What is Muscle Tension Dysphonia?

What is Muscle Tension Dysphonia (MTD)?

Muscle Tension Dysphonia (MTD) is a change in the sound of your voice due to excessive muscle tension in and around the larynx (voice box). Muscle Tension Dysphonia produces vocal symptoms without any physical damage. Commonly, people will have had their Larynx examined by a Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist and have been told that there is no observable physical damage. 

Muscle tension dysphonia may be caused by longterm ineffective voice use, voice overuse, irritants (such as Laryngopharyngeal Reflux) , infection or emotional stress. While the initial cause may go away, the voice changes remain because of the ineffective habitual voice use.

What are the symptoms of muscle tension dysphonia?

The most common symptoms of muscle tension dysphonia include:

• Voice that sounds hoarse or strained

• Voice becomes weaker and more effort the longer your voice is used.

• Difficulty singing notes that used to be easy.

• Pain or tension in your throat 

• Feeling like there is something in your throat that needs to be cleared. 

How is muscle tension dysphonia diagnosed?

Typically, if you are experiencing voice difficulties, your GP will refer you to an Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist (ENT) for an assessment of your voice. Muscle Tension Dysphonia is diagnosed through the evaluation of your larynx using a camera in your nose to view your vocal folds. 

What is the Treatment for Muscle Tension Dysphonia?

The treatment for muscle tension dysphonia is voice therapy to reduce muscle tension and focus on effective voice use. You are likely to require 6-8 sessions of voice therapy to improve your voice. 

What does voice therapy involve?

Voice therapy involves

• Vocal hygiene advice

• Bespoke voice exercises 

• Exercises to reduce laryngeal tension

• Improving breath support for speech

• Reducing harmful behaviours

• Increase vocal stamina 

• Improving pitch and volume

• Improving voice amplification 

How long does it take for Muscle Tension Dysphonia to go away?

Most people require 6-8 sessions that they typically book weekly. It is very important that you follow the advice and complete the exercises given by the Voice Therapist outside of sessions to assist in your recovery from Muscle Tension Dysphonia. 

Our UK based Private Voice Therapists are Clinical Specialists in Voice with a minimum of 15 years experience Specialising in Voice Therapy. Book a free 15 minute consultation or email us at thespeechnetwork@hotmail.com to enquire about our reasonable fees for Voice Therapy.

How do you feminise your Voice ? It's not all about pitch.

Its not all about pitch

Sometimes the assumption of sounding more feminine is to focus on a higher pitched voice. However, a women’s voice is not only a higher-pitched version of a man’s voice. If we only focus on pitch, it is unlikely that you will be satisfied with the results of your therapy. In order to raise your pitch, we also need to change other aspects of your voice and speech. For natural-sounding speech we need to focus upon your intonation, resonance and other aspects to achieve a natural higher pitch. It’s important that you are able to use a flexible feminine voice that matches your personality and lifestyle, in a variety of situations.

What will happen in Voice Feminisation sessions?

Aside from pitch, we will be focusing upon:

Stress and intonation: Stress is often conveyed by using a higher pitch or louder intensity. Intonation patterns are pitch changes at the sentence level. Subtle differences in intonation patterns might hint at the speakers gender so its important to work on these aspects.

Resonance: Resonance amplifies sound and is often referred as projection in voice. We want to diminish the ‘chest’ sound that is often identified with the male voice.

Articulation: we focus on patterns for vowels and consonants that females produce that can be imitated in MTF voice training.

Volume: We might focus on reducing the loudness of your voice

Therapy is like building blocks – we build your voice together gradually. It takes practice and you will be given bespoke exercises after your sessions. The more you practice, the more natural it will feel.

How much does Voice Feminisation Therapy cost?

If you send us an email we can send your further information about number of sessions required and costs.

We are Clinical Specialists in Voice, Voice Feminisation and Voice Coaching. Feel free to book a free consultation or email us for more information.

Can Voice Feminisation harm my voice?

Many clients that come to us having already attempted some voice therapy independently using YouTube videos or voice Apps.  They are often concerned that they may have harmed their voice. 

Inappropriate voice use may strain or cause tension leading to voice damage known as Muscle Tension Dysphonia.  In some research studies, up to 30% of Male to female Transgender Voice clients had a voice disorder in their initial assessment caused by trauma to the voice box (larynx). Muscle Tension Dysphonia can be caused by excessive effort.

You can read more about Muscle Tension Dysphonia here. It can be caused by excessive elevation of the larynx, poor vocal hygiene, excessive tension and using an inappropriate pitch level. Excessive breathiness also leads to excessive tension in the larynx. 

Looking after your voice is important - read more here. 

For more information about Voice Feminisation Therapy - click here

Our aim is to prevent trauma by teaching you the best ways to achieve a feminine voice.  We are Clinical Specialists in Voice, Voice Feminisation and Voice Coaching.

How can I train my voice to sound feminine?

Trans* Voice - Tips for learning and exploring your voice

In therapy you will be exploring your voice. Repetition outside the clinic room is important to change. It is comparable to going to the gym for your voice. You are developing flexibility and freedom for your voice. When learning and exploring try to:

Be Playful – try out new things

Be Mindful – notice without judging

Be Curious – use all of your sense to explore your voice

Be Imaginative – find your own images, hand gestures to support exercises

Be Positive

Be Regular – Be creative about when and where you practice – little and often.

Be Patient – Let things develop and transfer to situations that are easiest first

Be Reflective – record your voice, keep a diary

Be Sociable – try to step out of solo practice into getting support from others

Adapted from The Voice Book for Trans and Non-Binary People – Matthew Mills and Gillie Stoneham

For more information about Voice Feminisation Therapy click here

We are Clinical Specialists in Voice, Voice feminisation and Voice Coaching. Send us an email or book a free consultation for more information.

What can I do to look after my Voice?

• Stop smoking. If you can’t give up, cut down. Smoking irritates and damages the vocal folds. Talk to your GP about advice to support stopping smoking.

• Avoid eating spicy foods. Spicy foods can cause stomach acid to move into the throat or oesophagus, causing heartburn or reflux. If you do experience reflux, talk to your GP about possible medications.

• Avoid too much coffee, fizzy drinks and alcohol. These can dry out the vocal cords. Try drinking decaffeinated tea or coffee or follow an alcoholic drink with a soft drink.

• Avoid shouting and whispering

• If your voice feels tired or strained then rest it. This is your bodys way of telling you to rest your voice

• Try not to clear your throat unnecessarily. It can create excessive mucous and lead to a further need to clear your throat. Try drinking water instead or swallowing.

• Avoid dry and dusty atmospheres as they may dry out the vocal cords. Wear a mask in a dusty environment.

• Try to drink 2 litres (3 ½ pints) of liquid a day (not including coffee, alcohol or fizzy drinks). This will prevent dehydration of the vocal cords.

• Try steaming to keep the vocal folds hydrated

Our Private Voice Therapists are Clinical Specialists in Voice. Book a free 15 minute consultation or email us at thespeechnetwork@hotmail.com to enquire about our reasonable fees for Voice Therapy.