Just when my practice was going well and I was starting to get to grips with stuff and sound OK, this horrible cold hit. I have basically not played for a week, well I tried twice and realised it wasn't going to work! Yesterday I played a very little bit and soon realised that my throat wasn't taking it very well, and that I sounded horrible!

Any good recommendations for how to go about getting back into it? How to get my embouchure back up to speed? How to clear out my lungs and nose and stuff so that i can breathe properly? Anything that I can do that might help but doesn't involve breathing (LOL!)

I know a week isn't THAT long, but when I am practising regularly and getting somewhere then even missing a day seems to make a difference, so after a week I sound pretty naff, to me.

I have got a lot better especially since being prescribed anitbiotics, but still have a bit of a chesty cough/sore throat/blocked nose. None of it nearly as bad as it was and don't have incipient fever like I did for a few days (YUCK!) but still not 100%.

Anyway I'm just really frustrated! Any help or advice would be appreciated.

Aww Sarah! Sorry to hear you've not been well! But glad your on the mend now. To get your embouchure back I'd suggest long notes I know their a pain but they work wonders when done proberly and really help develop the embouchure. Sorry no advise for the other stuff!

Get well soon!

Chew 'airwaves' chewing gum. They unblock your nose and are so strong they make your eyes water!

I hope you're feeling better soon.

You can use Olbas oil too, either put it in the bath, put a drop ina tissue and sniff it or put some on your pillow at night.

So sorry Sarah - I think we may have had the same cold !! at any rate, it sounds familiar.

Try inhaling some steam. Stick boiling water in a basin and cover your head with a towel - hmmm - just read that, and there's a bit missing somewhere - but I think you'll know what I mean !! You can add olbas oil, vick or carvol if you like, but it should help even without anything added.

Hope you soon feel better. Mine is on the way out now, just a bit of congestion left.

Thank you for the ideas, tips and sympathy, folks. I do feel a lot better than I did at the weekend, but my throat is still all icky... it's so annoying!

Maggie - keep meaning to answer your PM - yes it does sound the same in which case loads of sympathy to you, too. Most evil cold I've had in a long time.

Anyway guess I better go get ready for work!

I know it's a pain, but in the long run, you are probably just better taking time out until you are fully recovered. Blowing a lot of germs into your flute is probably not such a great idea! I find when I have a cold, that I just can't get the breathing right which is most annoying.

I suggest that taking a rest - however difficult that might be - is probably best. Don't overdo things otherwise it could turn into one of these colds which you never seem to get rid of!

David

Yes, you'll probably play better when you're fully recovered and I am sure your body will appreciate a break.

*sigh* you're probably right, it's just very frustrating! talk about bad timing...

When I get a head cold I drink litres and litres and litres of orange juice. It seems to work.

Does anyone have any useful advice for chest colds?

If it's available, from health food shops & similar, Potter's Vegetable Cough Remover - it's absolutely vile but by golly it shifts stuff off your chest and gets rid of all the gunk, which is generally what can turn a chest cold into a chest infection and leave you struggling with it for weeks.

Orange juice is good, too! And lots of water.