Latest / The Vocal Hack Podcast / #07 Is Coffee the Devil?
Transcript
- Joana Lisboa: Hi, I'm Joanna. Assumpta: and I am a Sumta. Joana Lisboa: Welcome back to Vocal Hack Podcast, where we explore voice, communication, performance, and all the habits that influence the way we sound and connect with others. And today, we are entering a dangerous territory. Assumpta: Very, very dangerous territory. Because today we're talking about one of the most beloved substances on the planet. Coffee. Is it the devil for your voice or is that reputation a little exaggerated? Because if you work with your voice, you've probably heard people say things like, never drink coffee before singing or Coffee destroys your vocal cords, but is that actually true? Or is the relationship between coffee and the voice a bit more nuanced than people think? Joana Lisboa: First of all, think it's important to say that coffee itself is not the devil. Most vocal coaches, including us, are not walking around trying to ban coffee from people's lives. No. And honestly, for many people, coffee is also a ritual, comfort, pleasure, social connection, and sometimes even emotional grounding. So this is not about fear, it's about question is not simply, is coffee bad? The real question is how does coffee affect your body and your voice specifically? Assumpta: Exactly, because voices are deeply connected to the body and everybody reacts differently. For some people, coffee creates almost no noticeable vocal impact. For others, it immediately increases dryness, tension, reflux, anxiety or vocal fatigue. And coffee can stimulate the nervous system quite strongly, especially if someone is already stressed, tired or operating in high performance mode. So sometimes what people perceive as a vocal problem after coffee is actually the effect coffee had on their breathing, tension levels or purely their nervous system regulation. Joana Lisboa: Maybe it's time to talk about our own experiences because we have so different experiences with coffee, me and the sumta. I will start with mine. I drank coffee during my whole adult life until now, until two years ago, when I started feeling very uncomfortable with strange palpitations in my heart and I was feeling stressed and... I just realized it might be the coffee. So I cut the coffee. It was the most horrible three days of my life. It's not easy, I can assure you. But what I felt after was that, for me, I'm talking about my experience, I'm just saying that it was unnecessary. And I felt more calm, I felt more connected with the surroundings. But the social part was a bit harsh. Because I was used to go to a coffee shop and just... coffee here, coffee there. So I just switched the drink and it worked. For me, it's working until now. I'm not saying I didn't drink one or two coffees during these past two years. I would be lying. But I just noticed how well I feel and how unnecessary for me the coffee feels. Assumpta: What is your go-to drink now? I'm curious. Joana Lisboa: It's like an infusion of the peel of the lemon that we in Portugal drink a lot. We call it carioca do imão. And so it's kind of healthy because you're drinking infusion of the peel of lemon. And at the same time it's a warm drink and it works. Sometimes I drink also decaf, but it's something that I don't advise so much because it has a lot of chemicals. Assumpta: Mm. Joana Lisboa: yeah, that's my experience. So what was your experience or what is your experience with coffee? Assumpta: think for me, when I started drinking coffee, I can barely call it coffee to be honest. It was more like a lot of milk with a little bit of coffee flavor and sugar. But then I moved to Italy and that's actually when I started appreciating coffee more. And I've never understood people that have to drink coffee in the morning. to actually feel ready and awake and all of these things because caffeine or coffee never had that effect on me. So I can literally drink a coffee and fall asleep the next minute. I can have coffee at any time of the day and it doesn't make me awake or... very unsettled or anxious in a sense. I just noticed that I cannot have too much coffee before I feel like I feel sick or it's not doing any good to me anymore. It's more of the amount of coffee rather than if coffee or not. So now I enjoy coffee just from a taste perspective. And I know, for example, I don't like to have coffee on an empty stomach. Like I have to eat something before and then I can have a coffee. It just feels better in my body. And I never have more than three coffees a day because then I also feel like my body doesn't feel good anymore. It's more of a sensation in my stomach than it's in the rest of my body, to be honest. So I know that caffeine, for example, for my system, has not as much of an effect in terms of like making me anxious or heart palpitation than it has to other people. And I think it has a lot to do with different factors. And it's not one person has the same than the other person, but it's like very, very individual. Some people will tell you they can drink five coffees and they're still fine. Some people tell you they drink half a coffee and their blood pressure is through the roof. So I also think it's really important to notice that you should listen to your own body and your own experience in that sense, rather than taking one thing as the Holy Grail for everyone. Joana Lisboa: Yeah, I feel that it's completely irresistible the smell of coffee until now. Yeah, I just feel like that wound Assumpta: Yes! Best smell! Joana Lisboa: thing that the smell comes and picks up your nose and you just float and that's the effect that the smell of good coffee has on me. But at the same time, I already did the... the taking off of my life, so I'm not returning to that. But the smell is very satisfying, it's amazing. Assumpta: yeah. Joana Lisboa: But I already Assumpta: Hmm. Joana Lisboa: used it like a substance that I use daily because in Portugal everyone drinks coffee all the time. It's kind of like Italy. And Assumpta: Mm-hmm. Joana Lisboa: we have like the espresso is very, very short and very strong, which is a cultural thing. And so when I said to my people that, I don't drink coffee anymore, people were kind of... surprise like how dare you? It's not possible Assumpta: Like... Joana Lisboa: in What are you doing? yeah, and I agree with you. everyone has a different body and one of the biggest concerns that people mention is dehydration. When coffee has a mild dehydration effect and hydration matters enormously for vocal health Because the vocal folds need lubrication to function efficiently. When the body is dehydrated, the voice may feel rougher, and less flexible. the interesting thing is that moderate coffee consumption alone usually doesn't destroy hydration if the person is otherwise drinking enough water during the day. So the problem often happens when people replace water with coffee instead of balancing both. Assumpta: I think it's absolutely true. it goes back to every person's body reacts differently. But also one important thing to notice is the timing. Sometimes someone drinks several coffees, sleeps badly, skips water, rushes through the day, feels stress, and then blames the coffee alone for their vocal fatigue. But the voice responds to the full lifestyle, not just one drink. Coffee is often part of a bigger picture, and professional voice users, especially awareness becomes key. How does your throat feel after the coffee? Does your breathing change? Do you become more tense, more reactive, more energetic, or more anxious? Learning to observe those patterns is much more useful than blindly following a rigid rule. Joana Lisboa: I actually think one of the strongest effects of coffee on communication is nervous system related. Because caffeine can increase alertness and energy, which can absolutely help some people feel more awake and focused before speaking or performing. But for others, especially people who already struggle with anxiety or fast-paced speech, coffee can intensify Russian, shallow breathing, jaw tension, or over talking. That is something also a little bit annoying. And since the voice reflects the nervous system constantly, the communication itself may become less grounded without the person realizing why. Assumpta: Yes, and that's why self-awareness is everything. There are speakers and performers who genuinely function beautifully with coffee, and there are others whose voice becomes immediately tighter and less stable after one espresso. Neither experience is wrong. The important thing is learning what supports your instrument. Because your voice is not separated from your sleep. stress levels, hydration, emotions, digestion, breathing, or energy levels. Vocal health is holistic. And I think that's something that we want to emphasize so much that it's not just this one little thing hanging in your throat, but that it's actually really, really connected to everything you do, everything in your body, everything that influences you. And Sometimes people search for one magical answer, but your body usually works through balance and not extremes and every experience is individual. Joana Lisboa: So is coffee the devil? Probably not. But can it influence your voice? Yes, absolutely. And I think the healthiest approach is curiosity instead of fear. You don't need to become obsessed or restrictive, but you do want to become conscious how your habits affect your communication, performance, and physical well-being. Your voice is constantly giving you feedback if you're willing to listen. Pay attention. Assumpta: If you're willing, exactly. And honestly, sometimes the bigger issue is not the coffee itself, but your lifestyle surrounding it. And that's something we're gonna talk about very soon. The lack of sleep, the chronic stress, the constant rushing, dehydration, overworking, just a very busy lifestyle. Coffee often becomes the fuel people use to compensate for exhaustion. And eventual the body and the voice start asking for something deeper than caffeine. Usually rest, breathing, hydration, unplugging and recovery. Joana Lisboa: Thank you so much for listening to another episode of Vocal Hack Podcasts. Assumpta: And now we're very curious, are your team Coffee helps my voice and my body, or team coffee destroys me completely? Joana Lisboa: Or maybe s team in the middle. You can also choose in the middle. Assumpta: Maybe that Joana Lisboa: Whatever your answer is, we hope this episode helped you become a little bit more aware of the connection between your habits and your voice. Assumpta: We're looking forward to see you again for the next episode of the Vocal Hack Podcast. If you found this helpful, subscribe, follow, and all of these other things that you always should do to make us make this possible for a really long time following. Joana Lisboa: See you next week. Assumpta: Bye.