Tonsillectomy/Adenoidectomy

A friend of mine whose 37 had her tonsils out in Jan. she said it felt like she swallowed razor blades and hurt for 3plus weeks. Did the doctor prescribe any thing for pain? Hope your little one feels better soon.

Hi C.,
This is a good time to call the doctor. If your husband is correct, no harm. But if your son is in significant pain and it is ignored, then the healing process may be in trouble. Just organize your observations on paper first, and be sure to give an accurate description of when and how often, so the doctor's office can get the correct picture.
Good luck.

My son had his tonsils out this past November when he was just 4. He was in lots of pain for a few weeks. The pain would come and go and some days were better than others. He actually was worse the second week after the surgery. He also held his ears in pain and would have a hard time eating. He would just cry out in pain saying it hurts, it hurts. Good luck. I was a very difficult time for us. It would break my heart to see him like this and the codine did not work as well as I had hoped.

C.:
Not to be dramatic but you are in a very sensitive time right now where, in non-medical terms, the scabs start to come off. This is the time when you have to be really careful because bleeding can occur.

About four weeks ago, my son (5) had his tonsils removed. On day 7 he complained about the pain and we thought he was being overdramatic. We were at the dinner table and he said his throat hurt so we told him to take a sip of some water to make his throat moist. He took the water in his mouth and then pointed to his mouth. He had occassionally been doing this when he didn't want to swallow. We told him to go in our kitchen and spit out the water in the garbage. He walked from our dining room to the kitchen and screamed "There's blood!" We all came rushing around the corner to find him standing in our kitchen with blood pouring out of his mouth. Needless to say, I scooped him up in my arms, grabbed a bowl and some shoes and rushed out to the car where my husband had already put our other son in his car seat. We drove the 1/4 of a mile to our local hospital and he was rushed into the OR. The doctor said he was hemmoraghing on one side and we were fortune to get him there as quick as we did. Needless to say, it was the scariest experience and one of the saddest times outside of someone dying. Of course, my husband and I remained calm through it all and told our son everything was going to be fine and explained the process to him but once he was in surgery we broke down. We had NO IDEA that when they talk about bleeding that it could be like that- we thought it would be just a little blood. Once our son was out of the OR, my husband went back to our house (where we left all of our doors wide open) and said he was surprised by the amount of blood he cleaned up.

So, although my son's experience is not unique and although it is a small percent of children it happens to- be careful because this is the time when this bleeding happens. THe doctor's told us 7-10 days is the critical time when the bleeding happens. And, because of the second OR trip, we had to start the 2 week recovery all over again. Thankfully, our son is back to normal now. Even after the second OR trip, his throat started feeling better around day 10 from the original surgery.

If you have any concerns, I'd see your doctor.
Good luck.

my son just had that procedure a couple months ago. It was so sad to see him in such pain, but it has made a difference. He was in pain for the entire 10 days. (He didn't like the taste of the meds either.) WHen the perscription ran out, in fact, I had it refilled because there were still moments of pain. I only used it a couple more times and then moved on to motrin and then suddenly he was back to normal.

He had sleep apnea before and always sounded like he had a stuffy nose and was sick a lot. So far all of these things have been much much better.

good luck! go with your gut.

They say that 10 days of pain or so is normal. I was fortunate enough that my daughter experienced almost no pain after. She had her T&A, as well as tubes ion her ears in the morning and was home eating scrambled eggs that afternon. I recognize this is not normal because I had mine out at 17 and remember being in a lot of pain for 3 or 4 days. Mine also didn't seem as severe as what they tell you to expect.

The best course is to call his Dr if you feel like his pain level is questionable.

Hello,
My son had that procedure done last summer and I have to tell you the 6th, 7th, and 8th day after the procedure was the worst for my son. He screamed out of pain when he ate or drank anything. It is very normal because the scabs on the tonsils are really rough and anything touching them makes it painful. Good luck. I feel your pain!

Hi C.,
I just had my tonsils and adenoids out 2 years ago and it was the worst experience of my life. I know it is supposed to be worse in adults, but if his pain is half bad as mine was he is probably really hurting. I had to take my pain medicine every 3 1/2 hours for two weeks without skipping, otherwise the pain was unbearable (I have three kids too, I know pain) I had bought stuff to make milkshakes, soup etc. and after the surgery I could only drink water and that was extremely painful, I choked down some pedialyte popsicles about three days later but it was a good two weeks before I was able to handle food and even then it was just really soft rolls (I made the mistake of trying applesauce, ouch!) My doctor said that it is really like having a large burn in your throat (that's why you get the "death breath") I had the best luck when I ate about 30 minutes after taking my pain medicine and only ate extremely bland soft foods (NO MILK!, it felt like fire going down.) The good news is, after about three weeks I was completely healed overnight and back to eating normally, even buffalo sauce. Hang in there, kids heal fast and he will be back to normal before you know it.

I'd definitely call the pediatrician and have him looked at, he could have developed or be developing an infection. Sounds like Dad is concerned about responding too quickly to his "drama", or he's more worried than you are and is trying to stuff it.

Either way, I'd be firm with the pediatrician, but hold back on the drama with Dad and baby, just be calm and matter of fact, best way to handle something that looks like is freaking everyone else out.

How old is your son?????? My son is 3 1/2 and has an appt with the Ear Nose and Throat doc next week to schedule his surgery.
Reading your post made my heart drop...I was really hoping it wouldnt be so bad.
Why did he have his tonsils taken out?? My son is having a hard time breathing at night, his tonsils are enlarged.
I would call the dr just to make sure his pain level is normal for his recovery time. Best of luck to you and your little guy!!!

Hi C.,
All I can add is that I had my tonsils out when I was 27 years old and it was a horribly painful experience for me.
It was much worse then childbirth and I had 3 babies naturally (no meds etc.) For some reason getting my tonisils out
took everything out of me and more. The pain lasted a week and got better. The only thing I was able to take was water.
I hope your son is feeling better soon. Maybe by now he has already turned the corner.
Good Luck.

he shouldnt be in that much pain anymore, a little yes but screaming no...

My daughter had her tonsils out 1 1/2 years ago. She was in that much pain too and then all of a sudden seemed better around 10 days post surgery. She didn't like her pain medication or antibiotic so we put it in her juice box and she would drink it. He also could have an ear infection as a side effect - for lack of a better way to describe it- my daughter did. I was told by many of my friends that for the first ten days to two weeks your child will be inconsolible. I was not as prepared as I thought I was.

Good luck.

My co-worker's son had this about a month ago. Her doctor told her that it will take 10 days to feel better - and not a day sooner. They told her over and over again to prepare for 10 full days of pain - AND they told her days 5 to 7 are the worst. She said it was all true.

My son was the second youngest in RI to go through that procedure almost 6 years ago. He might just remember somewhat of the surgery room if he is still screaming. So he maybe still fearing that. Or the scabs could of come off because they do heal. But tylenol with codeine thing the pharmicist can add something to that so it can taste good to him. Also, if you think its still bothering him ask him why does it hurt or just bring him to the doctors.

hi, my son was almost 3 when ad his tonsils and adnoids out and also tubes in his ears...we were susposed to stay for a overnite and we were there 6 and he was on morphine, cuz it was that bad!!!!!he is now 6 and getting his adnoids out again because they grew bac, yes they do grow back sometimes, also he has severe sleep apnea...my oldest son is 11 and he had a t and a at 8 and it was rough for a wk and ahalf...he was susposed to be returning to school at that two wk mark and woke up that morning and actually threw up blood and had to be admitted for two days, so they didnt have to cortirize him anyways, thank god...see what happens after the two wk mark then cal the doc....best of luck

No way! It is very painful and it does take at least 2 weeks for him to be back to himself (some what). I would make sure you are staying on top of the pain meds which will help, I know it's tough! I had both done when I was 9 and I can still remember the pain and it took so long to eat! The first real meal I had was at McDonalds and I will never forget it after 28 years!

I had both out when I was 12, and I didn't eat for 3 weeks because of the severe pain. I remember the doc telling me I needed to drink 32 oz of liquid a day. I'd measure it out in the morning & dread drinking it all day.

I can't imagine what it would be like for such a young child.

Take care,
B.

My son had this procedure when he was the six also. I was concerned as well because for about the first 2 days or so he seemed fine like nothing had even happened. Then the pain started and it was bad! I thought it was so strange for him to be so fine in the beginning and then get worse. But apparently this was normal. And it did last around 10 days maybe a little more. Then he was fine!

hi C., i am a surgical tech(person who hands the instruments to the surgeon) and do these surgeries all the time. i would hope that the surgeon would have told you how the recovery would be, but i think a week out that it's pretty normal for the sore throat feeling. you have to remember that during the surgery that cautery was used to stop any bleeding. so basically a the top layer of the area will almost looked singed after surgery. and he may have even used a stitch or two.

the pulling of the ears is questionable though. not sure about that. you might just want to make sure he's not getting an ear infection. his immune system might be down a little from having anesthesia and not feeling well the first few days that an ear infection could be creeping up on him. but don't hesitate to call the ENT doctors office to make yourself feel better. and definately call the doctor if there is any bleeding from here on out. good luck. i hope he feels better soon. :) C.

C.,

When my son had his tonsils and adenoids out he was in pain or a really long time. He didn't really start eating anything for almost a week. His liquid intake was minimal as well. When I called his dr. about it, they told me as long as he was peeing, to follow his lead. (Something about if he's peeing then his kidneys are still working and the like). I know that I was TOTALLY unprepared for his after surgery reactions because everyone said it was fairly simple and whatever. I guess that was when they kept them in the hospital for a few days so that by the time they were totally off the pain relievers via IV the pain was much less. Also my son, NEVER took the tylenol with codeine because of the taste.
I hope that he starts to feeling better soon!
M.

My son had a T&A last year when he is 3 1/2 - it took him a solid 2 weeks to recover...he became dehydrated and also wound up with an ear infection and pneumonia which I guess are possible complications from the anesthesia. The codeine really upset his stomach so he was off that some time during the first week and once that was out of his system he was able to drink/eat more. His older brother has had 2 major skull surgeries in his short life (he's almost 6) and we've said that the recovery for those was so much easier than the tonsils! As common of an operation as it is it's horribly painful, the pain is very difficult to manage and the recovery is slowed by their inability to eat. I would get his ears checked for fluid...but expect to see improvement during the next week. Good luck!

I don't have direct experience with this, but my best friend's daughter had the surgery and was feeling well within days. That might not be typical, though...either way, I'd go with your instinct and just call the doctor. It can't hurt to call, right? I hope he feels better soon!