Sore throat home remedies that actually work

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I'm an idiot- after getting a cold that lead to laryngitis early this week, I was mostly better on Friday. So of course I went out, hung out in a smoky bar until 2 AM, and now my throat is really, really, really killing me.

Remedies I've tried so far:
Drinking OJ: not working, I've had 1/2 a carton today
Tea + honey: not helping
Advil cold + sinus: also not helping
Running a hot shower & breathing in the steam: nada

Any advice for other medicine/remedies that might work? My friend suggested gargling with hot salty water, which sounds horrible, but I may try.

― lyra (lyra), Sunday, 28 September 2003 03:39 (twenty-two years ago)

Yup, gargle with hot salt water, and do it frequently, like twice an hour at first then several times a day. Orange juice is really acidic and will irritate your throat.

― Skottie, Sunday, 28 September 2003 03:44 (twenty-two years ago)

Ditto on the salt water gargle. Or an asprin in warm water gargle, if you're able to have asprin.

A herbal remedy I heard recently - thyme and sage steeped in boiling water for several minutes, the liquid then strained and mixed with some honey and then gargled/swallowed. Apparently is good for colds.

― Trayce (trayce), Sunday, 28 September 2003 03:50 (twenty-two years ago)

Yeah, the salt water thing has always worked for me if my throat is sore in that raw, abraded, coughed-too-much way. Someone explained it to me once, why it works, but I don't for the life of me remember.

The tea with honey thing is mostly for clearing sinuses (the steam) and for allergy-related symptoms, I think (supposedly local honey contains ... what, antibodies, antidotes, whatever, Good Shit ... against local pollen. I'm skeptical, but it's the only thing that's ever worked for my father's near-debilitating pollen allergy, so who knows.)

Pain-killers -- ibuprofen, acetaminophen, not headache remedies -- can take the edge off the pain. Ditto for topical analgesic sprays like Chloraseptic, although in my experience you need to keep using them pretty frequently if the pain is anything more than a tickle.

I've never had my tonsils out, but there's the whole bit with eating ice cream afterwards, I don't know if the cold is numbing or what ...

― Tep (ktepi), Sunday, 28 September 2003 03:54 (twenty-two years ago)

And if the smoky bar left your lungs in ruin, the I-just-quit-smoking-why-can't-I-breathe remedy might help: inhale as deeply as you can, pause, inhale again without exhaling, and hold it as long as you possibly can before exhaling. Repeat three times.

― Tep (ktepi), Sunday, 28 September 2003 03:57 (twenty-two years ago)

Hmmm, ice cream sounds good. I think I put too much salt into the water I just gargled with, but it might have helped... WebMD.com on salt water gargling seems to indicate that it's used to reduce swelling: http://my.webmd.com/content/healthwise/57/14180.htm

Also I just found a bag of Hall's throat drops under my bathroom sink! There are only about 15 left, but it should hold me until the morning. It's an exciting find, I had forgotten that I had any in my apartment!!

― lyra (lyra), Sunday, 28 September 2003 04:02 (twenty-two years ago)

bukkake!

― trife (simon_tr), Sunday, 28 September 2003 05:04 (twenty-two years ago)

I get bad sore throats frequently and my fave remedy is Thoat Coat (Kote?), a thick 'tea' that leaves a viscous coating on the raw areas of your throat... takes the edge off the pain, and it's a must before bed.

― Aaron A., Sunday, 28 September 2003 05:11 (twenty-two years ago)

Fuck sore throats. I smoked my usual two packs a day through a bad case of strep throat a few years back. Don't give in to the throat, is my motto. But then again, I'm an incredibly manly bad-ass.

― ScottRC (ScottRC), Sunday, 28 September 2003 05:46 (twenty-two years ago)

lemons are good for sore throats, oj makes them worse but lemons coat the throat with a nice lining ( the lemoy-acid seems to react upon contact with saliva, and go 'all nice and soft' ahhhhhhhh ).
squeeze a lemon into tepid water and either gargle it or drink it.

― donna (donna), Sunday, 28 September 2003 05:49 (twenty-two years ago)

Home remedies sometimes have a disturbing resemblance to petty torment ("it hurts? Here's some lemon and salt water ...") I'm not saying they don't work, but if I read in the paper tomorrow that Indian burns cure skin cancer, I'm gonna kick a doctor's ass just on general principle.

― Tep (ktepi), Sunday, 28 September 2003 05:55 (twenty-two years ago)

haha no, silly, not lemon AND salt water!
yuck.

― donna (donna), Sunday, 28 September 2003 06:11 (twenty-two years ago)

Naturally I woke up this morning with a terrible sore throat, and my sinuses feel like they've been injected with warm, sticky lead.

― Tep (ktepi), Sunday, 28 September 2003 16:11 (twenty-two years ago)

Oh no, I've sent sore-throat germs over the interweb! )-:

One of my friends stopped by this AM with a box of Throat Coat tea for me- very nice, but it wears off about 30 minutes after i finish sipping a cup.

― lyra (lyra), Sunday, 28 September 2003 19:11 (twenty-two years ago)

So far, ironically, nothing is working for me: my throat isn't sort in that abraded way, it's not tender exactly, it just ... hurts. So the salt water isn't doing anything. Haven't got any lemon. Tea helps a bit, but I've definitely got some sort of sinus nonsense going on, because everything tastes horrible.

― Tep (ktepi), Sunday, 28 September 2003 19:15 (twenty-two years ago)

This remedy from the West Indies is quite unusual but this tea actaully works.
1 teaspoon of honey
1 lemon or lime
1/2 garlic clove
2 tablespoons of fresh ginger

― Micheline Gros-Jean (Micheline), Sunday, 28 September 2003 20:17 (twenty-two years ago)

whiskey, folks, whiskey.

― teeny (teeny), Sunday, 28 September 2003 20:31 (twenty-two years ago)

ginger and honey tea. Also for sinuses inhaling vicks vapour rub in hot water.

― isadora (isadora), Sunday, 28 September 2003 22:43 (twenty-two years ago)

My sister's favorite remedy (she used to try to convince my mother to dose her up before school):

-Chamomile tea+honey+whiskey or brandy. Sears a bit and puts you to sleep so you aren't aware of your sore throat, I guess.

Personally, I suck on ice cubes and bitch a lot.

― I'm Passing Open Windows (Ms Laura), Monday, 29 September 2003 03:43 (twenty-two years ago)

one year passes...

What is it with sore throats in late September? I've got another one- ARRGGHH. And I have an Ultimate Frisbee game at noon tomorrow, which I'll probably still be to sick to play in. I'm currently drinking Drambuie which seems to be helping make it less painful. Or it's making me drunk so that I odn't notice the sore throat, which works just as well for me.

― lyra (lyra), Sunday, 25 September 2005 02:55 (twenty years ago)

Christ, I wish I could just have a sore throat and be done with it. But no, I gotta get sick for a whole week afterwards.

― jim wentworth (wench), Sunday, 25 September 2005 03:12 (twenty years ago)

1/2 vicodan with a hot toddy chaser with plenty of honey and lemon. Good for about 5-8 hours of relief and you'll get some rest too. When you wake, hot water with lemon and honey (ya it's hot lemonade) a vitamin C 600 mg with chicken soup. Should sleep again - take another 1/2 pill and then awaken and should be much better.

― Wiggy (Wiggy), Sunday, 25 September 2005 03:17 (twenty years ago)

I've been drowning myself in soup today. Just made some winter squash bisque with lots of ginger and a bit of cayanne pepper, and later I'm planning to make some curried carrot soup.

Jim, I hope you fell better!

― lyra (lyra), Sunday, 25 September 2005 18:26 (twenty years ago)

what's always worked for me is:

whiskey, lemon, honey, ginger, cayenne pepper in some combination.

whiskey numbs it up nicely, but brandy works too, use slivovitz or blackberry.

lemon, not sure why, but it does.

honey coats it, ginger sooths as it heats, and cayenne is a bit of an analgesic. obv dont use too much, but a little feels really nice.

i like to heat this mixture up a bit so that the whiskey steams and hits the sinuses nicely.

― AaronK (AaronK), Monday, 26 September 2005 12:47 (twenty years ago)

I didn't believe this would work, but: thyme inhalation. Fresh thyme in a bowl of boiling water, towel over head.

― Archel (Archel), Monday, 26 September 2005 12:50 (twenty years ago)

(trife totally stole my answer)

― The Ghost of Black Elegance (Dan Perry), Monday, 26 September 2005 12:55 (twenty years ago)

Allow me to join the hot salt-water gargle Greek Chorus.
Plus Chloroseptic spray.
And pity.

― Beth Parker (Beth Parker), Monday, 26 September 2005 13:18 (twenty years ago)

I usually gargle with soluble aspirin and it works well for me, but I wonder if adding a couple of drops of tea tree oil would make it more potent. I don't know if I should swallow it with tea tree in though.

― Mädchen (Madchen), Monday, 26 September 2005 13:27 (twenty years ago)

tea whiskey and honey for me too! it's my favourite. sooths your throat and also gets you a bit pissed after a few, so you won't care about a sore throat anyway! it leaves you with a glowy/giddy feeling.

bukkake!
-- trife (...), September 28th, 2003 6:04 AM. (simon_tr) (link)
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I get bad sore throats frequently and my fave remedy is Thoat Coat (Kote?), a thick 'tea' that leaves a viscous coating on the raw areas of your throat... takes the edge off the pain, and it's a must before bed.
-- Aaron A. (__...), September 28th, 2003 6:11 AM. (link)
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Fuck sore throats....[snip]
-- ScottRC (scottrc8...), September 28th, 2003 6:46 AM. (ScottRC) (link)

haha great minds think alike for you guys?

― ken c (ken c), Monday, 26 September 2005 13:38 (twenty years ago)

one year passes...

THREE FUCKING NIGHTS IN A ROW, why can't you just let me SLEEP

wishin' and hopin' ain't working for me :(

― Just got offed, Thursday, 21 June 2007 05:18 (eighteen years ago)

Gargling tea tree oil and warm water works. It tastes so bad though.
and, yuh, don't swallow.

― Drooone, Thursday, 21 June 2007 05:24 (eighteen years ago)

Most disconcertingly, the back of my throat appears to be coated with unseemly white blotches. Is this natural?

― Just got offed, Thursday, 21 June 2007 05:31 (eighteen years ago)

yeah, it is.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strep_throat

― StanM, Thursday, 21 June 2007 06:34 (eighteen years ago)

bugger

― Just got offed, Thursday, 21 June 2007 06:48 (eighteen years ago)

Oh. It can be something cool as well, though! Like throat thrush.

― StanM, Thursday, 21 June 2007 06:52 (eighteen years ago)

:'(

― Just got offed, Thursday, 21 June 2007 06:54 (eighteen years ago)

I thought you said bugger because you wanted it to be something unnatural and/or cool, sorry.

― StanM, Thursday, 21 June 2007 06:55 (eighteen years ago)

i just want my old throat back :(

i'm in a play as well atm. THIS ISN'T FAIR, Y'HEAR ME

― Just got offed, Thursday, 21 June 2007 06:57 (eighteen years ago)

Don't shout, that'll only make it worse.

A play? Can't you like, charade your lines or something?

― StanM, Thursday, 21 June 2007 07:06 (eighteen years ago)

(or whatever the verb for charades would be)

― StanM, Thursday, 21 June 2007 07:06 (eighteen years ago)

argh, streptococcal tonsilitis it is. bleurgh. currently dosed-up on strepsils, penicillin and paracetamol, just to be sure.

― Just got offed, Thursday, 21 June 2007 09:15 (eighteen years ago)

FUCK, I misremembered this thread and just drank a WHOLE LOAD of orange juice

― Just got offed, Saturday, 23 June 2007 01:00 (eighteen years ago)

I hear piss works wonders

― bernard snowy, Saturday, 23 June 2007 01:52 (eighteen years ago)

ten years pass...

halp

― Supercreditor (Dr Morbius), Tuesday, 27 June 2017 11:31 (eight years ago)

Big chunk of ginger, shred it and boil it in small amount of water for 20 minutes, strain out mug full of juice, add a couple of tablespoons of muscovado sugar, neck it as quickly as you are able to.

― Camaraderie at Arms Length, Tuesday, 27 June 2017 14:15 (eight years ago)

briney as possible warm water gargled
diet coke with thinly sliced ginger, gently heated

― dylannn, Tuesday, 27 June 2017 14:18 (eight years ago)

gargle saltwater every few hours, take two ibuprofen

― marcos, Tuesday, 27 June 2017 18:08 (eight years ago)

Any remedies that don't involve gargling?

― weird echo of the falsies (Tom D.), Tuesday, 27 June 2017 18:28 (eight years ago)

one warm shower then chamomile tea, lime and honey drank while it's still relatively hot (not scalding) a few times a day always did the trick for me

― i n f i n i t y (∞), Tuesday, 27 June 2017 18:33 (eight years ago)

drink large amounts of warm (boil in kettle, let stand) water

― -_- (jim in vancouver), Tuesday, 27 June 2017 18:35 (eight years ago)

oh that too

― i n f i n i t y (∞), Tuesday, 27 June 2017 18:43 (eight years ago)

Big chunk of ginger, shred it and boil it in small amount of water for 20 minutes, strain out mug full of juice, add a couple of tablespoons of muscovado sugar, neck it as quickly as you are able to.
― Camaraderie at Arms Length, Tuesday, June 27, 2017 10:15 AM (four hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I do the ginger tea thing but with honey and fresh-squeezed lemons. It's an old standby. Sometimes will add in cloves and cinnamon sticks.

I just learned about Fisherman's Friend last month and it helped me out a lot.

― how's life, Tuesday, 27 June 2017 18:54 (eight years ago)

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