Posted by: janika_3 ®
12/25/2003, 02:42:06
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Hi,
I'm still on the waiting list for botox treatment so my voice is still at its "usual worst", but to me it sounds like your voice worsening could be due to stress. I'm definitely worse when I'm stressed, and even though I can talk fairly well to myself (I've tried doing that to!) when I talk to anyone else my speech is breaking up all over the place. People I know have also commented that they always know when I'm stressed because my voice is worse.
Sorry I'm not much help on the botox issue, but thought I'd share that with you anyway. Hope it puts your mind at rest a little.
Lyn
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Posted by: Richard ®
12/25/2003, 02:58:54
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It is the nature of spasmodic dysphonia to get better and worse without apparent reason. It is not necessarily "stress" or "bad" toxin injections or anything else. It happens, don't blame yourself or beat yourself up with too much conjecture. As for other people's comments about the cause of your immediate bad (or good) speech, forget it.Richard Callen
Modified by Moderator-DB at Thu, Dec 25, 2003, 13:17:53
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Posted by: patricia ®
12/26/2003, 02:25:35
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hi i know how you feel i had decided not to have anymore botox shots after the last one in aug but now the voice is getting so bad frist time i had botox i thought it was the mircle drug but later found out it only works sometimes the side efects last time were so bad voice was bad for two months but two good months so still not sure if i will have another shot due on jan 6 the way my voice is now i think i will have to do it again at least one more time .just to know you are not alone merry christmas and life goes on bye
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Posted by: dee ®
01/02/2004, 22:30:57
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happy new years ...yall out there...my name is dee and i was diagnosed with spamodic dystonia in Feb 03....i have had a total of 4 injections of botox w/no positive results not to mention the cost ...(thank god i have insurance).......however i have suffered with severe back of the neck aches...daily...throat aches and headaches...tylenol doesnt help...and more and more frustration...i suppose my condition has depressed me very much...on a social and personal..level...i had been told that this "condition" leaves you speechless.....i am at the point where i have made up my mind to take a sign class....geez...this is the first time i have posted my words here....thanks for reading this....because its difficult to listen to me these days....d....
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Posted by: Linda Spain ®
01/03/2004, 12:27:44
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SD sufferers generally use more muscle tension to speak than a normal speaker. I’ve learned that some of us also don’t let that tension go when we are not speaking. We think we are relaxed, but we are not, and the muscle tension we are holding can become painful. Further, this muscle tension can cause a chain reaction through our bodies.In my case, what started as back-of-the-neck (trapezius) pain became neck-shoulder-upper back pain, and I then began having severe muscle spasms in both the bicep and triceps of one arm, and pain in the forearm and hand of that arm. (One might surmise that the some of this was the result of adverse effects of muscle tension on the spinal column.) Once I learned what I was doing wrong and how to let go of the muscle tension when I was not speaking, all of the pain went away. There are lots of different types of professionals – fitness trainers, massage therapists, doctors, chiropractors, etc. - who can help people figure out if their pain is a function of muscle tension, and if it is, how to alleviate the situation.
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Posted by: vici ®
12/25/2003, 09:12:13
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I posed a similar question to Dr. Bastian after my last AB injection in November. He had told me that sometimes people, after several years of Botox treatment, will spontaneously improve to the point that they need injections less frequently or not at all. I had a paradoxical effect from Botox, with my voice getting MORE breathy and MORE effortful. Dr. Bastian assured me that the Botox is completely gone from the system within four months, and speculated that my ABSD had progressed. However, I wondered if the negative effects I get after the injection could "build up" just like the positive effects sometimes do, making the abduction of my vocal cords more severe. His answer was he could not say that this is not a possibility. So my conclusion is, yes, it's possible that my condition has progressed BECAUSE of Botox. For that reason, I probably will not try again. However, everyone reacts differently, and ABSD seems to be even more unpredictable. I hope this is just a temporary setback for you. It's encouraging that your voice is good when you're alone. Keep talking to yourself :>)Vici ABSD/Illinois
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Posted by: Harriet mandel ®
01/04/2004, 22:58:26
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I need help too....My last 2 botox shots were not effective...I had complained that my whispery voice was lasting too long(about 3 weeks) and I suggested to my Dr. that he try bilateral as I think David had mentioned that didnt work but last
month I had both sides but asked for less botox,..I go to a clinic using the same Dr. each time...he really doesn't seem interested in me as a case as he always has to search my records when I suggest anything and he does not advise me.....So please
you....who are so more compassionate and helpful than he ...ADVIse...Thank you
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Posted by: Mary Bifaro ®
01/04/2004, 13:12:11
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It is well understood that stress and fatigue make SD symptoms worse.It is also possible that people can develop an immunity to Botox after repeated injections. When that occurs, physicians often recommend trying a different type of Botox. Mary Bifaro
Abductor SD since 1987
Charlotte, NC
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Posted by: Laurie ®
01/04/2004, 14:28:10
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Hi Carol,Sorry to hear about the latest state of your voice. One thing I'm confused by in your message is that you say that you can talk 'normal' when speaking outloud at home (yet choppy when speaking to others)... but then later you wonder if botox injections could have (somehow?) made your underlying voice worse. I'm confused because if you can talk 'normal' outloud at home (which could be acting as a sensory trick, in that it's not a day-to-day conversational voice -- i.e., the voice which is most affected by SD in most people) wouldn't that imply that botox hasn't done some unknown damage (i.e., since there are still some times when you consider your voice ok)? I'm confused. I bet you are frustrated too. What about other things that could be affecting your voice like polyps or nodules, etc.? I know someone who had vocal nodules or polyps (I forget which one) who actually sounded worse than someone with SD. Just some ideas after reading your message. Sorry if the response is confusing. Laurie
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Posted by: Lib Haywood ®
01/04/2004, 15:25:00
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I don't think that BoTox has made your voice worse. I feel that you are noticing the SD more since you had BoTox and got the relief that it gives for a short period of time. I had 34 injections of BoTox over a ten year period. My voice was never as bad again as it was before I had my first BoTox injection. It is true that when it began breaking I could not wait to get the next injection. Most of my injections were about four months apart. Of course, stress makes our voice worse with or without BoTox. Hope you find the answers you are looking for to give you a good voice.Lib Haywood, Charlotte, NC AD/SD 1987
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