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Course Helps Local Teachers Keep Their Voices Strongby KRISTEN ARMSTRONG, Staff Writer |
| A runner probably wouldn't attempt a
marathon without proper training, and most gymnasts wouldn't think of
doing a split without warming up. Why then do school teachers try to use
their voices day in and day out without adequate preparation? These vocal athletes need a coach. That's where speech pathologist Linda Siegfriedt steps in. In an effort to help teachers avoid vocal disorders, she currently is offering them a voice-care workshop at Oakton High School through Fairfax County Schools Adult and Community Education. Of the approximately .3 million teachers in the United States, 58 percent of them will have a voice disorder sometime in their career,” Siegfriedt said. Women in particular are at risk for disorders. Research has found that because their vocal chords are smaller, they vibrate faster. This means the chords hit each other more frequently, causing contact trauma, she said. Problems can range from chronic hoarseness and voice fatigue to tension in the throat and even vocal nodules (calluses on the vocal chords). Many teachers accept these symptoms as a part of teaching. But Siegfriedt, who has specialized in voice disorders for more than 20 years, doesn't think they have to. “There are so many preventative things they can do,” she said. In her class and with her private clients, Siegfriedt teaches people to use their voices in a healthier way. She helps them learn to breathe low in the abdomen and to resonate the voice through the face rather than through the throat. “You have two vocal chords, and you need air flowing between them,” she said. “Everything has to be open. You need a big open channel.” Having taught in a classroom before, Siegfriedt understands just how hard it is to practice healthy vocal techniques. She recalls, with a little embarrassment, that halfway through a three-hour voice-disorders class she taught at Northeastern University in Boston, she began to lose her voice because she'd been talking over a noisy heater by her desk. “It's a natural reaction [to push your voice],” she said. And for teachers who have already lost their voice, they should avoid whispering because it causes “so much muscle tension, that it's almost worse than yelling.” Some simple ways to ease an ailing voice? Water and rest. Avoiding stress and acidic foods also is advisable. Siegfriedt's voice-care classes have already proven to be popular, and she hopes to offer them for free to Fairfax County teachers at their schools. “I have the time, and I hope to make a difference,” she said. “They're a fun group to work with.”A runner probably wouldn't attempt a marathon without proper training, and most gymnasts wouldn't think of doing a split without warming up. Why then do school teachers try to use their voices day in and day out without adequate preparation? These vocal athletes need a coach. That's where speech pathologist Linda Siegfriedt steps in. In an effort to help teachers avoid vocal disorders, she currently is offering them a voice-care workshop at Oakton High School through Fairfax County Schools Adult and Community Education. Of the approximately .3 million teachers in the United States, 58 percent of them will have a voice disorder sometime in their career,” Siegfriedt said. Women in particular are at risk for disorders. Research has found that because their vocal chords are smaller, they vibrate faster. This means the chords hit each other more frequently, causing contact trauma, she said. Problems can range from chronic hoarseness and voice fatigue to tension in the throat and even vocal nodules (calluses on the vocal chords). Many teachers accept these symptoms as a part of teaching. But Siegfriedt, who has specialized in voice disorders for more than 20 years, doesn't think they have to. “There are so many preventative things they can do,” she said. In her class and with her private clients, Siegfriedt teaches people to use their voices in a healthier way. She helps them learn to breathe low in the abdomen and to resonate the voice through the face rather than through the throat. “You have two vocal chords, and you need air flowing between them,” she said. “Everything has to be open. You need a big open channel.” Having taught in a classroom before, Siegfriedt understands just how hard it is to practice healthy vocal techniques. She recalls, with a little embarrassment, that halfway through a three-hour voice-disorders class she taught at Northeastern University in Boston, she began to lose her voice because she'd been talking over a noisy heater by her desk. “It's a natural reaction [to push your voice],” she said. And for teachers who have already lost their voice, they should avoid whispering because it causes “so much muscle tension, that it's almost worse than yelling.” Some simple ways to ease an ailing voice? Water and rest. Avoiding stress and acidic foods also is advisable. Siegfriedt's voice-care classes have already proven to be popular, and she hopes to offer them for free to Fairfax County teachers at their schools. “I have the time, and I hope to make a difference,” she said. “They're a fun group to work with.” |