Oxford Vocal Massage

Briefly coming back from my Instagram hiatus to say…

THE GANG IS BACK TOGETHER

The gang in question? Juuuust me and Stephen 👯

Very grateful to have had the opportunity to present one of my papers, co-authored with Stephen, on as a potential intervention to alleviate symptoms in singers.

Thank you to for a great conference 🫶

A very interesting research article that came out this year looking at the impact of breathing exercises and manual therapy on muscle tension dysphonia. 📚
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The term 'Muscle Tension Dysphonia (MTD)' was originally coined in 1983 and describes a dysphonia (difficulty of voice use) related to increased muscle tension of the muscles surrounding the larynx (voice box).
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What do you think about this article? 🤔

Did you know that the tongue is *directly* connected to the larynx?​​​​​​​​
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Yup. Our tongue is comprised of MANY muscles (it's not just one big muscle all on its own).​​​​​​​​
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We have two kinds of tongue muscles:​​​​​​​​
✅ Intrinsic muscles (making up the inside of the tongue)​​​​​​​​
✅ Extrinsic muscles (muscles that insert into the tongue but originate elsewhere, outside the tongue)​​​​​​​​
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Fancy, right?​​​​​​​​
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One of our extrinsic tongue muscles called the HYOGLOSSUS originates at the hyoid bone which is part of your larynx, and the only free floating bone in your body.​​​​​​​​
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So, boom. 💥​​​​​​​​
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Larynx - tongue connection.​​​​​​​​
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Vocal manual therapy isn't aaalll about the larynx then, eh?​​​​​​​​
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It involves *all* of the muscles involved in voicing. Pictured above is a tongue root release (hello again, hyoglossus). ​​​​​​​​
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Whilst the larynx is clearly important, there are also areas above, below, and around it that can have a massive impact on our overall effort/ease of voice use.​​​​​​​​
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What areas BESIDES your throat area have you noticed having an effect on your voice? ​​​​​​​​
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(No story is too niche. I used to have chronic low back pain on my right-hand-side and *definitely* noticed an effect on my breathing during that period of time). ​​​​​​​​
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So whatever your story is, tell me below 👇

My RESPONSE to the 's latest post (check it out if you haven't already).
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It's not me, it's you, laryngeal manipulation.
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Seriously, how scary does 'laryngeal manipulation' sound?
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Most people don't *really* know what vocal massage/manual therapy entails.
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So naturally, when we hear the word MANIPULATION, we are likely going to have some negative associations because of how we colloquially understand the word.
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It isn't inherently wrong, but it can be misleading to a client.
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Vocal manual therapy should be:
👉 Gentle
👉 Non-invasive
👉 NOT SCARY!
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End. Of. Discussion.

Vocal Health isn't just about having banging singing/voice technique.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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It goes deeper than that.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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You can have crazy good technique but be using your voice for hours and hours a day without any time for rest.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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When thinking about how MUCH we use our voices, we have to consider ALL voice use. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Including social voice use.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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You wouldn't walk a marathon and then walk a 10k afterwards, right? ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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REST is important for all of us.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Here are 3️⃣ ways you can make sure your voice gets the rest and recovery it needs:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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👉 Take voice naps throughout the day. These are mini periods of voice rest (ex. having 10-15min of silence between meetings).⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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👉 COOL DOWN your voice at the end of a busy voice day. This could be some gentle humming or straw phonation.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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👉...and of course, you can get a vocal massage OR give yourself one. I have personally really benefitted from self-guided vocal massage work to release built up new neck tensions and holding patterns. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Recently I have switched my gym routine and have noticed a big difference in taking 5 extra minutes to do a bit of targeted stretching to make sure my workouts don't negatively impact my voice.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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What are your favourite ways of giving your voice rest?

Hands up if you've ever been seriously perplexed by academic writing. 🙋‍♀️
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Hands up if you've never read a full research article because you can't figure out how to access one. 🙋‍♀️
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These are both VERY common experiences.
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Even if you've read hundreds of papers, I am sure there are some that have made you read one paragraph 20 times over.
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And even if you have read some articles, you might not know how to search for articles yourself.
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I firmly believe academic research should be made more accessible.
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Two of my favourite resources are:
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📚 GOOGLE SCHOLAR (scholar.google.co.uk) to access articles. Search for whatever you're looking for, then click 'all x versions' (however many versions they say there are) and usually there is a PDF copy you can download.
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Super quick and easy hack that made my life *so* much easier in keeping up to date with my field.
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📚 TLDRPapers.com is another great resource whose slogan is 'science abstracts a second grader can understand' - how amazing is that?!
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So next time you are really baffled by what you're reading, check out this website and see how they 'translate' the abstract for you.
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**Please note the website is currently under maintenance as of a few days ago, but hopefully it'll be back up and running soon!
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What do you think?
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What's your relationship like to research?
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Do you find it tough to read? Can you live without research?
Have these resources absolutely blown your mind?
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I want to know! Give me a shout below what you think ⤵

Q: Is a vocal massage painful?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
A: NOT AT OVM!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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For real, though. A vocal massage should *NOT* be painful.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Inspired by my work at , it doesn't have to hurt to help. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Pain =/= gain, folks.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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3 Guidelines I Follow for Pain-Free Treatments:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉 You are always in control and can stop the treatment ANY time.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉 If it doesn't feel comfortable, pain-free, or useful, we won't do it.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉 We'll never work above your perceived 7/10 pressure (usually after that, it's not super comfortable anymore!)⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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It may sound basic, but these guidelines are extremely important to me.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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In a treatment, we work TOGETHER to find out what movements are the most useful for YOU.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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If you're interested in exploring muscular release for greater vocal freedom, send me a message!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Whether you're a singer looking for vocal health maintenance or you've been experiencing voice-related troubles, I would love to chat.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Lydia x

OK, so suboccipitals are definitely a rogue first anatomy post, but here's why I think I felt drawn to sharing these little guys today:
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EVERY part of your anatomy will have some influence on your voice.
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Even these little suboccipital muscles at the back of your head.
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How so? What do they even do?
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The suboccipitals (eight total, in four 'sections' if you will) are the deepest muscles of the upper posterior neck and they stabilise the axis and atlas vertebrae.
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Without the axis and atlas vertebrae, head and neck movement would basically be impossible.
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Soo...IMPORTANT, right?!
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The suboccipitals also rock and tilt the head back into extension, rotate the head, and laterally flex the head (ear to shoulder).
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Researchers have found a link between the re**us capitis posterior minor (see slide 7) and the dura mater, AKA connective tissue around our spinal cord & brain.
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Okay, whaaaat? What does that mean?
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Because of this link, suboccipitals may be indicated in headaches by disruption of normal cerebrospinal fluid fluctuations & the functioning of the vertebral artery and suboccipital nerve.
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Translation: if you get headaches, you may want to check out your suboccipitals.
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Whether you do or don't experience headaches, you may want to give your suboccipitals some love.
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If you're moving your head at ALL while singing and speaking, these little muscles are likely involved.
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Can you remember all of their names? Anatomy quiz in my stories today to test your memory! 📚

Our absolutely beautiful Oxford clinic.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Whether you're currently struggling with your voice or are just interested in exploring vocal massage, our treatments are for you.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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If you are a...⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉 Performer⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉 Professional singer⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉 Teacher⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉 Voice Over Artist⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👉 Human who values your voice⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀..Vocal massage is something worth exploring.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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I'd love to hear about your voice story. Send me a DM or an email today.

Some food for thought. 🤔
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When I developed a vocal injury, I thought I was doing everything right.
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Taking singing lessons. Drinking water. Avoiding alcohol and too much caffeine.
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But guess what?
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There is much more to the story than quick tips of what and what not to do regarding vocal health.
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I wish I knew this 10 years ago.
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What do you know to be TRUE about YOUR vocal health? Tell me in the comments below. 👇

What you see: vocal manual therapy.
What you don’t see: guided discovery.

What IS guided discovery, I hear you ask??

Guided discovery is a two way process between client and practitioner that involves open questions, collaboration, and curiosity.

Guided discovery is a component of professional practice that encourages clients to view therapy as teamwork.

In vocal massage treatments, we are working TOGETHER to help figure out what is the best vocal massage treatment for you.

As much as we at OVM are experts in vocal manual therapy treatment, YOU are an expert in how things feel for you.

In our vocal massage treatments, we always ask questions that not only bring about self-reflection and discovery for YOU, but also help US deliver the most individualised and productive treatment for your needs.

Therapeutic alliance is THE most important part of your treatment.

We want you to let us know what feels useful and what doesn’t.

We are here to help with your vocal needs.

Please feel free to DM us if you have any questions or if you’re keen, visit the website to book a treatment in-person in Oxford or an online self-guided treatment.

So…what even IS vocal massage anyway? 🤔

Have a swipe through and see if this explanation helps!

If you *still* have questions, I don’t blame you!

It isn’t an area most people are familiar with, so please feel free to drop your questions in the comments or send me a DM.

Lydia x