It may be hard to envisage a vocal cord injury, especially if you’ve never had one. However, if you’re a singer, it may be about time you understood the implications.
It does not matter if you sing in a rock band, the choir, or the shower; alongside learning how to improve your singing, you should focus on maintaining healthy vocal cords.
Vocal health is what will ultimately be the deciding factor in your performance. Luckily, keeping your singing voice healthy is not that complex.
Singing is also associated with relieving stress, and studies have found that singing increases the amount of cortisol (a stress-reducing hormone) in your body.
A little bit of knowledge and common sense can save you from a severe vocal cord injury, so you can sing as much as you want.
Can Your Vocal Cords Be Damaged?
Several unfortunate circumstances can result in vocal cord injury; these include:
- Smoking
- Overuse
- Allergies
- Abusing the cords
If your cords end up suffering from inflammation or irritation, they will produce a raspier and breathy sound irrespective of the note you are singing.
Vocal cord injury would also prevent you from hitting the high notes effectively. You may even like your new, raspy sound; however, keep in mind that a healthy voice will help you sing in whatever your choice of style.
Therefore, it is vital to keep your voice healthy and flexible.
Causes of Vocal Strain or Vocal Cord Injury
Enhanced muscle tension in the para-pharyngeal and laryngeal muscles along the voice box can lead to a strain in your vocal cords.
Probable causes of vocal strain or vocal cord injury include:
Vocal Abuse
The vocal cords are the muscle bands responsible for creating sound via vibration. And the behaviors that strain or injure the vocal cords are most commonly referred to as vocal abuse
Vocal abuse includes behaviors such as:
- Vaping
- Smoking
- Yelling or screaming
- Not hydrating enough
- Clearing your throat frequently
Vocal Overuse
When you frequently use your voice without resting your vocal cords, it ultimately results in vocal overuse.
It most commonly happens in cases when you practice extending your voice above your standard capacity.
Vocal Misuse
The best example of vocal misuse is when you force yourself to speak at a lower or a higher pitch than you usually do.
All potential causes of vocal strains, whether they are abuse, overuse, or misuse, can lead to vocal cord injury in the long run.
They can also potentially lead to permanent vocal damage or certain voice disorders.
How To Avoid Vocal Cord Injury?
There are several ways to protect yourself from a vocal cord injury. Here are specific tips that could be useful to you in taking care of your voice and ultimately avoiding vocal strain or injury:
Track What You Consume
Improving your singing voice requires strict control of what you are consuming. Singing training and voice training experts advise consuming liquids or foods two hours before warming up vocal cords.
It is also critical that you avoid:
- Acidic food
- High-fat foods
- Drinks with excessive fat or gas such as soda or milk
Dairy products thicken the mucus, and they can clog you up, so it is better to avoid dairy. Coffee also constricts your vocal cords, so it may be advisable to keep away from it too.
Make sure whatever food or beverage you consume is at room temperature or warm; nothing should be too cold or too hot.
By practicing this strict regime of watching what you eat, training your voice, and singing training would become a breeze for you.
Furthermore, a healthy and well-balanced diet can help improve more than just your voice, as it will put you in better shape.
Doing so will help you avoid the regular doctor and the vocal doctor!
A well-balanced and vocal cord-friendly diet includes:
- Vegetables
- Fruits
- Lean proteins
- Whole grains
Consuming these would provide you with both stamina and energy, and let us face it, a singer requires both of these things.
It would help if you consumed a light meal before any performance or audition. Of course, you require energy; however, a full stomach can press on your diaphragm, making it harder for you to take deep breaths. And that obviously would get in the way of your voice and overall singing.
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Breathing Techniques
Breathing correctly and knowing how to do it is a critical element in enhancing your vocal health. Increased airflow and correct posture allow for better control over your breathing.
Furthermore, it also helps you vocalize smoothly without it putting a strain on your vocal cords.
Staying Hydrated
It is no surprise that drinking a lot of water helps keep your throat well lubricated, which ultimately protects your vocal cords and voice.
If you’re focused on improving your singing voice, tea with honey is one of the most popular liquids to consume before singing. It helps in soothing your throat before and after the activity.
Warming Up
The best way to minimize strain is practicing vocal exercises when training your voice.
There are multiple ways through which you can warm up: either stress your cords in the shower or sing vowels as a way to warm up.
It is advised that you begin with mellow vocal exercises and then build more into it as you feel that your voice is thoroughly warmed up.
Resting The Voice
It does not matter whether you are practicing or performing; you should always rest your voice and give it a break.
Adequate rest and recovery are essential for your throat after a lot of use. This will keep your vocal cords clear and healthy.
Working In Clean Environment
Your throat is quite sensitive to chemical irritants like the ones found in cleaning products. Their presence can create a problem for your throat and increase issues with your voice.
Ensure that the practice room you are training your voice in has suitable ventilation and properly circulated air.
Furthermore, ensure that the room is entirely free from toxins or harmful smoke that might hinder your singing training.
Use humidifiers to keep the air moist, preventing your throat from rapidly drying out.
Voice Therapy
Voice therapy helps effectively teach you how to train your voice to sing to not overexert your vocal cords.
This particular therapy is also helpful in eliminating any destructive vocal behaviors you may have persisted with and enhance your vocal stamina.
Superprof provides you with hundreds of tutors who can help you in voice training and voice therapy.
Avoid Vocal Cord Injury Under The Supervision Of A Professional Voice Coach
Just like how improper posture leads to gym injuries, incorrect singing training can cause vocal cord injury. And there are several ways that you can train your voice to prevent that.
However, if you are still unsure of the results you alone can achieve, how about choosing the perfect tutor for you at Superprof?
Superprof has hundreds of tutors available for you to choose from. They will help you improve your singing voice while helping you practice proper vocal health.
With services such as voice training, singing training, and voice therapies, the tutors at Superprof have enough experience to meet all your singing needs.
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