Have you ever gargled with drano?

Wow.. That is such a terrible idea. Incredibly stupid. I have never heard of doing that.

Really, there are easier ways to get out of this. Use the standard phone call and “Problems with female parts.” if you must.

if you want to die, sure.

Crazy idea!!!!! That is extremely dangerous. Haven’t you read the bottles of chemicals? KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Don’t go through with it. It may cause SERIOUS damage. If she really wants to loose her voice go to a concert and scream at the top of your lungs!

NO! Not female issues! I think she should face the music and become a stronger person by it. I hosted a meeting once and completely blew it by not being prepared, losing my grip on the group and passing the buck to another better suited than I. Or she can come down with laringitis without really doing so. Fake it, don’t burn your throat. I met a woman recently who swallowed lye to try to kill herself. She lived but burned her entire esophogus and now speaks through a hole/tube in her throat. She cannot swallow and gets her nutrician through intravenous tubing.

@joli

When a person hits the point of gargling with Drano it proves that rational thought left through the fire exit long ago. The number one concern needs to be keeping the person safe. Making them a better person can wait for another day.

so she is pretty set on really losing her voice, its the only way out of her speech…is there something else she can drink or do that is a hell of a lot more safe?! other than screaming and singing loudly

Tell your room mate to get over it and face the music. Gargling drano? I can’t believe you’d even entertain the idea. I have to say this is very likely Darwinism in action.

Stay tuned for new Darwin Award nominee!

I really hope this is a joke that was done really well.

shes come to her senses…sort of..shes just going to chain smoke a pack of cigarettes and a cigar outside in the cold the night before…but i guess its better than drano :)

Why not have her rehearse her speech in front of you? Maybe if she practices, it will not be so terrifying.

How old is your roommate? We all went through giving speeches at one time or another. It’s just a part of life. Yes, it can be scary to get up in front of a class to give a speech, but you just have to face it and do it. The first one is always the hardest, but they get better!

I doubt that someone who truly was asked to give a “huge” speech is really considering gargling with drano. Anyone in a situation to be asked to give a speech is most likely wise enough to never even consider such an option.

@caly: I repeat, how old is your roommate? Define “huge speech.” How large will the audience be?

I remember I lost my voice days before I had to give a speech (not purposely) and guess what… I still had to make it up when my voice came back. Just do it and get it over with. You will feel so much better rather than having it linger around. Be strong.

All this time wasted on deception could have been put to use preparing. Show some responsibility.

try gargling some pieces of aluminum foil with the drano.

On the lighter side… There’s that survey that found that people’s #1 fear was public speaking – even above death. (So that means that at a funeral, most people would rather be in the casket than delivering the eulogy.) This case here seems like a prime example.

I have always enjoyed speaking in front of a crowd, FWIW. I was a little nervous the first time, but discovered that if I knew my subject and used only brief notes, my adrenaline kicked in. Once you learn how to put one sentence in front of another, move from the abstract to the concrete, keep a few short (and funny) jokes on hand, and pretend that you are talking to a friend, it gets easier.

I have spoken to thousands of people. I am always nervous before hand. In fact, if I am not a bit edgy, it is a sign of complacency on my part and it shows in the process.
Being nervous is typical. Most performers that I know of get very nervous before performing, even though they have done it hundreds or thousands of times before. At least those who care about connecting with their group rather than just giving a performance or speech.
On the other hand, I have seen people give what would be called “good” speeches or perfomances, yet do not connect. It is the desire to know that I connect that creates the edginess. If it was just about giving a good talk and receiving accolades and acknowledgements afterwards, I would probably do well, get the nice acknowledgments, but it would be a very shallow effect overall.

What I know is that the only way to get through is to be clear on your purpose, your context and what it is you have to share. If all of that lines up, you will find that things flow, and even if you get side tracked, you will flow with it and get back on course.

Last time I checked that would kill you. So I am going to havero say no on the drano solution.

Save her life and pour the Drano in the toilet…..if this post is legit, you should probably notify her parents and let them know that their child needs to repeat pre school.

It sounds like your roommate should have a psych evaluation if the fear of public speaking causes her to want to gargle with drano or do other self-destructive things to herself. It sounds like their are seriously deeper issues here than just a fear of public speaking. Please please encourage to go talk to someone about this.

As a friend, I would speak with her about these concepts (in no particular order):

1. Issues concerning integrity and being disingenuous;
2. Empowerment (or esteem) issues re: overcoming her fear of public speaking;
3. Time management skills.

Now aside from the philosophical reasoning:

Gargling Drano (as others have mentioned) is not only ludicrous and extremely hazardous, but it’s apparent that given this particular circumstance, she is apparently in a state of extreme anxiety and/or desperation.

As a friend, I would be very concerned about her suggestion-be it in jest, or out of ignorance, or out of desperation (or all three); were I in your shoes, I would recommend that she seek counseling or professional help asap.

yall shes not doing it and was joking apparently…shes doing the speech….give it a rest!

@caly420: just a friendly suggestion: maybe you can find a kinder way to thank the community for the input; in text, it comes off a bit smug to say “give it a rest.”

From your question and details, there was no way for us to tell she was joking!...IAC happy day to you both.

Well after reading this thread it became apparent that everyone who commented was very concerned, and that the true specifics (this person’s age, size of the speaking engagement, etc.) were never elaborated on by caly420.
My line of thought is with johnpowell on this one… it sounds like this person is old enough to know better, and that remains the glaring problem here. Hopefully she will get some help because surely life will continue to bring more huge challenges. Self-destruction behavior usually signals the person lacks significantly in the problem- solving- skills department. Gee, I wonder what the speech topic is going to be?

I would like to say “I knew it” but even though I had my suspicions, having asked my share of what have been called foolish questions, I didn’t know for sure.