Singing Tips - Dealing With A Sore Throat

[john]

Hi

I am not a doctor, these are tips I got firstly from my mum (who was, amongst other things, an opera singer) and tips I picked up along the way.

if you have a sore throat don't keep pushing. Above all, don't use lozenges, pastels, sprays or rinses. Numbing the feeling in your throat is a very bad idea. Many rinses and mouth washes also contain alcohol, which dry out your vocal cords, making them more prone to being damaged.

Instead, hydrate (preferably by drinking pure, unflavoured water), REST and gently hum.

If you are mot singing and not planning on singing:

I ave also found that if I have a throat infection, alternating gargling with warm, salt water, and gargling with warm water and soluble aspirin is very helpful. Obviously avoid the aspirin option if you are allergic to aspirin!

If your throat needs soothing, and you are not going to sing, take a spoonful of honey and slowly let it melt in your mouth, swallowing just the melted honey as you go.

Cheers

John

[Mahesh]

Adding to what John has to say. I find that using the Vocal Fry at low volumes at different pitches along a scale is great vocal therapy for sore throats.

 

Vocal Fry is that very lazy croaky sound you make when your mom wakes you up for school in the morning and you say "2 more minutes ma". Don't over do it, push or do it loudly though. The whole point of such vocal exercises is to allow your voice to develop new and correct techniques. 

 

 

[Pahchisme Plaid]

Well this is helpful information.  I have a slightly different issue.  It's seems as though every January/February I develop a cough--sometimes it gets wheezy, especially toward the evening.  My throat isn't sore, but I have what feels like a place where junk settles near the upper end of the sternum.  I can sing, but I have difficulty holding notes sometimes or singing at a certain key because it triggers an urge to cough.  I use a humidifier at night and during the day when I am home and try to drink lots of lemon water and sometimes suck on candy, lozenges ( which I see above now is a no-no) or mints, and it helps sometimes and sometimes it doesn't.  Are there any tips to avoiding or over-riding the urge to cough, like breathing a certain way or using voice from head, throats or chest (which is something I'm not trained in and will have to investigate as well).

[Sreyashi Mukherjee]

Heya!

 

I came across this old thread but rather relevant topic. It's quite a challenge to try to maintain a clean voice all year-round. The best way to take care of a sore throat is to avoid getting one.. LOL. Apart from taking precautions against the weather and other environmental factors, what we eat or drink has a direct relation with the state of our voice. If we just pay attention to this, we'll know immediately what works and doesn't work for our voice. For example, I've noticed that the moment I take in something that's on the spicy or pungent side, my voice starts getting hoarse. So, I eat at my own risk

 

I have a similar problem of catching a persistently bad cough almost every year between December and February; this may have something to do with smog allergy. I, too, feel that the best thing to do is not to push the voice at such times and just give it lots of rest. But if one does need to perform, then here are two things that I've seen working for me:

1) Sipping (not gulping) on warm water - it soothes my throat and also helps with my lung congestion problem

2) Working the song around the voice and not the other way around - This way the voice gets to be used in the way it is most comfortable in at that moment and the audience can still hear good music! 

 

Hope it helps.

[TCgypsy]

4 hours ago, HoboSage said:

When my throat gets sore, I just talk and sing out of my ass.  Okay, I do that even when my throat isn't sore. 

 

LOL!  Don't use the same mic you normally do....

 

I just avoid singing when I have a sore throat if possible. Vocals are necessary evil for me, so I only sing when I finally run out of guitar ideas :-p For you people with great voices, I hate you!

 

Peace,

TC