From a surgical point of view I did not find it very painful. I had a lot of mucus for awhile which I was told was normal. I had a very bad pain in my upper back from the positioning…. I was given Tylenol for pain but that does not help muscular pain so a few a few days post surgery I had to take Motrin ( with a heating pad) to get relief and sleep. My voice had started being very raspy before surgery and it sounded better. The scar covers work well…. I wore them for 6 months and my scar is not really noticeable. Good luck!