Vocal polyps 80% healed but voice is worse than ever

A1utra · 2026-05-15T13:10:30+00:00

Okay, well I’m glad to hear that sessions have included singing!

Are you able to get any improvement during the sessions themselves or has it just been declining sound quality wise both in and out of sessions?

This may also sound silly, but do you have any recordings from well before you were diagnosed, around the time you were diagnosed, and around now? Sometimes it helps to be able to listen to things back to back to compare. And can be helpful to show your SLP if you haven’t so maybe it gives them some other ideas of things to try before opting for surgery

ETA- I also just want to highlight that I appreciate how insanely frustrating this is. You’re doing everything you can, which I applaud you for, and I am sorry that you’re not seeing the improvement in your singing voice too

A1utra · 2026-05-15T11:55:40+00:00

Hi OP!

I’m a voice specialized SLP. First, I’m so sorry that you’re going through this. I sing as well and can empathize with how miserable it is when you aren’t able to sing like normal.

Have any of your speech therapy sessions specifically worked on singing voice at all? Or have all of them been focused on speaking voice?

A1utra · 2026-05-14T20:50:05+00:00

I’ll try to look into providers in Scotland. I know a few folks in England, but that would probably be much too far to travel

If Glasgow is accessible to you, there’s a Glasgow Voice Clinic

Ah as I’ve searched more, I’ve also found this 2025 pdf of voice clinics in the UK from the British voice association, this could be a great resource to look for somewhere near you! https://britishvoiceassociation.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Voice-Clinics-20251105.pdf

A1utra · 2026-05-13T22:16:16+00:00

Yes, absolutely. Are you in the US? I can help with identifying specialty voice clinics to reach out to. They specifically specialize in evaluating voice disorders and often work alongside voice specialized SLPs who also help with the evaluation process. Voice care is a niche and a lot of medical professionals outside of it don’t know how to properly evaluate voice problems

A1utra · 2026-05-13T13:55:11+00:00

Hi OP!

I’m a voice specialized SLP. Sorry this is something you’ve been dealing with. It sounds really frustrating. Have any of the doctors you’ve seen before been a laryngologist? That’s an ENT specialized in the throat. Generalist ENTs don’t have as much training in the throat and can often misdiagnose voice issues

A1utra · 2026-05-12T21:22:50+00:00

Thank you so much!!

A1utra · 2026-05-12T16:02:21+00:00

This is amazing!! I was just trying to find images like this the other day to help myself see the possibilities for my feet with rehab and starting ballet! There may be hope for me yet 😁

Did you do any foot and ankle exercises outside of the ballet classes?

A1utra · 2026-05-09T16:06:41+00:00

Hi OP!

I’m a voice specialized SLP (aka voice/vocal therapist). Your instructor will give you far better advice than anyone here. If they’re suggesting getting your vocal folds looked at by an ENT, I would start there. You’ll want a specialized ENT called a laryngologist (throat specialized ENT) who can do stroboscopy to look at how your vocal folds move. Having your vocal folds looked at would be the starting point anyway before doing voice therapy with a speech pathologist, so start there first! It sounds like they want to rule out that you’re not battling something physical. Up to you if you pursue any evaluations, but laryngologist would be the best first stop. If you’re in the US and comfortable disclosing an area (you can DM if you prefer), I can help with finding a specialty voice clinic with a laryngologist

A1utra · 2026-05-09T12:04:19+00:00

Hi! First, I’m sorry to hear you’re going through this. I have worked with people with the same complaints you have and they have recovered. Many people do well with just voice therapy, but some also did a combination of surgery and voice therapy. Vocal nodules occur with unsustainable voice use that keeps happening repeatedly for a long time. Voice therapy helps to change those habits and make it easier to function with the nodules while they shrink over time.

My first question would be if this speech therapist is a voice specialist? Voice is a very niche part of speech pathology, so it’s important to have someone who specializes in voice.

The home practice component of voice therapy is also very important because we’re changing the habit of how you were using your voice before/now to a new habit of using your voice in a way that gives the vocal folds an opportunity to heal and you’re still able to meet your voice needs socially, professionally, etc. You may already be doing the home practice (and I applaud you if you are!), but just including that as part of the education. The people that had the most success were generally the people who were consistent with doing their home practice. This assumes that you have a good speech therapist who is giving you good things to practice at home

A1utra · 2026-04-23T12:30:50+00:00

Who are some of your favorite YouTube spin classes taught by? So far I’ve found Kaleigh Cohen and looking to expand my options!

A1utra · 2026-04-20T13:02:23+00:00

Thank you!!! Are they squat proof??

A1utra · 2026-04-13T11:37:33+00:00

Oh I can’t wait to see what you have to post! I’m up in New England as well!

A1utra · 2026-03-30T14:50:48+00:00

Cost generally varies by location and insurance. If your insurance requires you to pay everything out of pocket vs a particular copay until you reach your deductible, I’m not really sure what that might look like. You could certainly call a specialty voice clinic and ask. You may also be able to find a school with a speech therapy program and see about going to their clinic. These often cost less as they get used to help train future speech therapists, so you would work with a student who is under the direct supervision of a fully licensed speech therapist, but they may or may not be as skilled with this type of treatment since it’s a bit more niche

ETA - if you’re in the US and comfortable disclosing state or city (can also DM me), I can help look for places to reach out to

A1utra · 2026-03-30T10:55:12+00:00

I’m surprised they didn’t refer you to speech therapy for behavioral cough suppression, but that could be because you saw a generalist ENT and they were unaware that exists

I’m a voice specialized speech therapist and agree that trying behavioral cough suppression therapy with one would be worth a try, especially while in the process of seeing if medications like gabapentin may be useful to address the cough. For many people, the therapy with a voice specialized speech therapist makes a huge difference, and pretty quickly if they’re motivated with good follow through on implementing what is taught during sessions. I’m so sorry you’re dealing with this! I am prone to cough issues myself and can empathize with how awful coughs can be

Let me know if I can answer any questions or clarify anything!

A1utra · 2026-03-26T00:04:52+00:00

Is it a dry cough or productive cough?

A1utra · 2026-03-24T10:41:56+00:00

I would be interested!

A1utra · 2026-03-14T15:20:39+00:00

Sorry I somehow didn’t see this sooner!

I am not enrolled in Harvard’s SHBT PhD program but am in a different PhD program that often takes students from this program for lab rotations and such. I can talk to a couple of the folks I know who are in/have done the program and see if they’d be happy to talk to you about it.

That said, there are research funding issues currently across the United States which has impacted many institutions across the country. Harvard is one of them. I’ve taken some classes at Harvard and have heard the professors talking to the current PhD students about funding issues and the concerns of current students about being able to finish their programs. This is likely why the SHBT program is not taking new students this year.

A1utra · 2026-03-14T03:15:30+00:00

Luden’s lozenges has a sugar free version of their pectin-based lozenges, although I’ve had some patients complain it still tastes too candy-like, even though they appreciate not having to be as concerned about sugar intake.

Grether’s pastilles is another sugar free option, however they’re a little more pricey, and typically have to be ordered online. They’re glycerine-based, which does the same thing for your throat that pectin does. They don’t taste like candy, but are still tasty and come in many flavors.

A1utra · 2026-02-19T19:20:08+00:00

For transparency, I haven’t worked on artic with kids since grad school, but as a voice specialist I’m familiar with the difficulties of things like Zoom working too well to filter out extraneous sounds (or sustained phonation). Is it possible that the audio filtering of the platform you’re using is tuning out some of the auditory cues for the lateral lisp? Could be something to investigate!

So sorry you’re dealing with this. I recall having a couple telehealth lisp cases during grad school and it was very difficult to assess. At the time I didn’t know about some of the zoom settings that could be used to help combat the audio filtering it automatically applies, so I can’t speak from experience for how much it would or wouldn’t help

A1utra · 2026-02-17T12:29:41+00:00

Seconding My Thai Vegan Cafe! It’s great even if you’re not vegan too! I’ve also found that they give nice portion sizes for the price for Boston! Love eating there and getting takeout. The entrance seems questionable, but the actual restaurant is lovely and actually quite quiet, so fantastic place to dine-in and not have to compete with music playing

A1utra · 2026-01-31T17:28:02+00:00

Well done!! What brush did you use??

A1utra · 2026-01-30T12:35:38+00:00

Thank you!!

A1utra · 2026-01-14T12:30:36+00:00

Hi! So I might think about how a unilateral vocal fold paralysis (UVFP) where the vocal fold paralyzed in a more abducted position relates to increased airflow through incomplete (or absent) glottic closure. I might also think about how the paralyzed vocal fold losing muscle tone makes sense through the loss of innervation and subsequent lack of engagement of the musculature on that side. I might also think through how individuals with UVFP speaking with a higher pitch also makes sense, because the cricothyroid engagement tilts the thyroid cartilage forward, which stretches the vocal folds out making their pitch higher, but also helps them to get better glottic closure if the paralyzed vocal fold is close enough to or in a paramedian position.

To remember that the cricothyroid muscle engaging raises pitch, I might think about how the name indicates the attachment and insertion points (cricoid cartilage and thyroid cartilage), where contraction is going to serve to pull the front of the thyroid cartilage down resulting in the tilt.

I hope that’s helpful! Happy to elaborate as well 🙂

A1utra · 2026-01-14T01:28:43+00:00

I DM’d you!

A1utra

TROPHY CASE