Tonsillectomy Update

Back in November, after living through chronic sore throats for almost my entire life, I had my tonsils removed.

For years I've spent 2-4 days each month totally down for the count because of sore throats. For a lot of years it was just a sore throat with a mild cold like thing. The doctor prescribed an allergy nasal spray suggesting that the sore throat was from post nasal drip. That helped for a year or so and then I just accepted that I would feel sick every 4-6 weeks.

When I suggested to my doctor that maybe my tonsils needed to come out. They told me it's a very dangerous procedure for adults and really not called for since I didn't have tonsillitis or strep.

But I think I did have tonsillitis and it went undiagnosed and was called "Post Nasal Drip"

Finally, a couple of years ago I started to get strep infections. I had never had one case of strep in my entire life and suddenly Max got it, and it seemed like I never really got rid of it. So about once every 4-6 weeks I'd wake up with swollen glands and searing pain in my throat and up into my ears. I'd spend a day waiting to see the doctor, while alternately writing about how much pain I was in and whining to my family.

It was really quite fun.

During this time I was also at the doctor often trying to find out why I was so incredibly tired all the time. We did blood work and I even had a sleep study done to be sure I was getting enough deep sleep in the night.

Friends suggested I take a multi-vitamin to boost my immune system, Logan suggested I use the power of my mind to stop getting sick, another friend reminded me to wash my hands before picking my nose (!) and nothing worked, not even not picking my nose in the first place. Every 4-6 weeks I was out.

Finally I had enough strep infections that my doctor was willing to give me a referral to an ENT.

The recovery wasn't fun, truly. But not nearly as bad as I had been warned it would be. No worse than my strep infections, but longer lasting.

And I was afraid to say this out loud all winter, but...I haven't been sick ONCE since then. There have been a couple of times my nose was sniffly and in the past that would have meant a guaranteed sore throat. But nothing ever developed.

Also I have been far less exhausted all the time, it's as though my body was so tired from fighting off the infection in my tonsil, I couldn't fight off any irritant and I couldn't stay awake either.

I don't know what my point is exactly but looking back I will say I should have done this years ago. I was hesitant to insist on it, because I'm not a doctor and was honestly a little afraid of the surgery. But I knew my sore throats were not coming from "Post Nasal Drip" and had I known how drastically having the tonsils was affecting my quality of life, I would have fought tooth and nail to have them out.

If you're struggling with a Sinister Tonsil, make sure you seriously consider a tonsillectomy, even in spite of the pain of surgery and recovery. If you have a kid with swollen tonsils, seriously consider having them removed. The procedure and recovery is very mild for young kids and will possibly save them years of tortured nights dreaming about giant tonsils trying to choke the life out of them. 

It was a life changing decision I should have made years ago.

Comments

[Tameson O'Brien]

Right on! Best thing I ever did! Well maybe the gall bladder removal was the best, but certainly a toncilectomy is in the top 2.

[Kate]

I hear you. My son was constantly on inhalers almost all the time and kept getting recurring bronchitis and pneumonia. Every cold he would get would wind up blowing out of control.
I discussed it with our doctor who suggested that it would be a good idea to take out the tonsils and adenoids. I was sceptical because how would taking out stuff in his nose and throat improve his lungs? He did not suffer from sleep apnea (tested) or allergies (tested).
The doctor told me that there was an 80% chance that we would see some sort of improvement. The improvment could be minor or drastic.
We bit the bullet and did it last summer just after his 6th birthday. The 2 weeks following that were HELL. Thank GOD for the Olympics being on those same 2 weeks -- he was captivated by them and I was able to feed him while he was mesmerized and not paying attention.
The result -- I never in my wildest dreams believed it would make this much of a difference. He has had colds since then but he gets a nasty stuffy nose and then it goes away and that's it. No bronchitis, no pneumonia and we have not touched an inhaler since then. Knock wood -- he has never been this healthy. I'm so very, very happy that we did it. The quality of life for all of us has improved.

[kimberly/tippytoes]

Good news! I don't regret for a second having my daughter's removed and now we're about to walk down the same road with my son. The recover was difficult, but the results are so worth it. I wish my parents had mine taken out instead of yelling at me for snoring (!).

[yasmara]

I got mine out when I was 19 after a bout with mono that left my tonsils permanently inflamed & very susceptible to strep. Best decision ever! After struggling with sickness most of my freshman year of college, suddenly I was healthy & energetic again. I'm keeping an eye on my kids to see if either of them start developing symptoms. So far we're in the clear, but I won't hesitate to push for a referral to an ENT if they start showing the same signs I did.

[Marthab]

Thank you! My girl has been home countless times for sore throats and tonsillitis. I'm going to see what we can do as she has been out of school 2 days this week AGAIN!

[The Bug]

I had mine out in kindergarten & I only remember four things about it:

1. My teacher came by while I was still out of it & I was mad that I missed seeing her.

2. I got the Chrissy 9-month doll with the hair you could pull out long (I still have her - she's probably an antique!).

3. I ate a lot of ice cream.

4. My younger brother teased me a lot because I couldn't yell at him.

Bottom line - if at all possible have it done when your children are young! Wasn't traumatic at all for me (except for not being able to yell at my brother - scarred me for life).

[Jessica]

I got mine out when I was 23, after being sick and antibiotics all winter long. I'm so glad I did! I've hardly gotten sick since then and I can breathe a lot better too. I wonder if there is some super virus that goes around infecting tonsils and no one has found it yet.

[Beth]

Amen. Since the first grade, I would get strep a couple times a year. When I left home for college, my family doc gave me an embarrassingly large bottle of penicillin and said, "If you start to get a sore throat, take a full course." The summer between my junior and senior years, I finally had my tonsils taken out. Like you, I'd wished they'd done it years before. They were so badly scarred from all the infections that they were both the size of ping pong balls. Disgusting. I think I've had strep once since then...I'm 35 now.

If you need it, DO IT!!! Don't wait.

[Beth]

Me too. I had mine out when I was 18 after years of truly debilitating sore throats. I haven't had a sore throat since. I also haven't had a flat stomach since my recovery from the surgery. Heh.

[beyond]

i think you're so right. i used to bbsit a boy who would miss school (for strep or just other illnesses) 4-5 days a month on average until he finally had his tonsils removed when he was about 6. and what a huge difference it made.

[AmyinMotown]

You just described my childhood. I had my tonsils out when I was nine and have had strep once since then. Yay for healthy!!

[Jess/Everyday Delights]

I totally agree with this surgery, glad you are feeling much better too. My son who's 3 had these out this year at 34 1/2 months, it was scary but the rewards were worth it. They say tonsil problems can be linked to ADD & obesity too, it's amazing the trouble these little things can give you!

[die Frau]

OK, I'm 32 and now SERIOUSLY considering having my tonsils out. I had allergies, colds, pneumonia, you name it as a kid. For crying out loud, I had scarlet fever (for the SECOND TIME) and walking pneumonia in eighth grade and I have no recollection of any doctor suggesting I get my tonsils removed.

That's it. I'm doing it. Maybe. When I have better health insurance.

[ChrisBL]

I had mine out when I was 5 and my 4-year-old son just had his done two months ago. We're lucky enough to have insurance that allows us to go straight to a specialist. Who knew he was so crabby because he couldn't breathe? Poor guy probably hadn't had a good night's sleep in six months. I wish doctors were a little more proactive about recognizing when the surgery needs to be done.

[amie]

Oh poor you! I had my tonsils out when I was a kid and reading this I am thanking god. Well actually, I am thanking my parents and doctor. I still remember how horrible the recurring strep felt not to mention how much it sucked to always miss out on anything fun because I was stuck at home sick. After I had them out I never had a case of strep again. Now I have to go and find some wood to knock on.

[Jeanna]

Why do they call it "Post Nasal Drip?"

[norm]

I've been thinking about this a lot lately because of the pandemic scare. I caught the edge of the '68 flu pandemic and it went real bad and secondaries set in, never went away: the only thing that worked was when they hauled out my tonsils and adenoids. I know that the current trend is to leave stuff well alone unless it goes bad, but heck, it does go bad, that's why they invented the surgery to begin with.

[homeslice]

glad you are FINALLY getting some relief. at the risk of TMI, i'm the same way about the bladder repair surgery i had. why the hell did i wait 6 years after the birth of my first child to fix it? not peeing every time i sneeze, cough, laugh or work out is really a dream.

[Suebob]

I am so traumatized by the American Apparel pregnant women in unitards ad on your site that I can't think of anything else to say.

[Mary]

When I was in second grade, my brother and I both had scarlet fever, and after that, every couple of months, like clockwork, we'd get strep. I was old enough to get my tonsils out, and did, and I have never had strep again. My brother is four years younger, and while he got old enough, the thinking changed about yanking tonsils, so he still has his. And he still gets strep several times a year. We are both in our 40s now, so this is a long time trend. I couldn't agree with you more. I would never want unnecessary surgery, but sometimes they just have to go.

[LB]

I am 39 and both my sister and I had strep over and over again growing up. There was a time when they were taking out tonsils left and right (before us) then they didn't. I came down with mono and strep at the same time when I was 16 and luckily the last time I was sick with strep (which is hideous.. like swallowing razor blades)I was 19. Oddly, I’ve never had it again.

Both of my boys stayed sick with strep every few months. It got so bad that my oldest was missing up to 3 weeks of school a year. I asked our pediatricians numerous times about taking out tonsils and they said NO it was not necessary. On top of all of this my youngest snored so horribly that I started looking into sleep apnea etc. on the internet. After about 5 min of searching the net I found that quite often children that are snoring have enlarged adenoids. LIGHTBULB!! It was only a couple of weeks later that my oldest came down with strep again. Back to the DR. with the same results -- antibiotics and sent on our way.

It was at this time that I made the appointment with the ENT and we are lucky that with our insurance we didn't need a referral. And THANK GOD WE DID! The ENT did CAT scans on both and it is truly a blessing. It turns out that our youngest that was snoring so loudly had adenoids so huge that they had nearly closed up his sinus cavity. Our oldest had spenoiditis which is an infection in the furthest point of your sinus cavity which is right in front of your brain, which if not caught or treated with HEAVY DOSES of antibiotics it could turn into a deadly brain infection!!! Needless to say he had to take serious antibiotics for 6 weeks before they could even operate. Truly a blessing that I made the call on my own to visit the ENT!

We scheduled them both on the same day to have the operation, and while it was exhausting it was worth it. The worst for both boys was when the scabs came off, that was very painful. They were 7 and 10 at the time of the operation and neither have had strep or a sore throat since and that has been 6 years ago. And, on the average have missed a day or two of school a year and our youngest hasn't snored once since.

Parents trust your instincts and push for this with your pediatrician if your child is sick over and over again with strep. If your insurance will allow make the ENT appointment yourself. It truly could have saved my oldest child's life.

On a side note, my sister and her son had their tonsils out a few years ago and they are still getting strep every so often.

So sorry to write a novel here! : D

[Helen Jane]

Got mine out 14 years ago and haven't had strep since. Was getting it roughly every month for the year before that. So grateful to my mom for pushing for the surgery.

[Barb]

So glad it worked for you. I had mine out at age 5 and have always been grateful I lived during the period of time where everyone had their tonsils out. I've never missed them.

[Swiggy]

I had my tonsils and adenoids taken out almost two years ago. And, even though I still have residual discomfort where they used to be, it was the best decision I have ever made in regards to my health. Like you, I was always tired and sick ever 4-6 weeks. Since the surgery I have been sick once. And that was the flu. It lasted about a week, whereas normally it would have lasted at least a month if not longer. I'm so happy your results have been similar.

[schmutzie]

A few years ago, I went to a doctor about my swollen tonsils for the kajillionth time, and he noted that they were very scarred and asked me if I'd ever been diagnosed manic depressive. I had. He said that my tonsils had likely been infected at a low level for at least the previous seven years and was probably leaking its poison into my blood stream, and that clearing up the infection might relieve some of my depression. He gave me very strong and very expensive antibiotics, and my depression improved somewhat over the next few months and has rarely dipped as low as it had been for almost a decade running.

Hmmm. Maybe I should have mine removed...

[Karen S]

Yasmara wrote:

"I got mine out when I was 19 after a bout with mono that left my tonsils permanently inflamed & very susceptible to strep."

Me too! I'm 36 now and this update post and the comments have convinced me to finally get this dealt with. I am heartily sick of spending almost a month of every year unable to speak. Thank you, Melissa!