01.23.07
5 top tips for taking care of your voice
If your like me and use your voice for a living, then you must take care of it. But how many of us do?
For several years, I’ve been sports reporting and broadcasting for BBC local radio and independent stations. More recently, I’ve doing some voice-over work as well as an increasing amount of public-speaking. So I was glad to bump into Helen Sewell recently. She’s a near neighbour of mine, a former BBC presenter and producer and experienced in “voice mechanics”. We chatted for sometime about improving one’s speech and taking care of the voice. She belongs to an organization called BVA (British Voice Association) and they recently published these tips:
DON’T
Misuse or abuse your voice…
Smoke, or if you can’t give up, cut down…
Talk above the noise at social or sports events…
Talk or even whisper if you are losing your voice…
Answer by shouting when you’re upset or anxious…
AVOID
Chemical irritants or dry dusty conditions…
Eating a large meal before going to bed at night…
Excessive use of the telephone…
TAKE CARE
If you have to use the telephone for your living…
About what you drink: too much alcohol, coffee, tea or cola will dry you up…
TRY
Not to clear your throat unnecessarily…
To warm up your voice if you’re going to use it for a long time…
To have a humidifier in your workplace…
MAKE SURE
You drink at least 6-8 glasses of water each day…
That if your voice sounds different for more than two weeks, you see your doctor…
NOTE
Spicy foods and dairy products may affect the voice…
Hormonal changes (such as the menopause, pregnancy or menstruation) can affect voice quality…
The voice is closely linked with emotion, so tension or depression might show in your voice…
Get medical advice if you’re worried.
Stephanie Ciccarelli said,
January 24, 2007 at 5:55 pm
Hi Jeremy,
Thanks for posting these tips! Kudos
Stephanie Ciccarelli
VOX Daily Voice Actors Blog
Jeremy Jacobs said,
January 27, 2007 at 10:18 pm
No worries. Thanks for popping by.
Stephanie Ciccarelli said,
February 8, 2007 at 4:49 pm
Hi Jeremy,
We mentioned you and your blog on our podcast a couple of weeks ago in VOX Talk Episode 8.
Hope you visit and listen to the podcast,
Stephanie
VOX Talk Podcast
Shay said,
February 9, 2007 at 9:28 pm
hey Jeremy!
thanks for the tips, I’ve been trying to find some and all I could find were long explenatios. Thanks for being right to the point!
Shay
JeremyJacobs.com » Top Tips to keep your voice sounding great. said,
September 14, 2007 at 2:13 am
[…] Earlier this year, I posted an item on “looking after your voice”. […]
JeremyJacobs.com » Tips for taking Care of your Voice said,
November 18, 2007 at 11:55 pm
[…] Many of you would have read this from a few months ago.Taking my own advice, I ensured that my vocal chords weren’t strained at this afternoon’s singing engagement (that’s if you consider going to three old-age peoples homes and singing to the residents an engagement!) Bookmark to: […]