Upcoming Adenoidectomy and ear tubes (M/19)

In just over a week's time I'm due to have my adenoids removed and have ear tubes put in. I wanted to see if anyone has any experience with this. What is the pain like after the surgery? How effective are the ear tubes whilst they're in, and does the adenoid removal prevent mucus build up once the tubes have fallen out?

I've always struggled with ETD. I've had glue ear all my life which has led to some hearing difficulties. For the most part, the problems weren't serious enough to have much negative effect on my day to day activities (at one point, though, the hearing loss got significant enough for my ENT doctor to recommend hearing aids). I was never discharged from the ENT department as my sinus problems never fully went away - there was always some hearing loss. I was told that my tubes were thinner than normal and that it was this that was causing the fluid build up. I'd never really struggled with allergies of any sort and the problems I was having weren't severe so I just got on with my life. However, shortly after the second lockdown that we had in the UK, I was working in a bar and I had an extremely painful ear infection. I remember it clearly, as I had pain and tenderness all along my jawbone. I also had an awful headache and badly impaired hearing. I only mention that I was working in a bar because it meant that I was mixing with loads of people (literally thousands of tourists a day) and I was being exposed to all the germs and bacteria you could imagine. My theory is that, having been isolated and sheltered from all these viruses during lockdown, my body's immune system had a big shock when it was suddenly exposed to lots of different viruses at once. I should mention that I never actually tested positive for COVID but it was rife in the area and even within the bar I was working at itself. Also, during the months prior to this I had begun to be exposed to far more smoke than ever before. Although I do not smoke often myself, I am quite often around my friends who smoke and vape. I think this could be another thing that has worsened the situation.

Anyway, the infection passed after a few days and the headaches went away. Unfortunately, the congestion did not. My head felt plugged permanently and my hearing took a big hit. For about the past year I've been having these problems on and off (mostly on). The congestion never completely clears although it is better at some times than others. The hearing loss is basically always there and is just something that I have to live with at this point. It is probably the worst thing that's ever happened to me. I find myself becoming more and more isolated as I'm worried about not being able to respond appropriately in conversation - I would rather just avoid it entirely. I've stopped meeting up with my friends so often because, although they are all aware of my problems, I feel like a burden to them and I often feel like I'm not a part of their conversations as I cannot hear what they are saying. It's really debilitating and has been affecting my mental health greatly. I'm praying that the surgery will improve things as I do not know how I could live the rest of my life like this.

I've been told by a GP that my sinuses are inflamed and have been prescribed sinus steroid spray which helps a bit. About two months ago I went to see the ENT department who confirmed that my sinuses were badly inflamed and also told me that my adenoids were abnormally large. I am now scheduled to have my adenoids removed, to help with drainage, and have ear tubes inserted. I am a bit annoyed that these things were never presented as options to me before my sinuses became a big problem. I understand that my problems were probably not severe enough to warrant any surgical action but it would have been nice to have at least been told that these things could lead to problems at some point.

I've got lots of questions about the surgery so if anyone has experienced it themselves and could tell me about it, I would be very grateful. My main concern is whether my hearing will improve drastically with the ear tubes. From what I've read, grommets improve hearing instantly as the ear is drained of fluid when they're inserted. I also wanted to ask about the adenoid removal which is the more serious part of the procedure. How painful is the recovery? Apparently it's not so bad for children (which is another annoying thing as they have waited until I am 19 to tell me this needs doing). I hope that my relatively young age will help with recovery but some people say it's the most painful thing they've ever experienced so it doesn't sound great. Also, how effective has the adenoid removal been for you at preventing reoccurring infections and build ups?

Thanks very much for reading all of that. I would really appreciate any help :)