Playing after Tonsillectomy + Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty

[Peach]

Hi chaps,
To combat my sleep apnoea I've recently had some throat surgery (Nov 14th). It was a tonsillectomy, Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (removal of the Uvula that hangs at the back of the throat), and some heat treatment to the base of the tongue.
Needless to say this was all rather painful and a bit of a chore but I'm back playing again and feeling alright. Things are different however so I'm guessing I just need to focus on fundamentals as things normalise. I feel like I have something small stuck in the back of my throat permanently which I'm hoping may disappear as my brain realises it is now the norm. I was out doing a couple of hours' carolling the other day and the first set felt OK, but the second I'm pretty sure some air was diverting up into the nasal passage as I played. A weird sensation.

So I'm wondering if any of you fine folk have any experience of this type of thing and what I might expect...
Obviously everyone is different but it can't hurt to ask.
Thanks,
MP

[MaryAnn]

Someone I know who is not a musician had the uvula surgery for snoring. He had trouble with stuff going up instead of down but eventually got used to it.

[Three Valves]

WOW!! I didn’t realize the uvula did anything but get swollen when I wake up after drinking too much...

[Peach]

WOW!! I didn’t realize the uvula did anything but get swollen when I wake up after drinking too much...

From Wikipedia =
Uvula Function. During swallowing, the soft palate and the uvula move together to close off the nasopharynx, and prevent food from entering the nasal cavity. It has also been proposed that the large amounts of thin saliva produced by the uvula serves to keep the throat well lubricated. It has a function in speech as well.