Adult tonsillitis
- Thread starter MoonGazer
- Start date
Urg! You poor thing. I went through this for several years (spring and fall like clock work). They always wanted to take out the tonsils and all that. I didn't let them and finally, it stopped. I would get checked for mono and make sure that's not what the ultimate cause is, but otherwise, I have no good remedy except taking a shot for it and I wouldn't hesitate! It was very painful (tonsilitis not the shot) and I don't wish it on anyone. I hope you feel better soon. Be sure to get something for pain if you don't have it, but beware that you don't choke trying to eat while drugged - tried that too!
lotsaloans
Senior Member
MoonGazer,
Me too.
I've been sick for about two months.
I feel better for a while, never getting over congestion and sinus problems, then get sick again and tonsils swell up and get sore again, they've never quit being agitated.
I'd cut em out with a steak knife if I thought I'd feel better.
My doc said they won't cut them out.
I have no remedies.
I too would love to hear some.
Me too.
I've been sick for about two months.
I feel better for a while, never getting over congestion and sinus problems, then get sick again and tonsils swell up and get sore again, they've never quit being agitated.
I'd cut em out with a steak knife if I thought I'd feel better.
My doc said they won't cut them out.
I have no remedies.
I too would love to hear some.
Hmmmmmmmmm.........steak knife. (Amy ponders this option, but fears pain.)
The last time they gave me an antibiotic (because my throat was practically swollen shut, I might add) which were gigantic horse pills to swallow!
DUH
It feels like I've got a huge cotton ball in my throat.
I'm sorry to hear I'm not the only one with this. What in the world is in the air? Did people always used to be so constantly sick like this?
Amy
The last time they gave me an antibiotic (because my throat was practically swollen shut, I might add) which were gigantic horse pills to swallow!
DUH
It feels like I've got a huge cotton ball in my throat.
I'm sorry to hear I'm not the only one with this. What in the world is in the air? Did people always used to be so constantly sick like this?
Amy
astrogirl
Inactive
Over the winter, I had a recurring sore throat. I suspected it was mono, but who knows. I drove it into submission with Vitamin C megadosing. There's a lot of info on the internet about it. Here are a few sites:
http://www.doctoryourself.com/immune.html
http://vitamincfoundation.org/
http://www.seanet.com/~alexs/ascorbate/198x/smith-lh-clinical_guide_1988.htm
It works for me. YMMV, of course.
http://www.doctoryourself.com/immune.html
http://vitamincfoundation.org/
http://www.seanet.com/~alexs/ascorbate/198x/smith-lh-clinical_guide_1988.htm
It works for me. YMMV, of course.
You folks might want to look into boosting your immune systems. Echinacea- take it no longer than 6 weeks at a time before taking a 1-2 week break- is a good start. Elderberry Extract (Sambucol or a high quality equivalent- NOT capsules which are "whole herb") has proven anti viral properties and also has shown immune boosting properties.
There are other herbs out there which also are immune boosters.... reishi mushrooms are another.
Tonsils are a sort of blood filter, which is one of the reasons doctors don't like removing them. They help keep nasty bugs from attacking more vital organs. I suspect, though, that once they get inflamed or infected, they sort of become a target on their own. Mine were removed long ago as a child, and to be honest, it didn't change much... I still had horrible sore throats and ear infections. I also had a truly horrible immune system back then, probably much of it due more to psychological issues than physical problems. But some was probably also nutritional. Not that I was neglected- I was just a very picky eater who had developed the pattern of always being sick in my first 1 1/2 in an orphanage...
Avoiding sugar- especially white sugar- might be helpful, as it tends to depress the immune system badly for a few hours after ingestion.
zinc lozenges, taken at the FIRST twinge that hints that you might be developing problems can often stop a sore throat in it's tracks. I haven't had one... literally... since I started keeping them on hand. You have to let them dissolve in your mouth slowly, don't chew them, and don't overuse them... if you need to have a lozenge in your mouth at all times, use "inactive" ones like plain Halls or something at other times. The zinc lozenges sometimes upset people's stomachs, but I haven't found it to be a problem. Zinc interferes with the replication of most of the bacteria or viruses which cause colds and sore throats.
Have you had this cultured, so you are sure it's not strep? Strep can still go into rheumatic fever, although it's less common these days because of antibiotics. It's not something to play with....
Wishing you luck in finding a solution
Summerthyme
There are other herbs out there which also are immune boosters.... reishi mushrooms are another.
Tonsils are a sort of blood filter, which is one of the reasons doctors don't like removing them. They help keep nasty bugs from attacking more vital organs. I suspect, though, that once they get inflamed or infected, they sort of become a target on their own. Mine were removed long ago as a child, and to be honest, it didn't change much... I still had horrible sore throats and ear infections. I also had a truly horrible immune system back then, probably much of it due more to psychological issues than physical problems. But some was probably also nutritional. Not that I was neglected- I was just a very picky eater who had developed the pattern of always being sick in my first 1 1/2 in an orphanage...
Avoiding sugar- especially white sugar- might be helpful, as it tends to depress the immune system badly for a few hours after ingestion.
zinc lozenges, taken at the FIRST twinge that hints that you might be developing problems can often stop a sore throat in it's tracks. I haven't had one... literally... since I started keeping them on hand. You have to let them dissolve in your mouth slowly, don't chew them, and don't overuse them... if you need to have a lozenge in your mouth at all times, use "inactive" ones like plain Halls or something at other times. The zinc lozenges sometimes upset people's stomachs, but I haven't found it to be a problem. Zinc interferes with the replication of most of the bacteria or viruses which cause colds and sore throats.
Have you had this cultured, so you are sure it's not strep? Strep can still go into rheumatic fever, although it's less common these days because of antibiotics. It's not something to play with....
Wishing you luck in finding a solution
Summerthyme
Thanks for the tips! I had forgotten about zinc and echinachea.
Actually I went to the doctor today. My tonsils are obstructing my airways now. I have to meet with a surgeon next week to see about taking them out. 37 years old and getting my tonsils out.
But, once they are gone, I'll be glad.
After this, I need to work on boosting my immune system.
Thanks!
Amy
Actually I went to the doctor today. My tonsils are obstructing my airways now. I have to meet with a surgeon next week to see about taking them out. 37 years old and getting my tonsils out.
But, once they are gone, I'll be glad.
After this, I need to work on boosting my immune system.
Thanks!
Amy
Kathy in WV
Down on the Farm...
My tonsils have been so bad for so long that they stay huge even when I'm not sick. If I knew for a fact that they can laser them out I'd do it in a heartbeat. I have to sleep in odd positions all the time or I can't even breath. I have permanent abcesses on the surface and every time I get strep or anything these abcesses fill and, well, just yuck. 
I know a lot of people don't like colloidal silver but I think it has its place for this problem. I gargle with it for 5 minutes at a time (yes, thats a LONG time to try to gargle!!) I remember reading somewhere that silver will kill most bacterias in 4-6 minutes with direct contact. Thats why I do it for 5 minutes. For us this has been really helpful because it seems to take the pain and rawness out of the throat. It really shortens our "downtime" too. I'm also big on elderberry tincture, echinacea, and as soon as I can go out and get it, I plan on adding goldenseal to my herb tinctures. I sure do feel for you 
. Hope you find something that gives you some relief soon, Kat 
I know a lot of people don't like colloidal silver but I think it has its place for this problem. I gargle with it for 5 minutes at a time (yes, thats a LONG time to try to gargle!!) I remember reading somewhere that silver will kill most bacterias in 4-6 minutes with direct contact. Thats why I do it for 5 minutes. For us this has been really helpful because it seems to take the pain and rawness out of the throat. It really shortens our "downtime" too. I'm also big on elderberry tincture, echinacea, and as soon as I can go out and get it, I plan on adding goldenseal to my herb tinctures. I sure do feel for you . Hope you find something that gives you some relief soon, Kat
Kathy in WV
Down on the Farm...
Moongazer-
Regarding the silver, I use the stuff VERY JUDICIOUSLY!! I'm not really afraid of it, I just don't believe in using something if you don't need to. I don't swallow after I gargle it so the amount actually going down is pretty small. I use it for ear infections sometimes also. When I'm really sick I do take it as an antibiotic....maybe a couple times a year. For most things I'd rather go herbal. But truly, for really bad tonsils it does the job fast. However, I'm not telling you to use it--just telling you what I do myself!!
Feel better soon! Kat
Regarding the silver, I use the stuff VERY JUDICIOUSLY!! I'm not really afraid of it, I just don't believe in using something if you don't need to. I don't swallow after I gargle it so the amount actually going down is pretty small. I use it for ear infections sometimes also. When I'm really sick I do take it as an antibiotic....maybe a couple times a year. For most things I'd rather go herbal. But truly, for really bad tonsils it does the job fast. However, I'm not telling you to use it--just telling you what I do myself!!
Feel better soon! Kat 
I was to have mine removed several years ago, but didn't because of my divorce. The ENT that I saw said it also was an option to try a low dose antibiotic for about a year.....but I didn't do that either. I had alot of tonsillitis as a kid, then again as a teen. Had an older doc treat me as a teen, and he prescribed a bottle of silver nitrate(isn't that the stuff they put in babies eyes?) that I swabbed on my tonsils with those really long q-tips that I got from drug store. I think that really helped more than the antibiotics did. Last time I had a bout with the tonsil troubles, I couldn't get silver nitrate prescribed. Maybe you could swab on the colloidal silver instead of gargling it? Might be worth a try if you don't want to do the 5 minute gargle.
Well, I had it done. I had my tonsils and adenoids removed.
At 12 days after the surgery, I started hemmoraging at 3:30am. My husband was gone and I was home alone with the kids. I had to call the ambulance and my in-laws to come watch the kids.
It was horrible. I bled so much they had to pump my stomach and I had to have surgery again to recauterize one side. I shudder to think about how I seriously could have died that night if I hadn't woke up. More than likely I would have suffocated from the clots forming in my throat before I would have bled out.
It was a nightmare. The doctor said it only happens in about 1 in 100-200 people and he has never seen it happen 12 days after surgery.
I praise and thank God for sparing my life and letting me have more time with my children. It was a terrifying experience. But He saw me through it.
Amy
At 12 days after the surgery, I started hemmoraging at 3:30am. My husband was gone and I was home alone with the kids. I had to call the ambulance and my in-laws to come watch the kids.
It was horrible. I bled so much they had to pump my stomach and I had to have surgery again to recauterize one side. I shudder to think about how I seriously could have died that night if I hadn't woke up. More than likely I would have suffocated from the clots forming in my throat before I would have bled out.
It was a nightmare. The doctor said it only happens in about 1 in 100-200 people and he has never seen it happen 12 days after surgery.
I praise and thank God for sparing my life and letting me have more time with my children. It was a terrifying experience. But He saw me through it.
Amy
From age 11 to 34 I got tonsillitis turning to strep throat every June at least, sometimes it came back in autumn. By some stroke of luck that last time I went to the doctor for penicillin (it cured strep for me) before it got too bad, there was an old man doctor substituting in the clinic that day. He told me I was probably allergic to grass pollen and to try Dimetap first. Worked like a charm. After a few years the sore throats stopped.<p>Allergies? Just a thought.
Moongazer I am so glad you survived your ordeal. What you went through sounds awful.
To add to the advice about mega Vitamin C and all of the things Summerthyme said I would add RAW garlic. Garlic is a systemic antibiotic, hence the nickname Russian penicillin. Take all your stomach can stand. Eat it with whatever food suits you and chew it well.
I was hospitalized twice as a very small child for strep throat and was a penicillin pincushion all of my growing up years. In college I would just call my Drs. office, give my symptoms, they would call the pharmacy, the pharmacy would deliver to the dorm, and bill my parents. Of course I went to college near home.
Anyway at my now advanced age of 50+++ (more than I want to talk about) I still occasionally can feel a bout of tonsillitis coming on when I get stressed out. So I up my vitamins, eat all the garlic my stomach can take and try to get more rest. It works for me. Fortunately I don't seem to have the problems that some told about. For that I am very thankful.
LC and don't forget the garlic.
To add to the advice about mega Vitamin C and all of the things Summerthyme said I would add RAW garlic. Garlic is a systemic antibiotic, hence the nickname Russian penicillin. Take all your stomach can stand. Eat it with whatever food suits you and chew it well.
I was hospitalized twice as a very small child for strep throat and was a penicillin pincushion all of my growing up years. In college I would just call my Drs. office, give my symptoms, they would call the pharmacy, the pharmacy would deliver to the dorm, and bill my parents. Of course I went to college near home.
Anyway at my now advanced age of 50+++ (more than I want to talk about) I still occasionally can feel a bout of tonsillitis coming on when I get stressed out. So I up my vitamins, eat all the garlic my stomach can take and try to get more rest. It works for me. Fortunately I don't seem to have the problems that some told about. For that I am very thankful.
LC and don't forget the garlic.