VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

HeatherMasters

I've searched the archives and couldn't find a thread to address this. I know caffeine dehydrates, but what if I drink one cup of tea in the morning (6 am) and then don't start recording until noon. Can I drink tons of water and reverse the effects? Facing the morning without a cup of Irish Breakfast makes it hard to, well, face the morning. I haven't had a cup in a few weeks, and rather than over it, I miss my sweet cup of morning bliss ever so much...

Do none of you drink caffeine in the morning to wake up? For real??? How do you do it?!?!
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paulstefano · Posted: Thu Oct 15, 2015 8:52 am Post subject:

The tide is actually turning on the caffeine dehydration debate. It's not as cut and dry as it once was.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/caffeinated-drinks/faq-20057965
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Kristin Lennox · Flight Attendant Joined: 30 Apr 2011 Posts: 858

Does caffeine dehydrate YOU? Meaning, have you personally noticed a difference in how you sound before and after caffeine...?

Because I can drink a crap-ton of Diet Coke, and it doesn't affect my sound one bit.

Rather than take all the warnings as gospel (avoid caffeine, dairy, alcohol, spicy foods, etc), find out how they affect YOU and your voice as an individual. You may find you don't have to give up nearly as much as you think. Or you may find that moderation is the key, or avoiding certain foods at various times of day.
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Jason Huggins · Posted: Thu Oct 15, 2015 10:15 am Post subject:

Ya right!! I drink 6-8 cups of black coffee most days (I do drink water too and have water in the booth instead of coffee) and haven't had a big issue with mouth noise.

Drink a cup of tea and be happy!! Just have some water in the booth with ya Smile

Bruce · Posted: Thu Oct 15, 2015 10:35 am Post subject:

Unless you make your tea so strong that a spoon will stand up in it, I'm thinking a cuppa or two or three should be no problem at all. Just be sure to drink enough* water throughout the day knowing that the water in the tea might not count toward that total.

B

*Daily water intake recommendations have been all over the map the past few years. I have a 32 oz. water glass and I try and make sure to drink two full ones every day. And I'm a 3 mug a day coffee drinker, and I'm doing OK behind the mic.
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Rob Ellis · M&M Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 2385 Location: Detroit

From what I know of this crew there are many caffeine addicts and very few abstainers.

I know that in one voiceover book the author says to avoid caffeine completely but I think that's a bit draconian.

I am a reformed coffee drinker, just tea now which works much better for me but I have several cups a day without apology cool

Lee Gordon · Posted: Thu Oct 15, 2015 2:08 pm Post subject:

HeatherMasters · Posted: Thu Oct 15, 2015 2:27 pm Post subject:

I think I heard birds singing in the background as I read your responses. I feel like everything I've read about vocal care says "no caffeine." I just figured it was a hard and fast rule.

God bless all of you rule-breakers! My life has meaning again!!! Sarcastic

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Bish · Posted: Thu Oct 15, 2015 4:22 pm Post subject:

With ANY thing you do, there will always be those that extol the virtues of:
NO caffeine
NO nicotine
NO alcohol
NO (insert your own vice depending on what state/country you live in)
NO... awww... what's the point, I do VO so I can make a living and be able to afford the stuff on that list!

I guess I'd be a better VO if I lost thirty pounds and ran every morning to build up my stamina. I guess I'd be better if I did a lot of things. The point is, no one every gets lambasted for making correlations between a (so-called) healthy lifestyle and success in other areas. It's a trope. The current fad is to find a scapegoat for all our ills... seek an easy fix.

I was going to end this with a lengthy list of my vices... but essentially, Lee hit the nail on the head... don't read this crap. It has all the value of an inspirational post on Facebook.

Do what you like... if you feel it has an adverse effect on something else you want to do more... then stop doing it. Simple.
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WillMWatt · Posted: Thu Oct 15, 2015 4:39 pm Post subject:

Speaking scientifically, caffeine does dehydrate as it is a diuretic. However, the amount of it that you'd need to drink in order for this to become a concern would be vast. A cup of tea or coffee or six in a day isn't going to be a problem.

Lynn Benson · Posted: Sun Oct 18, 2015 9:58 pm Post subject:

For me there is trouble with mouth noise when I have coffee before recording. Each morning I have at least two cups before I start. Not gonna quit either.
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todd ellis · Posted: Mon Oct 19, 2015 5:29 am Post subject:

i drink a small child's wading pool full of coffee every day.

someone told me once (i think it was pammy-cakes) if i started clicking - to brush my teeth. we were on the phone, so i assumed it wasn't my breath. i tried it & it works for me. sometimes during long narrations i will stop for some quick dental hygiene & sound (as well as feel) better all the way around.

(third set of parenthesis)
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Rob Ellis · M&M Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 2385 Location: Detroit

todd ellis · Posted: Mon Oct 19, 2015 1:53 pm Post subject:

not if you have a small inflatable raft & a straw!
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bransom · DC Joined: 06 Nov 2008 Posts: 650 Location: St. Louis, MO

Quit caffeine only for the most dire reasons. Otherwise, blasphemy!

However, dumping (most of) it worked for me. I was having a problem with my voice becoming hoarse, scratchy, and sort of thin in the afternoon. I even went to a voice lab to try to figure out what was going on. They suggested it might be silent reflux — acid reflux that's small enough to be unnoticeable when it happens but big enough to cause problems — but changing my diet and eating schedule didn't help.

It was only after reading a post here from someone — I can't remember who now; this was several years ago — having a similar problem who found eliminating caffeine really helped. I hemmed and hawwed and try to talk myself out of this as I LIKE MY COFFEE. Eventually I settled on trying half-caf in the morning first thing then decaf any other time after that. And it worked! No afternoon issues anymore.

My suggestion then: if you're having no problems, keep drinking! But if you're having issues, give it a shot.
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