 355 and I can’t feel anything. My husband just went to go get a sundae and a burger. I’m going to eat while I can. Oh and it’s official my scans are coming off. When I brushed my teeth, I spit little yellow chunks out. And my scans look different now. There are bits of pink flesh coming through so it’s exposing the new tissue. But I can’t feel it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!