A Voice Apart

Spasmodic Dysphonia is a voice disorder often caused by some neurological conditions, which could greatly affect your speech. This disorder is not immune to any age and can affect anyone and, unfortunately, can surface with anyone at any given time. With this voice-related problem, movement of the vocal cords is forced and strained resulting in a jerky, hoarse, tight or groaning voice. If you are affected by Spasmodic Dysphonia Disorder, the muscles inside your vocal box (mainly the larynx and vocal cords) may receive some abnormal nerve signals that most of the time cause the vocal folds to spasm uncontrollably.  Symptoms of Spasmodic Dysphonia At first, the symptoms may be mild and they may occur only occasionally. But with time, they may worsen and the spasms become more frequent. The main symptom of spasmodic dysphonia is a forced movement of the muscles inside the vocal box. This usually causes a very strained voice. The words you speak may be dragged out or broken w...

Almost anyone, at one time or the other, experiences hoarseness, or even loss of voice due to the occurrence of various circumstances. Some of the causes of hoarseness could be due to the common cold, exposure to high volumes of sound in a concert or even simply cheering for your favorite team at a sports event. While these conditions can temporarily compromise one’s vocal cords, with some needed care, (such as vocal rest and proper hydration) it can actually be recovered in a reasonably short time. There are certain times where people are not able to decipher the problem(s) with their voice which they are experiencing. With that said, it is important to have an awareness of the most common disorders, and how to rectify them, in order to avoid long-term or even permanent damage. Here are the major signs that demand immediate attention followed by proper care: 1) Persistent hoarseness or voice changes : Hoarseness is a general term that includes a wide range of abnormal voice...

Vocal Cord Disorders That Cause Voice Problems. Voice or vocal cord problems generally include pain and, overall, discomfort when you speak or have difficulty controlling the pitch, volume and quality of your voice overall, and your singing voice in particular. It may sound a little surprising, but a variety of medical conditions may indeed be very much the cause of most voice/vocal cord problems. The most common causes of hoarseness (generally speaking) are the vocal difficulties outlined below. Some of the more common vocal cord problems include vocal nodules, vocal polyps, vocal cord paralysis, laryngitis and nevertheless, GERD.  Laryngitis  & GERD are often defined by a raspy/hoarse voice because of the significant irritation of the vocal cords. Overuse or misuse of the voice, inhaled irritants, or GERD reflux (the backup of stomach acid into the throat) may be one of the big reasons for it. Vocal Cord Nodules are (most of the time) ben...