Hi Melissa,
My nine-year-old daughter had her tonsils and adenoids removed right after she turned six. She had sleep apnea. The long term results were amazing. I can elaborate on that if you are curious :) However, post-op is probably what you are asking about. She wanted nothing to eat or drink, not even ice cream, unless I kept her pain at bay (don't skip doses if you can avoid it). And she slept quite irregularly after the first twenty-four hours. My daughter was six, and trying her best not to take the medicine because of the flavor, so by all means have some tricks up your sleeve! The problem was that as the pain killer wore off, she would refuse liquids, which made her throat dry out and caused the scab to crack and hurt. I know it sounds disgusting, but that is what happens. If I kept her out of pain she was willing to stay hydrated and then the healing process wasn't so bad. I am sure your surgeon will talk with you about the scab itself and what to expect, but the hydration part is really important, and although kids are psyched for the "treats" they get promised it's not really that great. Imagine eating/drinking with strep throat- who cares what is being offered!! I rented a ton of movies and sat with her and held her a lot. She was extremely woozy at first, which is why the pain killer wore off initially. I was worried about her being nauseous after the gas so I didn't push it (I have had surgery and too much pain killer post-op made me throw up -painful for a raw throat). I guess the thing is that it's a delicate dance trying to keep little ones hydrated. What else? She got constipated from all of the pain killer slowing her system down - maybe you could ask for a preventative? It's hard to remedy through diet since eating is painful. I would suggest having suppositories on hand otherwise. It took two rounds of them to get her regular again, and she had a bad stomachache along with the constipation. No one deserves to experience that on top of everything else -and no one prepped me for that! All in all, she healed faster than expected, has almost no memory of the whole thing, and is a healthy fourth grader: it was all worth it. My parting thought is: know that you aren't alone if you cry or feel nervous after she is wheeled away to surgery -yes, it is a big deal but also, she will be fine! And take lots of naps! You might lose some sleep (well, more than usual). Good luck! It's not really as rotten as it sounds - I had to dig deep into my memory banks to remember!