Why Does My Voice Get Worse When I am Stressed?

When emotional or upset the muscles around the larynx tighten and constrict, breathing becomes shallow and the quality of voice changes often becoming croaky or husky. If this stress continues, a pattern of tight voice production can develop and the pattern may persist even after the stress ceases. There can be a strong link between the way we speak and our sense of identity. Some people lose their voice after a traumatic event or after prolonged stress. Voice therapy aims to restore normal voice often within a few sessions and to prevent recurrence of the voice loss.

The voice is often “the mirror of our emotions.”