TAFL Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 OK, so I got in a shiny new mouthpiece so I can rebuild some chops for playing brass (and have a lovely soprano in a case over by that bookcase). I've been buzzing on the mouthpiece as I drive to get the lips working again--and then get an outbreak of near-Biblical proportions! Two--count 'em, two!-- cold sores show up. I bought a tube of Abreva to treat them and they didn't get as big and painful as is usual (the stuff works). I did put off practicing for a few days, though, because I'm not familiar with the interaction of brass playing and huge, honkin' sores on lips. What do y'all do when you have a break out (those who suffer from herpes simplex one, that is)? TAFL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PioneerLeadSop Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 (edited) If I take a break from playing and come back on practice a lot I usually break out in cold sores. I think it has something to do with your lips being tired and not fighting off the virus. I never used to get cold sores, but I got them from playing someones else's mouthpiece so beware. Don't play other peoples mouthpieces unless you disinfect them first. Edited December 21, 2007 by PioneerLeadSop Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martybucs Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 Any chance it's a metal allergy? Some people are allergic to the nickel, silver, copper, brass and zinc used in some mouthpieces. (I know not all the above metals are used in 1 mouthpiece) If so, perhaps gold or stainless steel may be an option. Cold sores, though, I never had one so I don't know how sensitive they are, but I don't think I'd play on one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrappyslap Posted December 22, 2007 Share Posted December 22, 2007 This hurts like a ##### but it clears cold soars up FAST. Pour salt on them and deal with the pain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow_7 Posted December 22, 2007 Share Posted December 22, 2007 Some people are allergic to the plastic pieces, and the gold plated ones too. Stainless steel is the only one that I know of that seems to play nice with peoples allergies. I never realized how much silver plating irritates my lips until I made the switch. Not that I ever break out, but I do reach a point where it's just no longer comfortable to play. I don't seem to have that issue with stainless steel mouthpieces. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis Argul Posted December 22, 2007 Share Posted December 22, 2007 Are these cold sores in G or Bb? Seriously, they are allegedly anaerobic which means that oxygen kills them. But what do I know? Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Posted December 22, 2007 Share Posted December 22, 2007 Back in the day when I was playing for a living (a meager living, mind you), I'd put Anbesol on before every set. It would kill the pain. However, be careful you don't get any on your chops as it will numb them up pretty good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vibratojr Posted December 23, 2007 Share Posted December 23, 2007 suffer it out for 10-15 minutes, and you usually get used to playing with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaplac Posted December 23, 2007 Share Posted December 23, 2007 There are numbing agents available OTC for cold sores. I think Crest makes an effective one... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TAFL Posted December 24, 2007 Author Share Posted December 24, 2007 So playing with the sores won't cause them to explode or anything? Cool. I thought about the Anbesol though had no idea how it would work on lips. TAFL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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