Thyroid surgery takes different amounts of time to recover depending on the extent of the condition, and it usually takes about 5 to 7 days or 3 to 6 months to return to normal. The details are as follows: 1. Benign thyroid nodule removal surgery: the recovery period after the surgery is shorter, usually takes about 5 days to return to normal; if the benign thyroid nodule is larger, it takes about 7 days to return to normal. 2. Malignant thyroid nodule excision surgery: the recovery period after surgery is longer, generally need about 3 to 6 months to return to normal, and patients with metastasis of malignant tumors even need one year or more to return to normal. And after total thyroidectomy, lifelong medication of levothyroxine tablets is needed for replacement therapy. After thyroid surgery, you should pay attention to rest, regular review, and recovery treatment under the guidance of professional doctors to prevent poor healing.