I'd be curious to hear comments, too. I lost my voice for about three and a half weeks. It finally came back right before the Triduum (thankfully!). Like you, I hardly had a chance to rest my voice.

I have been unfortunately teaching my normal load of courses & music lessons and running rather rowdy drama rehearsals after school,

Assuming you have some singing training.... you need to apply your "no tension, head voice" to your speaking voice. Most of us push our speaking voice too low to sound more authoritative and masculine (both men and women do this). The result - most people speak about 5th lower, or more, than their natural voice (the dead center of your singing range).

Thanks much for the advice!

Adam, I do have training, and I actually tend to speak right in the middle of my tenor singing range, very high, generating my head-voice sound. Is speaking in this way equivalent to resting my voice?

chonak, likewise I usually sing in a low-stress way; the problem is that in my present condition, the only way I can make sound is to put significant stress on my voice (that is getting better).

I would second the suggestions for rest. I would also add that you drink plenty of water during the rest period, and make sure that you are eating well also to keep up your strength. I would recommend that you avoid singing tasks altogether until your voice has recovered its capabilities. Rest, eat well, and drink plenty of water.

Our choir too has suffered, one of our Cantors has had a cough / sore throat for 3 weeks, and various other choir members have had sore throats / coughs / lost their voice but for shorter times. It seems it effects people differently, some worse than others! Seems to be a strange virus.

Our choir is in London, England!

I had a cough for a while and I did the long psalm on the Easter Vigil (Send forth your spirit Lord) which is 5 verses... I don't actually know how I made it through.

I took a cough drop at the begining of the exultet hoping it would melt before I did psalm, and it did, but the high notes were just horrible...

I am not a physician, but I do have an MM in vocal pedagogy as well as having been down this road myself. Here's some practical advice:

When talking about voice loss, prevention is key. As far as treatment options go, you are pretty much limited to rest, surgery, or medication. The first thing an ENT is likely to recommend is rest. Most non-serious vocal problems can be cured with at least 48 hours complete vocal rest—no whispering—with the possible addition steaming (inhaling water vapor for 10 minutes several times per day).

If that is not effective, based on your symptoms a doctor may recommend laryngoscopy, either by depressing the tongue and inserting a laryngoscope into the mouth to look at the cords, or by using a small camera that is inserted through the nose. This will help determine if there is any issue with the cords themselves, like bowing, incomplete closure, nodules (growths), or if there are signs of inflammation.

If there is inflammation caused by acid reflux, they may recommend dietary and lifestyle changes or medication such as acid-reducers or proton pump inhibitors. The latter have recently been linked to a number of side effects including dementia and may be recommended only as a second-line treatment option.

If there is acute inflammation, and you are a serious professional user of the voice (think international opera singer with an upcoming performance), your doctor may administer a cortisone injection. But this treatment option is generally reserved for very special and urgent cases.

Generally surgery will only be considered for vocal trauma or nodules that do not respond to rest. I would be skeptical of any doctor who was too eager to pursue surgery as an option.

As a follow-up, speech therapy may be recommended to address issues such as hyper- or hypophonation, glottal onset, and vocal fry.

In short, rest your voice! And be thankful that with modern technology like smart phones, iPads, and instant messaging, you probably won't have to walk around with a pad of paper and a pen like we used to back in my conservatory days.

Good to hear.

My longest bout of voice-loss/laryngitis was my sophomore year of high school: for 3.5 months after our biology class dissected fetal pigs (1 for every 2 students). All those preservatives used to keep it stable for class-use did a real number on my throat. It was awful.

Also, with your teaching schedule you might want to consider using a personal amplification device for larger classes or situations that demand talking over people. A thought.

I've had this same problem, saw a therapist and found that carbonated water in the form of tonic,
plain carbonated and if lucky, just plain water (all at room temp) has really helped me out. My
health has been compromised and I now need to reschedule with the therapist for continued assistance. My voice still keeps cutting in and out, it drives me nuts!!! I love to sing but I'm not going to destroy what God gave me. I especially love Latin and German pieces to perform.
Some day...some day, SOON!!! I hope & pray.

Sincerely & Musically,
Arthur
acw1947@icloud.com