diagnosed with acid reflux

lightning337

> Hey guys!

I was experiencing a "lump in the throat" feeling and semi soar throat thing going on. Went to the ENT thinking i had nodules. So the doc ran the nodule test (which is a wild experience) came up negative nodules, positive AR. Doc said prop your bed up like a hospital bed, watch greasy/spicy/caffeen/alcohol/cigs etc... dont eat 3 hours before bed... dont eat before singing. Which is dangerous, cause you dont wanna sing right before a gig and you tend to want to eat after then crash...but even the smallest amount of acid that can creep up on the cords can ruin your day. The diaphram does not cope well trying to create notes against circulating acid.

Anyway. Im just seeing if ken and his peers have experienced and conquered this. So far - day 4, not much improvements yet. Doc did not say to stop singing, but i dont know about that.

Carefull all you guys who havent experienced this! Watch that diet. Singing is definately like owning a Ferrari (or whatever crazy car). The maintenence demands may be higher, but the rewards and luxury and performance of doing it is higher than any instrument. Period.

If im lucky enough to cure this i will share. Be good!

sspatrick

Hey Lightning,  

I recently have had the same experience.  Except i also had small nodes, more than likely caused by dehydration, and a case of acid reflux.  I've had to seriously rethink diet, coffee, alcohol consumption.  And rest the voice of course.  It has been an eye opener.  to be honest, i was not experiencing any vocal problems at all.  the ENT said the nodes were tiny, and not to worry about them at this point(they would go away with vocal rest..  I have noticed a little improvement, its been almost 2 weeks.  Hopefully those small changes will help out.  All the best to you, you're not alone out there.

lightning337

Hey pat. Thx for the response! What kind of rest? Extreme rest? Never vocal problems before for you? I'm guessing you've been a singer for some time.

Keep us posted. I wish you well. I ain't goin down without a fight!

sspatrick

He said to rest a few days. A week if I wanted to. He stressed that it was not severe or threatening to my career. More than likely caused by acid reflux, rather than vocal abuse. I've been singing for about 20yrs, with no problems at all. Even less wear and tear since I started this program about a year ago. You can also get them from talking for long periods of time. I teach a lot, so really have to stay hydrated.

sspatrick

If you still have that lump in the throat feeling, or sore throat, take a few days off. See if that helps. I didn't sing and kept talking to a minimum.

pantero

lightning337 and @sspatrick Try flax seed oil!
What it does for me it soothes my restless stomach. If you are guy as Patrick and I, go only for flax seed oil, not regular flax oil. Regular flax oil is linked in some studies to prostate cancer, we don't want that.