Saving Your Voice: Vocal Health During Allergy Season

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about finding your voice, on how wonderful and powerful it is to sing. I think all of us should be singing daily, whether at Carnegie Hall or in the shower, because it feels good in the body and the soul. I still believe that, but you know what? It’s allergy season. Now it’s time to talk about saving your voice. I love springtime, but the tree pollen and various grasses and weeds all tend to make me stuffy, sneezy, and, eventually, hoarse. Of course, this can making singing more difficult. Since I’m a music therapist, being able to sing is important. This means that this time of year, I’m putting extra thought and energy into protecting and preserving my voice. Here are the main things I do to preserve my voice during allergy season:

Nasal irrigation. This is my #1 tip for anyone dealing with sinus issues. I use this Sinus Rinse kit from NeilMed, with regular table salt since the packets included in the original kit ran out. You may also have heard of neti pots – these accomplish a similar purpose, although I’ve heard that they can be more difficult to use than the squeeze bottle method. I do this nasal irrigation every morning year-round, and I up that to twice a day during allergy season or when I feel a cold coming on. It. Works. Wonders.

Medications. I would be on vocal rest much more often without allergy meds. Talk to your doctor about which ones would be best for you.

Hot herbal teas. I usually choose something with lemon or peppermint, especially when my throat is sore.

Drinking lots of water. My reusable water bottle goes with me everywhere.

Chewing gum. I don’t do this during sessions or meetings with other professionals, but I do chew gum in the car and in my home office. It seems to help with keeping my throat moist and the coughing at a minimum.

Musical adjustments. I have no problem transposing songs to keys that are more comfortable on a day when my voice is shaky, or skipping certain difficult songs entirely. I avoid straining my voice, as I would by singing for a very large group or talking or singing over instrument playing.

Session planning adjustments. On days when my voice is weaker, I plan more interventions that involve less singing on my part – using recorded music, visual cues, and more musical direction from the guitar, piano, or oboe. I don’t usually like using a microphone, but on days when my voice is weaker, I use a microphone when one is available.

Vocal rest. When my voice gets weak, I try to treat it gently and rest as much as possible. Sometimes, this means reducing my workload for a day or a week while I give myself time to heal. It’s easy to feel guilty about canceling or postponing sessions just because I don’t have a voice, but I know that 1) I’m less effective as a therapist when my voice is not up to par, and 2) I have to take care of myself so that I can be effective as a music therapist in the long term

So, music therapists, what are your methods for dealing with the stresses and strains on your voices? Does anyone else struggle during allergy season?]]>

5 Comments

  1. therapeuticharmony on March 31, 2011 at 8:12 am

    Fabulous! Glad I could be an inspiration… ha! I’m on vocal rest ’til Monday, per my own doing. I hope it works!

    • soundscapemusictherapy on March 31, 2011 at 8:51 pm

      Thanks, Jessica! I hope your voice is starting to feel better.

  2. Kat Fulton on March 31, 2011 at 8:34 am

    GREAT POST! I just skimmed it (due to #WRAMTA11), but will dig in later! And thank you kindly for the link to my laryngitis post.

    • soundscapemusictherapy on March 31, 2011 at 8:50 pm

      Thanks, Kat! I hope you’re having a great time at the conference!

  3. Roia on April 5, 2011 at 11:47 am

    I can definitely relate, as I seem to have developed whopping allergies over the last decade or so. One thing I’ve read regarding herbal teas is that it’s possible for people with various hay fever sorts of concerns to be sensitive to certain herbal teas.

    My clients seem to have awful allergies as well, so we all just keep tissues on hand and manage through it somehow. It really is quite the occupational issue, isn’t it? Thanks for addressing the topic!

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