Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Here's the deal.

I have preached at least three times a week for the last 9 years.

That adds up to around 1400 sermons that average around 35 minutes.

That total does not incude personal bible studies.

I am thinking I may have overused my voice.

For the past two months I have struggled mightily with my throat/voice.

It comes and goes in spurts.

However, today it is so bad I can barely speak.

Have you guys ever experienced this?

What do you do to combat it?

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Are you a SCREAMER??

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

These past two months, there has been a deluge of colds and sore throats going around Ed.

Maybe you been fighting some of them bugs.

I've had three colds in 2 months. I just seem to get over one and get hit again.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

I am really, really worried.

So much so that i am thinking about scheduling guest speakers for the whole month of April.

We haven't had a guest speaker for almost a year.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Stop screaming, and drink way more water. cut back on diuretics.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Not usually.

I rarely scream.

I mean I get excited, and I can get a bit loud every now and then, but I am not a screamer.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

What are dieretics?

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Oh Kewl, I can come Easter Sunday. Are ya needing revival brother?

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

I hope that's all this is.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Seriously?

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Sorry - that should be diuretics.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diuretic

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

You seriously need revival? j/k kinda busy easter sunday ;-)

This might help, us singers use this to help our golden pipes.

"When the pipes get scratchy use the following:

3 tablespoons liquid honey
2 ounces of lemon juice (pure)
2 teasponns of granulated sugar
1 Xtra large cup

Boil water, add ingredients, pour hot water in cup, stir until honey is disolved....drink it while it is hot and drink it as hot as you can stand without burning your mouth. Do this once every 2 hours on preachin' day and your scrathy throat will be clear."

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Do you guys think it would be wrong of me to schedule guest speakers for a whole month?

I've never done such a thing, but I'm wondering if maybe I should.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Nope, maybe that's what God has in mind?

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

I don't think this is wrong at all. If you don't take care of yourself now, you may jeapordize your ability to preach at all in the future. I would just let the church know that you have strained your vocal chords and need to rest them in order to proceed in good health. Any reasonable person should be very understanding of this.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

use a microphone instead of SCREAMING??? :ursofunny

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

why do some churches only have/allow one person to preach? Other people have gifts and callings too

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

I went through something very similar a few years ago. It got so bad that I finally went to the doctor. He told me that during my sleep acid from my stomach had come up and "burned" as he described it my vocal chords. From this, he stated that I had scar tissue on the vocal chords that would require very expensive and very risky surgery to fix.

A couple of months later I was in service and God instantly healed me, I have never had the problem again.

If you wake up occasionally with acid in your throat it may be the same thing, It can be treated with anti-acids before you go to bed, and may go away just by preventing that.

At any rate I will be praying for your healing!

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Dude! You are a stud preacher! 35 minutes?

But seriously... I had it down to 45 minutes on the spot. I did that once a week for about 15 years. For a time I also did a daily thing (*that we will never speak of again) that had to fill a one hour time slot.

What I found that helped and hurt- caffeine hurt. Sure it was the next best thing to an anointing, but it stretches the vocal chords. I could actually listen to myself on tape and tell when I had caffeinated before hand just from the timbre of my voice.

Also antihistamines - if there's a cold coming on or allergies, I found that using some over the counter thing with guaifenesin helped. The other stuff just dries you out. I was dying of pneumonia once and some prescription strength guaifenesin along with antibiotics made me right again. That was before I learned what was giving me the pneumonia all the time. God was merciful in the way He nurtured my wretched self.

The singers will probably give you better advice than I could about honey and syrups, teas and that sort of stuff. It's probably all good. Dunno, I just found that these two things tended to mess with my voice the most.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Speakers, singers and preachers can develop nodules on their vocal cords.

At one time because of allergies and then over using my vocal cords while in school (singing), I completely lost my voice for a period of time and had to actually go to speech therapy to learn to use my true vocal cords instead of my false cords (I had switched to the false cords automatically because my true cords were overworked).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vocal_fold_nodule

I would rest them.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Not at all ,You should take care of your voice for future use.I'll pray also for your strength and health.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Not at all. I know of one in your state that ha d a guest speaker for a year, of course he no longer pastors there.

Do what you must to take care of yourself.

I'm not sure God is pleased with us when we endanger our health, even for the kingdom.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

A throat specialist told me I was through public speaking because my voice would never recover back when I was evangelizing. Here was the deal, I did scream some and hit what my wife called the high notes. Every time I'd get all worked up and raise to the level I was damaging my vocal cords.

They got so swollen that I was at a whisper most of the time except when I'd go back to "preaching". I eventually started spitting up blood.

A throat specialist in Napa CA. told me that my vocal chords were damaged to the point that my public speaking days were over because of calluses...but God touched me and I'm still at it 16 years later. The doctor (and some personal research) gave me some pointers as to not put myself back into that position after healing.

Your vocal cords are most likely swollen and cannot close completely causing the "whisper" sound and inability to speak. When the swelling goes down a little your voice comes back. You may have developed nodules but only a Dr. exam can confirm that. If it is just an issue of swelling here are some tips:

1. Drink a ton of water before preaching--even if it means a trip to the bathroom before the offering. What oil is to a motor, water is to the vocal cords.

2. Stay away from spicy foods. Hot spice causes the vocal cords to swell even more and also causes acid reflux at night.

3. Always have water beside your bed at night...drink, drink, drink. If heartburn comes up (acid reflux) wash your throat thoroughly.

4. Stay off the high notes. Every voice has a "key" just like strings on an instrument. Go to a piano and speak in your natural, comfortable speaking voice. This may take some practice and help from someone gifted with music and tone recognition but find where your voice is on the register (you might start with middle C and go from there. Then determine your "comfortable range". As the pitch of your speaking voice goes up while raising your voice, determine where it begins to stretch (here is where you must back off from) and train yourself to stay off of the harmful ranges!

5. Avoid whispering. Whispering causes the vocal cords to rapidly beat each other and is worse that forcing out the sound!! Speaking in a whisper will make the cords swell more!

6. Change your preaching style. This goes back to the high note deal! My wife learned to recognize when I'd raise the pitch of my voice too high and would give me "the signal". Ultimately I found a preaching style that goes nowhere near the harmful range and I never have a vocal problem because of speaking or singing.

7. Avoid speaking when you can to give your cords a break...and drink water!!

8. Avoid caffeine for at least 4 hours before preaching. Caffeine is a dehydrator. It will dry the vocal cords out. I would drink Dr. Pepper all the way up to service time...bad idea! Oh yeah, drink even more water if on Sunday morning you have to have coffee.

9. Use water in the pulpit!! Don't be afraid to stop and "oil" the pipes!

I hope this helps.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Great post!!!!! All of the above applies to singers as well. Also, never drink ice cold water while you are singing or preaching, (after your vocal cords are already warmed up.) I see preachers do it all the time, keeping a glass of ice cold water at the pulpit. It needs to be room temperature. (Or even slightly warm, if you can handle it.)

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

#2--Yeaaaaahh Riiiight!!!!!! Ain't gonna happen, and why would I listen to anyone who had a hair-cutting party???? :)

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

:D

Me, either! I LOVE spicy foods.

P.S. Mostly unrelated news blurb: To anyone who lives in Springfield, MO--if you haven't tried Thai House (I think it's on Campbell Pkwy), DO IT! I suggest the Panang Curry with chicken, followed with some coconut ice cream. (I was there last week--and it's a great place to eat!) The dinner portion is enough to feed two people.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

I go to Springfield several times a year - I'll check it out. I have tried and enjoyed the Japaneese joint that is close to Battlefield Mall.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Was it Nakuto? There are couple different Japanese steakhouses. I tried to get Jeff to go, but he was in a frugal frame of mind, so it was a no-go. :foottap

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Thanks for the good advice, folks.

I set an appointment with the doctor for Wednesday.

Meanwhile, I have decided that I am going to invite guest speakers in for the next little while.

Pray for me, because I'm not used to the whole "sickly" thing.

I really like preaching in my pulpit.

And Prax, I don't have any other preachers in the church to help me, yet.

Oh, and Free will tell you, I'm really not a screamer at all.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

True Dat...Ed has a very nice delivery and preaches a good message, at least the one time we were privileged to hear him.

I do not enjoy screamers. I don't how those fellows voice's last at all or the ears of those who endure their yellin'

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

:thumbsup

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Don't you think that we have less screamers than we used to? It seems that many preachers are slowing down and just preaching.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

I don't mind some excited points being made, but I know some who scream start to finish.

Way to much.

and Yes I agree there are less screamers these days.

Maybe they just book them all (the screamers) for General Conference.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Or see my concerns about caffeine mentioned earlier. That could explain at least some of the "screaming?"

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

So glad my hubby is NOT a screamer! I hear the same message three times on Sundays; if he were a screamer, I couldn't bear it.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Wow, 35 minutes WBTM

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Maybe I should clarify, No spicy food several hours before preaching/speaking. Like stay away from it on Wednesday and Sunday if you speak those nights.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Was that this past Wednesday or next....if this past, how did it go and let us know what he said...or says if next week!:thumbsup

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

I'm okay.

Here's the deal.

I was told I need to rest my voice, get more sleep, and lay off of caffeine.

I have guest speakers scheduled for the next few weeks. That is totally unlike me, but hey, desperate times require desperate measures.

Thanks for thinking of me, Bro.

Re: Voice/Throat Care for Preachers.
 

Be well my brutha