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Tonsillectomy advice

Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:12 pm
Posted by FearTheFish
Member since Dec 2007
4382 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:12 pm
My 3 year old has to get his tonsils and adenoids out this week. Things are the size of golf balls and the poor guy can't sleep at all (snoring/sleep apnea) and is perpetually sick with strep and other bacterial infections.

Doc says this is very routine, although he's on the lower end of the age range to get this done. I was much older when I had mine out.

Any advice from OTers on how to help him out post-surgery? I've got a freezer full of ice cream at the ready.
Posted by jbgleason
Bailed out of BTR to God's Country
Member since Mar 2012
19968 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:14 pm to
Popsicles.
Posted by BillyGibbons
St. Somewhere
Member since Mar 2020
789 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:19 pm to
My 9 year old just had his out (wish we would have pulled the trigger when he was younger). First day was rough, it got a little better days 2-4. Day 5-6 were probably the worst, they say that's when the scabs fall off and expose the fresh tissue below.

All in all, he did really well. Here's a few notes/recommendations.

-Keep a strict rotation of pain meds (Tylenol/Ibuprofen). The one or two times we didn't wake him to give them to him, we regretted it because it just became more difficult to get him to take it the more pain he was in.

-Make sure they stay hydrated either through drinking or the frozen treats.

-Another thing we did that I believe helped was keeping a cool mist humidifier right next to him at night to prevent his throat from drying out. Probably not a bad idea to just have it on near them at all times for the first week or so.

I'll edit if I think of anything else.
This post was edited on 3/3/26 at 3:21 pm
Posted by USEyourCURDS
Member since Apr 2016
12861 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:20 pm to
Jell-0
Posted by FearTheFish
Member since Dec 2007
4382 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:20 pm to
quote:

BillyGibbons
I really appreciate your insights
Posted by SundayFunday
Member since Sep 2011
10105 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:21 pm to
Am medicine man.


Ice cream, fluids, liquid ibuprofen (popsicles are also great and Pedialyte makes their own popsicles to kill 2 birds with 1 treat)

Thats all they need. Besides re-bleeding, the worst thing that can happen is they stop drinking due to pain and get dehydrated.


They do NOT nead to eat crunchy, dry, hard foods (if and when they have an appetite)
This post was edited on 3/3/26 at 3:23 pm
Posted by OysterPoBoy
City of St. George
Member since Jul 2013
43921 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:22 pm to
I don't remember it being as bad as I was worried about when my daughter had it. Maybe 1-2 days of being uncomfortable.
Posted by BillyGibbons
St. Somewhere
Member since Mar 2020
789 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:22 pm to
quote:

I really appreciate your insights


Yessir!, Good luck to your little one!
Posted by Jim Rockford
Member since May 2011
104767 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:24 pm to
Better now than later. I friend of mine had them out as a high school sophomore and missed three weeks of school.
Posted by BoogaBear
Member since Jul 2013
7187 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:25 pm to
The longer you wait the worse it is. 3 year old will be fine.

I got mine taken out 2 years ago at 37. It was pretty awful, lost 30 lbs. Missed 3 weeks of work.
This post was edited on 3/3/26 at 3:26 pm
Posted by EastWestConnection
Denver/Shenzhen/Belfast
Member since Jul 2024
1825 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:31 pm to
quote:

I got mine taken out 2 years ago at 37. It was pretty awful, lost 30 lbs. Missed 3 weeks of work.



damn really ? it was that bad? I never got mine taken out and im about your age. Was it just the pain ?
Posted by highpockets
Lafayette
Member since Feb 2015
2079 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:46 pm to
ugh, still have them at 58.
Posted by bostitch
Member since Apr 2016
786 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:48 pm to
My 7 yr old had tonsils, adenoids and lymph nodes in his neck removed. Didn't take pain meds once, ate just fine 6 hours or so later. He was clearly uncomfortable but better than he was before surgery. If youre gonna get it done do it at that age, they manage/understand pain differently.
Posted by Alt26
Member since Mar 2010
34962 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 3:55 pm to
quote:

The longer you wait the worse it is. 3 year old will be fine.


Yep.

Mine was less than 3 when she had hers removed. Very quick procedure. The recovery (at least best you could tell for a 2 year old) was easy.

quote:

I got mine taken out 2 years ago at 37. It was pretty awful, lost 30 lbs. Missed 3 weeks of work.


I snore. Multiple evaluations for sleep apnea came back negative. ENT said my tonsils were slightly large and they were likely contributing to the snoring. He offered to remove them but said "fair warning...it is a pretty tough recovery as an adult." I opted not to have the surgery.
Posted by junkfunky
Member since Jan 2011
36108 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 4:49 pm to
Youngest was about that age when he had that as well as tubes put in. He handled it like a champ so other than soft foods I don't have much to offer.
Posted by tigerinms
east central ms
Member since Feb 2010
346 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 4:54 pm to
My son kept getting ear infections so he had same surgery.
Tried everything else and his eardrum had actually ruptured while having tubes.
amazing results from the procedure.
Then we had couple ear operations to repair hole in eardrum
Still have to be careful with that ear and he is 29!!!
Posted by LSUA 75
Colfax,La.
Member since Jan 2019
4815 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 5:06 pm to
I think Dr. doing the surgery makes a lot of difference.My stepson had them out when he was about 12,was in misery for 7-8 days then started bleeding and had to be cauterized.

My 3 grandsons all had theirs done by Dr. Webb in Ellick,It was amazing how little pain they had and how fast they recovered compared to what their dad went through.
All were done with laser.

I had mine out when I was 14 the old way with the snare and a few stitches.It was the day before Thanksgiving.Thur. night I was eating turkey and dressing.Everybody had told me how awful it was going to be,

Stock up on Gatorade(not red),doesn’t burn when going down throat.
Posted by Jakesonaplane
Denver
Member since Nov 2010
7283 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 6:28 pm to
I got mine taken out at 35 and I also had sinus surgery to repair a deviated septum and widen 8 sinus passages. The doctor told me I could get them both done at the same time so I figured why be in severe pain twice? After the surgery I went in for my check up and the doctor said “man you are brave! I can’t believe you had them both done at the same time that must be excruciating. Who told you that was a good idea? In 1000’s of patients you might be the 3rd I’ve ever had do that!”

I was so fricking mad bc that was the worst pain I may ever experience in my lifetime. I spent weeks dehydrated from crying all day and night. When I was able to sleep I had dreams of being suffocated, drowning, or being attacked because it was so hard to breathe from my mouth or nose. Gas stations ICEE’s were my only source of joy/relief. Lost about 20lbs. I would only wish that surgery combination on my worst enemy or insufferable Alabama fans
This post was edited on 3/3/26 at 6:34 pm
Posted by Displaced
Member since Dec 2011
33014 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 6:30 pm to
Be prepared for his mouth to smell like a Katrina Fridge for 2 weeks after the surgery
Posted by soccerfüt
Location: A Series of Tubes
Member since May 2013
73892 posts
Posted on 3/3/26 at 6:34 pm to
I was 33 years-old when I had mine removed.

No problem.

One of my kids had their’s also removed the same day at age 3.

They were fine as well.

We did a lot of napping & sleeping and eating of popsicles and ice cream together.

Good times.

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