Hey there, 

I find this post really interesting, I had covid the last week of November 2020 and first week of December. Since then I've had reoccurring sore throats and this past week I've started having ear aches. 

I feel irritation every time I swallow, my throat always feels dry and scratchy. Sometimes it feels like my necks swole and I get warm aches in it every now and again. 

It's literally driving me insane. I've never experienced acid reflux before covid, but I have been struggling with heartburn recently. Might try gaviscon like some people have recommended. Hopefully that will help my throat and ear symptoms. 

I've been tested again and the lateral flow test shows that I have no covid in my system, I doubt I've re-caught it. Think it's a lasting side effect? 

I'm only 24 but covid has completely knocked me on my ***

Stay safe out there <3

Can't believe how many people are having the same symptoms. Like someone else said, I have symptoms on and off - bad throat for several weeks now. It seemed to start with sore ear a few months ago. Interested to hear how people r getting on/treatment they r receiving, if any. I had antibiotics when I had ear problem but they didn't do anything. Haven't had COVID test - so don't know if I have had it.

So I had weird feeling inbetween chest and throat constantly for weeks and over past 2 weeks or so have had sore throat and sore ears, throat is on one side. 

I have now over last few days developed more typical covid symptoms, flu like and have had a positive covid test. 

I think I've perhaps been infected twice, maybe the two strains. 

I am hopeful it's all covid related. 

Very happy to have found this! Same symptoms as most have said in here, pain swallowing on one side, thought tonsillitis but 4 weeks later and post antibiotics still no change. GP at a loss, next steps will be tests I assume but I'm less concerned now of anything too sinister after finding this. With so much mention of Covid on here it got me thinking, and then realising does mask wearing have a big part to play in all this? Even changing masks routinely still could have a risk associated? Breathing into a masks sometimes for 30 mins or more with your own germs then harbouring in it and perhaps multiplying and then when reworn you're essentially breathing back in those germs.

Just a thought/idea that seems to go with the timelines of this thread and Covid/mask wearing.

Obviously masks are a good thing and save lives, I'd never advocate not wearing them, but I do wonder if they are a contributor to a lot of issues raised by myself/people on here.

I just thought I'd update people. I am still experiencing sore throat left side and ear pain (it's been nearly a year). I've had lots of tests but all comes back clear. I'm due to see ent again in a weeks time to discuss what else could be going on. 
 

at a loss now I'm just living with this daily and hoping that I get somthing sorted so I can not be in discomfort all the time. 

i have also found a small lump bahind my left ear which I'm going to ask them about. 

Really glad I found this discussion this afternoon as I am in a similar place to some people here. 

During the last week of November last year, I was eating some jellied sweets and all of a sudden, couldnt swallow them properly and didnt think anything of it.  For the entire month of December I had had a really bad toothache, I saw my dentist and she said I had receding gums and just to brush carefully. 

A week later, I went to bed and when I swallowed, my throat began to choke. Never experienced anything like it and I thought I had something trapped in my throat.  After speaking to NHS direct I went off to A and E and got checked out, I had nothing in my throat and was sent home. 

After feeling unwell all weekend, I paid to see an ENT, she checked me over and then performed an Endoscopy the next week. I was told I had some minor evidence of acid reflux and was put on PPI's and Gaviscon. 

2 days before Christmas, I was eating lunch and all of a sudden I began to choke when I tried to swallow and couldn't eat anything, sadly my Christmas lunch consisted of soup. It was probably about this time when I developed a sore throat. 

My tooth ache continued so Boxing Day, I went to a private dentist who I did a thorough job and said that my tooth was fine and gave me a course of anit biotics to clear the infection. 

Post Christmas, I contacted my GP, told them I had stopped eating and they made an urgent refferal for me to be checked for cancer. 

The sore throat has still lingered, for some strange reason last week for a couple of days, I actually managed to have some solid food in small amounts without swallowing difficulties.  This didnt last though, at the weekend I tried to eat some Salmon and then my swallowing difficulties started again. 

This week, I went to hospital and had a full endoscopy down to my stomach ( I wish I had chosen the sedation option for that) . No sign of anything cancerous, they took alot of biopsie samples and said that there was some resistance in getting the endoscope into my throat.  

Ive just had a CT scan done as well so am now waiting to see what all this means. 

I did think about Covid but never had any symptons, I was tested prior to going into hospital this weekend and it came back negative.   

I am still suffering from a sore throat and following my endoscopy, I have gained a brown tongue which I assume is a bacterial infection. 

So, still sitting here with this sore throat ( nothing swollen ) and swallowing problem,  I am hoping that I get some answers soon now. 

Thanks for reading. 

Firstly and like many others posting here I cannot believe the number of people with similar symptoms. Mine started with a dry sore throat 5 weeks ago which isn't clearing. It's worse at night and affects my sleep. Soreness severity comes and goes a bit. Swollen lymph glands in the neck as well as a constant dry stuffy/blocked nose. Doctor has prescribed antibiotics where I'm 2 days in. Had negative covid test as well. If the antibiotics dont worked told I will be referred to ENT specialist. 

Good luck everyone with your recoveries and thanks for taking time to post

Best wishes 

Mark

A week before Christmas I noticed that I had swollen glands in the right side of my neck.  It wasn't accompanied by any other symptoms and I assumed it would go a way after a couple of weeks.  By 12th January I saw an emergency doctor who, having felt the glands, said they weren't hard, but suggested I see my doctor to be referred for a scan or ultrasound.  As I'm locked down in the Midlands I couldn't return to London to see my doctor so I decided to change my doctor's surgery to one near when I'm currently located.  That onlly took 6 days and I saw my new doctor on 20th January.  He said he'd do a blood test immediately rather then send me for a scan because there wasn't anything really warranting a scan/ultrasound at this stage.  The blood test results were negative.

On 26th January I had STI tests, but they all came back negative too.

The swollen glands come and go just like most other posters here have mentioned.  Today I sneezed and suddenly the glands became very painful affecting my swallowing and causing pain in the right ear/eustacian tube.  This is the worst it's been.

I've been having regular tests for COVID-19 since October and all have come back negative including the most recent one on 16th January.

It's a mystery and I hope we can all find out what it is that's causing this.

Hello everyone!  25/m here It's a huge relief to find this thread as like many of you I'm experiencing a lot of the same symptoms. All started one week in early december when I had a possible covid exposure through my s/o's workplace. We both felt pretty lousy that weekend, minor sore throat, achy muscles, loss of appetite, low grade fever and we were both pretty sure we had a mild case of covid so we got tested and much to our surprise both tests came back negative, so we chalked it up to a bad cold or something forgot about it. We started feeling better after a couple of days so didnt look into it any further.

About a week after that the sore throat started up, but it wasnt like a normal consistent one, it's dry and achy and comes and goes almost by the minute, at first on the left side of my throat and then the right and now it seems to switch back and forth by the day. I have a slight cough but I  think its just from constantly clearing my throat and swallowing because sometimes it feels like something is stuck. sometimes the pain comes from the back of my throat and sometimes (more often at night) it feels like its radiating from my tonsils/jaw. My neck is slightly swollen and my voice changes a little bit here and there and like many others here my throat is red and looks irritated but no obvious signs of infection (no white discharge or pus) and my tonsils seem slightly enlarged and irritated but not like what I see when I google tonsilitus. I have been extra tired these past few weeks but dont know if its from this or the anxiety involved. I also have had on and off tenderness in both armpits and slight pains in my ear, sometimes its a shooting pain when i move my head/neck/jaw in a certain way and sometimes its just itchy/sore and sometimes not noticable at all. Its usually worse at night, when I lay down some nights I feel like I have a flu but just in my head. It also sometimes doesnt hurt but I have pressure on my neck when I look down or put my chin to my chest, and sometimes I keep pulling at my shirt because it feels like im wearing a turtle neck sweather or something from the tightness. I cant feel any hard lumps but I've also considered it could be my hurting my neck and armpits by constantly feeling for lumps out of anxiousness. I also occasionally get a weird taste in my mouth but not sure if its related

Its been about 6-7 weeks with all these symptoms and they seem to come and go and get better and worse day by day and and even hour by hour. I got another covid test a couple days after this started going on because I thought this is so weird it has to be a strange case of covid and yet again it came back negative. My symptoms seem get worse with stress and 3 weeks ago it was the worst when I decided to be dr google and scare myself in the middle of an already very stressful work week and that weekend I felt like I was hit by a train. Ive had some good days where I feel fine like I finally got over it and then it comes back the next.

I had a telehealth appointment 3 weeks ago and like a lot of people here doc first said GERD or Postnasal Drip, so Ive been on omeprazole, nasal steroids, and allergy meds since and it hasnt helped my throat. I just moved to a new city right before covid so I dont have a Primary care here yet so when I tried to get a new patient visit I was told no because of the sore throat and given an urgent care tele appointment. That doc said it definitely sounds viral and tested me for Covid, strep, flu, mono, HIV, and HepC and bloodwork all came back good/negative and she just emailed me saying your fine follow up with primary.... thats what ive been trying to do. Anyways finally got a doctors appointment for next week, although I doubt they are going to look at my throat so I am going to take some pics for them to see and demand to see an ENT if they cant figure it out.

I've been so anxious the past few weeks as I already deal with crippling anxiety and this has kicked it up a notch along with the pandemic. Im also going to see a dentist after my doctor appointment to make sure its nothing with my teeth because of the jaw pain, I never had wisdoms removed and one is impated and could possibly be causing an infection but the tooth itself isnt painful and the pain radiated through my jaw and neck.

I was also wondering if anyone here lives with someone who is expieriencing the same issues, my s/o doesnt have the sore throat but has complained about throat tightness along with feeling sick, achy, and extra tired in the evening, and I wonder if its something we are passing back and forth to eachother.

Wishing everyone here the best, Im sorry so many people are feeling this way but its so nice to know im not alone. I wonder if this is some weird form of covid or the post viral fatigue syndrome someone posted about above but I hope we all figure it out soon. Glad to see a lot of people getting negatives from ENTs so stay strong and be firm with your doctor if you feel like something is wrong. I will check back and update as I get more info. Sorry for the super long post but its quite cathartic to write this all down and share with people. Good luck everyone!