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Various Throat Symptoms, Worried

I've been having strange and lingering throat and ear symptoms for about a month and just want to get opinions without going straight to "It's definitely cancer!"

Below is the timeline and I have no idea if they are all related or not, but I'm including even the first thing that seemed to happen because that is actually still bothering me.

1. Around Valentine's Day I had intense itching in my left ear. It was so bad that I would wake up having dug at the canal in my sleep and it would be oozing sticky fluid. I felt like there was also maybe an abscess inside it at one point that went away. But the canal still feels tender and if I mess with it, it hurts, it seems to trigger an inflammatory reaction in my throat (weird) and will plague me for hours after.
2. About a week after that happened, I noticed a horrible taste in my mouth and puffiness on my gums and back of tongue on the left side as well. I also had an extreme case of dry mouth.
3. This morphed into a strange sensation that I've had before where the side of my tongue feels rough or bumpy or swollen but the next day it feels fine and I have another puffy swollen patch sensation in a new area. This will move around from my soft palate to my back gum area to my lower throat area to my far back throat area. Every day it seems to choose a new location.
4. I took some Amoxicillin I had on hand in case it was an infection and it did go away for about a day or two, then came back with a vengeance and morphed into a very sore throat. It was extremely uncomfortable. I couldn't even swallow soda because the fizz felt like razor blades along that side.
5. I looked in my throat at this point and it was a little red on that side and I had two blister-looking things one by where my tonsil should be and one up on the soft palate and white dots up by my uvula. The area where the white dots are were extremely sore. Like if I touched it it would send me through the roof.  Nothing looked overly swollen except a piece of what I believe is residual tonsil and even that wasn't really huge.
6. The sore throat went away very slowly over the next two weeks but then I noticed that the lymph node under my jaw on that side was swollen. I am trying very hard to not jump to worrisome conclusions and hope that this is a result of whatever infection caused the sore throat.
7. Trouble is now that I am still getting the strange puffiness that moves around to the locations I've mentioned. I'm getting itching on that side of the throat. Sometimes I get burning and stinging in the left ear.
8. I do notice that I have PND especially on that side. But can PND cause swelling of those tissues?
9. It seems like it feels fairly good when I wake up then flares up with coffee. And again at supper.
10. When my mouth is dry it seems to be more noticeable. Chewing gum almost eliminates all the sensations.

I'm just worried and wonder if anyone has had lingering issues like this and whether these things can be benign. I cannot bring myself to call the Dr. out of fear.
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Avatar universal
it sounds exactly like my symptoms, 2 years ago.  i have done extensive daily searches looking for an answer.  mine is a fungal infection, probably from taking too many antibiotics for the ear that is infected when i visit er or doc.  i have severe symptoms now, that cause me pain and anguish.  but there is a name for it.  no cure, but there is a test.  it is called Valley Fever, because no one can spell the name of it; that is my excuse anyway.  calling the doctor will cause him to think you are delusional; do not believe it!  i have a disease that doctors are ignoring.  if not for my research and learning, i would probably be dead by now.  
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Avatar universal
I'd be more afraid of letting an illness fester than seeing the doc.  You need a doctor.  And why would you take antibiotics like that?  You have no idea if you have something they are able to treat, and they meanwhile are damaging your immune system by killing off beneficial organisms that protect you from infection and digestive problems, and if you take it incorrectly you can create resistant infections.  I have no idea what you have.  The first things sounds like you had wax buildup in the ears.  The rest could be nothing, in your imagination, tonsilitis, strep, mono, who knows?  All of which you need to see a doctor for.  Have a good doctor's visit.
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1 Comments
she is right to hesitate on seeing a doctor.  they can do nothing about it because of lack of knowledge.  it ends up being a psychiatric problem, as far as doctors are concerned.  
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