I thought it was about time I got around to telling my story - partly to see who else out there has had similar experiences and also to provide a positive message to others. It's almost a year to the day that I was diagnosed with a contact granuloma, my voice had got progressively worse over about 6 weeks, to the point where I couldn't really talk at all. Several trips to the GP were getting me nowhere and I was lucky enough to have private medical insurance so I saw my local ENT specialist…

First of all I would like to say Happy New Year to everyone here at VPS.

I am now back singing again full time since my vocal op in April of last year. I still don't have my full range back and have to work with specific vocal exercises on a daily basis. Thankfully I have enough range to sing on performances without causing me any major problems which is wonderful almost a year on.

During my lengthy period off work I spent some time thinking about the lack of…

Did anyone see Kay Russell on BBC Breakfast this morning? She is trying to raise awareness of Foreign Accent Syndrome.

It was good to see the message going out that having a different sounding voice has a huge impact on how you feel about yourself.

If you have a chronic sore throat and hoarse voice, have you ever thought of post nasal drip (dripping of mucous and collection of mucous at back of throat?). Here are some useful links:

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Respiratory-Disorders/Cure-for-constant-Post-Nasal-Drip-and-throat-clearing/show/284163…

My tea for chronically inflamed larynxes (which can be caused by lots of things such as reflux, strain, etc...) has evolved. I now add one teaspoon of slippery elm powder to an opened capsule of marshmallow, add to hot water and stir in some honey. It tastes so much better than just marshmallow and should work better since slippery elm is supposed to be good for the GI tract and sore throats. Will let you know how I get on!

I would very much like to develop the On the QT guide on the lary.org.uk website (http://www.lary.org.uk/on-the-qt). On the QT is designed to be a directory of voice problem friendly venues - bars, restaurants, hotels, etc... Finding places where we can socialise with a reasonable level of comfort is surely one of the holy grails for people with voice problems!

I would really appreciate people sending me reviews of places they've…

After spending ages online I'm admitting defeat! I'm trying to find an telephone amplifier. Sounds simple doesn't it? But all the ones I find are the wrong way round, they all amplify the other person's voice not mine. Am I looking up the wrong thing? Is this a gap in the market? [I wish I was more of an enterpreneur if that's the case] How do other people manage using the phone?

One of the contributors at the latest Lary Project support group meeting was Jacob Lieberman. He is a psychotherapist and osteopath specialising in the larynx. An important point he reminded us all of was the role of emotion in the voice.

I think it's an important thing to remember. A "new age" lady (forgive the pigeon-holing!) once said to me that the throat is the emotional spaghetti junction of the body. Certainly what many say about their voice problems bears this…

Anyone who did not attend today's session, please do not try these without instruction from a suitably qualified voice professional.

a. stick you tongue out slightly between your teeth (relaxes jaw, lowers larynx?)

b. stick thumb into hollow under chin (under tongue area) and circle with some pressure (relaxes jaw, lowers larynx?)

c. extend lower jaw so lower teeth stick out (like an underbite). Now take hands and place on face like with…

1 year on…

About 4 1/2 months after my operation my voice finally started to stabilise. I found I could shout out if I needed to and I started to sound like my old self again. At my next ENT appointment my chords were filmed

‘in action’ The disappointing news was that my left chord was still pretty

immobile sitting across my larynx, but the good news was that my right chord

was growing stronger and compensating for the…

Week 12 - 29/6/2009

Well it is twelve weeks to the day since I had my op. I have regained the ability to swallow and my breathing is improving all the time. I can hum, and I can count up to 15 in a single breath, this is my new way of

measuring my progress, the further I can count in a normal volume voice means I

use less breath to say each number,…

Week 5 - 12/05/2009

I appear to have something resembling a voice more often than I don’t these days, but I now feel I can sympathise with teenage boys when their voice breaks, as I am never sure what my voice will sound like when I

start to talk, sometimes it is low and gravely and other times it is high and

whispery. It is at it’s best at the start of the day and by the evening, I just

get quieter…

Week 4 – 5/05/2009

Well I have finally made it to a choke free day! Yipee so pleased that I have managed this

I have also had two visits from a speech therapist since I last wrote a note, I am practising abdominal breathing and making different sounds that require lots of breath to strengthen my chords and my breathing, I

do sound like I'm doing impersonations of various kitchen appliances when I'm…

Week 3 29/04/2009

Well Jake and I survived a trip to the zoo equipped with just a whistle and a sign which I attached to Jake explaining that if he was lost could they please text the number given as I was unable to speak. I did get a

few funny looks on the rare times I blew the whistle to attract Jake’s

attention, but I would rather be thought of as the Barbara…

Week 2 17/04/2009

I was so frustrated earlier this week. Jake had been upset at his day camp and I could not articulate how I felt about it. I had to resort to a written complant presented the next day with a scowl on my face. Not as

satisfying but it got the job done.

Some positive things that…

Week 1 – 12/04/2009

A complication in an operation to remove my thyroid gland last week has left me…