Earlier in my life I was constantly plagues with multiple canker sores which interfered with my trumpet playing. For some reason, they always seem to locate in the most inopportune places on my lip and at the worst times; most often before a concert or solo/ensemble contest. These dastardly villains were treated with everything from alum to hydrogen peroxide. While on tour with my college wind ensemble, our host, who was a dentist, assured me that he could solve my problem by applying silver nitrate on my lip. Not only did that not work, but my host also successfully dribbled the caustic element across most of my lower lip during the procedure. Thanks a lot Doc.
I have used every lip ointment, toothpaste, mouth wash and every product ever advertised to help my condition. This uncomfortable recurrence of pain continued for most of my life and only after I began serious “fishing” did I find relief. The stress of performing created the problem and the act of “serious fishing” solved the problem. It wasn’t until I retired from teaching that I became aware of the prolific use of Beta Blockers by most of my performing colleagues.
Now for the help you may be looking for when fighting a Cold Sore, Canker Sore or Sore Throat.
Excedrin is the answer.
If you are worried about your intake of Excedrin, rest assured the amount that you actually ingest is very, very small. Rather than digesting tablets of Excedrin, you need only gargle with a half a pill diluted with a small amount of water.
Here is how I have found rapid relief from any soreness in the mouth or throat.
- Cut an Excedrin tablet in half.
- Add a small amount of water to a glass (just enough to break down the tablet to granules.
- Tilt your head back and fill your mouth with a comfortable amount of liquid.
- Open your throat as wide as possible and gargle the mixture as long as you can, making sure that the liquid reaches down your throat as far as comfortably possible.
- After gargling, swish the mixture around in your mouth for a few seconds and then spit the mixture into the sink.
- Swallow the remaining liquid in your mouth and you are done.
Any remanding liquid can be left in the glass for your next treatment.
The Excedrin gargle will give you relief and in a very short amount of time. Once you have become used to the feeling of the granules in your throat, each additional application gets much easier.
Ingesting one or two Excedrin tablets will eventually start to give you relief from pain, but gargling with half a tablet will get to the problem area in a very efficient way without having to wait and it limits your intake to a very small amount of Excedrin. In other words, “treat it where it hurts”.
