How Sick is Too Sick to Sing?

“The show must go on”, even when you’d rather be sucking down chicken noodle soup in your bunny slippers.  And for the most part, if you have solid vocal technique, you literally can sing through almost anything. How?  Well, good vocal technique builds a healthy, balanced voice and a strong mix.  And as you’re developing healthy voice habits and a strong mix, you’ll be amazed what your cords will do for you even when the rest of your body is screaming to disappear under a cloud of blankets never to return again.   (For the fastest, most complete instruction on technique I highly recommend private instruction with a Speech Level Singing or Singing from a Speech Level Trained instructor, including the coaches at Singing Success.)

If you’ve developed unhealthy physical or vocal habits like smoking, scream singing, straining the voice in performance, singing breathy all the time, etc., your voice will quit on you much faster once you catch that dreaded cold because it’s already been compromised.  It’ll also take longer to return to the point it was at before. So if you take on any gigs any time during the year that you’d rather not have to cancel, private instruction with instructors like the ones I’ve mentioned are well worth the investment to prevent having to sacrifice all the work and networking you’ve done to get a gig, only to have to cancel because you’re sick.

So back to the question;  how sick IS too sick to sing?  If your voice is weak, the answer is any level of sickness that compromises your voice.  If you get hoarse or raspy and have not built solid vocal technique, you’re more likely to damage your voice.  If you have developed a strong mix and a healthy voice you’ll find that your voice can still perform through most illnesses; far beyond the point where the rest of you just wants to climb in bed.  That’s the beauty of having a strong, healthy voice; you get to make the decisions instead of your voice deciding for you.

But there is ONE time that ANY vocalist should not be singing if at all possible; when you have a fever.  A fever is your body’s way of taking a serious step to fight something nasty.  Once you have a fever your whole body is engaged in the battle which means your tender vocal cords are at increased risk of damage.  A fever is the line in the sand showing you when it’s time to pull the plug and go home if at all possible.  Do people sing through fevers?  Sure they do.  But they also ride motorcycles without helmets.  It’s not smart, but they do it.  A fever is the clear sign that your voice is at risk. Don’t go there.

If you don’t have a fever and and are trying to sing through seasonal illnesses, here are a few things that should help:

• Throat Coat Tea (available online and at Walmart and most drug and grocery stores)  Throat coats has slippery elm and licorice root which are natural products that help that gunk in the back of your throat thin out and get out of your way.  Tastes much better than it sounds!  Drink cold or hot, but be aware that tea bags disintegrate faster than most.
• Thayers Throat Lozenges These also include slippery elm, licorice root and other natural products proven to sooth sore or swollen throats and help loosen gunky phlegm.
• WATER!  Getting and staying hydrated when you don’t feel well is a special challenge, but if you do it, you’ll enjoy much less gunk in the throat when those colds hit.  Green and herbal teas, like Throat Coat, count too!