Here are some tips learned over the years about singing when you're sick. Schmantsy disclaimer: we aren't doctors. We don't even play one on tv. Seek a doctor is you have a serious medical condition. This is advice from one "layperson" to another, on a typical common cold-type illness. If your voice is affected, you should visit an ear, nose and throat specialist. You could have or develop tears in the cords or hemorrhaged blood vessels. A doctor’s opinion is critical in planning a successful recovery.
1. It isn't rocket science: if you can avoid it, don't sing at all. This is the best for your voice when you're sick. You can do physical damage to your vocal cords, which swell during an infection. You also don't sound your best. During our winter performances, several of us were sick. By the last performance, two of us could barely sing with the terrible plague which had descended on our houses. Because of our group's size, we pushed through. But when notes are not going to reliably come out or your tone is shot, sometimes its best to lip sync when you're in a choir situation. Just don't think of yourself as looking like a fish gulping for air if the sound suddenly went out, or guaranteed it will give you the giggles. Being a small group of only eight singers, this was more obvious than a larger choir of 50+, but according to the audience the "fish face" was not too obvious.
2. Coughing expels phlegm from your throat and lungs. which is a good thing. It also causes the vocal cords to vibrate every time you do it. Try not to cough and further strain your vocal cords. Instead, when you feel a cough coming on, try humming through it to relieve that "tickle" and urge or clearing your throat. Cough like a genteel Southern belle, not like a backfire from the General Lee.
3. Vocal warm ups are especially important when you're sick. The more you exercise those vocal muscles, the more flexible they remain. You should take extra time, as much as double of what you would normally do. Stick to exercises which do not strain your range or vocal dexterity. Scales and easy intervals are good exercises to stay with. This is not the time to belt along with Adele or Beyonce, you've got plenty of opportunity to do that when you are back in top form. Starting with humming and working your way into easy exercises is a good idea, too. Give your voice breaks of a few minutes every few exercises. If you find your voice weakening, stop for a few minutes and drink a whole glass of water before trying it again.
4. Don't use antihistamines in the hours right before a performance. They are great for relieving the congestion symptoms to slog through everyday life, but they dry out mucus membranes. Mucus and saliva are a natural moisturizer for the mouth, nose, and throat. Dry vocal cords have a harder time hitting higher notes, and your tone and pitch will both suffer for it. A dry tongue is bad for several reasons. It feels uncomfortable in your mouth and makes enunciation a challenge. Antibacterial agents in saliva also kill and wash out bacteria which make sulfurous compounds (sulfur smells like rotten eggs) and if you don't have enough saliva your breath may slay dragons, much less those singing around you.
5. Instead of antihistamines, there are natural decongestant options. Steam treatment can be very effective. You fill a large bowl with steaming hot water, place on a flat surface about table height, take a towel and drape it over your head and the bowl (creating a "tent",) and inhale for 20 minutes. Steam treatment also soothes your vocal folds. A Neti pot can clear clogged sinuses with warm saline water. If you've never heard of a Neti pot, it looks like a small tea kettle. You fill it with warm saline, tilt your head at an angle and insert the spout in one nostril, and tilt the pot until the water runs into your nostril. Believe it or not, the water will come out your other nostril after traveling through your sinus cavity. You can purchase Neti pots in many drug or homeopathic medicine stores, and they come with instructions on how to tilt your head, etc. Rite Aid sells them for around $10. Yes, the whole Neti pot idea sounds disgusting... but it really works to provide instant relief. If it's cold outside, wear something over your mouth and nose when you are outside. Inhaling cold air will irritate your lungs and throat and cause coughing.
6. Drink lots of warm or room temperature clear fluids like water or natural juices. Cold acts as a constrictor, meaning it shrinks things; that's why there are ice cream headaches but not hot tea headaches. Avoid carbonated or sugary drinks. Being hydrated will thin the mucus and help you be less congested. Fluids will keep everything lubricated and help you hit notes and have maximum vocal dexterity. Caffeine is a natural diuretic, which means it naturally flushes water out of your body and therefore does the opposite of what you want. Caffeine also acts like a steroid on vocal cords and has a similar effect to a throat numbing spray. While this may feel good if you have a scratchy throat, this can be very bad because you won't feel if you are straining your swollen vocal cords. As much as having a shot of Jack Daniels may make you feel no pain and give liquid courage, alcohol dehydrates and will make your throat drier.
7. If your throat is sore, gargling for 20-30 seconds with warm salty water can really help. Avoid spicy or salty foods that will irritate your throat. Avoiding dairy is also an old stand-by recommendation. Dr. Richard Nance, the seasoned choral director at PLU, gives the following hot drink recipe to soothe a sore throat and hoarse voice:
Nance's Nasty Remedy
2 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
2 tbsp Honey
2 tbsp Lemon Juice
2+ tbsp Tang, to taste
Add ingredients to a mug of hot water, stir well. Drink as you would tea.
The acidic elements, vinegar and lemon juice, work to break up phlegm and astringents to decrease swelling. They contain different kinds of acid, so you need to use both. The honey is both a natural antiseptic and soothes. Tang has Vitamin C, helpful for your immune system, and makes the drink palatable.
8. You can try a throat numbing spray or lozenge that are available over the counter, but you shouldn't be taking multiple doses. If your throat is numb, you can't feel if you are damaging your voice by overusing or straining it. Another helpful tip from a friend is to minimize talking when you're not singing, especially between acts or sets.
9. Get lots of sleep. Naps can be very powerful in allowing your body to work in healing itself in short bursts. Sleep in a warm room, with a humidifier on if you have one. You have to give your body the opportunity to heal itself. We've all been there, where we didn't have time to be sick. Your body may give you no choice in the matter if you don't pay attention to the signals it is sending and you end up even sicker. You need to listen to what your body is telling you to do.
10. If you're working in a situation where you have stage or in-ear monitors, make sure they are balanced and a little louder than normal so that you don't have to force your voice. This will also help if your ears are stuffed up and you can't hear as well.
Those are our top tips on singing through a cold. It won't be easy, but with preparation and taking care of yourself you can make it through it to sing another day. And that's what its all about for a singing nut, right?
