Anybody ever had a tonsillectomy?

[LS20]

i dont have tonsillitis (atleast i dont think i do)

my dentist first made mention of the possibility of tonsillectomy. mine seems to get inflamed periodically... which isnt terrible but it gets annoying: 1) it brushes up against my tongue and i feel like spitting out phlegm. 2) i snore - a LOT. girls and others dont particularly like it
3) sometimes after i drink alcohol , and its already inflamed , it feels ****** in the morning. not tough to swallow, but annoying.

considering having it done. anyone have experiences? also, is it covered by most insurance?

(shouldnt have swapped from the best coverage to 2nd best plan this year, though!!!)

 

[The Stigenator]

yes i had it done.. i had my tonsils removed and my uvla cut.. i didnt snore for a while and then the snoring came back..but i breath better.

 

[FoBoT]

back when i was 8 years old, that would be 1974

my wife had a whole roto-rooter surgery last year and it helped her, they took everything out, tonsils, uvula and enlarged sinus passages, it knocked her out of commission for 4-5 weeks, but she doesn't snore anymore and breathes better while sleeping

we had to wait 2-3 years and keep resubmitting the preapproval to the insurance before they would cover most of it, ended up paying about $800 of it

 

[skyking]

An adult tonsillectomy is quite a bit more painful than a childs. I had it done as a kid, and my wife as an adult. She was on major pain meds, and had more pain than any other surgery. Be prepared to take a week off at least.

 

[Midlander]

A long time ago....

I was 9 at the time. I remember them promising all the ice cream I could eat. Well, I didn't want ice cream or anything else.

It hurt for about 2 days, IIRC. Within a week, everything was fine again.

 

[JImmyK]

kids heal within 2-4 days, 13-18 yr olds take about 6 to 8 days. Adults 24 and over take about 2 weeks and is more painful.... be prepared... my wife had a rough time but ever since she hasnt had an tonsil issues (sore throat etc) and cant imagine she didnt do it sooner...

 

[JRock]

I had mine done maybe 3-4 years ago. For some reason mine just keep bleeding. I swallowed so much blood one day that when I when I went to go to the bathroom I passed out and put my head through a mirror. Aside from that I get far less sore throats and haven't had strep since.

 

[Amused]

I had mine done in my mid 20s by the Army.

They cut me off pain killers after only one week. So I started taking regular 800mg doses of Advil to help with the pain. Gave myself gastritis.

That's Army doctors, though.

Be warned, it takes weeks to heal but the benefits are well worth it if you have chronic tonsillitis or upper respiratory infections.

BTW, yawning is PAINFUL until it heals. To this day (more than a decade later) I still cringe when I yawn and feel a tightness in my throat.

 

[LS20]

Originally posted by: JRock
I had mine done maybe 3-4 years ago. For some reason mine just keep bleeding. I swallowed so much blood one day that when I when I went to go to the bathroom I passed out and put my head through a mirror. Aside from that I get far less sore throats and haven't had strep since.

nice.

perhaps you guys have had antiquated methods of removal? im reading on Wiki on the different method and some have very varying recovery painfulness and recovery periods