adult tonsillectomy:(

siobhan nurse

Hi there im siobhan im 21:)just went through the most horrendous 2 weeks of my life that was the adult tonsillectomy!!!found that theres very poor information online regarding the op especiallly in ireland.so decided id write this to save future victims added frustration!!most of the info I could get was forums from america which a lot of the time were very dramatic!im currently on day 12-got the buggars out last monday week and honestly thought id never ever get to this stage!The background to me having to get my tonsils out was the usual constant infections,poor breathing and of late complete resistance to antibiotics..really starting to ruin my life:(so anyway between trying to juggle being a student nurse,placement,working and study enough became enough and they had to go.my gp sent a referral to my ent consultant in the aut even in kilkenny.saw him within two weeks (october 2013).coincidentally I had a lovely bout of tonsillitis the day I saw him so he'd his decision made within seconds!!!As I was on placement until early december and work in a restaurant that was jammers with xmas parties we decided to leave the op until after christmas.I laugh now thinking back at what he said when I mentioned possibly before xmas 'you definately dont want that-itl ruin your christmas!!'So forward on to monday 13th January and I checked into the aut even for half 9.(id one bout of tonsillitis over xmas spent stephens night in bed!!)
Day 1:
The morning moved quite quickly-i was brought up to my room,changed,consented and was ready to go!put to sleep had op and was back in my room by 3pm.Dont remember being in recovery and have snippets of the journey back. Felt a bit groggy as expected and it hurt a little to swallow.was absolutely starving at this stage so kindly accepted the lovely tea and toast!!was able to eat the only issue was that everything took a few swallows to get rid of..overall felt great!!shortly later the vomiting began:( (I always get sick after anaesthetics).vomited 3 times in total and was given stemetil and iv paracetamol. Slept ok that night.
Day 2:
Once I ate my breakfast I was free to leave.pain was a bit more than before but nothing substantial. Took ages to eat as everything required a couple of swallows. Was discharged and on my way home . consultant discharged me on difiene 50mg,solpadol 500mg,dexamethasone(steroid) and germentin (antibiotic).was eating and drinking well,felt ok and was overall delighted at how well all was going
Day 3:
Pretty much the same again today-food was getting more difficult to eat however.The solphadol was beginning to really blow my head and I hadnt opened my bowels since sunday.was starting to feel quite constipated and rotten.pain was starting to creep up if I didnt take my meds on time. Was a warrior for drinking water which is so so important although it was starting to get sore. Was sleeping perfectly at night up until this point too.
Day 4:
Started to get a bit fed up at this stage..bowels opened with suppositories but still felt rotten.the thick white coating on the back of my throat was beginning to stick to everything and taste disgusting!!
Day 5:
The day the real fun began!!woke during the night with terrible ear and neck pain .struggled to swallow pain killers. Icepacks did help a bit.pain definately increased x20..appetite started to dwindle
Day 6:
Horrible ear pain again especially in the mornings. Really beginning to struggle to eat.started to feel very low as much as I tried to keep upbeat.
Day 7:
Same again with the pains getting worse.the scabs were beginning to feel like razors!harder and harder to eat due to the pain.was getting quite hungry!!!
Day 8:
My lowest morning didnt sleep much had incredible ear pain . pharmacist changed my difiene to pr which worked wonders!still very hard to eat was barely surviving on spoonfuls of soup
Day 9:
Was beginning to manage pain.ate toast and finally shifted those hunger pains. Around 1pm however I got the biggest fright of my life. Was sipping at water when I felt this warm sensation in my mouth. Low and behold I was to pump blood for the next 10 minutes..consultant s instructions if this happened was to ring immediately which my mother did.he reassure us it would stop which it did.felt like an eternity though!!sat still on the sofa for the rest of the day afraid to move!!didnt sleep a wink that night!(my mother didnt either!!)
Day 10:
Absolutely starving at this stage coupled with incredible pain and the fear of bleeding..by far my lowest day.plucked up the courage to have soup.then made the most ridiculous decision of my life to go to the supermarket. (Around 5pm) took a sip of a smoothie id purchased and sweet holy god I didnt think pain could reach such levels!!sitting in the car with no meds I began to feel weak.eventually eased somewhat so that I could get home. Took both meds (technically overdosing not reccommending but I actually felt like dying)..this resulted in me spending the night half stoned,dizzy and unable to move!!
Day 11:
By the grace of god today I started to feel somewhat normal.i have zero tastebuds and seriously need to go to the toilet but no pain.!!I actually cried with relief.took my meds religiously and managed to eat proper food!!!
Day 12:
Still have pain waking up but ill put up with that!!the absolute relief to be at this stage is unbelievable!!I never thought it would come but it does!as regards tips to make it easier dont think there is any..its a tough two weeks