Voicetrainer Blog

Voice Changes from Parkinson Disease and Aging

Posted on July 23, 2013 in Body and Voice

A new preliminary study out of Australia presented at the Movement Disorder Society International Congress (http://www.movementdisorders.org/) suggests that even mild changes in speech abilities for those with Parkinson Disease (PD) contribute to “substantial impact on everyday communication tasks”.  The researchers found that these persons were anxious about how they sounded and as a result, often retreat further from communication because of these speech changes.  Read the indept article here http://goo.gl/fsjpG.

Not talking will only further compound the speech impairment.  This tendency is not specifically limited to PD or other neurodegenerative processes, but the aging population as a whole.  People’s circumstances change, they retire, family moves away, family and friends pass away, and there is less demand for communication, which in turn leads to further decline in communication abilities.  

The most common change in voice related to aging, which is also found in PD, is weakness and hoarseness of voice.  This occurs because the vocal folds, which are muscles, begin to atrophy or become thin.  This can be further compounded by a person’s inability to move enough air through the vocal folds, setting them into vibration.  As one’s posture becomes more slouched, such as in aging, or the chest wall and rib cage become stiffer such as in PD, it becomes more difficult to drive air from the lungs, through the vocal folds and into the throat to produce a clear projected voice.  The best solution:

USE YOUR VOICE!

Therapy efforts need to focus not just on the voice but the whole person. Voice exercises will be of limited benefit if you are not using your voice on a regular basis throughout the course of the day. The larynx or “voice box” is a biomechanical system made up of joints, ligaments, cartilage and muscle, and therefore needs to be used.  “Saving your voice” only furthers stiffness and weakness. This does not mean you need to start talking on the phone or to others more often, though that is desirable.  I often suggest that people read aloud, or recite poems, prayers or passages. Read aloud the first paragraph from a newspaper, magazine or book chapter. Continue 5-10 times per day. You are already reading, why not make it a voice exercise? Use a strong, well projected voice, as if you are speaking to someone across the room. Specific voice therapy programs such as LSVT® (Lee Silverman Voice Treatment) applied to those with PD emphasize intensive training with loud voice.  This program is effective, but only to the extent that you practice throughout the course of the day. We also encourage on-going physical activity to maintain or improve upon cardio-pulmonary health and posture, to make it easier to drive more air for optimal voice.

Voice therapy services are available at Voicetrainer LLC for voice difficulties secondary to aging voice and Parkinson disease.  Laura is trained in the LSVT® program.  And remember, USE YOUR VOICE!

 
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