Anchor with Laryngitis: HELP!

[Gonzo 77]

I'm looking for any sort of remedies or secrets you might have. Several times over the past few months I've been getting a cold which ends up in my throat. After a day or two or pain and drainage, I end up in a real pickle.

I start the day sounding OK, but by the evening newscast, I'm rasping like a bullfrog. I've gone to the doc, and he says it's just routine.

So, I was wondering if anyone had any tricks up their sleeves that might extend my voice life. I'm already cutting back on talking unless I have too, but it doesn't help.

Thanks!

[Produce man]

Ricola mouth losenges. Our anchor who smokes swears by them.

[Gonzo 77]

Thanks. As a final addition, I don't smoke.

[Randy Steinman]

Personally, the best thing I have ever found for a quick cure for sore throats/laryngitis is Slippery Elm. Thayer's produces it out of Westport, CT.

Drink lots of water. Some people swear off coffee when they have laryngitis. Others say it's actually good for your throat. I find I'm better off without coffee when my vocal cords are struggling.

Are you sure these are colds? You could very well have allergies, espy at this time of year. Symptoms are much the same. You might want to look into it.

[Pro]

Do NOT go on the air with a raspy voice. I don't care if the rest of you feels fine. Don't do it!

Why? Because the audience will be paying more attention to how bad you sound than with the news you are delivering.

When I was a ND, I had a female anchor who came in one day with a raspy voice. I offered to let her go home, but she said "It's just allergies, I feel fine other than that". So I let her co-anchor that night. Big mistake.

We got a zillion viewer calls calling us mean, heartless Simon Legrees' for making that "poor girl" work when it is obvious she was deathly sick!

[Signature on File]

Here's my granma's remedy.....Tablespoon of Honey and a shot of "Jack Black". graemlins/icon_pidu.gif

[On Air]

Lots of salt in warm water -- you gargle with it. It works for me, but do it right before the show. It doesn't last very long.

[wxgeek]

Hot tea with honey and a bit of lemon.

[wxgeek]

Hot tea with honey and a bit of lemon.

Works every time.

[Sir Dropham Pants]

You might want to get a second opinion. If this keeps happening, and your doctor continues to dismiss it as "routine," it may be time to see if it's something more than routine. It could be a cold or sinus infection that migrates to your throat. You may need something like a "z-pack," a prescription steroid that you take for about a week; each day a little less. If you're an anchor, you need a voice. If you were a photog and kept dislocating your shoulder, you'd probably want something done about it.

[Newzie52]

If it persists, you may want to see if it is possibly related to gastric reflux. I thought I had lingering hoarseness due to a previous cold but my ENT physician diagnosed GERD and put me on "the little purple pill" which took care of the problem. No heartburn - just persistent mild hoarseness; I would never have considered the GERD as a cause if I hadn't gone to the doctor.

Good luck.

[The Thrill]

Just sketch out bulletin points summing up each story's copy; then hold 'er up.

http://infoimagination.org/ps/election_2000/images_2000/russert.jpeg

[the original buttongod]

One part baking soda, one part salt, and one part brown sugar. mix well. disolve a teaspoon of this in warm water and gargle. Learned this one from a nurse years ago.

[Roy Hobbs]

Originally posted by Sir Dropham Pants:
You may need something like a "z-pack," a prescription steroid that you take for about a week; each day a little less. http://www.rx-2u.com/images/zithromax.jpg

Ah yes, the Z-pack. I know it well. Not only has it saved my skin three times but it upped my slugging percentage over .300 !!!
http://mlans.dynip.com/blogpics/2003-05/2003-05-10-wonderboy-thumb.jpg

[kydocking]

You might want to visit an Otolyrngologist and get checked out just to be certain that the recurring throat problem is not cancer. You don't smoke, so a chronic throat problem could potentially indicate other health concerns.

[Gonzo 77]

Thanks for all the ideas. I've already been to an allergist and ruled that out. The first few times I went to the doctor with this, he gave me a mild prescription for a sinus infection, which didn't do anything.

I've been trying the ricola lozenges and cutting back on coffee, and that seems to have helped. My voice is almost back to full steam.

[JOUR101]

I battled voice nodules for about a year. Here's what my voice therapist suggested, and it works:

1. Don't clear your throat, instead learn to swallow when you get that urge or drink a sip of water

2. Eliminate caffeine and alcohol

3. Voice rest- talk as little as possible, wispering is still damaging

4. Use a facial steamer (available at Walgreens for about $20) and breathe in the warm steam up to 3 times a day or before you anchor. It helps losen the vocal cords and removes any drainage

5. sleep with a humidifier to keep the cords hydrated

6. take a cup of hot tea or water with lemon(they actually make a tea for voice problems) on set with you. Drink it between reads to help flush any drainage

I also have to take Nexium like the previous poster mentioned. But voice probs for anchors are nothing to mess around with. I battled it for a year before I was able to rid myself of it. Now I can tell when its starting to get bad and take the steps to avoid losing it.

[s'news]

Originally posted by Gonzo 77:
Thanks. As a final addition, I don't smoke.Take up smoking. But make it menthol, for the Vicks VapoRub effect.