remedies for a strained voice?

[prozac]

I'm the drummer on my dragon boat team, which involves a lot of screaming. Like, adrenalin-charged top-of-your-lungs screaming for 2 minutes straight.

Wednesday was our final practice before the festival this weekend and I hurt myself bad. It's even worse today. My upper register is totally gone and I'm all gravelly like Patty and Selma.

I need my voice for this weekend! Anybody have suggestions for a quick repair? I'm already thinking tea with lemon/honey/ginger... Any singers or actors or yelly people have any tips they'd like to share?

[Phrenetic]

dont drink coffee, it will fuck it up more

[Carrie]

Home Remedies For Hoarseness

[prozac]

^SWEET. You rule. Some of those look naaaasty though.

[Carrie]

yep.. my dad always said to put honey in hot water.. let it cool overnight.. drink it in the morning

but I can never wait.. I just drink hot water with lemon and honey

[stringbeans]

girl just shut your mouf

[prozac]

Sounds a lot better than onion and honey or hot water and cayenne pepper.

[Kraig]

Don't know about a voice, but when I've been sick and have had a sore through which has impacted my voice, hot coca-cola and real lemon slices added to it. Bring it to a boil and then drink.

Chinese remedy wut?! :-p

[prozac]

hot COCA-COLA?! Whiskey Tango Foxtrot.

[ebbomega]

ginger tea w/ lemon.

or gargling salt water. probably the most effective ones I've found.

[_bRiTt]

As for remedies, just resting your voice and not talking all day
tea may work, i used to drink peppermint or green a lot when i wrecked mine along with salt and vinegar ms vickies chips. really juicy oranges for some reason used to make mine better as well.
I would look into prevention, what do you have to scream? There is a right and a wrong way, there is a reason why some screamers in metal bands never get a sore throat. Learning to scream from your diaphragm rather than your throat you won't even have these problems. If it's something you have to do quite often try and find "the zen of screaming" dvd, it will give you some tips

[miss.myra]

I lose my voice full on maybe once a year. There are a lot of things to soothe your throat and make you feel less sick, but they will not cure your lack of voice. The only thing that works is DO NOT TALK, avoid it as much as possible. Don't even try to whisper because that can strain your vocal chords even more.

Remember the more you talk the longer it will take to fully recover.

Remember esi's bday when i had to write down my order? :P definitely had noo voice then. haha

[Carrie]

myra :

L O L

[Revolver]

hrrmm.....hot coca-cola?...thats interesting.

[galaxie]

Originally Posted by Kraig

Don't know about a voice, but when I've been sick and have had a sore through which has impacted my voice, hot coca-cola and real lemon slices added to it. Bring it to a boil and then drink.

Chinese remedy wut?! :-p

SO TRUE works like a charm.

Also honey in hot water or honey in herbal teas :) g'luck!

[miss.myra]

hot coca cola is for pussies!

do it in the true scottish tradition, warm up a nice dark rum in a saucepan and add fresh lemon juice and honey.

[dj_soo]

i heard drinking straight lemon juice works in a pinch. I knew some singers who would do that.

[prozac]

I was drinking hot water with lemon honey and ginger and carrying around a notepad all weekend. It helped but since I had 4 races I never quite recovered, I sound like Patty & Selma from the Simpsons...next year I am definitely going to practice screaming in a way that doesn't kill my vocal chords.