Vocal Health Education

Training your voice is just like training your body! 💪

Think of it this way: just as various physical exercises target different muscle groups, mixing up your vocal exercises helps your voice become more versatile and resilient.

A flexible voice is a healthy voice! 🗣️

By working different parts of your range, experimenting with volumes, and exploring various sounds, you're giving your vocal cords a fantastic workout—vocal cross-training!

And remember, just like starting any new fitness routine, it's wise to try new vocal exercises under the guidance of a trusted coach to avoid any strain or injury.

Happy vocal cross-training! 🏃

Dispositionalism is a difficult concept in philosophy to navigate.

Essentially, you have to orientate your biases in order to work out blind spots in your thinking.

For example: If we think that glass is fragile, every time we see glass, we are predisposed to think that glass is fragile. This example, when extended to the healthcare professions might provide something of interest for the clinical encounter 🥼

Because if our education has orientated us to believe that all glass is fragile, then we may well believe that all glass dropped onto concrete will smash before it bounces.

However, some people are simply made of stronger stuff, some glass is made from Pyrex 💪

This is the essence of the dispositional ontology: we can only treat what we assign based on our inner narrative and education 🎓

When working to rehabilitate professional voice users, the roles of Speech and Language Pathologists (SLPs) and Singing Voice Rehabilitation Specialists (SVRS) can sometimes overlap, leading to blurred boundaries.

Does having flexible boundaries allow for collaboration, creativity and imaginative work, or does it lead to confusion and ambiguity over individual accountability? 🤔

Next month, we're hosting Collaborative Rehabilitation Practice, a unique, two-day course with Dr Jenevora Williams (Voice Rehabilitation Coach) and Maurice Goodwin SLP.

The course will explore the rehabilitation pathway for professional voice users who are facing vocal challenges that require rehabilitation, considering how best to support them through collaborative practice 🗣️

Whichever camp you fall into, SLP or SRVS, we'd love you to join us to explore these important issues 🤝

Book now for London / Online (16-17th July) or Lewes (23-24th July): https://www.vocalhealth.co.uk/collaborative-rehabilitation-practice/

Is this your job? Or not 😕

When speech therapists and singing voice specialists work together, issues can sometimes arise from blurred boundaries and overlapping responsibilities.

But, when managed well, flexible boundaries allow for collaboration, creativity and imaginative work, that benefits the client and the practitioners alike 💡

This July, our two day Collaborative Rehabilitation Practice course with Dr Jenevora Williams and Maurice Goodwin SLP will explore these issues in detail, and offers insights that can improve the overall experience and outcomes for clients.

Book now to join us this summer in London/Online (16-17th July) or Lewes (23-24th July).

Teamwork makes the dream work 💜

When vocal health specialists collaborate effectively, they unlock a whole range of new insights and ideas to support their clients 💡

⚖️ But balancing their roles, particularly in areas of overlap and blurred boundaries, can be challenging.

This July, join Dr Jenevora Williams and Maurice Goodwin SLP for a two-day course exploring Collaborative Rehabilitation Practice as they:

🌟 examine the roles of SLPs and SVRS in the rehabilitation of professional voice users, and
🌟 explore the potential consequences, positive and negative, of these practitioners working collaboratively within flexible boundaries

📆 Book now to join us this summer in London / online (16-17th July) or Lewes (23-24th July). In person bookings are £325, and online bookings are £275: https://www.vocalhealth.co.uk/collaborative-rehabilitation-practice/

How can knowledge of anatomy help your teaching practice? 👩‍🏫

💡 It turns out, being able to name parts of the body is just a small bit of it!

In today's video, Jenevora and Stephen explain that understanding how it all fits together and contributes to the whole is much more useful, as well as having an awareness of how it feels as a voice user 🗣️

🧰 Knowledge of anatomy is a great tool in our teaching toolbox, to be used in combination with other approaches and strategies to support voice users in a holistic way 🫶

📣 We are thrilled to be hosting a unique, two-day course, Collaborative Rehabilitation Practice, with Dr Jenevora Williams (Voice Rehabilitation Coach) and Maurice Goodwin SLP, who will be joining us in-person from Houston, Texas.

🗣️ Professional voice users, such as singers and speakers, often face vocal challenges that require rehabilitation.

This course explores the rehabilitation pathway, emphasising the roles of Speech and Language Pathologists (SLPs) and Singing Voice Rehabilitation Specialists (SVRS).

Whilst each practitioner is working within a defined code of practice, there often exists overlap and blurred boundaries. How is this useful and helpful for the client?

🤔 Do flexible boundaries allow for collaboration, creativity and imaginative work, or do they lead to confusion and ambiguity over individual accountability?

📆 Book now to join us this summer in London (16-17th July) or Lewes (23-24th July)

https://www.vocalhealth.co.uk/collaborative-rehabilitation-practice/

Today's student shoutout takes a slightly different format - we're coming to you from Jenevora's house, with the incredible Keesha McLean / Cairns Voice Studio

Keesha was one of our very first Voice Rehabilitation Specialists, and we're so pleased to see her receiving some amazing formal recognitions for her work over in Australia 🇦🇺

🗣️ The VRS is an elite level of training and involves a significant commitment to multi-disciplinary study. This pathway delivers all the theory behind voice rehabilitation within the practical applications of the biopsychosocial model.

Huge congratulations Keesha, from all of us here at team VHE! 👏

Feeling vocally fatigued and not sure what to do? 🤔

💡 Here are some of Stephen and Jenevora's tips for 'breaking the circuit' when you're feeling vocally stuck.

'Perfection is the enemy of progress' 💡

📆 To mark the final day of , today we're sharing a clip from our Vocal Habilitation Professional course.

📺 This part of the course features a video interview with Jack Williamson, 'Beyond Perfectionism'. It's a fascinating watch - thank you for your insights, Jack.

Find out more about our VHP course: https://www.vocalhealth.co.uk/vocal-habilitation-professional/

Let's talk periods 🩸

We've been so pleased to see more open conversations about periods and singing, following Rebecca Franks' article in The Times a few weeks ago. We applaud the singers who shared their experiences in these interviews 👏

At Vocal Health Education, we have been championing the need for awareness on how hormonal changes can influence the behaviour of the vocal folds. 💪 That’s why we added a module on hormones and the voice into our Vocal Health First Aid course, delivered by one of the foremost specialists on this subject, Joanne Bozeman 🌟

🔗 Find out more about our VHFA course: https://www.vocalhealth.co.uk/vocal-health-first-aid/

Have you listened to our latest podcast episode yet? 🎙️

Our three hosts, Stephen King, Robert Sussuma and Dr Jenevora Williams, explore the what they might have said to their younger selves.

This is an intimate conversation that pulls apart the past, present and future, as well as exploring what it means to “do the hard yards” in your career.

🎧 https://www.vocalhealth.co.uk/the-thinking-voice/

Want to enter our giveaway but looking for a little inspiration? 🤔

Here's Gill answering this year's World Voice Day motto prompts: resonate, educate, celebrate 🎉

So, to be in with a chance of winning one of our courses*, we want you to film a short video with one (or all three!) of the following prompts:

🌟 RESONATE: demonstrate your favourite silly sound/resonance exercise you use in your vocal practice/teaching
🌟 EDUCATE: tell us your favourite fun fact or something new you learned recently about the voice
🌟 CELEBRATE: share a recent win in your own vocal practice or from one of your students

Not keen to be on camera? We'd love to see a graphic sharing this information!

❗ Make sure to tag us in your post, and keep your profile on public so we can see it! Entries close at midnight on Tuesday 16th April.

*courses included in the giveaway are Vocal Health First Aid, Optimal Breathing, Healthy Spoken Voice, Certificate of Teaching Inclusively, Voice Care for Singers, Fundamental Anatomy

Ready to get involved with our giveaway? 😍 Here's Eimear with an example entry for our video challenge 📽️

This year's WVD motto is Resonate, Educate, Celebrate. So, to be in with a chance of winning one of our courses*, we want you to film a short video with one (or all three!) of the following prompts:

🌟 RESONATE: demonstrate your favourite silly sound/resonance exercise you use in your vocal practice/teaching
🌟 EDUCATE: tell us your favourite fun fact or something new you learned recently about the voice
🌟 CELEBRATE: share a recent win in your own vocal practice or from one of your students

Not keen to be on camera? We'd love to see a graphic sharing this information!

❗ Make sure to tag us in your post, and keep your profile on public so we can see it! Entries close at midnight on Tuesday 16th April.

*courses included in the giveaway are Vocal Health First Aid, Optimal Breathing, Healthy Spoken Voice, Certificate of Teaching Inclusively, Voice Care for Singers, Fundamental Anatomy

📣 GIVEAWAY ANNOUNCEMENT 📣

🗣️ is coming up on Tuesday 16th April, and we've got a giveaway for you!

This year's motto is Resonate, Educate, Celebrate. So, to be in with a chance of winning one of our courses*, we're challenging you to film a short video with the following prompts:

🌟 RESONATE: demonstrate your favourite silly sound/resonance exercise you use in your vocal practice/teaching
🌟 EDUCATE: tell us your favourite fun fact or something new you learned recently about the voice
🌟 CELEBRATE: share a recent win in your own vocal practice or from one of your students

Make sure to tag us in your video, and keep your profile on public so we can see it. Entries close at midnight on Tuesday 16th April. ⏰ Good luck!

*courses included in the giveaway are Vocal Health First Aid, Optimal Breathing, Healthy Spoken Voice, Certificate of Teaching Inclusively, Voice Care for Singers, Fundamental Anatomy

We've been talking about cardiovascular fitness quite a bit recently, and today we're thinking about strength training 💪

🌟 Here's the amazing Jenevora deadlifting 65kg and explaining why strength training is important for everyone - singers included!

As with your singing, always seek out advice from a professional to make sure that you're working out in a safe way.

Last week we shared how good cardiovascular fitness can speed up your vocal recovery time. Check out our previous video to hear about the benefits from Duncan Rock 🌟

💪 Today, Jenevora is leading by example, and giving us some tips while she’s at it!

Anyone else inspired to start practising on the treadmill? 🏃‍♀️