What do you do when you want to practice mindfulness more, but you find it hard to be consistent? Below are a few ideas.
Informal Mindfulness: Being Mindful in Everyday Life
Mindfulness is more than meditation, yoga, or formal practices for which we have to set aside time and space. We can practice mindfulness wherever we are. Formal mindfulness practices help build our mindfulness awareness, but we can tap into it at any time. Drinking my morning tea is my favorite informal mindfulness practice, but there are many forms this can take.
Active Acceptance: The Path of Mindfulness Can Lead to Acceptance
One of the issues that comes up over and over again in my mindfulness classes is acceptance. Suffering, whether it comes as a voice disorder or in some other form, is difficult. Many people spend years seeking a diagnosis and trying various treatments. Those who come to my classes typically have not found full relief. Participants frequently ask me, “Do I need to accept my voice disorder?”
How Mindfulness Can Help People with Voice Disorders Cope with Grief and Loss
People with voice disorders often experience feelings of grief and loss around their vocal limitations. If they need to ration their voice use, they may experience social isolation as well as loss of professional and personal identity, income, and career. Mindfulness can help us cope with grief and loss.
Journaling as a Mindful Voice Practice
Mindful journaling can be a helpful voice practice for singers or people with voice disorders. Try keeping a voice journal for a week or two. This can be particularly helpful if you're experiencing new symptoms, if you are in voice therapy, or if you’ve recently made changes to your technique or repertoire. Simply write about your voice, describing it without judgment.
Mindfulness vs Meditation: Is There a Difference?
We sometimes hear “mindfulness” and “meditation” used interchangeably, but they aren't exactly the same. Mindfulness is an umbrella term for practices, whether formal or informal, that help us improve our non-judgmental awareness. Meditation is one form of mindfulness. It encourages us to focus our attention on anchors like breath, body sensations, words (mantras), or sound.
Mindfulness Myths: Knowing What Mindfulness Is — and Isn't — Can Help You Stick with It
Self-Compassion: How Showing Kindness to Ourselves Can Help Us Overcome Perfectionism
So how do we let go of perfectionism? Acceptance and self-compassion are antidotes to perfectionism. We can reduce our suffering by letting go of resistance to reality. When we accept what is, we stop fighting what isn’t. This allows us to release what we can’t control and focus on areas where our efforts can make a difference.
My Story: A Singer with Voice Disorders
How Mindfulness May Help People with Voice Disorders
For people with voice disorders, stress can be a causative or an exacerbating factor, potentially worsening the disorder itself and impeding treatment. People with voice disorders often experience high stress levels; social and emotional isolation; and loss, including the loss of work opportunities, sense of self, and the ability to communicate. Mindfulness meditation may help.
Article: Effects of an 8-Week Mindfulness Course in People With Voice Disorders
How to Find a Voice Specialist Speech-Language Pathologist
Most speech-language pathologists (SLPs) have very little experience and training in treating voice disorders. As part of their masters degree, SLPs are required to take one course in voice disorders — and that course may focus more on signs and symptoms than on treatment. If you’ve been diagnosed with a voice disorder, it is essential that you see an SLP who is well-versed in voice. But how can you know whether an SLPs has the experience to help you? This post will give you some ideas of what to look for or what questions to ask.
How to Find a Voice Doctor
Most doctors (even ENTs) don’t have the experience it takes to treat singers or anyone with a complex voice disorder. If you’re shopping for a voice-savvy ENT, look for an otolaryngologist who has completed a fellowship in Laryngology and the Care of the Professional Voice. There are just over 20 such fellowship programs in the United States. I recommend looking for a large hospital with a voice center that employs laryngologists and speech-language pathologists who specialize in voice. This blog post includes an extensive list. However, many regions of the country do not have a voice clinic, and you would be well-served by finding any fellowship-trained laryngologist. I recommend visiting the website of the American Laryngological Association, where you can search for members by location. The search feature does not function perfectly, but it provides a place to start.
Benefits of Group Mindfulness for People with Voice Disorders
Did you know that practicing mindfulness in a group has been shown to produce better outcomes than practicing alone? The popular press frequently touts the health benefits of mindfulness, but rarely states that those benefits are almost always gained in group settings. If you've been practicing mindfulness on your own using recordings or an app, consider joining a class instead.
Singing and Mindfulness Meditation: Complementary Practices
If you’re a singer who is new to meditation, figuring out where to start can be overwhelming. As a voice teacher and trained mindfulness instructor, I’d like to offer some insight. Let’s start by looking at four ways that singing and mindfulness can complement each other. Then I’ll share some valuable resources that can help you start your own meditation practice.
Study: Mindfulness for People with Voice Disorders
Nearly every modern textbook on vocal pedagogy, vocal health, or the causes and treatment of voice disorders recommends stress reduction as both a preventive and therapeutic tool for voice users and patients with voice disorders. We know from extensive research in various populations that Mindfulness Based Interventions (MBIs) can reduce stress. Yet I have been unable to find any studies on the effects of mindfulness in people with voice disorders. I decided to run my own.
Keeping Your Voice Healthy
Ten Ways to Begin Your Vocal Warm-Up Without Making a Sound
Protecting Your Singing Voice: Managing Acid Reflux
Managing Postnasal Drip: A Guide for Singers:
Postnasal drip can be a singer’s nightmare. Whether it’s caused by allergies or a bad cold, it can leave the vocal cords swollen, which can limit your range and make your voice more prone to injury. Find out what you can do at home to combat postnasal drip and when you should consider seeing a doctor.
