Does This Sound Like Strep Throat?

[KeepMe]

 

I know that none of you can diagnose me with Strep Throat for sure, but I happen to be really worried, and stressed out, that I may have strep throat. I was hoping someone, anyone, could tell me if my symptoms seemed like a normal viral infection/cold, or if it "sounds" more like strep. Help is definitely appreciated!

 

As of yesterday morning when I woke up I had a strong sore throat. All day yesterday it seemed to hurt, it kind of eased up during the day. I also was followed by quite a bit' of sneezing, and a few minor coughs. I never really had a running nose, or a stuffy nose, if I sneezed it would get barely runny, not even enough for a tissue. I never ran a fever, and if I happen to run one at all it didn't even reach 100.

I ended up staying up til' 2:30 this morning, and I was complaining to my boyfriend that my throat was really bothering me. It seemed to progress later this morning, but I thought it was because it was 2:30 and I was super tired.

I went to sleep, and now I am awake as of 45 minutes ago with a terrible sore throat. I literally feel like I have been screaming my lungs out, and gurgling nails. I can tell my sore throat is worse today than yesterday, not by a huge mile, but somewhat a big difference.

I have looked in the mirror and of course it's a little bit' red, nothing extreme, just a little irritated looking obviously. I don't have any red spots yet, and I don't see any white or yellow stuff on my tonsils. It just hurts a lot when I swallow.

 

Last night I had some chocolate milk, I thought the cold milk would be cool enough to soothe, and thick enough to maybe coat my throat so I could have less painful swallowing. Was this even a good idea? It seemed to soothe while I was drinking but of course as soon as I stopped, the pain returned.

 

This morning I heated up some tea from my fridge and drank a little bit' of that. I immediately brushed my teeth, then afterward I had my Styrofoam cup added warm water, some salt, little mouthwash, and a cap full of hydrogen peroxide, and gurgled that til' it was almost gone. Didn't give me any relief of course, maybe the first few seconds while gagging from the awful taste, but soon after it hurts again.

 

Does this sound like strep throat? If so what can I do, is it early enough to treat?

I've had terrible experiences with strep throat and I really, REALLY don't EVER, EVER, EVER!! want to go through them again. I was fortunate to skip last year, but I think it may be catching up with me this year.

[_Asti_]

When I had strep throat, it felt like swallowing razor blades. I would pool saliva in my mouth to try and not swallow because it was soooooo painful.

It got worse by the hour, and no home remedy even 'dulled' it or numbed it down. I couldn't even get anything down food wise.

 

Also, when I checked in the mirror with a flashlight, there was definite white spots so I knew I had it.

 

Regardless, only a doctor can help you out here.

 

I just knew that it wasn't something I could tolerate. It was beyond a typical sore throat that could be soothed with warm/cold liquids and foods, and throat lozenges.

 

I didn't have any other symptoms til several days after seeing the doctor, in which things progressed into much worse [prodcutive cough, headaches, sneezing, runny nose..etc]

 

if the onset of the sore throat arrived with other flu like/viral symptoms, it may just be related to that.

[norsewoman]

I'm with asti...the pain of strep throat is UNBEARABLE. I always likened it to feeling as if somebody had ravaged my throat with a metal file. Every swallow is agony. I think if you had strep, you'd have gone in to the doctor by now. Keep gargling salt water and drinking tea...you should be feeling better before too long! Take care...

[Seraphim]

I'm with asti...the pain of strep throat is UNBEARABLE. I always likened it to feeling as if somebody had ravaged my throat with a metal file. Every swallow is agony. I think if you had strep, you'd have gone in to the doctor by now. Keep gargling salt water and drinking tea...you should be feeling better before too long! Take care...

 

Oh yeah.....it feels like you swallowed razor blades, plus you get a fever, the shakes and feel like you are going to throw up and have been hit by an 18 wheeler.......at least that is how I feel when I have it. There is no mistaking it for sure. If you feel worse go to the dr because strep left untreated has the possibility to cause heart problems. I once had strep SO bad my throat and tongue were swelling and my tongue could barely fit in my mouth and the hospital lab called me to make sure I was still living because they had not seen a strep count that high before. After that episode it permanently staid in my body and I am what my dr calls a "strep carrier".

[iBroken]

If its strep, you should have white spots in your mouth or on your tongue.

 

Sounds like you might just have a sore throat due to a cold or flu.

 

Also, others can correct me if Im wrong, but with strep, you dont usually have the runny nose or cough.....

[Seraphim]

If its strep, you should have white spots in your mouth or on your tongue.

 

Sounds like you might just have a sore throat due to a cold or flu.

 

Also, others can correct me if Im wrong, but with strep, you dont usually have the runny nose or cough.....

 

No, you don't..but you can feel nauseous and shakey with chills and fevers.

[KeepMe]

After writing this post I got caught up on my sleep, no use since I was just woken up every hour. My strep throats are exactly like all of your guys, it is unbearable. I remember having it for two weeks, and I just got to the point where I cried and cried each night. They gave me antibiotics but nothing was happening so they had to give me a shot in the rear, that was haunting, lol. However, in my last strep throats I never had any symptoms except for a sore throat, and it came out of nowhere.

 

I guess I'm just extremely paranoid now, and I'm leaning more towards I am getting it. While sleeping I would wake up with some chills, and my throat is literally on fire right now. I just used some Orajel to numb the throat a little, even that didn't work too well.

 

I read a site from Mayo Clinic or something, that happened to say "Sore throats caused by Viral Infections can be just as painful as strep throat sometimes. If you have coughing, sneezing, runny nose, you probably don't have strep throat." Well I did have a lot of sneezing, my coughing was nothing maybe like four coughs the entire day, not really a runny nose, no fever, maybe a mild headache ... but I did spend my day staring at a computer screen.

And now ... I'm having the chills, I got a little bit' of nausea, I have a headache (not sure if I slept too long and it caused this) and maybe a tiny fever. My nose is just fine maybe a tid' bit' stuffed on one side, but completely breathable. It's my throat that is just killing me. Unfortunately. Still no white, or yellow things like I've had in the previous times. I usually get the red bumps in the back of my throat and those aren't there yet either, along with swollen tonsils, and still none of those yet. It's cruel how it's almost a waiting game, lol.

 

Thank you all for your posts, I really do appreciate the time you took to write, and answer. =)