Apparently, many of you are interested in this subject, judging by the e-mails I have received. I hope you get a chance to attend one of Melissa Kirby's sessions sometime. She pointed out that voice problems are usually not caused by one factor but by multiple factors over a period of time.

Melissa stressed that the best way to care for the voice is preventative care. We must avoid the things that we know create problems. She covered (in depth) the abuse, misuse and overuse factors that contribute to voice problems. Overuse has been a problem for me lately.

Indulging in an extreme amount of talking in combination with a lot of singing forms a pattern of overuse that is a recipe for serious problems. If she would have sung an invitation song, I would have responded. Overuse has affected my voice lately.

Yelling, shouting, smoking and using your voice when you are sick are things that fit into the "abuse" category that we should avoid. There is a threshold of how much the voice can take and you must stop BEFORE you are worn out. One of her slides emphasized that "Voice rest is not the answer but voice management is."

There are a lot of myths about what is best for the voice. Certain things should certainly be avoided, including caffeine (after I kicked the Star Bucks habit and soft drinks, I've made a lot of progress in that area.) Throat clearing is absolutely one of the worse things for your voice. Drinking plenty of water is very helpful.

We were blessed with two hours of intensive training in how to care for the voice. She began with videos of the vocal cords in action and presented thorough explanations of how the voice works. God, the Creator is truly amazing! I have made my living with my voice. I need to take better care of it. Perhaps you need to hear this too?

Have you had voice problems before? If so, how did you recover?