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getting over the flu
kkindle
Pro Posts: 25
hey guys i just got over the flu i actually had ear infection stuffed nose
sore throat fever and alot of dark yellow mucus sorry for getting so detailed lol
well the fever subsided
but the ear pain and nasal and chest congestion have stayed i am taking anyibiotics
but my question is this
i been pushing through the workouts while sick
and i noticed today when i went to do my workouts that for some reason while i was stretching chest i couldent push the volume as loud as i can usually get it
so i was wondering with the congestion and all is it possible my cords could be swollen from being sick
should i lighlty work my volume back up to were it was and if they are swollen is there a way to fasten the healing process ?
sore throat fever and alot of dark yellow mucus sorry for getting so detailed lol
well the fever subsided
but the ear pain and nasal and chest congestion have stayed i am taking anyibiotics
but my question is this
i been pushing through the workouts while sick
and i noticed today when i went to do my workouts that for some reason while i was stretching chest i couldent push the volume as loud as i can usually get it
so i was wondering with the congestion and all is it possible my cords could be swollen from being sick
should i lighlty work my volume back up to were it was and if they are swollen is there a way to fasten the healing process ?
Comments
Yes, you may very well have swollen cords from your illness. If that is the case, then you will need some time for your body to simply get through this viral condition.
Don't PUSH your voice while in this condition.
As you are able, sing very lightly until you are past the effects of this crud. When you notice yourself sounding a little better and feeling a little better, then you may want to resume leaning into the sound a little more.
Bob
being sick is a terrible thing while trying to get good at vocals
i think im starting to bounce back although im kinda having issues
after my fever broke and now that the rest of the symptoms are gone my voice is starting to go and everytime i try to bridge my voice just straight cuts out. i never experianced this before so im not sure whats happening hopefully im good to go in a few days
Stay with the light singing and don't push. Some of these viral illnesses can take weeks or more for your voice to fully snap back. Once you're completely over it, your voice will be as good as ever and ready for more.
Bob
i will stick to the simple exercises for sure
i have found today that i can do them all in chest but found after i kicked the flu i cant access my head voice for some reason
is the any simple explanation for that? just out if curiosity
Often there are various side-effects of the main illness.
I will list a few. I remember last year I had the crud that lasted about 6 weeks in surges, and then after-effects lasted more than a month after that.
Illnesses can cause dehydration, which can lead you to overuse your cords, because dry cords are subject to abuse.
Swelling of the cords can occur through sore throats or coughing. Bad coughs just tear up your vocal cords, over and over again, and you often just can't stop the coughing.
Coughs are often associated with the enemy of the voice: Mucous. Some throat viruses have really nasty phlegm that coats the cords and stops them from functioning properly. A glue-like consistency causes more coughing and dampens the ability to access the upper midrange or highs. Likewise, swelling of the cords has that same effect.
When you feel lousy or dry, drink tons of room-temperature water. You need to wash the bad bugs out of your body and keep your cords moisturized.
These nasty viruses and illnesses are a good reason to live a clean life, eat healthy foods, stay well-hydrated and physically fit and active to the fullest extent possible. Your voice also needs to be built-up and buff from your KTVA program as well. That will help you to bounce back in the minimum time.
While you are ill, only do light vocal exercises until you are feeling better and singing better. If you are hoarse, stop and give your voice a full break from singing until you are better.
Bob
Weakness causes an overall susceptibility to all manner of additional illnesses or colds.
and by the sound of it
from what you stated above
my cords were taking a beating
as i was coughing nonstop for 4 days straight on top of spitting some nasty stuff up
so no wonder i couldent access the higher notes
thanks for the info once again bob i hope i can use this to help others in the future
The other aspect of this type of illness that I neglected to include is the involvement of the ears. The inner ear and the throat are connected by the eustachian tubes, which we use to equalize the pressure difference between the outside environment (which includes our throat) and the inner ears.
When we have infection or a virus in our throat, the swelling in our throat can close these tubes off. That can cause pressure on our inner ear, which can also create earaches or difficulty hearing properly.
Coughing and sneezing can launch bad stuff up into these tubes and create hearing issues in addition to throat and vocal cord issues.
Likewise, if we are losing fluids through fever, being around heating units in wintertime, throwing up, or having gastrointestinal issues, we can find ourselves rapidly dehydrating. This will affect our vocal cords immediately. Our cords require constant hydration to be maintained. Diuretics such as coffee, beer, and soda can rapidly rob us of vital h2O.
So once we get stuck on the illness scary-go-round, we can have ear problems one day, a sore throat the next, and then maybe coughing and cord swelling or drying.
It is vital to do whatever we can to remain strong and to eat and drink the right things, while avoiding irritants and just plain unhealthy living. You need your resistance to illness so that you can bounce back in the least amount of time when you are under attack.
Bob
It only lasted for a day but I was to sing the C2 very clearly and easily (normally a baritone who can't go below F2). And it sounded pretty good.
Interestingly, while my mid and upper chest choice was breaking and weak, my upper head voice also expanded.
For the first time ever, I could sing the C5 and D5 relatively easy.
Although, it had a very light thin "door squeaky" sound, it was definitely not falsetto.
But it all went away after a day. :-(
Not sure if all that extra range was a fluke of the cold or something that is potentially reproducible.