Bloody throat! Any doctors around?

[Gymnoob]

Basically I had what I suspect was strep throat around 3 weeks ago.

Bloody awful. Thought I was actually going to die. Got antibiotics (5 day penicillin) and cleared up straight away. Thank the Lord.

After about 3/4 days of finishing that course it was back. Had another set of 5 penicillin. Went instantaneously.

Again another 3/4 days and it started scratching again. Some white spots and the fever/ cold sweats started again. Thankfully when scrabbling around in the medicine box I found a few old penicillin (no idea where they came from but in date). So took those for nearly 24 hours before the GP appointment. Managed to convince the woman to give me another set of antibiotics again (5 days of something beginning with C) but she was trying to play the viral card. So she also did a swab. That’s come back negative (on googling apparently it could be because I took that bloody penicillin which I obviously didn’t tell the doc).

Now about 5/6 days break this time and my throat is scratching again. No white spots yet but I think I can start to taste it again. I can’t believe is fucking happening. I might have got it from work as there’s people there with it now.

What on earth am I going to do about this! I cannot keep getting this bloody thing. It’s not just a sore throat for me. It’s fever, cold chills, can’t move, can’t eat, can’t sleep, severe fatigue, headache, ear pain, crazy daisy chain necklace of glands, even pins and needles.

They aren’t going to believe me it’s bacterial because of this negative swab!!!

But how can it not be if it disappears overnight with antibiotics!?

Any advice very welcome please 😭

You're supposed to have a 10 day course, after the first 5 day course failed you should have been given the 10 day course.

Will they do that even though the swab now says negative!!

Im really worried they aren’t going to take this seriously until I’m on deaths door again. I have already lost a week and a half of work this month. I have an important meeting travelling on Wednesday.

I just. I’m so angry at this illness right now.

Go back to them and say the guidelines say I should have had a 10 day course, I don't feel completely better I want the 10 day course I should have got in the first place to kill off anything that may still be lingering. I cannot afford to take more time off work. You need to make a fuss basically.

😭

The new Nice guidance does say course for penicillin is 5-10 days , clarithromycin recommended course has always been 5 days so you have been treated correctly.
I would ask to repeat the throat swab, and consider bloods and consider glandular fever

I used to get reoccurring tonsillitis and regular antibiotics but it would come back within a few days of stopping them. One time my dm said “right, let’s try something different”… I spent a week in bed poorly - high temp, swollen tonsils etc but once that was over and I’d recovered, I never got it as bad again. My throat is still my weakness and gets sore when I’m run down but never as debilitating as it was.

My DH has had this in the last few weeks.
Dr has given him 8 antibiotics to be taken for 7 days. If that fails swabs will be done.

Just tell your doctor the truth about why the swab was negative. What do you think that they will to you? Shoot you?

It’s awful.

Go back. Tell them about the antibiotic you took.

Ask them why on earth do they think it’s viral if you have white spots and it reacts to penicillin.

Ask why not a 10 day dose.

And not to scare you, but these bacteria cause a whole array of illnesses, from skin infections, scarlet fever, infections of all sorts of organs, to allergic reactions. They’re contagious as fuck, difficult to get rid of, might have a 10 day long incubation period, and might be carried by a healthy individual for months while they infect everyone around them. So keep an eye on any unusual symptoms anyone in your family gets.

As PP, go back to the doc and ask for the 10 day course of antibiotics.

This might sound strange but also when on this course replace your toothbrush every couple of days and again on the first day after completing the antibiotics.

Because you have been given short courses of antibiotics, the infection may not have cleared entirely or you may be reinfecting yourself with your toothbrush brush.

I went through the exact same many years ago, it wasn't until I was put on a long course and told to frequently replace the toothbrush that it finally went away.

My daughter had similar. Back & forth to Gp for not quite enough antibiotics. All term. She ended up in a&e with quinsy (an infected abscess behind her tonsil) which had to be lanced & drained. Intravenous antibiotics.
Don't be fobbed off.

Maybe you need steroids combined with the antibiotics? The combination has worked for 3 couple of people I know.

Thanks all.

Right you have cheered me up. I will get rid of this bloody thing. Fight for a long course. A toothbrush a day!

Im so sorry to your daughter @tobedtoMN for that complication. Honestly I can well believe it. Some posters might think I’m exaggerating when I said I thought I was going to die. Honestly I was about to go to A&E if those antibiotics didn’t kick in. I was 4 days in and it was just getting worse and worse! My whole body felt like it was giving in. I have read about the rheumatoid heart damage. Hopefully it’s not done that.

This all sounds very dramatic but it’s the worst thing I have ever had! Thank god for penicillin 🙏

I had an awful throat with pneumonia, which started last October & didn't completely clear until February this year. I couldn't swallow food unless it was wet & completely smooth, anything like bread, toast, chips etc stuck to the sides of my throat & made me throw up. I lived on gazpacho & ice cream for nearly 2 months & could only drink iced drinks through a straw, my mouth was full of sores, my lips split open & bled every time I tried to open my mouth to eat. The pain was 10/10 I ended up taking age 6+ Calpol & Ibuprofen liquid as I couldn't swallow tablets due to the state of my throat. The one thing that helped me was to inhale steam with Olbas oil or Vicks in it, I did that every 2 hours during the day & I slept propped up both to help my breathing & stop me choking on my own saliva.

I think people underestimate quite how bad tonsillitis can be, I was hospitalised twice for intravenous antibiotics. In hindsight I actually probably had glandular fever ( they tested but it came back negative but apparently you get a lot of false negatives) however it came up as having had a previous infection in my blood work.

Not a medic but I was told viral tonsillitis can develop into secondary bacterial tonsillitis As swollenn tonsils are breeding ground for bacteria so it’s entirely possible to have underlying virus plus bacterial infection. I found gargling dissolvable aspirin effective until they whipped them out.

Re toothbrushes, I'd probably just get two and then sterilise with denture tablets or baby bottle sterilising fluids.

I have appalling tonsillitis and have since I was a child and the throat doesnt sort itself out it was go on for weeks. Fortunately my current GP knows this and will give me antibiotics. I used to get it once a year I have to say I’m better since Covid. I have only had it once.

Go back to your GP.

Poor you, sounds horrendous. I think people underestimate how awful such a thing can make you feel.

Do you gargle with salt water?

Gargle with soluble aspirin.

I'm doing this at the moment and it helps so much. I'm getting a bit clearer of the cold/flu lurgy which seems to be doing the rounds. Really frequent unproductive coughs which have had me being sick (bringing up even water I've been sipping to calm my throat). Gargling with (preferably) warm salt water during the day but also just before going to bed - really has helped me sleep. Also keeping my bedroom cooler at night (if necessary keeping a window open a bit). Also I've been avoiding anything dairy. I also used vapour rub on my chest and the glands under the jaw. 🌹

You can get a prescription from an online doctor. You need to take a probiotic too.

https://www.londondoctorsclinic.co.uk/online-doctor/?infinity=ict2~net~gaw~cmp~1455238737~ag~58111409753~ar~515745369093~kw~online%20doctor~mt~b~acr~8755831475&infinity=ict2~net~gaw~ar~515745369093~kw~online%20doctor~mt~b~cmp~1455238737~ag~58111409753&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAADn0-rl3cDaYrwapT8dCk3BJi7dZy&gclid=CjwKCAjwrIixBhBbEiwACEqDJYON50mF3BK0k-gVmVgBNCWg0lEkapsgWxyaca1fiLtRbn5wyXQ9zhoC-s8QAvD_BwE

@Gymnoob she's at uni. She was sent away from a&e once. She went straight back the following morning. Held up her phone to the receptionist "I can't speak, I can't eat". That got her seen!

Jesus!

That was where I was going last time.

Although something strange happened last night 😬 I ended up waking up at 90 degrees in the bed. All tucked up normally as if it was the correct orientation 🤣. And I definitely got in the right way. So maybe I had a fever but knocked out?!?

But this morning my ears feel a bit funny, glands up, throat same but it’s not escalated at the rate of previously. So maybe I am just panicking or maybe I am more aware of the build up as if have had it so much recently.

Time will tell!! 😬

Yes I have been gargling salt. I will drop by the pharmacy and get some soluble aspirin too.

An update! I have lost my voice for a week. Now got an official strep A diagnosis. Managed to convince them to swab again.

Have given me 10 days of penicillin and they are testing the culture in the lab to check that’s going to kill it or whether something else might be better.

🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳

Thanks docs of MN