Sorry to hear you're feeling so crappy, Kay.

Have you tried just plain old aspirin? Not only will it help with the pain, but it helps keep swelling down too. I was also going to suggest the salt water gargle, but I see you've done that already.

I'm glad you're getting it checked out though, because it could be strep throat which is no fun (as you can tell) and can be cured with antibiotics.