When does your throat stop hurting with strep?

If you’ve ever had strep throat, you know how painful it can be. Swallowing feels like a chore and talking is just plain torture. But fear not! There is an end in sight for your sore throat woes. Let’s explore when your throat will stop hurting with strep.

What Is Strep Throat?

Before we dive into when the pain will end, let’s understand what causes it in the first place. Strep throat is caused by group A Streptococcus bacteria infecting your tonsils and pharynx (back of the throat). It typically presents with symptoms such as:

• Severe sore throat
• Difficulty swallowing
• Headache
• Fever
• Swollen lymph nodes

How Long Does The Pain Last?

Now, onto the burning question – when does your throat stop hurting? Unfortunately, there isn’t a clear-cut answer to this question as it varies from person to person and also depends on how quickly treatment begins.

Without Treatment

Without any form of medical intervention i.e., antibiotics or over-the-counter relief medication, most people start feeling some level of relief from strep infection within three to four days of getting infected (or so they say). However, you must remember that this doesn’t indicate complete resolution – rather it means that there has been some reduction in symptom severity.

On average though (and don’t quote us because our lawyers are still unsure whether giving out estimated timelines counts as malpractice) untreated strep should take about seven days before total symptom resolution occurs (emphasis on ‘should’).

With Treatment

Provided appropriate treatment measures have commenced early enough (typically within 48 hours) after onset of presentation with symptoms), patients usually begin improvement between two and three days following initiation (just like magic right?).

Antibiotics usually kick in quickly and begin to rapidly reduce the severity of symptoms. However, it’s worthy to note that even after starting antibiotics, pain may persist for some time due to the buildup of scar tissue on your tonsils.

Can Strep Throat Come Back?

YES!! Don’t get too excited yet – repeating strep infections occur frequently unless treated comprehensively with an appropriate antibiotic regimen prescribed by a qualified health care provider (don’t self-medicate please).

Recurrent strep cases often result from:

• Tonsillitis (inflamed tonsils)
• Chronic sinusitis
• Infected adenoids
• Allergies

If you experience one or more recurrent episodes within six months of initial presentation or four episodes within twelve months, doctors typically recommend surgery – such as a tonsillectomy (owch)– in order to prevent future recurrences.

Tips To Soothe A Sore Throat…

While waiting for your throat to stop hurting with strep infection, there are some measures you can take at home that could significantly ease discomfort. These include;

Drinking Warm Beverages

Sipping warm drinks like tea or soup may help soothe soreness because they provide moisture and warmth that helps lubricate a dry throat (though if anything else it gives something hot go down your pipes which might make swallowing less painful temporarily?). Adding sweeteners such as honey is also believed by some people generally considered safe during childhood to aid cough loll hard candies otherwise known as HOREHOUND candy (we swear we aren’t making this up!)

Gargling With Salt Water:

Another common practice is gargling salt water solution made from dissolving half teaspoon table salt into 8 ounces (1 cup) warm plain tap water several times daily while trying not ingest so much oceanic sodium chloride without vomiting sounds good??

Eating Cold Food Items:

While warm beverages provide comfort for some people, others prefer the cold sensations provided by refrigerated food and drinks like popsicles or ice-cold water (iced sorrel if you’re from Barbados). While this temporarily deadens sensation in the mouth they also make it quite frosty.

Over-The-Counter Medication:

Various pain relievers are often recommended to reduce throat soreness up to a point. You know them: motrin , ibuprofen, aspirin (ever heard of paracetamol?) or even cough drops/syrup that coat your throat..

In conclusion, on average, with proper medical treatment you should begin feeling better within 2-3 days of starting antibiotics. It’s essential that patients finish their course of medication despite symptom improvement as prematurely discontinuation encourages development of antibiotic resistant bacteria across populations.

Strep throat is an unpleasant experience – no two ways about it. But with the right approach towards managing symptoms effectively and preventing future recurrences altogether (if possible), asides from tonsillectomy surgery which sometimes alleviates severe recurrent cases… relief could be just around the corner!