Apropos this rotten cold, a poll.

[commodorified]

I've been hearing about this whole 'tonsil removal and ice cream' thing basically forever. And it puzzles me greatly.

Admittedly, I had my tonsils removed when I was 18, and had had serious trouble with them for years, so it was a fairly complicated removal, but it took me slightly more than a week to successfully consume 2 litres of water within a 24-hour period and thus win my release from hospital and my ever-present IV, yclept Henry. (Not, sadly, "Henry IV": I would totally do that now, but this was then.)

Cold water, as well as even the most forgiving solids, took ... rather longer. There's a reason nobody tells you to put ice directly on fresh stitches, let me tell you what.

Had anyone attempted to feed me ice cream directly after the surgery they would have been exceedingly fortunate to escape having suffered no more than a paint-strippingly old-fashioned look (and only because my throat was too swollen to allow me to talk and I was too loaded on Demerol to throw a punch, at that.)

Therefore:

Poll #17145 In this poll, "ice cream" can also mean frozen yoghurt, sorbet, rice dream, etc.

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 93

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I had my tonsils taken out!

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I was a child, and there was ice cream, and it was good.
12 (12.9%)

I was a child, and there was ice cream, and it was awful.
1 (1.1%)

I was a child, and there was no ice cream
6 (6.5%)

I was an adult, and there was ice cream, and it was good.
2 (2.2%)

I was an adult, and there was ice cream, and it was awful.
0 (0.0%)

I was an adult, and there was no ice cream.
3 (3.2%)

I retain both my tonsils and an uncontrollable desire to tick boxes.
69 (74.2%)

(Optional but interesting) My tonsils were removed in (year):

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Comments

[recessional]

Your case is definitely extreme, though; most kids who have their tonsils out are back home within 48 hours.

I never had them removed, but many of my classmates did, when I was in elementary. They had ice cream, and popsicles. I did have several egregiously bad cases of strep, and sucked on ice-cubes constantly; to this day if I have a very sore throat I want water as cold as is humanly possible, whereas I've had other people look horrified at the idea.

[commodorified]

Yeah. I have the impression that by the time they were done ferreting out the scar tissue I didn't have a whole lot of throat lining. Plus I woke up with everyone involved bending over me looking petrified at one point - I THINK I may have bled spectacularly and scared Hell out of my surgeon, which was oddly embarassing.

I find that serious cold is good for sore throats and unbearable on infected ones, but this may well just be me (and may also be a consequence of the impressive scarring I have going back there even now)

[recessional]

I'm trying to think about my wisdom teeth and how I reacted to different temperatures on them, but I can't recall.

Though I am hardly a good representative example when it comes to temperature sensations, as when I was little I used to take showers that turned me into a lobster, so.

[commodorified]

I recall avoiding cold (to drink, ice packs on the jaw were, I was assured, mandatory) after the wisdom teeth as well, though I forget whether that was a) present discomfort or b) the fact that ice was painful before I had them removed and took me awhile to get fond of again.

I do recall very hot drinks being soothing, once they were allowed.

ETA: straws were completely forbidden, which may also have reduced my interest in cold drinks. Also, now I think on it, my TMJ was a bugger for DAYS post-surgery. It was all complicated.

[recessional]

Ahaha oh god STRAWS FORBIDDEN *facehands*.

I share this story just because: when I got my wisdom teeth out I was not yet admitting/aware of the fact that I had PTSD.

Specifically PTSD related to an experience of being drunk enough to be totally incapacitated (and probably should have been at the hospital), bleary, etc, and falling asleep/unconscious in the presence of what turned out to be deeply unsafe people.

Waking up out of sedation was . . . special. And as I was sitting there sublimating the panic while being totally non-verbal and not actually having emotions beyond "everyone go away everyone go away humans go away from me I WANT A DOOR THAT LOCKS AND NO ONE ELSE", I got the reminder lecture about straws.

. . . I had nightmares about the fucking straws and what they were going to do, and constantly worked myself up into a panic that I'd somehow sucked the clots out et etc. *facehands*

[azurelunatic]

Ice and Mountain Dew Livewire were what got me through my first wisdom tooth removal. I think I may have started before the area was properly un-numb, which likely helped.

[aella_irene]

I had mine out two months ago. Forbidden straws, and hot food, cold food was allowed sooner. I made raspberry ice pops beforehand, and breakfasted on them until I was allowed to chew once more.

[perennialanna]

I don't remember anyone mentioning straws when I had mine out (all four at once under a general anaesthetic). The first food they gave me was ice-cream, or rather that peculiar frozen stuff rather like hair mousse in texture that passes for ice-cream in schools and hospitals. I had fasted for far longer than necessary (I was supposed to be first on the morning list and eventually went to theatre rather after lunch) and by that point I would have eaten anything.