How Loosing My Voice Made Me Clean Up The Office.

About 10 days ago I felt a cold coming on - the sneeze and the scratchy throat were typical warning signs. I prepared to do battle. I can usually nip these in the bud but one little germ got through the defense line of power vitamins and, heaven help me, oregano oil. I got sick. Not too bad, but sick.  I thought I was on the mend until Wednesday at three in the morning when the cat woke me up. I tried to tell him off and had no voice. Nothing, nada, zip. Not even a scratchy hoarse squeak.  Nothing. And I felt just fine.

It’s very odd to loose your voice. No telephone is the first thing you miss. Running a home-based business makes the phone crucial to your livelihood. I had calls to return, supply orders to place but I thought I’d just wait a day. Surely my voice would be back by Thursday. I put the radio on and went to work. It was very disconcerting to hear the phone ring and not be able to answer it. Worked a full day and fell asleep on the couch a few hours before bedtime. But I felt fine. 

Thursday - repeat of Wednesday. On Friday morning, still voiceless, I went to my Doctor who, bless his heart, told me to shut up for at least three days. A friend made my return phone calls for me and ordered the supplies I needed, and I went home.  It’s no fun being out and about when you can’t communicate with anyone. But I felt fine.

By Sunday morning, Day 5 without a voice, I was so well rested I couldn’t stand myself. The cat woke me early, again,  and I was surprised that when I said  good morning to him a sound actually came out. I took a minute to think about it all and realized that what I had just gone through was a full-on manifestation of the ramifications of not listening to my body and keeping my life in balance. I hadn’t and mine wasn’t. I had burned myself out, but I felt fine.

So, while I was waiting for the coffee to brew, I  decided that I needed to get rid of the nagging things in my life that I could,  but wasn’t,  controlling. Step 1: clean up the office. Three hours later the job was done, my office looked great, my voice was obviously coming back and I felt fine.