Third tonsil enlargement in adults
in Health ·
analogsailor18 said:I guess I should jump in here regarding this whole third tonsil situation, because honestly, I’m fighting the exact same battle right now. About a year back—right around the holidays, actually—I started getting this nagging pain in my throat. I went to see my doctor, but unfortunately, it wasn't my usual guy; it was just some young girl covering for him, someone who was basically still finding her footing, and obviously, she had zero clue what was going on. She just diagnosed me with a standard sore throat (which it totally wasn't), handed me some antibiotics, and predictably, the pain didn't budge. So, after all that, I got referred to a specialist over at the Mayo Clinic—this guy Dr. Tina Turner, an ENT specialist, and man, let me tell you, he is top-tier. He treats you like an old friend from the jump, really listens, puts in the effort... just a genuinely great human being. He did a fiberendoscopy on me, where they run this little probe with a camera through your nose down toward the throat so they can see everything clearly. Turns out, he spotted a swollen third tonsil. He was actually pretty surprised to even find one given that I’m part of the 1949 crowd, but hey, anything can happen, right? After that, he sent me off for some specialized scans, and sadly, I haven't seen him since (my own fault, really).
I gave his office a ring the other day and found out he’s away on surgery and won't be back for about two weeks.
My gut feeling is they just end up taking them out.
Does anyone know how this goes for someone my age? Is it going to be painful, and how long does the recovery actually take?
So, let me tell you my own saga with the third tonsil 🙂 When I was a kid, I ended up having all my tonsils removed because of constant ear infections, throat issues, and all that jazz. Things were pretty smooth sailing after that until about two years ago. Right around Christmas, I hit a fever of 104—couldn't get it down no matter what—ended up in the ER, and eventually, it spiraled into pneumonia, chronic sinusitis, and an ear infection. To top it all off, I was basically deaf for about a month because of my Eustace tube. Eventually, once things settled down, my doctor sent me for a checkup on my third tonsil, especially since I've been a mouth-breather since forever (ever since those childhood tonsils were gone), which makes breathing through my nose a bit of a struggle. I went into the Mayo Clinic, and the doctor was stunned that a 21-year-old who already had everything removed as a child could have one again; mine was huge and was basically catching all sorts of junk. Honestly, I panicked a bit because of how intense his reaction was, so I asked if he'd ever seen anything like it, and he said no, except for one girl he treated in Chicago, and suggested it would be best to just get it operated on. I got home and, naturally, went straight to the internet, but there was absolutely nothing online for people my age—it was all stuff for kids, which left me feeling totally terrified... anyway, I got all my tests done and gathered everything for the anesthesiologist. My surgery was on March 10th. I showed up early in the morning, was hanging out in the room with my kids, they gave me a sedative pill, and before I knew it, they were operating around 10 AM. The actual removal takes maybe 10 minutes under anesthesia, and soon enough, I woke up in a pediatric recovery room. There was a little bleeding, but nothing crazy, and man, that anesthesia leaves you feeling completely wiped out. They gave us some tea, and honestly, when I took my first breath through my nose, I couldn't believe how amazing it felt to finally pull in that much air 🙂
A few hours later, around 5 PM, my husband picked me up and I was released to go home—straight to getting ice cream. That day was fine; I just ate some chocolate milk and lounged around sleeping. But the next day? Man, I almost died from the pain. Not internal pain, but my muscles were aching like I had crushed a three-day hardcore workout, probably from the anesthesia. Pro tip: after surgery, just sleep in the hospital bed; don't be like me and try to fuss around with the kids, because that's exactly why I felt like garbage the next day.🙂). After lying in bed for those first three days, everything seemed totally fine, you know? A little bit of bleeding here and there, but zero pain.
The thing is, I’ve got that same nagging feeling that it’s growing back. It’s been a few months since the surgery and now I’m struggling to breathe again, and every single morning I wake up with that gross green gunk in my throat, just like before. Plus, once winter hits, walking becomes a nightmare because I end up breathing through my mouth and that freezing air just kills me... I actually brought it up with my doctor recently, and she told me it's theoretically possible for it to regrow. Honestly, I must be some kind of medical anomaly when it comes to this third tonsil of mine 🙂 I’m thinking about heading back in while it's still cold out—it’s way easier to get them pulled in the winter than during the summer—just to get checked out. If it really has grown back, then I’ll just get it taken out and hopefully, that's the last time 🙂 Usually, the doctors and nurses are great, and honestly, even the lady at the front desk is sweet; you don't even need an appointment most of the time. Sure, kids and pregnant women get priority, obviously, but I can't remember the last time I got seen that quickly anywhere else... The doctors are super attentive and really walk you through everything. I'm glad this thread popped up because it looks like I'm not the only one dealing with this mess, so if anyone has questions, just throw them out there... My surgeon was Tina Turner