I am a singer who recently made a deal with a recording studio. I have to record in 2 months. About 3 weeks ago I had a sore throat for about 7 days that went away and three days there after I began to sing again. Everything seemed fine for about a week up until one morning I was singing full voice and I felt a slight stinging on the left side of my throat. This made me panic because I thought it was voice strain but it did not seem to be affecting my voice it was just sore. As is the vibration irritated that one area.
So I freaked out and a few days later a bump occured a little lower in my throat, again on the left side. Interestingly my soarness seemed to come and go while the lump was there. I freaked out reading posts and researching, finally I went to the doctor who said everything looked fine. He told me it was probably a virus; he gave me a steroid. I took it for 5 days it did nothing. I continued to reasearch until I discovered ACID REFLUX. I was sure that I had it, and that the acid had burned mt throat. That made me panick more and for the next two days I started burping, which mad me thing that I had it for sure.
I woke up this morning worried confused and freaking. I looked up my symptoms on the internet and found that I had triggered many of my own symptoms by stress. I was so worried about acid coming up that I was swallowing a lot of air that built up in my system and caused me to burp and feel like acid was coming up my esophagus.
Here is where everything ties together. I still have that same tiny bit of soreness that I had 11 days ago, I know that I created the lump sensation and the air in my stomach that felt like ACID REFLUX... But I dont know what the soreness is caused by on the left side what feels like right behind my Tonsil. kinda on the roof of my throat.
I am looking for someone who might have experienced the same sequencce of events or a similar sequence. I have listed the possible causes in my mind below, compare and tell me what you think.
1) I have never smoked cigarretts but have smoked weed for exactly one year, a week before my strange soreness occured I started using a vaporizor, but 2 days before I got the sore spot I took a series of knife hits (which I will never do again) that I believe could have cause a small burn on my thoat in that area. (however I have taken knife hits before with no symptom anytthing like this).
2) I was singing out of my range the night before and the morning that I noticed the slight sharpness, that is why I at first thought it was voice strain. The thing that makes me think it is not is that my voice is not hoarse it souns beautiful and I can only feel it sometimes. Also I feel it when I swallow sometimes and it comes and goes which makes me think it is not voice associated
3) I kissed a new person pretty passionatly the night before, and at the time my throat was still golden, maybe I got some kind of a viruse from them?
4) I had just had a really sore throat from being sick only a week prior maybe my immunities were down and I got a small persistent virus that my body is still fighting away.
SOMEBODY HIT ME BACK ON ALL THIS, I want to figure it out so bad. I have read so much about persistent soar throats on the left side... what is that, how long should I wait before seeing a doc? I know I dont have strep but how long does a virus take to go away? Another thing that does not make sense is how the pain comes and goes? Could it all be psychlogical?
Some people even say stuff like this is a sign from God... WHAT DO YOU THINK. BE DETAILED... THE ANSWER IS ALWAYS IN THE DETAILS!!
Kenny
So I freaked out and a few days later a bump occured a little lower in my throat, again on the left side. Interestingly my soarness seemed to come and go while the lump was there. I freaked out reading posts and researching, finally I went to the doctor who said everything looked fine. He told me it was probably a virus; he gave me a steroid. I took it for 5 days it did nothing. I continued to reasearch until I discovered ACID REFLUX. I was sure that I had it, and that the acid had burned mt throat. That made me panick more and for the next two days I started burping, which mad me thing that I had it for sure.
I woke up this morning worried confused and freaking. I looked up my symptoms on the internet and found that I had triggered many of my own symptoms by stress. I was so worried about acid coming up that I was swallowing a lot of air that built up in my system and caused me to burp and feel like acid was coming up my esophagus.
Here is where everything ties together. I still have that same tiny bit of soreness that I had 11 days ago, I know that I created the lump sensation and the air in my stomach that felt like ACID REFLUX... But I dont know what the soreness is caused by on the left side what feels like right behind my Tonsil. kinda on the roof of my throat.
I am looking for someone who might have experienced the same sequencce of events or a similar sequence. I have listed the possible causes in my mind below, compare and tell me what you think.
1) I have never smoked cigarretts but have smoked weed for exactly one year, a week before my strange soreness occured I started using a vaporizor, but 2 days before I got the sore spot I took a series of knife hits (which I will never do again) that I believe could have cause a small burn on my thoat in that area. (however I have taken knife hits before with no symptom anytthing like this).
2) I was singing out of my range the night before and the morning that I noticed the slight sharpness, that is why I at first thought it was voice strain. The thing that makes me think it is not is that my voice is not hoarse it souns beautiful and I can only feel it sometimes. Also I feel it when I swallow sometimes and it comes and goes which makes me think it is not voice associated
3) I kissed a new person pretty passionatly the night before, and at the time my throat was still golden, maybe I got some kind of a viruse from them?
4) I had just had a really sore throat from being sick only a week prior maybe my immunities were down and I got a small persistent virus that my body is still fighting away.
SOMEBODY HIT ME BACK ON ALL THIS, I want to figure it out so bad. I have read so much about persistent soar throats on the left side... what is that, how long should I wait before seeing a doc? I know I dont have strep but how long does a virus take to go away? Another thing that does not make sense is how the pain comes and goes? Could it all be psychlogical?
Some people even say stuff like this is a sign from God... WHAT DO YOU THINK. BE DETAILED... THE ANSWER IS ALWAYS IN THE DETAILS!!
Kenny
Hi my name is Derek and I am also a singer experiencing almost identical symptoms to what you described. My voice has been hoarse in my upper singing register for two months and I've also been experiencing the sensation of a irritation (a lump, but it feels more like a small piece of food stuck in there) on the left side of my throat. Did you get any responses or get any information on what the problem might be? I have been taking prilosec and zantac for three weeks now because I thought I had acid reflux, but even after all the medicine my throat still hurts and my voice is still hoarse. Please let me know if you found any more useful info about your condition. thanks
I'm not a singer, I don't smoke. But the other morning I woke up with a sore throat. I've never had strep throat and my mom is a nurse and she looked at my throat and there was one white lump on the left side of my throat. She said, "Oh, that's a sign of strep throat." So, I was expecting to feel achy and to get more white bumps, but this lump just seemed to get a little bigger, it looked like a piece of food that was stuck there. So then, lastnight i was coughing worse then the past days, and when i came home, I looked and the white bump was still there but it looked like it came out really far and I just went to sleep, then I woke up in the middle of the night because of my sore throat, and the bump was still there, and I coughed a few times and the bump was gone. My throat still hurts, I have small red dots on the back of my throat but those have been there for a few days and they have stayed the same size and color. Now I don't know what to think, my throat hurts, and my cough is still bad.
hey. ever thought it was polyps in your throat? that can cause soreness. they're little blisterlike things that can pretty much appear anywhere. you might want to get that checked out considering your career. Its not deadly, but still.
I have had similar symptoms for 10+ years, almost 11. I wish i could tell yo uwhat it is, but this is my approach and what I've experienced:
I love to sing and have been doing it more recently with a group of other musicians, so my throat has become more inflamed recently (again).
It hurts and tires when i sing, talk, chew, use my tongue muscles to get food out of my teeth, smile alot, whistle, talk lower - i tend to talk at a lower pitch sometimes, (cry or get stressed - tightness / pain immediately settles in there), etc. I confess I also am a tense person and that tension seems to settle the most in the neck / head / shoulder area. Whistling gets the pain started immediately. if it's been forced more recently, then the pain settles in and just hangs out there more or less as a constant awareness to me that it's not gone away.
The pain is usually sharper than it is dull or general. it is specifically located in the upper left of my throat. sometimes, when i've pushed it by continuing to sing, etc. the pain begins to radiate to my ear. a couple times it's gotten so bad that's it's radiated down to the collar bone. the more i use it, the sharper it feels, i believe.
my steps:
1. i went to a first ENT who said it must be muscular neural of some sort
2. 4 years or so later i went to another ENT who did some tests: a) visually looked down and found slight red irritation likely from acid reflux b) had me do a cat scan to see if i had eagle syndrome. all symptoms seems to match that perfectly. but, the scan showed no extra calcification or growth in that bone (stylohyoid i think????).
note: apparently i have issues with gagging which is why he had to put the scope down my nose instead of throat!! is that why pills are such a frustration to take??
3. my latest step is to go to a speech pathologist to make sure that I approach daily talking correctly. also becuase i think he / she would know about more muscles in the throat / voice area and be able to suggest exercises to stretch or strengthen what's needed.
4. following this, i'm planning on looking into Speech Level Singing from Seth Riggs. I have a feeling that whatever it is i have is causing me to compensate in my singing therefore needlessly overusing the external muscles for singing which in turn continues to irritate things.Definitely definitely look into SPEECH LEVEL SINGING. that is a technique used for years to help singers sing stronger ans well as for therapy.
5. mostly, my whole life habits have changed in terms of exercising more, drinking more water, and eating more healthy / natural as well as choosing more natural solutions for medicine. i know this has helped bring my acid reflux down for one. natural health and foods work best by cleansing until they reach the root cause of things. this takes discipline to do and the healing process takes lots of time. but, it's one more thing that can be done and when it can be made fun and creative, it helps a ton.
hope that helps and that you're able to catch this post since it's been a few months since you've posted. any updates on your end? if you're reading this?
chloe
I love to sing and have been doing it more recently with a group of other musicians, so my throat has become more inflamed recently (again).
It hurts and tires when i sing, talk, chew, use my tongue muscles to get food out of my teeth, smile alot, whistle, talk lower - i tend to talk at a lower pitch sometimes, (cry or get stressed - tightness / pain immediately settles in there), etc. I confess I also am a tense person and that tension seems to settle the most in the neck / head / shoulder area. Whistling gets the pain started immediately. if it's been forced more recently, then the pain settles in and just hangs out there more or less as a constant awareness to me that it's not gone away.
The pain is usually sharper than it is dull or general. it is specifically located in the upper left of my throat. sometimes, when i've pushed it by continuing to sing, etc. the pain begins to radiate to my ear. a couple times it's gotten so bad that's it's radiated down to the collar bone. the more i use it, the sharper it feels, i believe.
my steps:
1. i went to a first ENT who said it must be muscular neural of some sort
2. 4 years or so later i went to another ENT who did some tests: a) visually looked down and found slight red irritation likely from acid reflux b) had me do a cat scan to see if i had eagle syndrome. all symptoms seems to match that perfectly. but, the scan showed no extra calcification or growth in that bone (stylohyoid i think????).
note: apparently i have issues with gagging which is why he had to put the scope down my nose instead of throat!! is that why pills are such a frustration to take??
3. my latest step is to go to a speech pathologist to make sure that I approach daily talking correctly. also becuase i think he / she would know about more muscles in the throat / voice area and be able to suggest exercises to stretch or strengthen what's needed.
4. following this, i'm planning on looking into Speech Level Singing from Seth Riggs. I have a feeling that whatever it is i have is causing me to compensate in my singing therefore needlessly overusing the external muscles for singing which in turn continues to irritate things.Definitely definitely look into SPEECH LEVEL SINGING. that is a technique used for years to help singers sing stronger ans well as for therapy.
5. mostly, my whole life habits have changed in terms of exercising more, drinking more water, and eating more healthy / natural as well as choosing more natural solutions for medicine. i know this has helped bring my acid reflux down for one. natural health and foods work best by cleansing until they reach the root cause of things. this takes discipline to do and the healing process takes lots of time. but, it's one more thing that can be done and when it can be made fun and creative, it helps a ton.
hope that helps and that you're able to catch this post since it's been a few months since you've posted. any updates on your end? if you're reading this?
chloe
I'm pregnant and have lots of acid reflux with this baby. I'm glad I've read your post, because I've also felt lately like there's foood stuck on the back of my throat and there's not. but looking at my mouth a lot, I noticed a red lump right behind my tongue. Doesn't hurt, but knowing it's there is bothersome. and yes, I have a little sore throat. But it defintiely could be related to the acid reflux.
The particular lump and feeling you're describing is exactly what I have, I was singing and went a bit out of my range and tried to push the notes and after the second or third attempt, I had a spot in my throat that felt fatigued which turned into a lump today. It doesn't affect my voice, but I can def. notice it when I swallow or when I feel the side of my neck.
I'm having the same problem! I'm a singer as well and over the last 2/3 years I haven't been able to go more than 3-5 weeks without getting a sore throat. Usually it only lasts a week, but recently it has been lasting longer and longer, and the space between them is decreasing. I'm talking days between one sore throat to the next. The pain is at the top left of my throat, and I can feel a slight swelling, or lump where my gland is. I've been freaking out, thinking it's cancer, but I heard that with throat cancer one of the main symptoms is hoarseness, which I don't have, and I've had it so long that if I actually did have it, I'd be doomed.
I've been to the doctor 4/5 times this year with it, and they blamed singing, and then said it might be a wee infection, and recently they gave me antibiotics, which did NOTHING, so I went back, and they gave me more (pointless much?) so I'm debating whether or not to take them. Honestly, they don't seem to have a clue! I don't think it's anything to do with a viral or bacterial infection to be honest. I'm so confused and sick of this.
Let me know if yous find out what's wrong!
I've been to the doctor 4/5 times this year with it, and they blamed singing, and then said it might be a wee infection, and recently they gave me antibiotics, which did NOTHING, so I went back, and they gave me more (pointless much?) so I'm debating whether or not to take them. Honestly, they don't seem to have a clue! I don't think it's anything to do with a viral or bacterial infection to be honest. I'm so confused and sick of this.
Let me know if yous find out what's wrong!
The little bumps on each side of your mouth behind your tongue are your tonsils. If they get swollen, with yellow or white bumps on them then you could have tonsilitis. When you get tonsilitis your throat will hurt and be very red and swollen and your neck glands can also be swollen. Some symtoms are having difficulty or pain while swallowing, redness, swollen glands, and a possible fever; pain in the ear is also common. If you have problems swallowing then you should drink lots of cold fluids, no hot fluids. You can also have icecream. Take acetaminophen or tylenol, or other over the counter pain medication. If it comes and goes it usually means that you are getting it more than once. See your doctor and he will check to see if the infection is viral or not. He will either give you medication or eventually you might need to get your tonsils removed. I might be wrong, but some of you might have tonsilitis, most of the time you won't know it and if your doctor doesn't do certain tests they won't know either. If you get them removed it should only affect your voice or singing for about 2 weeks and then it should be back to normal.
I m not alone it seems. I have the same small red lumps at the back wall of my throat for over 10 years, believe it or not. I remembered I felt a sharp sting at that area then and slowly all these came in very silently. I feel tightness in that area with some numbness. It seems to have its heavy days at times. I went to see numerous doctors & ENTs and got fed up with it. They either gave me some tablets or said there's nothing wrong. Yesterday, after eating some vitamins it came back heavily. This time a small burning sensation is felt and even some dizzyness. Don't know if it has affected my labyrinth? I saw some info that says it's called "pharyngitis". The lower pic at ***this post is edited by moderator *** *** web addresses not allowed*** of the pharyngitis section looks exactly like what I ve got. Does anyone know how this thing is developed or better still how to get rid of it? Is it a stress thing cos I m an impatient person but I dont sing at all. Is there a Doctor in the house please? Help!
Hey dude. There's also something like this going on with this guy here. I am a singer in a pop punk band. usually try not to go out of my range, but sometime I have to.... I noticed i had a soar throat for the past couple days and now I just looked in the mirror to see if my throat was red, and wouldn't you know it... a small little bump on the left side of my throat. It was hurting every time I swallowed, so i touched it with my finger (almost gagging) and then the pain stopped. its comes back from time to time. but its not as much as a pain after i touched it.... I was scared, cause I can not loose my voice. I don't know what I would do if I couldn't sing. So I found this. I am going to take a break from singing for a little and see if it goes away... if it doesn't, I will see a doctor. I will post what he says. I wanna figure this out as much as everyone on here. I'll do my best to help. I'm thinking it might also be a burn. I smoked hookah the other night and it was burning a bit, so maybe that has something to do with it. I'll hit you all up when and if I see a doc. Good luck guys!
Sounds like what I used to get when I was a kid - Tonsil Stones - your tonsil area is filled with "wrinkles". For lack of a better way to describe it, basically that white bumps is all the skin cells and gunk your mouth naturally sloughs away. But instead of falling down your throat, it gets caught in the wrinkles until it forms a big ol bump. Then eventually it dislodges and starts all over again. I can't count the number of times my grandfather tried to get me to the ear, nose and throat doctor so he could see it and tell us what it was before the darn thing fell out and I swallowed it. But it turns out it's not harmful - just kinda gross. LOL
I am not a singer but I have the same symptoms, the small spot stays there constantly but the pain only comes late at night and hurts when I swallow (only on the right side) a few days before the spot appeared I had a lot of alcohol and smoked ciggerettes and weed.
I have also the same pain starting from month earlier, it freaks me out I visit almost six doc & 1 ENT , but they told me its nothing . I dont know what to do, please share us if u get any solution
Hi Kenny. I also sing and this same thing happened to me one day I was recording around 30 Karaoke songs. This was around 2 weeks ago. I still get sore throat after singing it will go away and then come back after I sing. I think mine is just strain. I'm 65 years old too so the chords might be thinning out