Voice Disorders

What are voice disorders?

Voice disorders disrupt your ability to produce regular speech. They can affect the pitch, volume, and overall quality of your voice. Voice disorders are either organic or functional. 

Organic voice disorders occur because of structural or neurological abnormalities that interfere with your ability to create sounds. For example, you could have nodules or swelling on your vocal cords or a nerve problem that causes paralysis or spasm in your vocal cords. 

Functional voice disorders occur when your larynx is healthy and working correctly, but you fail to use your vocal mechanisms appropriately. 

In some cases, voice disorders are due to psychological stressors or trauma.

What are the signs of a voice disorder?

Voice disorders cause several types of symptoms, including:

• Rough or hoarse voice
• Breathy, shaky, or weak voice
• Strained or strangled voice quality
• Abnormal pitch, volume, or resonance
• Complete loss of voice
• Irregular breaks in sounds or syllables
• Chronic coughing or throat clearing

You might also have to make more of an effort to speak. Some patients have reduced vocal endurance or variable voice quality throughout the day, or may run out of breath quickly.

When should I speak to a speech therapist about a voice disorder?

If you think you have a voice disorder or an ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialist has diagnosed you with a voice disorder, you should contact the team at Celebrations Speech Group. 

The team offers expert screening to evaluate your voice for irregularities in respiration, sound production, and vocal range. They can help children and adults with voice disorders. 

How can a speech therapist treat a speech disorder?

The speech therapists at Celebrations Speech Group create personalized treatment plans to address voice disorders. Depending on your needs, your program might include:

• Exercises to strengthen your vocal cords
• Practicing making different sounds 
• Practicing deep breathing techniques to power your vocalizations
• Retraining your vocal cords
• Relaxation techniques to reduce tension around and in your larynx
• Exercises for your mouth and jaw

Voice disorders often co-occur with other speech and swallowing disorders, so your therapist might include exercises to address swallowing problems and stutters.

Call Celebrations Speech Group or schedule an appointment online today, if you think that you or your child might have a voice disorder.