can i do permanent damage to my singing voice by over exerting my voice?
141324
Take care of your voice, don't speak if you don't have to, if possible, let is rest. drink hot drinks, with honey in it sooths. I had been overusing my voice for three weeks, I saw a specialist, she told me to keep it quiet, easier said then done, I went back to see her after a few months and she was suprised it really was improved. so my advice rest your voice as much as possible until you gain your old voice back. Good luck
609162
Well, hot things like tea would not help your vocal chords. I'm afraid this is one of those 'wait it out' things.
1184984
Tips from American Idol. They do not use any dairy for a day before they have to sing. Then they have ice cream as  release after they sing. Before they sing they swallow 2 teaspoons of olive oil to lubricate throat.\n\nTo really improve your voice you need to use the foods suggested on this site for weight loss but they also remove the mucous causing the raspiness. Ideally  a mostly raw vegan diet gives you a huge advantage over everyone else.
129657
Some people can eat or drink dairy all day and it won't bother them. That would be someone like me. :p\n\nHowever if you have been eating or drinking milk products you should be able to tell if it bothers you.\n\nHoney won't always help, it depends on the person as well.\n\n\nIt would be good to get voice lessons, but the reason you need voice lessons is because you need to learn how to sing on top of your air. I teach voice myself and Breath support is the number one thing you need to learn in order to help your voice. Posture helps too, but it all ties into breath support. It will allow you to sing for longer periods of time. You will also become stronger on the higher registers of your voice. \n\nThe reason warm ups isn't the magic cure is because You could sing warm ups incorrectly until you are blue in the face and it will never help your voice!\n\nIf you are experiencing a dry throat, the others are right, it is good to drink lots of liquids.\n\nIf you have anymore questions feel free to contact me! gatortenor27@yahoo.com
480459
Breathing from the diaphragm is good. Learn how to phrase lines so you can breathe at the right moments, and work on your pitch. Tape record yourself singing along with someone else--recorded or live. And smile a little as you sing; keeping the corners of your mouth curved will stop you from singing flat. At least this all works for me.
890793
that's good and normal... you've got your talent.. use that to make you and other people happy with your voice.. you have to believe that you can do sing and you have a beautiful voice.. well, you still can use your voice talent to collecting money.. you see, you can do anything with your voice.. you must be convidence with yourselve.. maybe one suggestion from me, go to the singing teacher or whatever it is, so you can improve your talent.. that's all..
466888
strenghtYou can do vocal exorcises daily to increase your diaphram
334505
make your own music by smacking you mouth while singing isn't that inidan:S?
535693
I'm not a singer but been playing in bands for eons. Key thing to remember no matter how important this contest is if you blow out your voice you've lost it for good. Win or lose it means nothing. So make sure you rest your voice. I'd suggest 3-4 days of good practice out of the week and try to allow at least one day between practices. The day before the practice sing only a quick run through. No matter how badly it comes out resist the temptation to work on a song that late. Even if you get it right the next day you might be hoarse. Do sing a little the day before and lightly the day of the comptition. Just a quick run through. Preferably shortly before the compitition. Remember this is a warm up exercise. Don't strain, expect to mess it up. The point is not to see if you are ready it's to limber the vocal chords and see if you have any physical ailments that are hindering your singing. It's not how your going to sound like when you do the real thing. Don't even try to push yourself to hit the hard notes. Just glaze over them. Your warming up not singing the thing for real. \n\nWarm up before all practices and the contest. Most common cause of injury is going from cold to full out. \n\nLemon juice, teas, iced beverages that are not salty are things I often see singers do after practices and to prepare for a gig/after gig care. No alcohol before singing. If you smoke limit your cigs before the event. Many singers I've known will not smoke at all a couple hours before performing. Get a good nights sleep. \n\nOne thing that most singers forget is that unlike a guitar every emotion your feeling pours into your voice. On guitar if you listen closely you can hear nervousness or that the guitar player is tired but only by listening intently and with a good musical ear. With a singer you get nervous your voice constricts. You try singing from the throat not the diaphram. You forget lyrics or just as bad spend all your time worrying about the lyrics. When you sing close your eyes, let go of concious thought. Let it pour out. Forget the rest of the world even exists. Let it roll out, be part of the song. Be the vessel for it. The more you think the more you interfere with your own talent. Worry, insecurity and fear all creep into your voice. If you've practiced enough you need no thought. It'll be natural to you. \n\nSleep, did I mention getting enough sleep? Memory is affected by sleep. Nothing like forgeting a lyric to trash a performance. Concetration is decreased, confidence decreased. Get a good nights sleep before the show. \n\nMake sure your not congested. If you have a trace of a sniffle get rid of it. Wear confortable clothing if at all possible. \n\nLast smile and enjoy the performance. It'll show in your voice if your really having fun. You sound far better enjoying yourself than you do if your not. People can tell. Even untrained ears will notice the difference.\n\nAlso by the last few days you have a routine stick to it. Don't try anything new that late. Your last practice should be as much like the show as possible. What you eat, drink and do should be as close as possible to what you will do for that show. What you have for breakfast is what you want to eat the day of the compitition. What you drink the same.
801861
I am 25 and have been singing since I was in kindergarten and the one thing I have learned is to never strain to get out of your range, it hurts and to be perfectly honest, it probably doesn't sound as good as you think it does.  Remember this visual:  you always want to be soaring on top of that note, not struggling to touch it from underneath!  I would have a Dr look at it to let you know b/c contrary to one of the afformentioned answers you can, in fact, damage your vocal chords.
288072
No, you can still eat what you want,but a week before the performance eat smaller increments and avoid dairy products and eat things that have less caffiene/sugar in them and drink lots of water to hydrate your voice, this way the muscous thins out. Don't sing on an empty stomach and don't sing on a full stomach either the day of the performance, eat a light breakfast so you can allow the air to move at the right rate. When you practice bring water and sing for atleast an hour and to two hours and break the practice time down to 30-45 minutes in intervals of 3 times during the day. :O)
51545
I'm not a doctor, but I've been around a lot of singers, and I can tell you this is a serious problem that needs a doctor specializing in vocal cords who has worked with singers.  Don't just go to an internist or ear, nose & throat dr. for this, especially if you want to sing again. Also, you may need to change voice teachers.  You're using your voice incorrectly, and if you don't correct the root problem, the nodules will just come back.  An excellent doctor for this is Robert Sataloff in Philadelphia.
654320
use the bottom of your stomache to breath. it sounds weird but it really makes your voice stronger. good luck with american idol! ill vote for u.
11092
This usually requires professional help.  It is not something to tackle on your own.\nIn the mean time, sing... singing uses a different part of the brain.
253007
Maybe you have laryngitis. If you have laryngitis, your voice will not work.  Give it a few days and it should get better.
407625
The answer is: no, I can't.  The reason is you can't really learn to sing from a book.  You might be able to get some tips, but to really become good, you need a teacher.  Everybody's anatomy and abilities are different, and to learn to use yours to the best of your ability you need someone who can work with you.\n\nIf there is a college in your area, you may be able to take lessons from one of the professors (expensive) or even one of the voice students there (usually pretty cheap).\n\nGood luck!
25374
It depends on how you're screaming.  To not lose your voice, you have to scream/project more from your chest.  However, breathing too much air past vocal chords can wear out/damage them as well.  It's a delicate balance, see below for more information.