I had this problem for about 6 months and it has FINALLY gone away. I'm posting this in case it may help someone else ... no guarantees, of course, but it worked for me. After several doctor visits and just as many medications, the gargling with warm salt water cleared everything up in a couple of weeks. That was AFTER I talked to my doctor and stopped all the medications because they just weren't doing much good. May have been a coincidence ... if you believe in those, but I can't tell you how much better it feels to have that "ball of cotton in my throat" feeling gone!