Angela Murray Rill
June 4, 1998
Dr. Cooper,
I have been through hell with my voice problem, that is until I
met you. I've been seeing you for only a week and I can already
hear a difference.
Here's my story. I started having voice problems about a year ago.
The first E-N-T I went to said, "You just need voice rest for
two weeks." I am a Broadcaster and despite the inconvenience
to my bosses, I took off the two weeks. Of course my voice didn't
come back. This doctor also told me to stop talking so much. "Stop
talking?" I thought that's stupid I am a News Anchor .
Next I went to an Otolaryngologist and his speech therapist who
told me it was either my hormones or thyroid, so we did blood tests
for that. Nothing was wrong. I went to yet another E-N-T- who told
me it must be gastro-reflux and put me on medication, despite the
fact I didn't have any of the primary symptoms of GERD. I was on
Prilosec for six months and still my voice didn't come back.
It was getting worse. My voice was starting to shake and break
and people kept asking me to repeat myself. Others started telling
me the problem must be in my head because they didn't hear anything
wrong at all. I thought I know I'm not crazy, I know my voice doesn't
sound right and it was getting really hard to talk. I started writing
notes to communicate with my family and my seven-year-old son and
I worked about codes for yes and no. I was saving what little voice
I had for work, and that wasn't working.
Along this path to hell on vocal suicide, no one once talked to
me about speaking into the mask or pitch, or that I was talking
way too low which is what many Broadcasters are told to do, because
it's thought to sound authoritative.
I tried all sorts of herbs from Bayberry, to Licorice and was even
told at one health food store that rolling up cigarettes from Licorice
powder was good for the voice. Smoking I thought can't be good,
but I tried it because I was willing to do anything. I would have
painted my body a thousand different shades and howled at the moon
if I thought I would get my voice back.
I went to an acupuncturist. She stuck the needles in my ears, my
toes, my thighs and my hands. They didn't feel great but I thought
well maybe this will work. It didn't.
Then I went to another speech therapist who told me I was talking
too fast, and not taking enough breath breaks. But still no mention
of the mask.
I went to two voice coaches who had me singing scales for opera
singers...which I could reach the high notes, but when we were done
my voice would ache and feel incredibly tired and still would be
hoarse. The most amazing part is then I was told that I suffered
from performance anxiety and that if I went to a therapist that
she could help me overcome that. So I did. It was really weird because
we talked about my inner child dying to come out. I was told to
communicate with my voice inside, to ask it what was wrong, what
was it trying to say. Well hell it was saying HELP!!!!!!! This voodoo
still didn't bring back my voice either. And the therapy focused
on some alleged hidden hostility towards my father and family which
made me not speak to them for some months.
None of this had anything to do with my voice. I was getting voice
fatigue and early stages of Spastic Dysphonia because I was misusing
my voice and abusing it badly.
Dr. Cooper showed me in a matter of days how to redirect my voice
into the mask and it did start coming back stronger and better.
I still catch myself at times trying to speak from the lower throat
and when I do, I simply raise my voice back into the mask.
And this really works, it's so simple and yet it really works!!!!!!!
At first I resisted because I thought this is just too simple. But
I stuck with it, and it does work truly!!!!
Thank you Dr. Cooper for saving my voice and my life, because at
one point I did contemplate suicide. I know now that I'm not going
crazy and that my voice is with me always as long as I speak from
the mask. I also know that even though speaking from the lower throat
may sound sexy, it ruins the voice and kills it. If it's a choice
between sounding sexy and speaking low, I'll choose the higher pitch
and having a voice at all.
Sincerely,
Angela Murray Rill
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