You are about to say something in front of a group of people. You know exactly what to say
but your voice does not want to come out and you choke on your own words. You are thinking:
What’s happening? Why is this happening? If you stay, you will get your answers
to these questions and you learn 2 simple exercises to tame your nerves.
Hi! I am Katarina, speech language pathologist and here on this channel, I share practical tips
about using your voice in a healthy way. So, if this is a topic that interests you,
consider subscribing to this channel and hitting that bell notification icon
so that you don’t miss any of my future videos. Did you know that the vagus nerve, or
so called wandering nerve, is the longest cranial nerve? It goes from your brain through the neck,
where your voice box is located, through the chest, where your lungs are, to your belly and
has the widest distribution in the body. Why am I telling you about this longest nerve?
Because that’s the culprit of the frog in your throat that you feel when stressed
or worried. Blame it on the vagus nerve! So, the answer is yes: emotional stress,
anxiety, or even simple everyday worrisome thoughts can definitely affect our voice.
And stress does not need to be a huge adverse event in your life, like losing a loved one,
getting sick or divorced. Stress can be caused by happy life events like moving, having a
baby or getting married. Or stress can come in small doses of life and work pressures. Often,
this unrecognized stress can start the ball rolling and can turn into physical symptoms, like
troubles with voice. And I mean serious troubles with voice. For example, Muscle Tension Dysphonia.
We all respond to stress differently. I find that we tend to carry stress in different parts
of the body. For example, I tend to get tummy aches. Other people have more tension in their
throat when dealing with stress and anxiety. We are all wired slightly differently. But again,
blame it on the vagus nerve that is responsible for all of these symptoms.
Let me tell you about one of my clients. Let’s call her Susan. That’s not her real name. Susan
has a voice issue that prevents her from using her voice all day long. Her voice gets tired or even
worse, she gets sore throats after talking. But her job requires voice use for prolonged periods
of time, giving presentations and talking on the phone. She decides to talk to her employer
to find some accommodations while she is dealing with her vocal issues. She comes to the meeting
tired because she could not sleep the night before. Too many thoughts running in her mind.
She starts the meeting fairly confident and her voice reflects that. But after a few minutes, her
voice gets weaker and weaker. She has to repeat herself which makes her uncomfortable. Her breath
is laboured, her heart rate is through the roof, and her mouth is as dry as a sandy beach.
She can feel her throat getting smaller and smaller by the minute. By the end of the meeting,
she can barely say anything, her throat hurts and she cannot wait to leave the room.
As soon as she is done, she darts out of the room, where her good friend and colleague
meets her with a smile. Susan, sighs with relief and tells her friend: thank you so
much for being here for me. These words come out of her mouth with a clarity, precision and ease
that she lacked only a few minutes before. How is that possible? One person with the same voice.
But two different emotionally charged situations, affecting the function of her voice. This is
a wonderful illustration of how our voice is greatly influenced by our emotions and thoughts.
I am making this video in an effort to let everyone who wants to listen know that we
underestimate the power of mind on our voices. As I was preparing for this video,
someone messaged me on Instagram: Hi Katarina, your videos are great! I developed excessive
muscle tension in my throat out of nowhere. I haven’t been using my voice excessively at all.
I have to ask you how much of this problem is just simply related to stress or anxiety?
I think you know the answer to that question now, right?
If you are experiencing vocal issues and your are ready to work towards a free and confident voice,
check out the link here and in the description below for more resources.
So, now we know that stress, worries, fears, thoughts and emotions can affect
your voice. The good news is that there are a lot of things that we can do to overcome
this problem. I am not suggesting that they are quick fixes. No, absolutely not. On the contrary,
this type of problems usually require a lot of inner work, mind work if you want and that can
be the reason why many people are not successful because it’s not something tangible, like
doing 10 squats every day and your body will be stronger. It's more complicated than that.
Here are some examples of things you can do to decrease the response of your body to stress
and anxiety: mindfulness practices, breathing exercises, hypnotherapy (I could not recommend
it enough for true deep change), cognitive behavioural therapy, self-compassion exercises,
meditation, massage, stretching, physical exercises, and many more. And just know
that this is a process. You cannot expect to do a few breathing exercises and be fixed.
As promised, I am going to show you two very simple exercises you can start using
right away to give yourself a break from stress and anxious thoughts.
Exercise #1: 4-7-8 Breath This is a simple breathing exercise. You
can make this exercise as short or as long as you want: 2 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 minutes. Whatever
feels good for you. You are going to inhale for the count of 4, hold breath for the count of 7 and
exhale for the count of 8. Focus on your breath to keep your mind in the present moment. Find
a quiet place where you will not be disturbed. Align your body well while sitting or standing.
You can close your eyes or keep them open. Once you settle down, start the exercise. Inhale, hold,
exhale, inhale, hold
exhale,
inhale, hold, exhale.
Well done. In this exercise, the exhalation is twice as long as inhalation which
stimulates the parasympathetic system and it calms the nervous system down.
Make this exercise your daily routine to give your body the experience of calmness without tension.
Exercise #2: Somatic tracking Somatic tracking is a simple
technique to directly confront your feelings. Instead of running from them, you acknowledge
them without judgment. When you attend to the physical sensation of feelings with curiosity,
you’re leaning into these emotions. All you need to do is observe.
Somatic tracking involves attending to the physical sensations in your body,
free of any resistance. Just checking in, with curiosity, like an objective scientist.
So how do you do that? I say, sit with your emotions. Emotions are not
abstract concepts. Emotions manifest themselves in your body. You can track these physical
sensations. When you are stressed, where do you feel it in your body? Is it in your throat
or chest or tummy? Whatever the physical sensation in your body is, find it and attend to it.
Just notice it. Name that body part or even touch it lightly. How would you describe this sensation?
Is it small or big? Is it dull or sharp? Is it pushing or pulling? Describe it in your own words.
No judgment. You’re not trying to make it go away or move it. You’re just watching.
Does the sensation move, grow or shrink? Is it changing in any way? Or is it the same? Follow
it for a few minutes and notice what happens. Maybe nothing happens but you are training
your body and your brain to be ok with that kind of sensation. The more you practice it,
the better you get at recognizing small changes in your body. This is a very powerful practice.
Well, I hope you liked this video. I also made a video,
in which I walk you through 7 steps that lead to a strong voice without tension. If you want to
know what body, voice and mind factors you need to consider to finally free your voice, click
the link in the description below this video. If you found this video helpful, click the like
button and share it with your friends. Check out my other videos right here below. Bye.