Tonsillitis... help!

[LoopyLoux]

I have had tonsillitis since Sunday, came out of nowhere and I am in agony! My temp has been hitting 40.2 at times (although today it's eased) and my throat is covered in white. I am in agony my ears hurt, neck hurts, can barely swallow. My mum rang 111 for me and I got antibiotics penicillin 2 4 times a day, and this is my second day taking them but as of yet no improvement.

Has anyone got any miracle relief for this? I cannot have another sleepless, uncomfortable night any help much appreciated x

Gosh I feel for you, it’s so painful. I’ve had it 5 times since March!

I would suggest paracetamol every 4 hours and ibuprofen every 4 hours as well but intermittently,
So 6pm paracetamol, 8pm ibuprofen 10pm paracetamol. I’m pretty sure that’s allowed and it’s what I do.

I also gargle warm salty water, tastes Ming but helps.

I used to have tonsillitis about once per month for two years til I had them removed when I was 26.

Difflam Spray and tyrozette lozenges will numb your throat. It really helped me. Both available at a decent pharmacy. Lots of hot drinks too - honey and lemon / Beecham paracetamol drinks when you can have another dose of paracetamol.

Don't have too many tyrozettes as they have a laxative effect (I found out the hard way)...

Feel better soon!

Here they are

Keep up the antibiotics and gargle with salt water every couple of hours. Hope it gets better soon

Antiseptic throat spray works well to numb the throat and helps with pain and being able to drink without feeling you are swallowing razor blades!

I had it in August and it took 4-5 days for the antibiotics to start working. I hope you feel better soon, I felt absolutely rotten x

I suffer tonsillitis 3-7 times a year and I absolutely swear by tyrozets. It's getting harder and harder to find them but they work a treat.

Thank you everyone I'll try and source some. Right now I would do anything I can't deal with this pain xx

Hey OP, did the dr who prescribed the antibiotics give you a time frame for when you should start to feel an improvement? I have had tonsillitis many times, and depending on how nasty the infection looked I was sometimes told to go to the after hours gp clinic if I didn’t see an improvement after the first dose or two of antibiotics. This is because tonsillitis can (very rarely) cause an abscess (called a quinsy) which would need urgent treatment. I don’t want to scare you unnecessarily, but if you start to feel worse and not better you should try 111 again.

Aww bless u...I can't imagine how ur feeling...my little boy is 2 and he's had a couple of episodes of tonsillitis...he's had antibiotics...I've never had tonsillitis but work as a dental nurse and dentists always say to patients the antibiotics won't kick in for 24-48 hours once started...keep on top of painkillers and maybe try hot squash and honey drink...could ur mom go to the chemist for u and explain how u are and see what they could off over the counter xx

Get the cheaper antiseptic spray from savers or similar, difflam is good but it's pricey in comparison I think. I got it 5 times in a year a few years back and this was the thing that got me through long days talking at work!

You need two types of over the counter painkillers and to alternate with them - check what's safe though. Gargling with salt water is also good. The AB should kick in on day 3. I used to get it a lot, then one day it just stopped.

Keep up with the antibiotics but bear in mind that it may be viral and they will have no effect. Either way, it will start to ease soon but keep an eye out for any old of abscess and call a dr ASAP if you get worse.

Another vote for difflam throat spray. Worth the money. Don't buy the cheap throat sprays

Huge sympathy, I’ve had this a couple of times, once on holiday abroad with 12 Month old (hideous!).

I whacked up my ibuprofen dose to maximum allowed for my weight, at least 600mg each time, and added anaesthetic spray

Not to scare you but you need to know - my tonsillitis was actually a Quinsy - a potentially life threatening tonsillitis complications.

After GP, NHS phone nurse, and husband repeatedly told me to keep taking antibiotics (after 3 days of taking them), I snuck out of the house and took myself to a&e. Doctor took one look at my throat and pulled me into a room made incision in my throat and drained abscess .
That abscess can burst any time and your organs start to shut down.
Trust your instinct and if you feel like you’re dying after a few days, take yourself to a&e please. Good luck

Gargle with TCP diluted im warm water.

@Veronika13 - omg! That sounds terrifying, how did you feel? I just don't feel any better, admittedly my temperatures gone, but the pain is getting worse. 😩 I'm going to upload a pic warning incase you're queasy x

Sorry it's gross. X

Ouch! I had it in March and found relief in painkillers, antiseptic throat spray and ice lollies.

My mother's just had it and it took 2-3 days for the Penicillin to kick in, so hope you get some relief soon.

I get it all the time
Difflam spray, tyrozets and as many warm (not hot) drinks as possible

If you can get hold of this :
I used to suffer tonsillitis or laryngitis regularly until a doctor suggested this.
It works within hours.Also Tyrozets and salt water gargles - should be able to feel better by end of day.

If the pain is worse you are totally justified in going to a&e. Even if it’s all ok and it’s just taking a while for the antibiotics to work, the drs aren’t going to be annoyed with you for coming in to check. Call 111 first if you like. Your temperature may have come down a bit because of the paracetamol/ibuprofen but that doesn’t necessarily mean the infection is under control.