#1 ·
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Sorry this is such a long-winded post, but I’m asking you all to please read it because I honestly don't know who else to turn to for help.
Thanks.
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So, this whole mess started back in July of last year. My throat started killing me, and I noticed this yellow coating on my tonsils. My doctor didn't even bother with a swab at first; she just threw three different antibiotics at me—Azithromycin—but they did absolutely nothing. She told me to wait a week before testing. I finally got a swab done, and it came back negative. Then, a week later, I went ahead and asked for another one on my own dime, and suddenly it was positive for Group A Strep. I took Keflex, which helped a tiny bit, but the pain just wouldn't quit.
After that, I saw an ENT specialist. He suggested maybe stomach acid was irritating my lining, or that a deviated septum was forcing me to breathe through my mouth at night, drying out my throat. He also mentioned nasal mucus could be causing damage. He prescribed Gastal and a saline spray. No luck. The strep test came back negative again.
Then, after a while, the throat pain flared up even worse. I went for another swab—this time it was positive for Group C Strep. I went to a different ENT in Washington, D.C., who put me on a heavy dose of Keflex. It provided some relief, but the ache remained. He suggested a gastroscopy to check for excess acid, and sure enough, it showed I had high acidity. That was back in November. He told me to take Nexium for four weeks to deal with the acid and see if things improved. It didn't really work; my throat still hurt and there was still that yellowish film, so he recommended tonsillectomy surgery. I had it done on November 29th and was recovered by mid-January.
But the throat pain kept coming back. I went back to the same ENT who did the strep tests and had blood work done for antibodies. Those levels were low and the swab was negative, so he told me the strep wasn't the issue anymore—it had to be the stomach acid eating away at my mucous membranes.
Just to cover all bases, I visited a different clinic to see another ENT. This guy insisted the problem was my nose—specifically the deviated septum. He claimed my nose was full of acidic mucus that keeps draining down my throat, damaging the lining, which is why I kept getting strep infections and why my throat still hurts. That was late January. He had me rinsing my nose with a water, salt, and baking soda solution for three weeks. He said if that didn't work, he'd suggest nasal surgery, but told me to check back in with a gastroenterologist just to rule out the acid issue once more.
The rinses didn't do a thing. So, I saw a gastroenterologist who switched my meds from Nexium to Control Tower. She wanted me on Control Tower for three or four months to see how it played out. Two weeks ago, I went back because the gastritis was still bothering me, so she switched me back to Nexium, but this time split the dose—one in the morning and one at night—to try and stop the acid from flooding back up overnight.
Here's the kicker: my throat still hurts. The gastritis isn't really an issue anymore—maybe occasionally—and my nose is still completely stuffed up, but this throat pain has been dragging on for eleven months straight.
If anyone here has dealt with anything similar, or if there's a medical professional on this forum, please help me. I have no idea what to do next. I'm only 22, and this constant struggle is absolutely wrecking my life.
Sorry this is such a long-winded post, but I’m asking you all to please read it because I honestly don't know who else to turn to for help.
Thanks.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So, this whole mess started back in July of last year. My throat started killing me, and I noticed this yellow coating on my tonsils. My doctor didn't even bother with a swab at first; she just threw three different antibiotics at me—Azithromycin—but they did absolutely nothing. She told me to wait a week before testing. I finally got a swab done, and it came back negative. Then, a week later, I went ahead and asked for another one on my own dime, and suddenly it was positive for Group A Strep. I took Keflex, which helped a tiny bit, but the pain just wouldn't quit.
After that, I saw an ENT specialist. He suggested maybe stomach acid was irritating my lining, or that a deviated septum was forcing me to breathe through my mouth at night, drying out my throat. He also mentioned nasal mucus could be causing damage. He prescribed Gastal and a saline spray. No luck. The strep test came back negative again.
Then, after a while, the throat pain flared up even worse. I went for another swab—this time it was positive for Group C Strep. I went to a different ENT in Washington, D.C., who put me on a heavy dose of Keflex. It provided some relief, but the ache remained. He suggested a gastroscopy to check for excess acid, and sure enough, it showed I had high acidity. That was back in November. He told me to take Nexium for four weeks to deal with the acid and see if things improved. It didn't really work; my throat still hurt and there was still that yellowish film, so he recommended tonsillectomy surgery. I had it done on November 29th and was recovered by mid-January.
But the throat pain kept coming back. I went back to the same ENT who did the strep tests and had blood work done for antibodies. Those levels were low and the swab was negative, so he told me the strep wasn't the issue anymore—it had to be the stomach acid eating away at my mucous membranes.
Just to cover all bases, I visited a different clinic to see another ENT. This guy insisted the problem was my nose—specifically the deviated septum. He claimed my nose was full of acidic mucus that keeps draining down my throat, damaging the lining, which is why I kept getting strep infections and why my throat still hurts. That was late January. He had me rinsing my nose with a water, salt, and baking soda solution for three weeks. He said if that didn't work, he'd suggest nasal surgery, but told me to check back in with a gastroenterologist just to rule out the acid issue once more.
The rinses didn't do a thing. So, I saw a gastroenterologist who switched my meds from Nexium to Control Tower. She wanted me on Control Tower for three or four months to see how it played out. Two weeks ago, I went back because the gastritis was still bothering me, so she switched me back to Nexium, but this time split the dose—one in the morning and one at night—to try and stop the acid from flooding back up overnight.
Here's the kicker: my throat still hurts. The gastritis isn't really an issue anymore—maybe occasionally—and my nose is still completely stuffed up, but this throat pain has been dragging on for eleven months straight.
If anyone here has dealt with anything similar, or if there's a medical professional on this forum, please help me. I have no idea what to do next. I'm only 22, and this constant struggle is absolutely wrecking my life.