Hi, I have had a persistent sore throat for a while now and was wondering what was causing it. It does not hurt to talk, swallow, or breathe. My lymph nodes are not swollen (under my throat or under my armpits), neither are my tonsils and they are not red nor do they have any indicative white spots or patches. Whenever I wake up my mouth has been fairly dry and hard to swallow, but that goes away quickly. It DOES hurt to move my tongue or flex the back of my throat (does not include swallowing).