my throat hurts very bad... looking for therapies?

Question

based on internet searching i'm pretty sure i have tonsilitis... here's the shortish story,

sick for a week (just a cold mostly) turned into fever and sore throat so i went to a walk in, tested neg for strep but the md gave me antibiotics (4 days ago) and this is not helping the sore throat AT ALL. however, most of the cold symptoms have gone away..

so i'm stuck with a sore throat (and ears...) for god knows how long and don't have any more sick time so after today, i have a week of misery to look forward to.

actual question:
any good remedies that don't involve staying home and sleeping? maybe something that will help me be a productive member of society while still healing?

i am a smoker but have had approx 2 cigs a day for the past few days, just enough not to also have to withdrawl from nicotene on top of everything else!

things i have been doing:
taking "rx dose" of advil every 3 hours
drinking decaf green tea with honey
sipping chicken broth
throat losenges

Answer 1

Make a solution of 4 ounces of warm water with a teaspoon of salt.Gargle with the solution.Take a sip into your mouth and gargle for 5-10 seconds,spit it out and repeat until the solution is gone.
Please DO NOT drink straight alcohol! The pain would probably half kill you.

Answer 2

Sorry to hear that your miserable. When I get a sore throat,
I gargle with straight peroxide. It seems to give me some relief when I have a really bad sore throat. I take about 4 capfuls of peroxide, gargle, spit, then wait about 5 minutes before rinsing or drinking anything.
You could also gargle with salt water. Take about 4 ounces (1/2 glass) of lukewarm water, mix in 1-2 teaspoons of salt, gargle spit and repeat until all the salt water is gone.
Theres lozenges out there that help with just sore throats, Ricola and Leudens are pretty good at helping out.
What dose of advil are you taking? You said that youre taking it every 3 hours, you need to be careful that you dont take too much. 2400mg is really like the max that you should be taking unless your doctor told you to take more. So if you are taking 800mg of advil, that means you should be taking it every 8 hours.
Lay down, put a warm towel (or a cold towel, whichever feels better), and just relax. Call a doctor and see if you need antibiotics, you just might. Most tonsilitis cases need antibiotics.
Avoid eating or drinking a lot of acidic or salty foods, like orange juice, potato chips, soda pops can actually irritate sore throats in some cases. Take a vitamin that has vitamin C in it. Actually, if it has vitamin C and E in it, it works better since you need E in order for C to be better absorbed and vice versa.
I hope you feel better soon!

Answer 3

I usually contract tonsillitis every winter. And you definitely have all of the symptoms. Advil will not "heal" the infection. You must have a antibiotic. Usually the doctor will prescribe Penicillin or Amoxicillin. Advil is great for the pain, and fever. That's it. Go to your doctor right away, or it will only get worse.

Answer 4

Gargle with warm salt water for a few minutes. It tastes terrible but you can rinse your mouth out when your done. It really does heal things up faster. Hope you feel better soon. Sore throats suck.

Answer 5

i had that when i was 14 or 15 it is tuff. if you dont get them taken out what helped me was Day Quil and Night Quil and in between tea with honey and lemon juice. the lemon will act as an anti septic and the honey has naturally occuring antibiotics plus it will help lub yout throat. and drink planty of water.

Answer 6

if its just viral then maybe this will work...ive heard that taking a shot of vodka, straight, will kill any germs in your throat and allow your throat to heal without the virus reproducing. I've always wanted to try but haven't had the chance yet. Maybe it'll help

Answer 7

Seems your strain of bacteria is resistent to the antibiotics you got, go back to your doctor and get a different one!

Answer 8

garggle with salt water