Alternating the paracetamol and ibuprofen on a schedule is the best recommendation I can give. Severe pain, especially post-operative pain, is best managed by taking the pain meds before the pain sets in. The ibuprofen is also an NSAID and the swelling and inflammation are big contributors to pain.
The schedule that I always recommend is:
0800: 650-1000mg paracetamol (acetaminophen)
1200: 600-800mg ibuprofen
1600: 650-1000mg paracetamol (acetaminophen)
2000: 600-800mg ibuprofen
(and in the first day or two after surgery, set alarms to wake up and take pain meds at 0000 and 0400 on the same pattern if the pain is really bad.)
This pattern keeps you covered on pain control, and you can shorten the intervals to every 3 hours if this isn’t enough without exceeding daily dose limits on either medication. If you are an American reading this and you’re also taking something like Norco, make sure to account for the acetaminophen/tylenol/paracetamol that’s in those because exceeding the recommended dose on that one is bad news for your liver.
Like some other folks have said, warm saline (salt water) rinses and soft or liquid foods are going to help as well.