Re: I'm a Stranger here myself
Welcome, Don!
First off, you're not a stranger amongst us. We all have SD, though some of us are stranger than others :)
There is a slight relationship between Parkinson's and SD, in that they are both movement disorders, both neurological, both stemming from the basal ganglia region of the brain.
However, SD is not debilitative, whereas Parkinson's is.
SD is a focal dystonia, which means that it most likely isn't going to affect other muscle groups. SD does not affect your mind, just your speech.
Talking on the telephone seems to be a common problem for people with SD, and usually people have better voices when speaking in falsetto or when singing. The SD usually gets worse with stress, and is usually better in the mornings. I have heard of people speaking with a foreign accent being able to overcome their spasms, so doing a Mr. Ed impression and having a good voice while doing it wouldn't surprise me.
As far as BB etiquette, this board is here to help people get information, and you'll find not only a wealth of information, but lots of new friends who understand what you go through on a daily basis in living and coping with SD.
So, welcome to the board!
Kristina
Re: I'm a Stranger here myself
Hello Don and welcome to the group. The description you give of being able to speak almost normally in some circumstances but not in others, is absolutely typical of SD. It is unpredictable because of the underlying twitches and spasms that the vocal chords are affected by. I find that one-to-one conversations are usually best for me and the worst possible thing is using the phone. I am still on the recovery phase from my 3rd botox injection. The pattern for me is usually a period of breathiness, which for me has come close to being completely voice-less at times. Then after that my voice gradually recovers in strength until it is back to something approaching normal. After the first 2 treatments this whole process took 4-5 weeks but this time the amount of botox was reduced so I am hoping it may not take as long this time. The weeks while I am waiting for the full effects of the treatment always seem to last much longer than usual but the benefits of the treatment are worth it. Hope this works out for you as well. Judy --modified by Judy Yielder at Fri, Feb 09, 2001, 01:26:10
Re: I'm a Stranger here myself
Don, I have had SD for approximately 17 years. It came on graduallly but after an extensive viral infection that lasted for 4 weeks, my voice was totally involved with the SD. It took me 5 years to get a diagnosis. It was totally normal for me to have "good days" and b"bad days" in dealing with the SD. I might have 3 or 4 days when there was no sign of a voice disorder. Then for no apparent reason my voice would be totally SD involved for several days. During the good voice days, however, talking on the phone on or in stressful situations would always become a problem for me. I felt my voice was better when I was in a social situation. In a work related situation my voice was usually bad. This made me believe that it "was all in my mind" at times. You might keep track of your voice to see when your good voice periods are. After getting Botox, my voice was managable. Good luck to you as you begin to search for answers. Lylia Bennett
Re: I'm a Stranger here myself
Hi there Don, or should I sa Mr Ed!
Good luck with the Botox, hope it's helping out! Before I had my op (intserts) and in between botox, I found when I had my child that changing my pitch helped significantly. I slipped into it by mistake by talking in stupid voices to my daughter and singing Mary Poppins songs to her - then my voice was great. I now have much less effort with my speech but still find a sing-song lilt helps me breathe properly rather than gasp (as i've done for 14 years with SD!) SPeaking through the nose helps too - though that might just be cause i'm a nasally aussie. \
Good luck with everything
Narelle
Re: I'm a Stranger here myself
Currently I have been fighting a cold so my abductor SD is worse than normal. I have had about 5 BOTOX injections in the past, my last one was almost a year ago. I did not notice any change with my voice; the last injection had little affect on my speech pattern. I think they missed the muscle completely on the last fun filled day of BOTOX. Has anyone done drug therapy? I thought I would like to see if I could ask the doctor about that. Jerry Adelanto, California (High Desert of CA)
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