Therapy to Regain Your Voice
Your Voice
Your voice has the power to change what others think of you completely. Your voice is as unique as your fingerprint. Each message you deliver has never been heard by another in your voice, with your words and tone.
Your voice can enhance your message and really make it stand out. When the sound of your voice gets your attention, it is typically because there is a problem or because you don’t like the sound of it. Working with the voice is about learning how to change your voice habits and finding your way back to your natural, powerful voice.
When is Voice Therapy Recommended?
Voice therapy can be an effective method to treat any of the following issues:
Inflammation and Injury
Both children and adults can experience vocal fold swelling, vocal nodules, polyps, or cysts, muscle tension dysphonia, chronic cough, and irritable larynx resulting in hoarseness or unwanted changes in their voice.
Vocal cord dysfunction (VCD)
Vocal cord dysfunction occurs when the vocal folds close instead of opening during inhalation, resulting in difficulty breathing. VCD can occur in both children and adults.
Professional voice coaching
Professional voice coaching involves teaching you to speak clearly, and at an appropriate volume, resonant tone, and a confident voice to reach your audience.
Transgender Voice Modification
Transgender voice modification can address vocal characteristics, such as pitch and intonation, and nonverbal communication patterns, such as gestures and facial expressions, for transgender or non-binary people who feel uncomfortable with their voice.
Neurological Changes
Individuals suffering from neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s disease may experience a quiet voice. LSVT LOUD® and Speak OUT! are effective voice therapy programs for individuals with Parkinson's disease (PD) and other neurological conditions.
For more information, read our blog about voice disorders.
Who Delivers Voice Therapy?
A speech pathologist with specialized training in voice disorders is also known as a voice therapist. A voice therapist can focus on helping you or your child find a better, easier way to produce voice to improve vocal quality. Research shows voice therapy delivered online is as effective as in-person treatment.
What is Voice Therapy?
Therapeutic exercise for the body is not a new concept. Historians have traced its use from ancient times to the present. Voice therapy exercise also stems from earlier centuries as a beneficial activity for general body hygiene and good health.
Voice therapy involves two components. One is teaching specific exercises designed to reduce the effort that is used when speaking. The other component is teaching how to keep the voice healthy, also known as vocal hygiene.
How Can You Keep Your Voice Healthy?
Reduce Mechanical Stress During Voice Production
A voice therapist can help you or your child reduce the stress applied to the voice box to improve vocal quality. Shouting, screaming, and extended loud talking can harm the delicate vocal folds.
If you like to sing, you should know your singing limitations and stay within them, avoiding strain or stress or using a pressed voice when singing. Excessive throat clearing and coughing can be harmful to the voice box (also known as the larynx) and should be avoided.
When speaking on the phone or via remote videoconference, you should maintain good speaking posture by sitting straight up and keeping your head facing straight ahead. Check your loudness, making sure that you are speaking at a comfortable conversational level, without shouting or mumbling. Use slower speech with mildly exaggerated articulation.
Automobiles, trains, and airplanes can be noisy due to motor, air conditioner, or other outside noises. Communication from the front seat to the back seat, and vice versa, usually requires increased loudness and awkward speaking posture. When you are traveling or commuting, you should remain mindful of your speaking posture and avoid lengthy conversations.
Emotional stress can cause tension in the vocal mechanism. Be aware of everyday emotional stress. Stress can cause tension in the voice box and strain the voice.
Avoiding Environmental Pollutants and Drugs
Exposure to fumes, chemicals, dust, and cigarettes can cause inflammation and irritation to the voice box. To keep your voice box healthy you should avoid smoking, recreational drugs, and some over-the-counter medications used to treat allergies unless specifically prescribed by a physician. Using a humidifier to keep moisture in the atmosphere, especially in the winter, is beneficial.
Physical Fitness and Voice
Maintaining good hydration is essential to keep the vocal folds well-lubricated and healthy and is especially important before and during the use of voice. Caffeine is irritating to the tissues of the vocal folds. Excessive caffeine intake should be avoided.
Use your voice minimally if you are tired or ill. While it seems that whispering would be a good alternative, actually, the converse is true. Whispering can be harmful to the voice.
For more tips about taking care of your voice, read our blog with 15 Ways to Prevent Voice Problems.
What are Voice Therapy Exercises?
You wouldn’t want to play an instrument without practicing scales or go for a fast run without warming up. Your body is your instrument. In the same way that you warm up by playing music or exercising, you must learn how to warm up your voice.
Voice therapy exercises are movements designed to restore the function of the voice box. Sometimes voice therapy exercises involve stretching and relaxing the muscles you use to make your voice. Breathing exercises will focus on learning to center your breath in the abdomen.
Voice therapy exercises may focus on modifying the placement of your vocal resonance. Ideally, you resonate your sound primarily in your mouth. Finally, voice therapy might focus on improving vocal fold closure and decreasing muscle tension.
Most individuals participating in voice therapy require 4-8 sessions over 2-3 months. Good attendance, practicing home assignments, and participating in vocal hygiene maximize outcomes. Your commitment to your practice outside of treatment will impact how fast you complete therapy and the success of your therapy outcomes.
About the Author
Allison Geller is a communication coach, speech-language pathologist, and founder of Connected Speech Pathology, an international online practice providing professional communication coaching and speech therapy for children, teens, and adults. With more than two decades of experience, she has worked in medical and educational settings, published research on aphasia, and leads a team of specialists helping clients improve skills in public speaking, vocal presence, accent clarity, articulation, language, fluency, and interpersonal communication.
Learn more about our voice therapy services for adults or voice therapy services for children.
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