Cold weather and how to battle frequent sore throat

sridevi · Post by **sridevi** » 01 Dec 2006, 22:25

Hello all...

A lot of times during the cold weather season I get sore throat ( I lose my voice , partially and completely sometimes) It is frustrating because singing is one of the therapeutic things that I do to battle everyday stress in life.
I have to go to work very early in the morning. As it is I am vulnerable to sorethroat and this just adds on to it.
Two questions:
1) Is it possible for mental stress to manifest itself as sorethroat, throat pain? I have noticed that over and over again.
2) I have cotton in my ears when it is cold and at night. At night before sleeping I do three things. Gargle with warm salt water; warm milk with turmeric and pepper. Amodini herbal lozenges ( BV Pundit). I have also started drinking warm water at night.
Any other home remedies?
It is a chicken and egg problem. I get depressed if I am not able to sing and the depression just worsens/ lengthens the duration of the sore throat. :/

Any advice will be appreciated.

Sridevi

nadhasudha · Post by **nadhasudha** » 01 Dec 2006, 23:17

This is probably due to some allergies. I suffer from severe allergies as well. The only way to get rid of problems due to allergies is to do "jal neti" in two sessions everyday. This is the ayurvedic technique of drawing warm saline water through one nostril and releasing through other nostril. If you live in the US, there is a product called Sinus Rinse which is available at drug stores such as Walgreens etc. I have tried Sinus Rinse and it has helped me get off allergy sprays during the winter season. Although it seems difficult to do, I have found that it is a pretty easy technique to learn and do and does not take more than 10 minutes per session. However if you live in India, you may be able to get a "neti pot" which will help you achieve the same result. In fact the product Sinus Rinse acknowleges that it implements the age old ayurvedic technique of "jal neti".

This is yet another example of the wisdom found in our ayurvedic and yogic practices, which if implemented produces results and promotes well being.

I hope you are able to find a resolution to your problem and are able to sing again.

sridevi · Post by **sridevi** » 01 Dec 2006, 23:20

Thanks Nadhasudha..
Walgreens Here I come!

jayaram · Post by **jayaram** » 01 Dec 2006, 23:40

Sridevi - couple of additional suggestions:
1) acupressure - a simple technique to stop coughing is to press certain energy points, e.g. the area just below where the Adam's apple is on (men's) neck. Squeeze the skin there and keep it pressed for 2-3 minutes. Repeat 3 times. I used to get horrible coughs when I was in Toronto, and my Chinese friend's mom showed me how to do this. It was quite effective.
2) hatha yoga - BKS Iyengar in his Light on Yoga recommends certain yoga postures for cold, cough etc. The science behind yoga is that various postures trigger our endocrine glands which can have a positive effect.
Try the following site for a start: http://www.lifepositive.com/Body/yoga/sirsasana.asp

Finally, you mentioned depression. Stress and depression can cause various ailments, so it's important you maintain a cheerful attitude. Try laughing more, and don't take life too seriously! And maybe listen to some good carnatic music...

The Music Therapy forum here could provide some ideas. All the best.

sridevi · Post by **sridevi** » 02 Dec 2006, 00:03

Thanks Jayaram... Will take a look at the yoga links you have mentioned.

Most of the times when I listen to good music I want to be able to either sing along.. or practice later. Listening to good CM serves as an inspiration for me. With a sore throat it is almost impossible and also you run the risk damaging your vocal chords. There in the cycle starts.
I can now really understand my mothers cause for depression. Having been a very good veena player all her life, ( one of the unknown veena artistes in bangalore ..) she now suffers from severe tennis elbow, and that has taken an immense toll on her emotionally. While she played the veena for an hr everyday along with teaching students every evening , now she can play may be for half an hr every few days. We have tried quite a few things but the doctor says she has to give her hands a rest. Being a woman she is adamant on working in the kitchen although, by god's grace we can afford a cook. So therein goes the rest, and her stamina to be able to play the veena.
Now for the psychologists/psychiatrists in this forum, how does one break out of the cycle/rut ?

Thanks
Sridevi

jayaram · Post by **jayaram** » 02 Dec 2006, 00:47

how does one break out of the cycle/rut ?

I'm not a psycho-professional, but what I can offer is based on my many years' exposure to meditation/zen, etc.
It seems the key reason we get depressed is that we are not in the herenow, i.e our minds wander into the past or the future. Meditation if done well can help us to bring our mind back to the present moment, and help us get on with our lives. But don't take meditation also too seriously, or it can lead you into further depression...

By the way, one of the reasons we all enjoy music so much is that it helps us to be in the moment so much. Same applies to exercise, laughing, eating good food, etc. etc. As Ramana Maharshi used to say, be a silent witness to everything around you, and slowly you can contact the wonderful center of your being.

All this for another topic perhaps...

chalanata · Post by **chalanata** » 02 Dec 2006, 08:28

please eat a poovan pazham every night. that is enough to keep the voice in tact. in extreme situations try jeerakam water or thulsi water. if incessant cough is there eat baked goose berries mixed with hot rice. these are the techniques i adopt and it works.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 02 Dec 2006, 09:10

All good home remedies. May come in handy when one ails from coughs and colds.
chalanata, how do you bake a gooseberry?

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 02 Dec 2006, 09:30

frequent sore throat ??

Long ago , I did get some relief by attending to an overdue dental work- on the advise of my Physician

chalanata · Post by **chalanata** » 02 Dec 2006, 09:37

arasi,
i hope you are serious. just soak the berries in water and heat. the berries get baked (or cooked?). the indication is when they are easily breakable in to parts and get detachable from the seed inside.
(i do not like publicity; please do not recommend my name for any international chef award!!!)

rajeshnat · Post by **rajeshnat** » 02 Dec 2006, 10:29

sridevi,
For me there is something in ayurveda called thoothu velai lekhiyam, that just does wonders to me.

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 02 Dec 2006, 10:35

First eliminate one thing. If you live in a cold climate area and you have the heater on, the dry air inside the house can cause a symptom similar to sore throat. Use a humidifier and see if that helps.

BTW, isn't the correlation between outside cold and internal cold related symptoms a widely held false belief? I am talking about the common advice 'cover your head otherwise you will catch a cold'. Covering the head during chilly season is a good advice but that does not have much to do with jaladOsham.

chalanata · Post by **chalanata** » 02 Dec 2006, 16:22

before trying thoothu valai you will have to understand the constitution of your body. only if sleshma component is more or there is an imbalance thoothuvalai will work. if you have a pitha body thoothuvalai can be counter productive.

mohan · Post by **mohan** » 02 Dec 2006, 18:39

I did some reading into this topic a couple of years ago when my wife went back to India for a holiday and developed a severe case of Laryngitis. She saw a doctor in Chennai who made her have an endoscopy and told her she may have permanently damaged her voice. She was referred to a speech therapist. After several sessions with the speech therapist, there seemed to be no improvement. When we came back to Sydney and just relaxed and stayed calm, the voice returned to normal. Within a couple of months she was able to sing a three-hour concert.

Some useful tips for singers are available through the articles at:

http://www.gbmc.org/voice/tips.cfm
http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/voice/takingcare.asp

Coming back to Sridevi's orginal question - yes, mental stress can manifest itself in a lot of ways including a sore throat. You need to relax (breathing exercises, meditation and yoga can all help) and give your voice a break (singing and talking loudly).

For you to 'get out of the rut' perhaps DRS can give some professional advice.

If your throat is sore and the salt water is not helping then you can try an antiseptic gargle or perhaps antibiotics may help.

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 02 Dec 2006, 18:43

chalanata,
I WAS serious. I thought that baking gooseberries with the stone (pit) in them might make them burst in the oven (not a master chef, moi, but an experienced one). I had to try it though, so I microwaved a few amlas after pricking them with a fork--as with baked potatoes and covered them with plastic film. nuked them for 3 mins and they were tender and the pulp came off the stone easily. It was great. Thanks...

VK,
Those of us who live in really cold regions of the world need to keep our extremities warm, but we also know that eating yogurt (curds) on cold evenings is good for us. I favor ice cream more in winter than in other seasons!

Meena, the meritorious monitor,
You once asked for the recipe of 'pachchai muRukku'. I presume we are excused for getting off the subject of serious

musical discussion--if you are not convinced, we have to ask someone to come up with a theory of the effect of eating amla befor singing a particular rAgA...

jayaram · Post by **jayaram** » 02 Dec 2006, 19:40

Since we are discussing recipes etc. anyway, I thought I would sneak this one in...
Recently I purchased couple of bags of green (paccha) chundakkai (you get just about anything here in London!). Not sure what to do with them though! I love vattha kozhambu, but you use dried chundakkai for that. Any pointers welcome.

If madam is thinking of coming down with her cane...it's arasi who started all this, not me!!!

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 02 Dec 2006, 20:43

Thank you Jayaram, for 'recommending' me to Meena. As for the chuNDaik kAi, you could just pickle it in salt after boiling it in water to take the bitterness off (my guess)? Your best bet is to ask a gujarathi friend.
srikris isn't going to start a culinary section on the forum--and I hope not:)

chalanata · Post by **chalanata** » 02 Dec 2006, 22:10

jayaram,

you haven't tried pachai sundaikkai vathakuzhambu? How sad! It is tastier than your regular vathal. the requirement is fry the sundaikkai in oil till it constricts.
(arasi! are you watching?!)

sridevi · Post by **sridevi** » 03 Dec 2006, 01:48

chalanata wrote:please eat a poovan pazham every night. that is enough to keep the voice in tact. in extreme situations try jeerakam water or thulsi water. if incessant cough is there eat baked goose berries mixed with hot rice. these are the techniques i adopt and it works.

What is poovan pazham? I know some tamil but not enough to understand this...Do we get it in the bay area, CA?

I will try jeeragam water. Soak it and drink the water right?

Also, I think one of the causes might be is that I teach CM to few young kids. While my standard pitch is 5, they cannot reach the lower notes at 5kattai. So 6 kattai is comfortable for them. It strains my voice quite a bit but these kids are 5 - 6 yrs old and they are beginners. So, they will not get it if I sing in the lower octave and ask them to sing in the higher octave. In fact they will sing softly if I sing softly.. and i have to tell them repeatedly that I am singing in low volume so that I can hear them sing. I see this problem only during the winter.

Thanks to all of you...

jayaram · Post by **jayaram** » 03 Dec 2006, 03:08

mohan wrote:When we came back to Sydney and just relaxed and stayed calm, the voice returned to normal. Within a couple of months she was able to sing a three-hour concert.

Mohan - I just realized you may THE Mohan Iyer from Sydney! You may recall we met several years ago. (I used to live in Sydney those days, then moved to Melbourne - am now in London.)
This truly is a wonderful forum.

mohan · Post by **mohan** » 03 Dec 2006, 04:00

Jayaram - yes I am Mohan Ayyar from Sydney but unfortunately I can't recall where we met.

jayaram · Post by **jayaram** » 03 Dec 2006, 04:12

I came over to your place for dinner and some music...it was quite a few years ago, plus lots of guests that evening.

chalanata · Post by **chalanata** » 03 Dec 2006, 07:30

Sridevi,
Poovan pazham is a variety of plantain.please seek a parellel in your area through your Tamil friends. an alternate will be nendram pazham another variety of plantain extensively used by malayalis. this has to be necessarily baked and eaten mixed with rice or puttu the staple food variety of malayalis.
jeerakam a handful is soaked in about 2 -3 litres of water and boiled. this is substituted for water whenever you have thirst.
while teaching young children whereever you are unable to strain your voice sing in the corresponding lower octaves. this will save the strain.

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 03 Dec 2006, 08:09

For a picture and description of poovan banana: http://www.ikisan.com/links/ap_bananaVa ... ment.shtml

ramakriya · Post by **ramakriya** » 03 Dec 2006, 12:46

sridevi wrote:
chalanata wrote:please eat a poovan pazham every night. that is enough to keep the voice in tact. in extreme situations try jeerakam water or thulsi water. if incessant cough is there eat baked goose berries mixed with hot rice. these are the techniques i adopt and it works.
What is poovan pazham? I know some tamil but not enough to understand this...Do we get it in the bay area, CA?

I'm afraid you'll be out of luck - for poovan pazham is our 'rasabALe', and no trace of it here

-Ramakriya

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 03 Dec 2006, 12:57

VK,
We are drifting into horticulture now. You may remember the BBoard ficus indica--pIpal discussion with mayilERum perumAn. Where is Waldo?

chalanata,
Sounds delicious, green chuNDaik kAi kuZhambu--now I have to FIND them! Rhyming veNDais are easier to find:)

sridevi,
The nEndran banana chalanata mentions is available in any supermarket in the US. It is a hispanic staple too. When they are very ripe, steam them before you consume them (for easy digestion). You can steam them in the microwave...

jayaram · Post by **jayaram** » 03 Dec 2006, 14:14

I'm afraid you'll be out of luck - for poovan pazham is our 'rasabALe', and no trace of it here

The site VK provided seems to suggest otherwise...Rasabale is the equivalent of Rasthali (see under 'Martaman'), which is different from Poovan.

But we are digressing way too far from the topic-at-hand!!

ramakriya · Post by **ramakriya** » 03 Dec 2006, 14:25

Looked at the picture now - It resembles Elakki bALe more than rasabALe ... Even tastier - and I have not seen it in here in the USA

chalanata · Post by **chalanata** » 03 Dec 2006, 15:49

elakki is a cross of both poovan and rasthali of the Tamil version. the majority of its ingradients however have the qualities of poovan and therefore can be substituted for poovan.rasthali causes constipation and can be consumed only sparingly.

(we are right on track and there is absolutely no deviation from the subject)

jayaram · Post by **jayaram** » 03 Dec 2006, 15:58

(we are right on track and there is absolutely no deviation from the subject)

the subject at hand being different varieties of bananas of course!

nothing like CM and good food to help attain samadhi!

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 03 Dec 2006, 16:22

pallavi line--a change from the kattarikkAi variety:

pal vAzhaik kanigaLuNDU--avai elAm nal vAzhaik kanigaLE-
or,
eshTO bALE haNNugaLiddarU,
Elakki bahu shrEshtavE--in rAgA kannaDA?

drshrikaanth · Post by **drshrikaanth** » 03 Dec 2006, 16:59

I see everyone going bananas over bananas

rshankar · Post by **rshankar** » 03 Dec 2006, 20:41

DRS,
Bananas are just a red herring (why leave out marine biology) to go bananas!:lol

meena · Post by **meena** » 04 Dec 2006, 00:28

ramakriya

Elakki banana is available in chinese supermarket in milpitas- next to target, its a new store. Sat eve. is when my husband goes to purchase a bunch. If it is wrapped in plastic- skip it, purchase loose- my tip for the day

( the taste is close to elakki...something is better then nothing)

sridevi · Post by **sridevi** » 04 Dec 2006, 01:21

Thanks all of you.. I did not know that our good old elakki baLe is good for our throat too.. No wonder the guy who sells this on our streets in bangalore shouts at the top of his voice " yaalaaaaakki baaLE haNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" day in and day out, in the same pitch and volume. In fact my 4 yr old used to imitate him.

Meena: re the chinese store.. once I tried going into ranch market once but could not go beyond a few feet into the store.. was holding my breath all the time and ran out of breath before i could even look at anything. Not used to the smell of fresh fish etc you see...

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 04 Dec 2006, 01:37

No wonder the guy who sells this on our streets in bangalore shouts at the top of his voice " yaalaaaaakki baaLE haNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" day in and day out, in the same pitch and volume

Business schools teach the concept of 'dog food', meaning a company should be a consumer of their own products.. Our bananawallah knows that

meena · Post by **meena** » 04 Dec 2006, 07:37

sridevi

i hear the same complaint from my veg. pals abt venturing into chinese stores. BTW they do have a good catch of the day- fish

OK now back to bananas !

coolkarni · Post by **coolkarni** » 04 Dec 2006, 07:43

Sridevi I have a "banana" Solution for stress though-One which I use often myself.
A small video clipping of Senthil and Goundamani playing out the scene of -"I asked you to buy two bananas, here is one , where is the Other ?'

Let me know if you are not aware of this ..

:D

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 04 Dec 2006, 08:26

I looked for it in youtube. Could not find it.

meena · Post by **meena** » 04 Dec 2006, 08:30

A small video clipping of Senthil and Goundamani playing out the scene of -"I asked you to buy two bananas, here is one , where is the Other ?'

DELETED

:lol::lol::lol:

rajumds · Post by **rajumds** » 04 Dec 2006, 09:51

teacher turning into mischief monger

vasanthakokilam · Post by **vasanthakokilam** » 04 Dec 2006, 10:05

This silly scene makes me laugh every time I see it. Something about slap stick comedy. Now, the question is, will sridevi get stress relief and less sore throat after watching this, given she does not understand much tamil.

( though kji has pretty much translated what needs to be translated ).

arasi · Post by **arasi** » 04 Dec 2006, 10:34

Ravi, DRS,
It's no use. The monitor has joined the circus! Monkey business continues. Hope Sridevi is cured so that she doesn't have to put up with 'herring' odors while buying bananas and we don't have to scan the headlines to find out about the state of her throat.
sridevi, abra cadabra! Sing with full throated ease. You are cured...

chalanata · Post by **chalanata** » 04 Dec 2006, 10:59

probably I was the culprit!

ramakriya · Post by **ramakriya** » 04 Dec 2006, 13:33

meena wrote:ramakriya

Elakki banana is available in chinese supermarket in milpitas- next to target, its a new store. Sat eve. is when my husband goes to purchase a bunch. If it is wrapped in plastic- skip it, purchase loose- my tip for the day
( the taste is close to elakki...something is better then nothing)

Are you sure this is Elakki bALe ? I have seem some 'fake' look alikes - But no real Elakki bALe here - They are what we called 'huLi bALe' back home.

meena · Post by **meena** » 04 Dec 2006, 23:55

ramakriya

u missed reading

( the taste is close to elakki...something is better then nothing)

Try it, my daughter sure fancies them.

sridevi · Post by **sridevi** » 05 Dec 2006, 00:06

Ok folks.. Finally was able to watch the video clipping.. It is hilarious. Thanks for all your efforts for relieving my stress. May be I will be able to go home and sing in a full throated voice today ( God protect the neighbours.. ) All in preperation for a dikshitar day celebration this saturday in the bay area!

Reminds me of an episode in a kannada movie by Master Hirannayya in the movie.. I forget the name. starts with ananda...

Sridevi

thanjavur · Post by **thanjavur** » 05 Dec 2006, 00:09

sridevi wrote:A lot of times during the cold weather season I get sore throat ( I lose my voice , partially and completely sometimes)
Sridevi

This works for me every day of the year:

ZAND (http://www.zand.com/) ECHINACEA ZINC HERBALOZENGE
Natural Cherry Flavor
5 mg Zinc per Lozenge
Herbal Supplement

Both echinacea and zinc boost your immunity.
This is NOT a cough drop. Think the daily maximum
dose of zinc for adult males is 15 mg and 10 mg
for adult females.

I take three (two just before I go to bed) lozenges a day.

I buy it in bulk (12 packets of 15 each) from my organic food store,
most of the time from
Whole Foods Market (http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/)

meena · Post by **meena** » 05 Dec 2006, 01:09

Before anyone gives a shot to our 'forum remedies' pl. check with ur physician first!

Suji Ram · Post by **Suji Ram** » 05 Dec 2006, 01:38

meena wrote:Before anyone gives a shot to our 'forum remedies' pl. check with ur physician first!

Meena good that you mentioned. I had more problems after taking Echinaceae tonic long back (not the one thanjavur mentioned though). It may react differently with individuals.