Question about tonsils

[JJB]

I realize this isn't the best place to seek general medical advice, but I'm just hoping someone here has some experience with swollen tonsils. My insurance (BlueCross) supposedly has a Nurse hotline, "available 24/7," yet when I called today, I was told "we are currently closed." I guess they don't understand the meaning of 24/7...

 

Anyhoo, as I was trying to fall asleep last night, I started to experience difficulty swallowing. I kept trying to swallow, and my muscles just would not do it. This has never happened to me in my 37 years, and it was AWFUL. It took me about 2 hours to fall asleep. Finally, around the ~12th time it happened, I realized I could swallow if I push up at the base of my chin/top of my neck. Because of that, I was able to get through breakfast this morning, but it was still pretty tough and I gagged a few times.

 

I have had mild cold symptoms since Friday morning, for the first time in about 3 years (it's extremely rare for me to get sick). Other than that, I feel fine. I don't feel like I have a fever, and I've only got a minor sore throat, I think from all the extra effort swallowing (seriously...try to focus on NOT swallowing...and let me know how that goes!).

 

2 questions: since I'm not experiencing any other pain or signs of infection, is it likely this will go away on its own in a few days? I'd feel silly going to Urgent Care and paying $150 for a doctor to tell me that.

 

Also - does anyone believe it's possible this is an extreme inflammation reaction from the approximate truckload of sugar I consumed on Thursday? I've been abstaining since the beginning of the year, but Easter candy is my nemesis...and I finally caved to the beast. Maybe after 4.5 months of being sugar-free, my body is just really ticked off at me right now?

[Tina R]

I am not a doctor and you may want to go get checked out because not being able to swallow could be serious. I have a similar issue when my spine is out of place. The back of my neck gets really swollen when this happens to me, and I have trouble swallowing and it's hard to breath. Mine actually stems from tight hips and lower back so once my chiropractor puts me back into place my neck feels better.

[JJB]

Thanks for your thoughts. I'm not having any issues breathing, luckily...I definitely wouldn't mess around if I was. I have never felt around my neck before, so I'm not sure what "normal" is, but in the area where my tonsils would be, I can feel lumps through my neck...so I'm guessing they are swollen.

[melbournegirl]

I get a sore swollen throat from sugar.... But you want to be careful where your breathing is concerned? Is the swelling going down?

[JJB]

No changes. It hasn't even been 24 hours yet so I'm trying not to overreact. Again, no breathing difficulties. I suppose I'll have to go to the doctor tomorrow if it hasn't improved. I can't afford to have trouble sleeping; I only get 6 hours on work nights as it is.

[praxisproject]

Get to the doctor ASAP, as well as tonsils, it could be something dental. Swelling is something to get checked out ASAP as it can lead to serious infection.

[JJB]

Heh...I'm still alive. I waited almost 24 hours and then went to urgent care. It seemed to be getting worse, although I suspect that was due to anxiety.

 

As it turns out, I know nothing about tonsils. They weren't swollen. The doctor found nothing wrong, no visible swelling anywhere to explain what happened. He had me take some cortisone pills, which did seem to help but not clear up the problem. The issue did not go away until I had been on Claritin for about 4 days. So.................this was just a brand-new-to-me symptom of seasonal allergies. This was the first year since I was about 4 that I had not had any allergy issues. I guess the sugar totally crashed my immune system and brought this on. I haven't gotten the urgent care bill yet, but they took x-rays so I'm sure I'm looking at $300+. All because I decided to have some Easter candy...SMH!!!