When financial consultant Eunice Seow fell foul of a cold and cough in late 2006, she was left with a hoarse voice. The 36-year-old tried everything to rid herself of the rasping in her throat, but to no avail.

Eunice put her throat problems down to her job because she has to talk a lot throughout the day. She said: “I was worried about losing my voice altogether because on some days, I simply couldn’t make any sound.”

So in February 2007, she visited CGH’s Ear, Nose and Throat clinic where she was found to have a swelling on her right vocal cord that was causing her voice to sound so strained. The vocal cords are supposed to be symmetrical. When one swells, it impacts on the function of both cords, which can then result in a voice disorder.

Many factors can cause voice disorders, including colds, throat dehydration, reflux, thyroid problems and stress. Voice therapy has a 90 per cent success rate in correcting this problem.

Eunice then started speech therapy with CGH. She presented with a hoarse voice, poor breath control and poor breath coordination. The breathing was the first thing the speech therapist worked on.

Eunice was also a shallow breather, squeezing in too many words in one breath. She was taught voice exercises to control airflow, her pace of speech and to deepen her breathing.

Eunice’s problem was complicated by the fact she had reflux, which she had to take oral medication for. Reflux occurs when acid contents of the stomach flow back into the oesophagus or the throat, resulting in oesophagus and throat irritation and reflexive tightening of the throat muscles. Speech therapist, Ms Li Hongyuan said that this condition can be brought about by stress.”If we are stressed, we hold the tension in the upper body, and that affects the voice.”

Ms Li explained that people who speak a lot during the day are prone to vocal cord strain and that it will affect their voices. It is a very common problem amongst teachers.

“It’s hard for people to change habits, but in voice therapy, we explain that they have to change their voice habits to solve their voice problems,” said Ms Li.

Speech therapist, Ms Mindy Chiang’s advice for good vocal care is to keep well hydrated; try not to shout or raise your voice too much; keep head, neck and back muscles relaxed; and if you feel discomfort from a lot of talking, rest your voice.

Eunice no longer has a hoarse voice after a year of speech therapy. Nowadays, she practices good vocal care by resting her voice as much as she can. She said: “I know what to do so that I don’t strain my vocal cords again.”