Laryngeal Massage & Myofascial Release for a Tight Throat (6 Exercises) #voicetherapy

In this practice

Key teachings

• Reduction and elimination of tension in laryngeal muscles
• Promote normal vocal cord movement and vibration
• Continuous inhalation and exhalation without breath holding
• Sustained practice (minimum 2 minutes per exercise) for durable muscle change

Ideal for

• Individuals with muscle tension dysphonia
• People experiencing sore throat from talking
• Those suffering from vocal fatigue or throat tightness
• Anyone looking to reduce anterior neck tension

Lesson

Instructions

Laryngeal massage and myofascial releases of the anterior neck are used to supplement other aspects of voice therapy. These exercises facilitate reduction and elimination of tension in the laryngeal muscles to promote normal vocal cord movement and vibration. These exercises are helpful for patients suffering from muscle tension dysphonia, sore throat after talking for a long time, or vocal fatigue.

When performing all exercises, make sure to continually breath in and out without any breath-holding. All exercises should be performed for at least 2 minutes. The reason for performing each exercise for at least 2 minutes is because it takes that long to durably change muscle fibers in a beneficial manner.

To complement laryngeal massage, vocal straw exercises can also be performed:

- Warm-Up (0:34) - Hyoid Bone Side-to-Side (1:07) - Hyoid Bone Massage (1:57) - Thyroid Cartilage Downward Press (2:15) - Thyroid Cartilage Side-to-Side (2:39) - Thyroid Cartilage Massage (2:59) - Submental Massage (3:20) - Other Tips (3:35)

Video created by Madelyn Lawyer, MA, CCC-SLP

Steps

• Neck warm-up stretches (chin to chest, head tilts)
• Hyoid bone side-to-side mobilization
• Hyoid bone circular massage
• Thyroid cartilage downward press
• Thyroid cartilage side-to-side mobilization
• Thyroid cartilage circular massage
• Submental massage

Benefits

• Relief from muscle tension dysphonia
• Alleviation of sore throat after prolonged talking
• Reduction of vocal fatigue
• Enhanced vocal cord movement
• Improved vocal quality