Voice Therapy
Voice problems
Voice problems can occur when we do not use our body systems ( voice box or breathing ) efficiently and effectively. As a result different patients present with different voice problems. The following are some of the stories of our patients when they first came to our clinic.
Jason, a forty-year-old teacher, came to us with a breathy and soft voice. He complained that he couldn’t speak loudly and his students couldn’t hear him in class.
Mary is a mother of three your children and teaches full time in a well known local school. She has been coping with this dual career for all these years …but now since the last time she developed a flu and sore throat her voice has been failing her. She needs to use a mic in class and her voice gets tired and faint by the end of the day. B y the time she gets home, she just does not feel like talking any more!
Sylvia, a singer, recently joined a new band and started performing on the local band three times a week. She noticed that her voice became hoarse easily and she couldn’t sing the higher notes which she used to sing.
Leo, a secondary student, was brought by his mother. She noticed that there was something strange in Leo’s voice. His voice was changing and it seemed to have difficulty controlling his pitch.
Andy is a young sales executive. He is keen to go up the career ladder. However his voice seems to be giving him some problems. His colleagues have commented that he sounds ‘like a lady’ at times and his supervisor has commented that his voice is not ‘mach’ enough and lacks the power. He consulted an ENT specialist who found out that his vocal cords were bowed and referred him to see a Speech Therapist for therapy to improve his voice.
These are some snippets and there are many more…. People do lose their voice for varied reasons and the good thing is that in most cases they can be helped and this may mean making changes in several facets of ones’s life – lifestyle, the way we speak, environment, and diet!
If you experience one of the following, you may be having voice problems.
- Having difficulty in sustaining your voice
- Having a hoarse voice for more than 1 week
- Feeling that you have to put in effort to speak
- Feeling discomfort in the throat while speaking
- Having to clear your throat in order to speak
- Having difficulty in controlling your pitch
Causes
Voice problems can be caused by upper respiratory infections, overuse of the voice, inappropriate voice use, laryngeal cancer, gastric acid reflux, or traumatic injury to the vocal cords or other neuromuscular diseases. Singers, teachers, and sales persons are especially prone to voice problems because their jobs demand the constant use of voice.
Tips for voice care
The following are some tips that can help you protect yourself from a voice problem.
- Limit your intake of alcohol or caffeine.
- Drink a lot of water
- Don’t smoke
- Avoid eating spicy foods
- Do not overuse your voice.
- Learn the appropriate technique for singing
- Maintain a proper posture while speaking
- Reduce your stress level
It’s important that the voice problem is diagnosed and treated early. If you are experiencing problems using your voice, consult an ENT doctor and a speech-language therapist for help.
