28th October 2003
Okay, fellow tonsil stone sufferers, I’m finally ready to share my tonsilith and tonsillectomy story! I’m a 41 year old female who has suffered from stones for about 20 years. At first, they were very infrequent, but in recent years it seems I could always feel them, even if I couldn’t actually see them. Hucking them up unexpectedly was becoming a little too frequent, and I always felt just a little bit sick, with swollen glands, throat pain, and etc., as many on this board have noted. My most recent bout with strep throat this summer cost me about $500 with three doctor visits, three throat cultures, and four rounds of antibiotics. I visited an ENT, and even took in a digital photo on disk of the mystery white speck on my tonsil. I had to point the camera into my mouth and aim by watching the reflection of the LCD in the mirror, all while making the weird gagging face we all have to make to see them. Even before seeing my prized photo, he knew what it was and introduced me to the term tonsilith, which is what allowed Google to lead me to this board.
I was never much of a tonsil picker, because it seemed that picking always irritated the tonsil, or the picking itself gave me an infection, not to mention the fact that I couldn’t overcome the gag reflex. After finding this board (thank you, dear posters, for sharing your very personal stories), I tried the Water Pik, but couldn’t dislodge a single stone that way. From the posts, I concluded that the only long-term solution for me was a tonsillectomy. Another ENT visit and based on my strep history, I was approved for a tonsillectomy. My tonsils came out on 10/24. Many of you have asked for narratives of the procedure and post-op, so here goes:
My procedure was performed at an “ambulatory surgery center”, where you walk in and (sort of) walk out. The actual tonsillectomy itself is just minutes, but you are generally in the operating room ˝ hour to an hour. I was in the recovery room about an hour to hour and a half. It is performed under general anesthesia. In the past, I have had trouble with nausea coming out of general anesthesia, so I made a big deal about that to the anesthesiologist and ENT just prior to surgery, and they gave me drugs to mitigate that. The last thing I want is to be throwing up while they’re working on my tonsils! They don’t want that either, so if you’re prone to nausea, tell them!
After removing my tonsils, the doctor said that they looked terrible - he said there were hundreds of tonsiliths, and that when he would press on the tonsil, all this cheesy stuff would ooze out. (All together now….”Ewwwwwwww!”). He said they absolutely needed to come out. The interesting thing is that my tonsils didn’t actually LOOK that bad to the naked eye just prior to surgery. They had visible crypts on them, but no visible tonsiliths at that moment. I could feel a lot of crap in my tonsils and knew a new stone would emerge eventually, but I had no idea just how chock full of “tonsil poop” mine were. So, folks, trust your instincts. If you FEEL junk in there, even if you can’t see it, you are most likely NOT imagining it!
I am on Day 6 of my recovery (counting the surgery day as Day 1). Pain has been bad, but tolerable, and only when I swallow. I am prescribed liquid Tylenol with Codeine for pain, liquid Augmentin for antibiotic, and Nexium for acid reflux. I have found my nausea is less if I stay to the low end of the pain med dose (i.e., 3 tsp of the 3-6 tsp dose range), but keep up the frequency to the frequent end (i.e., 4 hours of the “every 4-6 hours” range). As has been explained to me, the danger with the surgery, aside from the usual dangers of any surgery, is the possibility of excessive bleeding anywhere from 5-10 days post-op, when the scabs come off, and I haven’t passed that threshold yet, although the scabs are starting to disappear.
As far as post-operative instructions:
I have been told by the doc to “drink a lot and pee a lot”, and was told to drink Gatorade diluted 50% with water. Drinking is REALLY important to stay hydrated, more important than eating!
The foods I have found that helped are:
Jello, popsicles, ice cream, and applesauce (of course)
Meal shakes - I prefer the Atkins brand shakes (available at Wal-Mart) over Slim-fast and Carnation brands because they have more protein and less carbs/sugar, and as a hypoglycemic I need to reduce the amount of sugar I eat or I get headaches. The Chocolate Delight is delicious! The shakes are also good because they’re fortified with vitamins & minerals, and you probably aren’t able to swallow a vitamin pill at this time. In case you can’t tell, I really look forward to my shakes.
Soup (Lipton noodle soup is good – just let it cool down to lukewarm temp before eating)
Mac and cheese (cooled off and chewed well)
I tried baby oatmeal and baby food, but I found baby food generally nauseating
After two days I could eat a fried egg, cooked slowly so there’s no crispy stuff (scrambled eggs still had too much texture for my throat), and I also added pureed cooked vegetables and pureed cooked chicken to my noodle soup for more nutrition.
Finally, I slept as much as I could stand it. The first few days I was really tired anyway, perhaps more so due to the drugs, but I really felt that sleep did me the most good – plus then I slept through more of the pain and nausea. When you’re sleeping, there’s little for your body to do but heal.
The bottom line – it wasn’t that bad. I’ve had more pain during dental surgery. This pain lasts longer, and you do need to be very careful with your throat until the scabs come off, but really, folks, as a 41-year old, I can say that it wasn’t that bad. The knowledge that I won’t be suffering from that swollen gland pain and hucking up those little nasties at inopportune moments was worth it! Thanks to all for sharing and caring, and thanks especially to DaveWrite who basically shamed me into gathering the courage to do it (“…if a 60 year old can do it, you youngsters can….”). Take care, and good luck!
I was never much of a tonsil picker, because it seemed that picking always irritated the tonsil, or the picking itself gave me an infection, not to mention the fact that I couldn’t overcome the gag reflex. After finding this board (thank you, dear posters, for sharing your very personal stories), I tried the Water Pik, but couldn’t dislodge a single stone that way. From the posts, I concluded that the only long-term solution for me was a tonsillectomy. Another ENT visit and based on my strep history, I was approved for a tonsillectomy. My tonsils came out on 10/24. Many of you have asked for narratives of the procedure and post-op, so here goes:
My procedure was performed at an “ambulatory surgery center”, where you walk in and (sort of) walk out. The actual tonsillectomy itself is just minutes, but you are generally in the operating room ˝ hour to an hour. I was in the recovery room about an hour to hour and a half. It is performed under general anesthesia. In the past, I have had trouble with nausea coming out of general anesthesia, so I made a big deal about that to the anesthesiologist and ENT just prior to surgery, and they gave me drugs to mitigate that. The last thing I want is to be throwing up while they’re working on my tonsils! They don’t want that either, so if you’re prone to nausea, tell them!
After removing my tonsils, the doctor said that they looked terrible - he said there were hundreds of tonsiliths, and that when he would press on the tonsil, all this cheesy stuff would ooze out. (All together now….”Ewwwwwwww!”). He said they absolutely needed to come out. The interesting thing is that my tonsils didn’t actually LOOK that bad to the naked eye just prior to surgery. They had visible crypts on them, but no visible tonsiliths at that moment. I could feel a lot of crap in my tonsils and knew a new stone would emerge eventually, but I had no idea just how chock full of “tonsil poop” mine were. So, folks, trust your instincts. If you FEEL junk in there, even if you can’t see it, you are most likely NOT imagining it!
I am on Day 6 of my recovery (counting the surgery day as Day 1). Pain has been bad, but tolerable, and only when I swallow. I am prescribed liquid Tylenol with Codeine for pain, liquid Augmentin for antibiotic, and Nexium for acid reflux. I have found my nausea is less if I stay to the low end of the pain med dose (i.e., 3 tsp of the 3-6 tsp dose range), but keep up the frequency to the frequent end (i.e., 4 hours of the “every 4-6 hours” range). As has been explained to me, the danger with the surgery, aside from the usual dangers of any surgery, is the possibility of excessive bleeding anywhere from 5-10 days post-op, when the scabs come off, and I haven’t passed that threshold yet, although the scabs are starting to disappear.
As far as post-operative instructions:
I have been told by the doc to “drink a lot and pee a lot”, and was told to drink Gatorade diluted 50% with water. Drinking is REALLY important to stay hydrated, more important than eating!
The foods I have found that helped are:
Jello, popsicles, ice cream, and applesauce (of course)
Meal shakes - I prefer the Atkins brand shakes (available at Wal-Mart) over Slim-fast and Carnation brands because they have more protein and less carbs/sugar, and as a hypoglycemic I need to reduce the amount of sugar I eat or I get headaches. The Chocolate Delight is delicious! The shakes are also good because they’re fortified with vitamins & minerals, and you probably aren’t able to swallow a vitamin pill at this time. In case you can’t tell, I really look forward to my shakes.
Soup (Lipton noodle soup is good – just let it cool down to lukewarm temp before eating)
Mac and cheese (cooled off and chewed well)
I tried baby oatmeal and baby food, but I found baby food generally nauseating
After two days I could eat a fried egg, cooked slowly so there’s no crispy stuff (scrambled eggs still had too much texture for my throat), and I also added pureed cooked vegetables and pureed cooked chicken to my noodle soup for more nutrition.
Finally, I slept as much as I could stand it. The first few days I was really tired anyway, perhaps more so due to the drugs, but I really felt that sleep did me the most good – plus then I slept through more of the pain and nausea. When you’re sleeping, there’s little for your body to do but heal.
The bottom line – it wasn’t that bad. I’ve had more pain during dental surgery. This pain lasts longer, and you do need to be very careful with your throat until the scabs come off, but really, folks, as a 41-year old, I can say that it wasn’t that bad. The knowledge that I won’t be suffering from that swollen gland pain and hucking up those little nasties at inopportune moments was worth it! Thanks to all for sharing and caring, and thanks especially to DaveWrite who basically shamed me into gathering the courage to do it (“…if a 60 year old can do it, you youngsters can….”). Take care, and good luck!