Do you find your voice to sound nasally or muffled? If this is the case for you, oral resonance therapy could offer invaluable assistance.
Resonance disorders involve vocal production (voice production). Resonance issues may have structural causes like cleft lip and palate dislocation or functional causes like an enlarged adenoids. For more information on all possible sources of resonance disorders please visit ASHA’s Practice Portal page on Velopharyngeal Dysfunction.
Head Resonance
When we use our voices, vibrations travel through the pharyngeal (voicebox) cavity to create sound. If these vibrations are balanced with an adequate amount of nasal resonance, your voice sounds normal. Resonance may be affected by various factors; if yours has resonance disorders it could make your speech appear high-pitched or muffled; an adult speech-language pathologist can treat your condition to help improve speech sound production and enhance quality of life.
Hypernasality is one of the most frequent resonance disorders, occurring when most or all of your nasal sound energy is diverted towards producing mouth sounds instead of nasal cavities and sinuses. This causes your /m/, /n/ and /ng/ to vibrate in nasal cavities and sinuses instead of lips, tongue and roof of mouth – and your /s/, d/, and g/ sounds to sound as though produced through mouth.
Hyponasality, where your nasal sound energy (/n/ and /ng/) is misappropriated to produce oral sounds such as /s/, /d/ and /g/, can often be caused by obstruction in the nasal cavity such as deviated septum or nasal polyps.
Cul-de-sac resonance disorder occurs when sound is trapped in your nasal or mouth cavity and prevented from exiting through your vocal tract. This can be due to various issues, such as an enlarged tonsil, tumor, antidepressants or steroids; or be caused by medication side effects like antidepressants and steroids. When this happens, treatment such as Cul-de-Sac Resonance Therapy can be utilized in order to free trapped sound using low frequency tonal sequences designed specifically to address your individual cranial resonances; studies have proven its success in improving sleep quality!
Oral Resonance
Many individuals experience difficulty communicating clearly due to a resonance disorder; speech therapy can assist with managing this condition so you can speak clearly and freely.
Normal vocal resonance can be achieved by creating an appropriate balance of oral and nasal sound energy for any intended speech sound. Vowels and voiced oral consonants typically require more nasal resonance than nasal consonants because their production requires keeping the velopharyngeal port open while being produced, while nasal sounds need the port closed while producing them.
However, some individuals experience abnormalities in their vocal resonance due to medical issues like cleft palate, enlarged adenoids or neurological conditions that disrupt airflow through your child’s mouth and nose and result in decreased quality in their voice.
There are four distinct resonance disorders, known as hypernasality, hyponasality, cul-de-sac resonance and mixed resonance. Any or all may occur simultaneously depending on your child’s underlying causes and symptoms of his/her condition.
Hypernasality occurs when your child’s voice resounds more through their nose than their mouth when speaking, causing their voice to sound nasally or muffled while interfering with articulation.
Hyponasality refers to an absence of nasal resonance and energy associated with nasal sounds, leading your child’s voice to sound stuffy or congested. Furthermore, hyponasality can impair articulation leading to weak consonant sounds.
Cul-de-sac resonance occurs when sound resonates within one of your child’s oral, nasal or pharyngeal cavities but exiting through its exit point due to obstruction. It often results in muffled consonants being produced which reduce the volume of their voice; conversely it may decrease clarity for certain consonants as well. Your child’s speech therapist will use various techniques to enhance voice quality as well as address any underlying issues causing resonance issues.
