Drugs, mm-kay

It seems like sometime around three to six weeks into the school year, immune systems are compromised just enough from lack of sleep, the stresses of classes, and the overall demands of college life that people start to get sick. Typically, we don’t think anything about taking medicine for a cold or for a headache, but medications often have side effects, some of which could impact the voice.

One way you can inform yourself about these side effects is at the website for the National Center for Voice and Speech, ncvs.org. Scroll down until you see the “check your meds” tab. Here you can look up medicines by their brand name, drug group, generic name, etc., and it will tell you if there is a specific side effect on the voice.

For instance, many cold or allergy medications have a drying effect on the voice. As the website says, “Dry mucous membranes can result in hoarseness, sore throat, and voice changes. Dry vocal folds may be more prone to injuries such as nodules.”

Headache medicine like ibuprofen is anti-inflammatory. According to the website, when taking this medicine, “Vocal performers particularly should be cautious during periods of strenuous voicing demands due to an increased possibility of vocal fold hemorrhage.”

Of course, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t take these medicines if you need to, especially if a physician has recommended them to you. But when you know the side effects, you can act accordingly to benefit your voice. If you take medication that will dry you out, increase your water intake and reduce vocal use. If you take ibuprofen, avoid the strenuous singing that could put you at risk for harm to your voice.

And besides the drugs you may take once in a while, you should also check any medications you take regularly, which could be anything from ADHD meds to oral contraceptives to anti-depressants to acne medications. Check your meds and inform yourself.

Now tell me in the comments how has your practice been going this week.

And then go practice.