My ENT had recommended a tonsillectomy, because I have chronic issues with my tonsils. I’m 30, so I’m obviously pretty nervous about this. Because of my anxiety, I’ve done a ton of research so that I know what to expect and it honestly sounds terrible. I’m having a lot of second thoughts about doing it, because I’m not sure the benefits outweigh the risks.
If it were just a painful recovery I think I could deal with that. But, I know that bleeding is a real risk and my doctor said it happens frequently. I find that upsetting. I don’t live in a community with a good hospital. In fact, most of the locals joke that unless they are dying, they need to go somewhere else for care. The ENT who will do my surgery lives in another town about 45 min away but practices in my town. He is a great surgeon. But if I have an emergency I’ll be a sitting duck, waiting for an hour to see my doctor - because emergencies inevitably happen at night and on weekends, right? That’s my luck anyway.
I also have major issues with having to take Percocet after surgery. I can barely stand the thought of taking Tylenol. I know that if I take Percocet and feel the slightest bit weird, I’ll end up in the ER. I’ve also read that even normal doses of Percocet can kill a person because it causes respiratory issues. So, I’m hoping I can get by with extra strength Tylenol...
I don’t know. I’m not “sick” like a lot of others. I have tonsil stones, which sometimes are hard to get out and cause a lot of swelling and pain in my tonsils. But I haven’t had strep in 15 years. It seems like an extreme solution to a minor problem. I have two small kids who need me and I’m not sure I want to have this done, as there are real risks, however small they may be. It doesn’t matter how small the risk is when it happens to you. My friend had to be life flighted to another hospital (again, because our hospital is worthless) because her scabs broke open and she almost bled to death after her tonsillectomy.
My other option is having the surgery done by my ENT (he performs surgery in the next city, and here, and I will have it done in the next city...) and then go stay with my parents about 3 hours away to recover. That way if there are emergencies I’m 5 min away from a real hospital. But then my ENT wouldn’t be the one to see me if that happened. But at least I wouldn’t bleed to death....
I’ve been losing sleep over this a lot lately. I’m looking at doing this next month because it’s really my only option in terms of timing, since my job isn’t as busy in September. So, I need to make a decision.
Can people share their experiences with me?