I am 34 years old and I have had problems with enlarged tonsils for the past eight years. They have been getting worse and more recently – over the past year or two – my tonsils have become so large that they have actually gagged me when I’ve become very ill. Things were so bad to where I would get the common cold and my tonsils would grow enormous. I finally decided to get them removed, but first let me give you a history of the events that led up to my surgery.
Winter of 2008 & 2009 – The first doctor
Winter 2008 to 2009 – I had visited an ear nose and throat doctor about my tonsils and had explained that I wanted my tonsils out immediately. This all stemmed from getting strep throat that winter which led to the worse experience to-date. This was the first time my tonsils had become so large that I was gagging and vomiting from them. This was a huge wake-up call for me as I did not want to go through this experience again. The doctor didn’t ask me any questions as he heard the desperation in my voice, and agreed that they should come out as soon as possible. After speaking with my family they told me to stop and think as a procedure like a tonsillectomy at 34 years of age should not be taken lightly. So I went to get a second opinion, which was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
Winter of 2008 & 2009 – The second doctor
The second doctor asked me about my history and I had explained everything that happened to-date. At that time it had been weeks since my strep throat episode and I had lost some of the desperation in my voice in demanding a tonsillectomy. This was good as this new doctor could look at my history and could make an impartial decision without me swaying him one way or the other. He decided to have me wait three months to monitor #1 whether I get sick and #2 if I do get sick, how bad things get. Over the course of the next three months I did not get sick and the doctor concluded that I should not get a tonsillectomy. He prescribed me with a steroid and instructed me to take it should I get sick and my tonsils become enlarged. I was somewhat relieved, but that was short-lived.
Summer 2009
I did not get sick all summer long. I was also washing my hands feverishly becoming more and more germaphobic. How long could this last, I would ask myself, but I would just put it off reasoning with myself that I could realistically do this for the rest of my life.
Fall 2009
My two little boys finally get their first sickness of the year, a cold with a cough, mixed with a little fever. Any parent knows that whatever your kids get, you’ll most likely get as well. It didn’t take long for me to get the cold and cough although I did not get the fever. My tonsils responded by becoming grossly enlarged and I was on the brink of being gagged again. I even took the steroids that my doctor prescribed me a year earlier and they worked only slightly, but not good enough. This was the final straw! I sat down with my wife and explained that I wanted a tonsillectomy.
She wasn’t happy because of all the risks involved, but it came down to a “quality of life” decision for me. How could I live with this for the rest of my life, after the doctor explained to me that infections would occur more often as I increased in age. In short, it would only get worse. After speaking with my doctor we set a date for the surgery on November 11, 2009. He gave me two prescriptions to be filled before the surgery.
- Antibiotic – would need to be taken 10 days before the procedure to minimize the chances of infection. Any sickness, whether viral or bacterial before the surgery, would postpone the date of the surgery
- Pain medication – I think this one is self-explanatory.
The antibiotic . I must have washed my hands after touching anything and everything as I became focused and determined on getting this surgery done once-and-for-all.
Well, my day finally came…