Who will give voice to the voiceless?

[lydy]

This morning is the first time in eleven days I woke up without a sore throat. For values of morning that involve waking up at four in the afternoon. It lasted six whole hours, and then it started hurting again. Sigh.

I lost my voice completely on Wednesday at work, some eight days after the onset of the sore throat. What is going on I don't even.

Communicating primarily by mime has been...interesting. David completely understood "How long until dinner?" but completely failed to understand "I woke up at 4:00 this afternoon." After a series of successively more off-target guesses, he tried, "I'm a very confused Lydy and I have nothing useful to say." I decided that was close enough, and nodded. Which amused us both.

At one point, I tried miming that I had So Many Things To Say by making a duck-head from my hand and opening and closing it, miming speaking -- or maybe quacking. Any gate, can you see what I mean? David said, "You are ranting with your fingers." I nodded with my duck-head. He said, "It's much more peaceful when I can't hear you." So I made both my duck-head-hands rant. He said, "La la la I can't hear you." Which made me laugh. Except not out loud, because that would hurt.

I really need my voice by Tuesday. I have a thing at work called a PAP nap which involves a lot of talking to the patient about PAP therapy. Which, you know, I don't think I can do in mime.

Oh, and in case you missed it, I'm working days at the moment. Only until June, but man it blows. Getting up at oh-god-thirty is precisely why I went and got a night job in the first place, for fuck's sake.

Comments

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

My duck hands are singing you "happy birthday," with an extra verse of "get better soon" instead of "how old are you."

[skylarker.livejournal.com]

Happy birthday! for values of happiness that include regaining your voice and losing the soreness of your throat.

[arkuat]

And happy birthday, on the right day this time.

[vgqn.livejournal.com]

In case you haven't tried this already, gargle with warm salt water, frequently. It both reduces inflammation and thins out thick mucus. Sleep with a humidifier. Enjoy the steam from a hot shower. Drink lots of liquids. Keep resting your voice.

Signed,
A frequent laryngitis sufferer

[lydy.livejournal.com]

I upped the humidity on my CPAP and that seems to help. There's a bit of rain-out, but it's worth it.

[faunhaert.livejournal.com]

I hate _having_ to get up
when we worked as sanders they thought nothing
of making us start at 5 making a 4am alarm a necessity .
i think it was just torture to add to the aggravation of 12 hour days.

I sincerely think birds really don't sleep.
they are up at all hours
and louder when it rains

if you watch folks who 'speak sign'
their conversation goes wider as they are "louder"

did you end up transferred when you wanted to be closer to home
and the dayshift the excused by getting you used to the new place?
meaning they need to get used to you~ before letting you been independent at night?

i 2nd the humidity thing

[lydy.livejournal.com]

I'm at the place that's close to my house. My day manager, Lev Bakunin, had to make an emergency trip to Russia because his mother-in-law is very ill. So he's gone for three weeks, and they needed somebody to do some of the basic day stuff, and also do the day studies, relieve the night techs in case there's a patient sleeping late, and that sort of thing. So I'm doing it. It's right close, which is nice, but getting up at 6:30 a.m. is my idea of hell.

[apostle-of-eris.livejournal.com]

[porphyre.livejournal.com]

I lost my voice from overuse on New Year's this year, so I spent the first four days of the year being unable to even whisper. It's far more entertaining than it has any right to be, given how irksome it all is.