A Voice Apart

Case Study! For many years we have been fixing people’s voices which have been affected by acid reflux…  One of the cases - of a few years ago, comes to mind and stands out the most. A woman in her 40s walked into our studio and told us her story…  She was divorced from her very abusive husband, who happened to be a lawyer and also the father of her 10-year-old daughter.  So this beautiful woman of Middle-Eastern descent was now a single Mom and a kindergarten school teacher.  Due to her occupation (dealing with young children all day), she had to speak a lot and also sing rhymes and songs with quite a large group of preschoolers… Meanwhile, she told us that she got a hole in her esophagus (I strongly believe that it happened due to her high emotional stress and then it had manifested in her physical body...). Due to that fact, her gastric acid was uncontrollably shooting up from out of that hole in her esophagus, and then directly into her throat, naturally affecting her voice a grea

Acid Reflux affecting Vocal Cords? Can it also provoke a Muscle Tension Dysphonia Diagnosis? Go Figure!!! Lately, more and more voice issue sufferers are coming to me with the most - seem to be common - diagnosis such as acid reflux affecting the vocal cords, and also  muscle tension dysphonia   pr ovoked by acid reflux. Why those two specific voice disorders described above are very common, you may ask? Are there any other  vocal problems  that people also experience?   Of course, there are! The rest of them are much more obvious growths on the vocal cords or even throat - (For example,  nodes, nodules, polyps , cysts, lesions, etc). But what appears to be interesting is that if the person (let’s say with a hoarse/raspy voice) is not diagnosed with any growth on their vocal cords, he/she is immediately labelled with one or the other diagnosis - i.e, either gastric  acid reflux  which is burning the sufferer’s vocal cords or muscle tension dysphonia, which affects primarily the neck mu

No one likes dealing with acid reflux. Problems like indigestion, a sour taste in your mouth, and difficulty in swallowing are all very uncomfortable effects caused by acid reflux. But did you know that acid reflux can even cause voice loss? This is called Reflux Laryngitis . Reflux laryngitis is mainly caused by stomach acid coming up into the esophagus and thus irritating the larynx. This can cause chronic swelling of the vocal folds, and as a consequence, can create significant hoarseness and raspiness in the sound of your voice. What is Acid Reflux? Acid reflux occurs when stomach acid and its contents travel up into the esophagus and quite possibly into the throat. Common signs include a sour/bitter taste in the mouth, burping, nausea, and difficulty in swallowing.   Causes of Acid Reflux Persistent reflux can be caused by obesity, poor diet, food sensitivities and certain behaviours such as bending over, lying down or speaking/singing in high volume and, neverthel

Would you consider yourself someone who uses their voice a great deal? Are you a professional singer, a professional voice artist or someone that uses their voice at work more than usual? If yes, then you know that your voice is a very important tool/resource that needs to be protected; and if used incorrectly or abused, your voice can be susceptible to all kinds of traumas. Some symptoms of certain vocal problems, disorders or traumas can include a hoarse voice , excessive throat clearing, thick buildup of mucus in the throat, coughing, trouble in swallowing, trouble breathing, etc. All these symptoms will definitely affect your voice. It may very well even effect the quality of your life!  Some other voice/vocal abnormalities may include changes in pitch and also the volume of your voice. It may also cause vocal fatigue, breaks (or cracks) in your voice while speaking or singing… And nevertheless, you also may experience difficulty being heard in noisy environments when you are