How To Get Your Voice Back! (and let me tell you about Pei Pa Koa)

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Last Updated on January 10, 2022 by Marie Bautista

Countdown to 2022!

2021 is almost over and I still haven’t put out a single post.

I have lots of reasons and excuses (too many to mention, hehe), but one of my biggest reason is that I got sick again.

And the epic thing was I.LOST.MY.VOICE.

Seriously.

No word or sound came out of me, just a hoarse croak maybe, and my kids were rejoicing, by the way.

Now, like I told you guys before, this is sort of a yearly thing for me, although it usually comes near the end of the year.

And the worst thing? I was transferred – back to my old job four years ago – and people there might have thought I was a dork, because I can only smile (now I know how Ariel in Little Mermaid might have felt).

Why do we lose our voice?

Lost voice, or laryngitis is an inflammation of the voice box. The vocal cords get inflamed and swollen, leading to a hoarse voice until all you can do is make those weird croaking sounds.

Laryngitis can be caused by infections which may be viral or bacterial in origin such as:

upper respiratory tract infection
bronchitis
cold
pneumonia
Chemicals, pollution, smoke and other irritants can also trigger hoarseness in your voice.

How do we commonly recover lost voice?

Stop Talking or Making Sounds.

As soon as you feel you can’t talk well, stop talking.

Don’t ever attempt to shout or sing.

Don’t even try to whisper because whispering will make things worse for your vocal cords.

If you can, try to avoid clearing your throat and if you cough, try to cough in a small “ehem-ehem”, lady-like way .

Experts say that when you force yourself to make sounds or even cough when your vocal folds are already swollen and inflamed, you are increasing the inflammation of your vocal cords.

Drink plenty of water.

Your throat gets extremely dry when you have laryngitis. Drinking water moistens your vocal cords.

I drank warm teas and one of my favorites is this ginger tea.)

Ginger is said to soothe the mucus membranes surrounding the voice box. Aside from that, studies suggest that is an anti-inflammatory.

Stay away from coffee if you can. Caffeine can be dehydrating and can make your voice worse.

Drink apple cider vinegar and honey.

Mixing apple cider vinegar and honey in warm water soothed my throat on those days when I cannot talk. Apple cider vinegar reportedly has anti-microbial properties making it a must-have to fight those voice-stealing microbes while honey soothes the throat and helps reduce inflammation.

So how long did I have sore throat?

Okay. Since I am one of those people who tend to obsess about things that may go wrong, I have visions of not having my voice back forever in my mind.

I even thought I might have some deadly disease because, heck, five days after doing all those remedies I mentioned above plus drinking methylprednisolone once a day for five days (as prescribed by my doctor), I still have no voice.

I was tired of smiling and pointing at my mouth and throat while mouthing a silent “I have no voice.” when people see me.

I was tired of trying to rest and sleep hoping that when I wake up, I will magically get my voice back.

I was tired of not talking!

So, anyway, I was over at the mall and saw a friend. She told me to try Pei Pa Koa .

I was supposed to say “PeyPa what?” until she told me that this is some Chinese cough medicine. Candies and lozenges are also available.

I was desperate for a cure, so I headed over to the Chinese Drug Store and got this Pei Pa thingamajig. I also got these candies, by the way:

I don’t know if it was about time my body gets to be healed (it has been five days after all), but after a few hours of drinking a tablespoon of the Pei Pa Koa cough syrup and eating the Ming’s Pei Pa Koa Candy, my voice was not a croak anymore.Oh, it was still hoarse, but it was back! My voice was sooo back (I can’t still sing Flashlight, though hehe).

So, what’s with Pei Pa Koa to heal my lost voice where other meds and solutions failed???

I am not so sure…It is like magic, I swear!(and I heard singer Jason Mraz swears by it, too).

So, what is Pei Pa koa?

Pei Pa Koa apparently has been around for years. Maybe, my mom let me take it when I was a kid and had bouts of asthma. When I tasted Pei Pa Koa, which was surprisingly sweet (I was expecting a strepsils/cough syrupy kind of taste), I sort of wondered if it will work.

Pei Pa Koa comes from natural fruits and herbs which relieve respiratory ailments like coughs and sore throat. It has no alcohol, chemicals, artificial sweeteners, additives and food coloring. It is completely natural.

Ingredients :
Fritillary (Bulbus Fritillariae Cirrhosae, Bulb), Liquorice (Radix Et Rhizoma Glycyrrhizae, Root), Loquat (Folium Eriobotryae, Leaf), Pummelo (Exocarpium Citri Grandis, Exocarp), Coltsfoot (Flos Farfarae, Flower), Thinleaf Milkwort (Radix Polygalae, Root), Platycodon (Radix Platycodonis, Root), Mentholum (Menthol) (Peppermint Oil), Fourleaf Ladybell (Radix Adenophorae, Root), Indian Bread (Poria, Sclerotium), Pinella (Rhizoma Pinelliae Praeparatum, Tuber), Snakegourd (Semen Trichosanthis, Seed), Fresh Ginger (Rhizoma Zingiberis Recens, Root), Bitter Apricot (Semen Armeniacae Amarum, Seed), Chinese Mangoliavine (Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis, Fruit).
Honey

Why does it work?

Licorice is a hormone herb that invigorates circulation.
Honey is a potent antiseptic that coats inflamed areas Dandelion is rich in potassium, inhibits bacteria growth, and reduces swelling.
Coltsfoot is an expectorant tonic and has many properties that help relieve stubborn dry coughs due to colds and flu.
Loquat comes from the Kumquat family, it moistens the lungs and helps healing. Senega relaxes the respiratory muscles.
Mandarin Orange is an abundant source of Vitamin A and C.

If, for some reason, you lost your voice, do try Pei Pa Koa.