Vocal Tip
As winter approaches the mystery of the larynx raises its fascinating head, so I thought I would run through a very useful tip.
Firstly, one needs to realise that the larynx is not in the throat. It is actually at the top of the passage that leads to the lungs. So, the first thing to know is that any liquid you may consume, or lozenges you may suck will have NO DIRECT EFFECT on the larynx whatsoever.
Don’t be fooled.
This is not to say that the lozenge won’t help soothe the throat, but will they help the vocal folds? No.
This leads to the second point that you can not ‘feel’ the larynx. Therefore, when you have a sore throat, that does not mean your voice is affected. Likewise, if you have swollen vocal folds, your throat may not be sore.
Having said that, they are not totally mutually exclusive. For instance, if you have a sore throat, the infection may go drip down and spread to the larynx. Likewise, from the other direction, if the lungs are inflamed and you cough and this will swell the vocal folds. Those vocal folds are the middle man/woman in the sandwich!
So what can you do. Well, the one thing that will help that larynx is STEAM!
Now, the old-fashioned way was to put a towel over your head and use a big bowl of steaming water. – Not really helpful at the computer.
So, here’s a video to show you a better way.
Tools:
Cup of boiling water
Envelope
Scissors
Instructions:
Pour boiling water into the cup
Cut a sealed corner off the envelope
Place the envelope over the cup
Suck for 5 minutes every hour
If that’s too difficult, here is a video. Click on the picture.
Good luck with winter and do look after yourself.
