0776 – Help! I’m Getting A Cold!

2023.02.15 – 0776 – Help! I’m Getting A Cold!   

Help! I’m getting a cold! (Or blocked nose, sneezes and sniffles, itchy mouth, catarrh, sore throat, dry cough, headache, hoarseness and general feeling of being unwell… it’s all literally a pain in the neck.)

During this period your voice will sound deeper, rougher and may almost disappear, because swollen vocal cords vibrate more slowly and unevenly. With a blocked nose, your sound will be nasally because of reduced resonance. And you will have less projection. Coughing will be slamming your vocal cords together at high speed.

Prevention - Using anti-bac hand gel on hands and surfaces, and not sharing cups and cutlery and so on will help. As will being physically fit in the first place with a good diet and exercise regime.

If you’re already infected:

Keep your nose and throat warm and wet

Drink plenty of water or hot drinks, and keep well hydrated to thin down mucus and wash away any inhaled irritants

Use a water-only steamer to reduce swelling of the mucous membranes

Turn off air-drying systems such as air con and air convection heating and keep the room humid

Beware OTC meds: they are ok in an emergency but decongestants don’t last long; medicated lozenges literally don’t touch the problem (although can help produce helpful saliva)

Some say gargling with salt water can help

Cancel any immediate studio work and begin complete voice rest - Talking can delay recovery even longer, affecting vocal stamina and quality for several weeks or even months. Don’t whisper!

Avoid irritants such as alcohol and smoking (including other people’s smoke)

Sip water and inhale steam to rehydrate and flush out the bugs

Instead of coughing (which irritates the throat even more) sip a drink or do a hard swallow

Mental and physical rest – to give your body a chance to recover

Eat plenty of fruit and vegetables

In ‘recovery mode’, short periods of talking but stop if your voice feels hurt or tired and build in plenty of vocal rest. Do some gentle voice exercises with lots of air such as ‘woos’ and ‘yawns’ (see below for more warm-up exercises).

Taking a couple of days to develop, it may be two weeks before you properly sound and feel yourself again. And for a pro, if your voice is unreliable, work may be significantly affected or simply impossible, which knocks on to your earning-power.

If your voice isn’t back to normal within 3 weeks, seek professional help.

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