A Voice Apart

Not only a great amount of people are losing voices these days, but also a lot of them are experiencing severe pain in their throats. Before, we had complaints, primarily from singers; but more and more, just regular people (speakers) are complaining on extreme discomfort in their vocal box in general.  The singers are usually ruining their vocal anatomy simply for the lack of education and simple knowledge; and thus, lack of the proper vocal technique. They very often end up with laryngitis , i.e., with the hoarse and raspy voice ; not to mention an extreme pain in their throats. The singers (also very often) end up with the growth on their vocal cord(s); such as polyps, nodules, cysts and etc.   The regular people who do not take proper care of their voice and (in majority of times) their health in general, usually end up with muscle tension dysphonia or spasmodic dysphonia .  Nevertheless, they (of course) are also susceptible to the growth on their vocal cords, but

One day, you wake up and you notice that suddenly, your voice is not the same as it normally is. You think to yourself; "maybe, its just morning raspiness and it will go away later in the day".  Five (or more) days pass and you realize that your voice is not getting any better.  It’s actually getting worse with every word you try to convey. On top of that, your throat feels like it is on fire and it has been burning severely. So, by now, you have come to the realization that something is definitely wrong there… Your  voice feels weak, and on top of that, it sounds raspy and hoarse . “What could I do to make it better” you ask yourself in desperation? Of course, right away, you turn to the “all reliable internet" for answers to your vocal dilemma, and find out that all of their “answers” are just generic explanation websites which, at most times, do not lead you to the best diagnosis and/or treatments. Now, you are lost completely and totally unaware

Vocal Strain means that the voice was misused or abused in more ways then one. Sometimes, just regular people end up abusing their voices without being aware of doing so. Some of them are speaking a lot and speaking very forcefully; almost screaming instead of speaking. They do get tired by the end of the day, but in the morning, they start all over again. Also, if their work requires them to speak on the phone all day, or to teach classes/courses, that’s where voice/vocal strain may occur; (and sometimes, to the point when they may lose their voice completely). Sometimes, the vocal strain could produce growths (like nodules or polyps) on the vocal cords. That’s where the “alarm should go off”, so to speak. Now we are talking about the growth on the vocal cords which, by itself, is a very serious matter. Either surgically, or preferably non-surgically, any growth has to be eliminated. We know of cases where such growth(s) had been left untreated for some

Recently, we had an inquiry from a singer situated in Europe who had been diagnosed with Spasmodic Dysphonia. …………………………………………………………………………… “I was diagnosed with spasmodic dysphonia, and the doctor wanted to give me Botox injections, but I refused because the risk of not being able to sing well afterwards (I am a singer) was too great! So my question is, Can you help me get my voice or a better voice back? Is it possible to get instructions via Skype. I live in Amsterdam, the Netherlands!” …………………………………………………………………………… Below is my answer. Hi There, I have to note that it is a little unusual to be diagnosed with spasmodic dysphonia, when you are a singer. Usually, it happens to people who are not singers, but just regular (or professional) speaking voice users. But, nevertheless, it is a very serious problem and in conventional sense, cannot be treated, let alone cured. And yes, the only treatment they could offer is the Botox, which in majority of cases, will not work or

Some time ago, after 30 hours of non-surgical voice repair, speaking and singing instruction and herbal treatment, we said goodbye to our New York client, John Polanco.  With his permission, we would like to share his story with you, our readers.   Ever since he was a young boy, John had a real passion for singing. He discovered that singing, especially in his native language (Spanish) made him very happy and thus, he felt very joyous.  He began to sing with friends at parties and by himself. Many people (his musician friends included) were giving him advice on how to sing better. He had carefully listened to them and tried to adapt all of the new "techniques" they were suggesting him to employ. He was also imitating all of the famous and not-so-famous Spanish singers and he loved doing it, until he noticed that his voice did not perform the same anymore. He tried to push and pull his voice until he could not do it any longer.  That was 20 years

More and more, we are hearing about well-known artists losing their voices, cancelling their shows and tours and undergoing vocal surgeries. Nevertheless, the amateur singers lose their voices in an everyday basis as well, we just don’t hear about it as much. And lastly speakers: They are caught completely by surprise when their speaking voice seizes on them “out of the blue” or, at least, they think so. In reality, the voice loss is always premeditated. The worse it is for speakers, as they’re completely not expecting anything like that and the lost voice is getting them, the least to say, in shock. The fact is that they do not realize that the voice is a vulnerable organ and could break very easily. Singers are, by far, more aware about it and those who proceed with caution, so to speak, are able to keep their voice healthy and lengthy for the rest of their lives. So what about those who don’t know about voice preservation? We have the answer for th