A December Tradition I Could to Without

So it seems it's become a thing for me that every December I suffer some sort of bodily discomfort. Last year it was a strange infection, and the year before that a sudden case of the flu. This year it's a sore throat that won't go away. Which wouldn't be that bad except that it's caused a bit of swelling to that thing that hangs at the back of your throat, and that makes things a lot more uncomfortable than they already are.

The frustrating part, though, is that I have no idea what's causing the soreness. I already had myself checked for Strep and it isn't strep, neither is it a cold. That leaves either allergies or dry air or - knowing my luck - both. And my allargies have a way of being too strong for allergy pills. It usually becomes tolerable later in the day, but in the mornings it's horrible. Right now I'm just treating the symptoms with some Dayquil and Nightquil, a salt-water rinse and, on occasion, some tea with honey. I also washed my sheets and vaccuumed my room to cut down on allergens.

But if anyone has any advice for dealing with sore throats and swelling (especially any night time remedies) I'd love to hear them.