What to do when your voice feels tired at the end of the day or even in the middle of
the day after a long presentation?
In this video, I’ll share three tips that can help you spruce up your voice.
Stay tuned.
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
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Many voice clinics, voice therapists and vocal coaches observe a rising trend over the last
year or so: many more people experience vocal fatigue at the end of the day after talking
over Zoom or other online video conferencing platforms.
Some people get vocally tired even after giving one presentation online or after using their
voice with speech recognition software.
And it is true that we use our voice differently in different situations, whether it’s online
or offline.
For example, you use our voice differently when talking to a child and when talking to
a police officer.
You use your voice differently when speaking to a friend and when speaking to your boss.
Also, you may be using your voice differently when communicating online and offline.
And while we use our voice differently in different situations, as long as you use it
in a healthy and efficient way, it should last all day long.
If your voice gets tired, it is telling you that your voice is either lacking endurance
or your vocal technique may be putting too much stress on the vocal folds, which you
may perceive as discomfort or strain after using your voice.
Let me share 3 tips with you on how to give your voice the best chance to recover as quickly
as possible.
Tip 1 Rest Your Voice When your voice feels tired, it is telling
you that it needs a break from any type of voice use.
This may be difficult for talkative people or people who use their voice for work.
But when I say rest your voice, I don’t mean absolutely no talking.
You can still use your voice, especially for necessary communication needs.
But resting your voice may mean avoiding talking in noisy environments or talking to a group
of people.
These vocal tasks require increased breath pressure under the vocal folds and increased
vocal effort, which puts more strain on them.
That is the last thing a tired voice needs.
When your voice gets tired, try to avoid any high intensity vocal tasks, such as loud talking,
screaming, or yelling.
If you need to use your voice, use it in a gentle manner: soft voicing with gentle beginnings
of words.
Also, it is very helpful to schedule your voice use as well as vocal breaks in your
calendar.
Yes, I really mean it.
Block out time periods for vocal rests in your calendar after a long presentation, teaching,
Zoom call or conference calls.
Give your voice a break that it deserves.
Tip 2 Try Laryngeal Massage Have you ever tried laryngeal massage before?
Let me know in the comments below!
If not, that is ok.
Laryngeal massage is a manual technique to eliminate vocal strain, during which a specially
trained professional or yourself use hands and fingers to touch and manipulate your larynx
to achieve less tension in this area.
Laryngeal massage is not for everyone but many people love it.
One of my most popular YouTube videos on this channel are videos about laryngeal massage.
The larynx, which houses the vocal folds, is surrounded by many muscles.
Some muscles are deep in the larynx, some are on the surface.
Tension in any of these muscles can cause the voice to get tired easily.
By massaging the muscles and manipulating the larynx into a more relaxed position, we
release tension from a tired voice.
In this video, I want to show you a quick way to massage your hyoid bone.
It is a U-shaped bone in your throat and your larynx is suspended from this bone.
If the muscles around the hyoid bone are tired or strained, your larynx will be in a disadvantaged
position too.
So, let’s do this quick self-massage together.
Find your hyoid bone.
Slide your finger from your chin down.
The hyoid bone is the first bump on your neck.
Then move your pointer and your thumb to the sides to feel the rest of the bone.
With a very gentle pressure and circular motions, massage the hyoid bone for as long as it is
comfortable, several seconds or a few minutes.
If you feel adventurous, you can then move the hyoid bone from side to side very gently
and slowly.
How did you like this massage?
In our coaching program, I encourage the members to create a short daily routine for releasing
tension and laryngeal self-massage is very popular because it is effective.
If you are experiencing vocal strain, tension or even pain when speaking, and you are ready
to work towards a free, strong and confident voice, you can apply to our Vocal Freedom
System coaching program.
Check out the links in the description below this video.
Tip 3 SOVT Exercises SOVT stands for semi-occluded vocal tract
exercises and it’s a fancy name for exercises during which we create a partial closure or
narrowing in the vocal tract.
The beauty of these types of exercises is that they create optimal conditions for vocal
fold vibrations and therefore, release tension from a tired voice.
Doing vocal exercises when your voice is already tired is not intuitive.
And I just told you in tip #1 that a tired voice needs a break.
Well, SOVT exercises when done properly use a healthy type of phonation – sound production.
They position the vocal folds into an optimal configuration, they equalize the pressures
above and below the vocal folds and they take away strain from using your voice.
SOVT exercises are very gentle on your vocal folds and they use minimal vocal effort.
Therefore, semi-occluded vocal tract exercises are a great choice for people with tired voices.
There are many different SOVT exercises, including straws exercises, humming, lip trills, or
sounds made on different vowels and consonants.
But what if you don’t have a straw handy or what if you don’t know any of the other
exercises.
Here is a quick and easy SOVT exercise that anyone can do.
Cup your hand into a tube and make a neutral sound like “uh” while blowing through
the opening in your hand.
You can make the opening bigger or smaller depending on how much resistance you want.
For releasing tension from a tired voice, I recommend low resistance because high resistance
could put too much back pressure on the vocal folds.
So, make the opening bigger.
And just sustain a sound in your comfortable range.
Don’t push your voice to make the sound too long.
Just what feels easy and relaxing.
If you feel strain when making this sound, make the opening in your hand even bigger
or use less air for the sound.
Easy, right?
Bonus tip If your voice gets tired occasionally and
you can pinpoint the reason for vocal tiredness, such as talking at a loud party, giving a
long presentation to a big audience without proper amplification, or singing when sick,
these three steps may be very helpful in sprucing up your voice.
However, if your voice gets tired frequently, if your voice gives up or gets hoarse on a
regular basis, then go and have it checked by a voice specialist.
You may actually need more than these three steps to avoid getting vocally tired.
There may be more factors to consider.
I 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 voice, body and mind considerations you need to take to truly 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 the video on how to do laryngeal self-massage.
I hope to see you soon.
Bye.