“Voicebox” is a somewhat erroneous term. You might have, at one time in your life, imagined your voicebox as a literal box inside of your throat. The reality is somewhat weirder, and not really box like at all.
When people use the term “voicebox,” they’re usually referring to an organ in your throat called the larynx. (voicebox is a lot easier to spell, but as far as common terms for your larynx go, “vocal cords” is much more accurate.) And your individual, unique voice is created by your larynx.
Your larynx vibrates the air passing through your trachea. That vibration is, well, your voice! Your voice is formed into the unique sound of your verbal enunciation by your lips and other soft mouth tissue. But your larynx produces the actual tone. Which is why, occasionally, you might experience illnesses or conditions that make you lose your voice. And your voice will sound raspy, thin or, simply fail to work at all.
A condition known as laryngitis is normally the cause.
Determining why you can’t talk
Think of your larynx as a couple of flaps inside a tube. These flaps will vibrate when air passes over them. This vibration causes sound, and this sound is your voice. Your vocal cords work just like this.
This deceptively simple function usually works perfectly. However, anything that impedes that vibration will ultimately minimize the sound of your voice. Often, and most commonly, the cause is laryngitis.
But sometimes there can be other reasons that your vocal cords won’t function. Here are a few:
- Neurological reasons
- GERD (gastroesophageal reflux)
- Paralysis of the vocal cords
- Damage to your vocal cords
- Nodules or cysts on your vocal cords
Having said that, laryngitis is almost always what’s causing your lost voice, so it seems logical to attempt to address that first.
Laryngitis, what is it?
Inflammation is one of your body’s first defense mechanisms, and it can occur for a wide variety of reasons. Laryngitis occurs when your vocal cords get inflamed. Normally, this swelling interferes with the regular operation of your larynx. Your vocal cords are unable to vibrate in a normal way when they become inflamed. Consequently, the air moving through your trachea gets no vibrations. Essentially, you lose your voice!
Injury or illness is generally the cause. So how does laryngitis happen? Well, there are two primary types of laryngitis and the symptoms will depend on which one you’re dealing with.
Acute laryngitis
The most common kind of laryngitis is called acute laryngitis. This basically means that your condition will last a standard amount of time. A few weeks will typically be enough time for laryngitis to resolve itself. You don’t even really need to do anything!
Acute laryngitis is frequently caused by another infection or illness. Often, this includes:
- Sinus infections
- Bronchitis
- The common cold
- Influenza
Three weeks is the duration that ENTs generally expect acute laryngitis to improve, at most. Given adequate rest, your symptoms will eventually go away and your voice will recover.
Chronic laryngitis
If your laryngitis doesn’t improve after a few weeks like usual you could be coping with chronic laryngitis. Symptoms of this disorder can continue for months. Usually, this long term form of laryngitis is caused by the following:
- Smoking (and yes, that includes vaping)
- Throat injuries (like a collision)
- To much yelling, screaming, singing, or other things that will stress your voice
- Infections and disease (such as persistent sinus infections)
- Irritation caused by medications
- Exposure to irritants, like chemicals
In these circumstances, the method of treatment will depend on the inherent cause. In some situations, chronic laryngitis can eventually cause injury to the vocal cords or cause polyps or nodules to grow on the larynx. So when is it time to consult your doctor? Well, once you pass that three week mark (or get close to it) it’s a good time, or sooner if the pain is too much to take.
It’s essential to call us for a consultation if your laryngitis doesn’t go away on its own, in other words.
Treating laryngitis
In most instances, treatment for laryngitis takes place at home. Even when patients don’t do anything special or extra, the symptoms will usually go away on their own within a few days to a few weeks. Symptoms can be minimized to improve general comfort with home remedies. Some of the most common include the following:
- Keep the air moist by using a humidifier
- Try not to talk very much so your voice will have time to rest and recuperate
- Drink water and a lot of other fluids
- Try gargling salt water (the warm salt water is helpful for inflammation)
- Avoid decongestants, as these will essentially dry out your throat
If your laryngitis doesn’t clear itself up, your ENT may recommend some medical treatments designed to help you feel better and reduce swelling. These treatments might include:
- Voice therapy: If you’re dealing with chronic laryngitis and it simply will not clear up, you may need to adjust, and learn a new way of speaking that doesn’t strain your vocal cords quite so much. Voice therapy can help with that.
- Antibiotics: This approach isn’t really prevalent, laryngitis is rarely caused by a bacterial infection, so antibiotics hardly ever do much good at all. Still, there are some cases where antibiotics are appropriate.
- Corticosteroids: If you really need to speak (perhaps you have a big presentation) this short-term solution may be used. The steroid treatment will help to reduce inflammation and decrease the symptoms of your laryngitis. However, this option isn’t intended to be long-term.
You will get your voice back
Laryngitis is an incredibly common affliction. Luckily, once the root condition is managed, your voice will usually return. Most often, your immune system will take care of this on its own.
So it’s a smart idea to listen to what your body is saying when your voice starts to quit and vocal cords start hurting. Your larynx is, after all, a lot cooler than a simple box and is also an important part of how you hear.
Call us for a consultation to discuss any worries you may have.