I have laryngitis is it safe for me to go to work.

Is my laryngitis healing?

• I have terrible allergies year round but are considerably worse during May (of course). This year has been worse than ever causing my voice to go out Saturday afternoon. I work in a salon so I have to talk quite a bit at work. It's mostly been deeper than usual and every other word comes out as a whisper. I have never lost my voice like this before and assume its acute laryngitis. This morning, (monday) I woke up with a very high pitch voice. I have to work this evening and I'm just wondering if the high pitch voice means i'm getting my voice back. It's incredibly embarrassing at this point but if it means I'm getting better, then that is A-OK! Also, I've been looking up home remedies and as a struggling stylist, I'm too broke to be buying crazy things in the grocery store that may not even work to speed up something that will go away eventually anyways. I do have some apple cider vinegar though and read somewhere to use that but I don't know how to use it. Do I mix with water or anything? Gargle? Swallow?

• Answer:

  Sounds as if your voice IS coming back. Try and rest it as much as possible. If you have allergies you must have tried antihistamines. If you haven't take advice from a pharmacist as some make people drowsy. eg Benadryl, diphenhydramine. I don't think apple cider vinegar will help much. Use it in a salad dressing. Try and avoid the allergens (if known) - ie Stay indoors if you can in high-allergen times. Keep windows closed. Check the daily pollen and mould counts for your community in the local newspaper, in weather reports, or on the Internet. If you must be outside, wear a face mask to filter out pollen and mold. They're available in most pharmacies. Use air conditioners. Apart from avoiding known allergens as much as possible all you can do is try to alleviate the symptoms. Some find honey soothing, in candy or in tea, lemon juice.