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
practising, so I tend to do them when I'm on my own, usually in the car.

My speech is improving, I can 'tonate' for longer than last week, however it is still very "breathy and I run out of steam after a few words. Talking for more than about 15 mins leaves me barely audible, but it is
getting there. The big concern at the moment is my breathing this is not
progressing at the same rate and I am still struggling like a 90 year old to
walk up a flight of stairs or the slightest incline, the speech therapist
thinks that the chord affected by the paralysis may have drooped slightly lower
than the other chord into to larynx, effectively making it narrower. We will
have to wait and see if once the nerve repairs that the muscles will pull it up
into place again, otherwise a surgical option might have to be considered.

Onwards and upwards my next goal is to improve the pesky breathing, and walk home from Jake's school without having to stop 3 times.