You just had the performance of your life time; you sang with perfection and emotion. Then you walk off the stage, get a drink of water, talk to some fans, go home, and suddenly your throat feels extremely sore.
It seems as though someone is gripping tightly onto your neck. This scenario is not uncommon at all. Well, maybe the perfect performance is pretty uncommon, but I am talking about the sore throat.
There are a few factors that cause a sore throat after singing. However, if you are following the singing techniques we have provided to you, the chances of receiving a sore throat from singing become slimmer every day.
If you are trying to get rid of your sore throat or loss of voice, it is recommended to read this page first about prevention, and then read this page about getting rid of the problem: loss of voice after singing too much.
Table of Contents
Vocal Warmups
Everything seems to come back to vocal warmups, right? This is because they are extremely important and will prevent problems and improve your vocal abilities.
The more often you warm up your voice, the more your vocal chords become accustom to singing frequently.
If you start lifting weights at the gym tomorrow, your muscles will be sore the next day. If you lift weights five times a week for a month, you will not have sore muscles after workouts because your body will become used to working out.
The same scenario works for singing. If you start singing every day starting tomorrow, you may experience a sore throat. The chances of soreness will decrease with practice and persistence over time.
In order to practice properly and persistently, you must perform vocal warmups every day. Information on the importance of vocal warmups can be found here : importance of vocal warmups.
Sleep
Sleep deprivation is a problem that will not only affect your ability to sing well, but also your ability to perform regular daily activities. When your body does not get a good night’s sleep, it struggles to keep up with everything you do.
It is hard to stay focused, your reaction times become slower, you become drowsy, and your physical and mental abilities do not function at their best.
One of the greatest downfalls to not getting enough sleep is that your body is slower at rejuvenation. Every time you perform an activity, your body starts getting fatigued.
Every time you sing, your vocal chords get tired and must rest. If they are not allowed to rejuvenate properly, a sore throat, unsatisfactory vocals, and voice cracks are more likely to occur.
Therefore, the solution is to get sleep. It is recommended to get a full eight hours of sleep every night. If you do not have time to do this, make time! It is not only important for your voice, but also for your entire body’s functionality.
Do not worry, you can watch the new episode of Jersey Shore at an earlier time the next day (there are such things called re-runs).
Hydration
Proper hydration is a very important part of your daily life and ability to sing better. If you do not keep your body hydrated, you may experience headaches, overheating, and fatigue.
In addition to these disadvantages, your voice may sound dry and scratchy, and a sore throat may occur. This is because your vocal folds will also be dehydrated, and in turn will not function properly.
Water will lubricate your throat and vocal chords which prevents vibrational friction from wearing down the epithelial tissue.
We need water to survive, and often times people will choose a soda or an alcoholic drink over water. While this is okay, it is important to drink even more water every time you drink something else.
It is recommended to drink 8 glasses of water a day. If you drink a can of soda you should drink 9 glasses a day. You do not need to count every glass of water you drink throughout your day; keep drinking water as often as you can and you will most likely reach 8 or more glasses.
Also, drink water before and after singing. If you are doing a performance, bring a bottle of water on stage. Almost every professional artist drinks water between songs while performing; if they do not, then they are straining their vocal chords.
It will keep your vocal chords hydrated and will also allow you to feel more comfortable.
