I
suffer from seasonal allergies, which means that every time there is any kind
of change in the weather my nose runs. Because
I live in Pittsburgh where the weather can and does change hourly my nose is
always running. Hell, my nose is running
an eternal marathon.
So
last week, when I started to feel that tell-tale "tickle" in my
throat, I still chalked it up to allergies.
Then the tickle started to hurt.
Then the cough started, and before I knew it I was making an emergency
run from work to the Sunoco station to buy cough drops.
I
could deny it no longer. This was not
just my seasonal allergies. This was a
full blown cough-and-cold. Things
deteriorated from there. Last weekend
became the Lost Weekend. This cold was
kicking my butt.
However,
I was sure that if I just rested and took my medication, that I would be fine
by Monday, especially since my husband took such good care of me. He insisted
that I rest. He made me tea and the best Matzoh soup I'd ever tasted. I felt even more loved than I felt sick.
When
I woke up on Monday, I was even worse, and I realized that I could not talk –
my voice was completely gone. Oh, hell no,
this could't be happening, I screamed silently to myself. I had deadlines to meet at work this week. I had to sing this weekend with the
Pittsburgh Concert Chorale in our classical concert "The Three B's"
(Bach, Beethoven and Brahms).
Oh,
but it was happening alright. While I might be able to work without a voice,
there was no way that I was going to be able to sing without a voice. Mind you, I decided that I was
going to be at that concert, even if I had to lip sync. If it’s good enough for Beyonce (the fourth
B) it’s good enough for me. But I really
wanted to sing at the concert. I started mixing up the salt water rinse, and
brewing up the tea with honey and lemon, and didn't even try to talk.
On
Tuesday, I was no better, but I didn't want to go to a doctor – it wasn't THAT
bad, I insisted. My husband made a
convincing argument that I had been sicker than I usually get with no improvement for four days. Boy, I wasn't
going to be able to deny anything this week was I? The doctor diagnosed it as viral laryngitis
and verified that my self-treatment options were probably the best course of
action. He did prescribe continued
complete vocal rest through the end of the week if I hoped to sing in the
concert.
Well,
I went to work “in person” the rest of the week, and I got everything I needed
to do done communicating by e-mail, writing, pantomime, and using a “Talk for
Me” app on my I-Pad (there really is an app for everything). And by the weekend, I was happily singing
that glorious music with my friends and fellow Chorale members.
People often find it amusing when I lose my voice because I am talkative, although I never think it's that funny. So, when I returned to work on Wednesday, someone joked about my laryngitis, “Oh, your husband must be LOVING it.” I couldn't grab a pen and paper fast enough to write down the truth.
Actually, when my husband came home from work on Monday, he looked at me sadly, and said, “I
miss hearing your voice.” It was the
best moment of the whole week.
adorable !!
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