Why Are You So Thirsty During a Gig and How to Deal With It?
19/11/2025
In the most recent Ask-Me-Anything webinar, a singsing! Sofa Library member asked two questions that I know a lot of singers silently wonder about. I’m going to unpack both of them for you here and share some of the practical tips I shared during the live session.
If you’d like even deeper detail, remember: if you subscribe to The singsing! Sofa Library, you can view the full recording of the webinar and participate in all future ones for free!
What’s the deal with water?
This member asked:
My husband said he noticed I was drinking a lot during my last show. Is it normal to be so thirsty that you drink a bit of water between every song?
During our conversation, a related question came up:
Sparkling water seems to tickle or even irritate the back of my throat. But as I don’t tend to drink alcohol or soda, sometimes I want something more interesting. What’s the deal with that? Is it okay for singers or not so great?
These two questions really pertain to vocal hygiene, performance readiness and comfort for singers at all levels.
Why you might get super thirsty during a show
Yes, it is totally normal to feel very thirsty when you’re performing! In the webinar I explained that when you’re on stage, an important physiological process is kicking in that drains moisture and increases your need for hydration.
Your brain can’t distinguish between a bear you need to fight or flee from and a friendly audience. So when you’re excited or nervous for a presentation or a performance, your adrenal glands release adrenaline, which dries out the mucous membranes in your body. This is why you have a dry throat, mouth and voice; and a tongue sticking to the roof of your mouth.
Because of that dry feeling, you’ll naturally reach for water between songs to relieve that feeling. So yes, it’s completely fine to take regular sips. It’s an important part of the normal performance process, not a flaw in your technique or something you’re doing “wrong”.
It becomes even more important when there’s visual effects like stage smoke and theatrical fog in your show! In that situation, the mucous membranes throughout your respiratory system – including those surrounding your vocal folds – are basically under attack. So make sure that your hydration game is on point! Read all about it in the guest blog post Theatrical Fog and Known Health Effects, written by Dr. Yolanda D. Heman-Ackah.
What you can do about the desert in your throat
You might think “D’uh, of course hydration is important for my voice!”, but do you actually know why? Here’s a great TikTok by the amazing Dr. Reena Gupta.
Here are my five recommendations:
1. Understand how to hydrate systemically
- Not so surprising: Yes, drink water.
- High-water content foods like soup and cucumbers definitely contribute to hydration too!
- As a coffee-lover, I feel the urge to add this: As long as you don’t overdo it, coffee hydrates your body too.
- So yes, you can have a moderate amount of coffee, but alcohol is a no-go. Sorrynotsorry.
2. Hydrate in advance
Hydration is not something you do just before or during your performance. Even though the water you drink during the show does offer relief for your dry mouth and upper throat, it will NOT reach your voice. Water goes down your food pipe (oesophagus), not your wind pipe (trachea). Luckily! Otherwise you’d choke.
It takes 2 hours – some say 4 – before the water reaches the mucous film over your vocal folds. And what about the deeper layers of your voice like for example the lamina propria? Here’s a quote from Rachael Gates who co-authored “The Owner’s Manual to the Voice” with Kerrie Obert:
“In order for our superficial layer of the lamina propria to attain a sufficient, cushioning-level of fluid, it takes approximately 30 days of staying consistently hydrated for fluids to reach and build up inside the instrument.”
“There is a pecking order to hydration so that what you take in is delivered first and foremost to your vital organs to keep you alive – brain, heart, intestines, lungs,… Vocal folds are down on the list. Your body just needs them to open to breathe and close to protect your lungs. It does not need them to “sound pretty”, so…
This means: Sip that water bottle all day, every day! Not just minutes before you walk on stage, because that has zero effect on your voice. Sip, don’t gulp, especially right before you go on stage or between songs, as chugging water can cause a heavy feeling in your stomach and mess with the coordination of your diaphragm.
3. Topical / surface hydration
In addition to systemic hydration, consider using a nebuliser with sterile saline solution for topical hydration right before your gig, during breaks and afterwards. It delivers a mist of fine droplets that instantly reach and hydrate the surface layer of your vocal folds.
Yes, you read that right, this water does reach your voice directly!
4. Avoid ice-cold water before, during and after your show
Make sure that the water you’re drinking on the day of your performance is not straight from the fridge, or has ice in it. Otherwise, that can affect the muscles surrounding your larynx, so it might mess a little bit with your preparation.
I admit, the direct science shows mixed results, but specialists suggest room-temperature is the safer bet. If you notice cold water makes your throat feel ‘unready’, stick to room temperature. Otherwise follow what works for you.
5. Continue hydration after your performance
After a show, work on your recovery: continue sipping water, avoid immediately switching to very cold drinks (but do give your voice a gentle vocal cool-down).
And what about sparkling water?
So yes: if you find yourself drinking water between every song during a show, that’s absolutely okay, and in fact, sensible. Your body is working hard, your mucous membranes are drying, you’re performing under physical stress. Sipping water is part of your vocal toolkit.
I was planning on addressing the question on sparkling water too in this post, but as I ended up writing quite an elaborate article – as per usual…, I’ve create a separate post about it: Sparkling Water for Singers: Helpful Hydration or Tiny Troublemaker?
I hope this post already shows you how rich and useful the conversations in the monthly Ask-Me-Anything webinars are. Consider joining The singsing! Sofa Library! Members can attend the monthly AMA webinars for free; and have acces to a collection of 45+ highly educational webinars, led by myself and guest experts on voice and performance.
If you’re serious about your voice, or even just curious to upgrade your vocal care, The singsing! Sofa Library gives you access to content you’ll only get there.
Until next time, keep singing with joy, stay hydrated, and treat your voice like the precious instrument it is.
Susanne Vahle - Vocational singer
Bec Tilley, Voice Coach & Singer
Ariane De Dom, Avocational singer
This session was a great add-on to my voice lessons with Sarah!
M.J. Johnson - Singer & Voice teacher
Ariane De Dom, Avocational singer
Susanne Vahle - Vocational singer
RESOURCES
- Whole unstimulated salivary flow rate decreases during acute stressful condition –
- Hydration Strategies in Older Adults – Pence et al. (2025)
- No Evidence of Dehydration with Moderate Daily Coffee Intake: A Counterbalanced Cross-Over Study in a Free-Living Population – Killer and Blannin (2014)
- Your Voice and How To Look After it – NHS leaflet (2014)
- Nebulized Saline Solution: A Multidimensional Voice Analysis –
- The role of hydration in vocal fold physiology – Sivasankar and Leydon (2011)
- Maintain the Vitality of the Vocal Fold Mucosa – University of Minnesota Lions Voice Clinic
As always, feel free to send me your thoughts, questions, and feedback in the comments below this blog, via the contact form or in the singsing! online community 
Cordially,
Sarah