Howdy Folks,

I've found myself in the awful position of having a 5 day mix session starting tomorrow and this morning woke up with a head cold - all stuffed up, ears not blocked *yet* .. I couldn't really think of a worse situation really Have been in touch with the studio hoping to delay the session by a week or so in the hope of a full recovery but at the moment looks like the best I can do is start a day later which may help a bit.

Was wondering if any of you guys have been in a situation like this and can offer any old wives tales, herbal remedies, or pharmacalogical remedies. Basically i'm trying to keep my ears from blocking - in the past having done a lot of touring FOH sound i've used a saline nasal spray to decongest particularly before flights and stuff, that's gonna be my first port of call.

So annoyed!

Cheers,
Marcus

Maybe keeping some hot tea going and decongestant...

War

That sux Marcus.

I`ve heard cayenne pepper can do wonders for colds and stuffiness but don`t come after me if it doesn`t work. (or makes it worse ! )

I would suggest putting it off for a week, it's not going to do you any favours working with that.

I used to have a regular client that I did freelance mix for, great gig, pick whatever room I wanted to go in, whatever I needed to hire in, total freedom..... and it was all going swimmingly until I did a 3 day mix session and rocked in there with a nasty head cold. I got thru the session but the mixes I pulled out sucked bigtime (they sounded fine when I was in there but maybe with a head full of decongestants I didn't go that extra mile to make sure it was right).

That was the last time I heard from that client.

it can help, especially against a sore throat when gargling with it.

to kick a cold in the ass, herbally:
1. acquire liquid echinacea
- drink 1 oz. a day throughout the first two days (8 dropperfuls every 4 hours)
- then cut back to 2 dropperfuls every 4 hours for the next few days
- best to keep taking it for about two weeks, can cut back dose if feeling better
2. acquire Cyclone Cider* (contains cayenne, garlic, et. al.)
- match the levels of the echinacea
- mix it w/ the echinacea and take w/ juice
3. if you can find it, acquire liquid lobelia
- start w/ one drop (yes, a single drop) and work up from there
- mix w/ juice and take every 4 hours, between the echinacea/cider rounds
4. lots of water and/or green tea (prefer chinese to japanese)
5. as much sleep as possible
6. no alcohol, smoking or caffeine

best to start this as soon as you feel yourself getting sick. i find i only get colds if i slack off. if i follow the above, colds never get a chance to take hold; i'm out of it for a day, max. good luck.

disclaimer: i'm not a doctor or health practitioner. the above statements have not been approved by the FDA. this is what works for me.

* i don't know this online store, but this is the right product

I mixed a record with one ear kind of plugged up from a cold once.
It wasn't that bad. I checked in mono a bunch and used the meters more than I usually would for left-right stuff.
I'd take some sudafed and breath steam over some boiling water.
If you have easy recall, you can at least get the mixes part of the way there and finish later when your over it.
Good luck, hope you get better soon.

Stock up on chewing gum. Your favorite flavor: spearmint, wintergreen (my favorite), whatever.

Just chew on the stuff, constantly. It helps keep the ear canals open.

Worked for me when I had strep throat + ear infection during a pricey production/mixing gig.

Happy hunting!

Zicam. Go get some right now and follow the directions. It's a nasal gel available over the counter. BTW, when you squirt it in, don't hoover it up into your sinuses. Just let it sit in the accessible part of your nostrils, pinch your nose for several seconds, and then if it starts to drip go ahead and blow your nose--it's done its job. But you have to use it right away, and then every few hours.

I'm dead serious. Everyone should know about this. It's basically a zinc gel delivered to the spot where it counts and keeps the virus from spreading. It will turn a possible week of misery into three days of discomfort, and prevent all the later crap like two weeks of coughing and plugged sinuses and ears.

Also, take some Sudafed to keep your ears open.

Cowboy up and do the job. You'll be fine.

Good luck

-R

jewish penicillan = matzoh ball soup

or if you can't get your hands on that...loads of chicken noodle will work too.

i usually keep some peppermint altoids on hand at all times.
joshua

That`s a good idea. Get the mixes up to about 90% and there artistically and than when you shake the cold you can spend a couple days doing the precision fine tune with each mix.

That`s a nice way to work even if your not sick because you can revisit stuff when your in a different frame of mind (and rested ears) and see if it`s good still.

It is a surreal experience mixing with blocked ears!!! The only thing you can do is reference an obscene amount and trust your instincts.

The only think that springs to ming is the old steaming hot water in a bowl with a little Vics Vaporub in it- towl over head and inhale like mad! Never mixed with a cold but got through tracking sessions that way- I had to do some stuff with an ear infection still clearing once, loads of referencing and checking in Mono- but that was only 1 ear.

If the congestion is the main thing that you're battling, cutting out dairy and bread-type stuff for the meanwhile will help; dairy and bread are very mucous-forming.

The problem is that even if you completely get rid of the stuff that's congesting you, things still sound different.

***Be careful with the Cayenne Pepper! It works like crazy, that's for sure. Just remember that even a small amount of it going through your gut will have you saying "uh..could you guys excuse me just ONE more time?" and "I'll be right back" all day long.

And yes, Pseudophedrine is excellent for that stuff.

Never eat dairy anyway... it's poison!





well to me anyway stike

I miss cheese!

I'm on the stuff right now. It seems to be kicking ass. Worth I try anyhow!

ERic

If u'r in warm weather.........go swimming (as in big swimming pool )

Strange thing.........don't know how it works so good. Must be something with the chlorine in the water.

odd - that would TOTALLY cripple me !!!

I agree. Listen to stuff that you know, and get a feel for how it sounds while stuffed up. Keep checking because you will go through stages of congestion.

Usually the artist will understand if you hold off on the mix for this reason, but sometimes it is not possible/practical.

Hope you feel better.

jiji not very herbal or anything, but dayquil and nyquil (in liquid form) rock.

Pseudophed or pseudoephedrine is great stuff. I took some before a transatlantic flight when I was really stuffed and it worked a miracle. ymmv

Thanks for all the tips guys, thankfully today i'm feeling a lot better, not quite as stuff ed up anyway, lotsa great tips .. I love youse guys.

I am taking a good buddy engineer in with me as well for the first couple days to do be that valuable honest second opinon. The band are the kinda band that would just say everything sounds cool, not particularly critical listeners. Unfortuantely the board i'm on is a G+ without total recall so I don't think the assistant would be too jazzed having to do a manual recall for me later on

Thanks again, i'm a long-time lurker, first time poster there .. I love this place!

Cheers,
Marcus