Getting My Voice Back...

I used to work in a call center for almost 8 years, and my voice has been a mandatory asset in any job I have held so far. I also always loved to sing. However, back when I was a child, I caught a virus that caused my first case of laryngitis. Laryngitis affects your vocal cords and makes you lose your voice for several days, if not longer. It seems like I have been susceptible to inflamed vocal cords ever since, especially when I happen to get a cold. Recently I picked up a new hobby, karaoke. Well, in the beginning I was a little shy and didn't strain my vocal cords very much, but my new confidence often makes me sing all out 3 nights a week these days. My vocal cords thank me with a hoarse voice by Monday morning. Then the work begins. After all, I want my singing voice back by the next weekend lol.

I have tried many known remedies, some more and some less effective.

Some methods:

Drinking lots of water.
Water keeps you hydrated and keeping you vocal cords moist is essential to retaining their function.

Anti-inflammatories.
Anti-inflammatories as contained in many pain killers and cold remedies like Theraflu will indeed reduce inflammation of the vocal cords and sore throat pain.

Honey. 
Honey is a natural antibiotic and healing agent that will also soothe the vocal cords. I usually let a spoonful slowly melt down my throat and add it to teas and milk.

Herbal Teas. 
There are many teas that will soothe and shield the vocal cords. Some of the best ones are slippery elm bark, liquorice root and marshmallow root tea, due to their ability to coat the vocal cords. Other ones are honeysuckle flower and ginger tea. An old tea recipe made from lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and cayenne pepper, sweetened with honey is also said to work well.

Steam. 
A hot shower with inhalation of steam from the water will moisten and soothe vocal cords.

Gargling hard alcohol. 
This is something that was recommended to me, but is to be used with caution. Apart from the fact that you don't want to be horribly drunk when you sing, alcohol can adversely affect the vocal cords when you are dealing with virus-caused laryngitis. However, the short-term effect of gargling hard alcohol is the ability to numb your vocal cords and temporarily improve their use.

Non-use of your voice. 
Like a doctur put it to me bluntly when I was a kid with a first time occurrence of laryngitis, "you just need to shut up for a while!" This is probably the hardest thing to do, but resting your voice is very important!

Reflexology.
This method amazed me quite a bit, as it appears to be very effective. It basically consists of massaging a pressure point located on the top of your foot, right above the area between the big toe and pointer toe periodically throughout the day. The 2nd diagram on this page shows where it is located (46).

Click here for more home remedies you can try.