Two Weeks of Silence

I can already hear the jokes from my dad...

I had an appointment with a vocal therapist on Friday afternoon and got the last official step in the treatment plan to get rid of my nodules. Two weeks of silence. AAAAHHHHHH!!!!!!!! I'm sure you're thinking exactly what I am - how in the world am I going to accomplish this?

I'll start over spring break and continue into the next week when I'm back at school. I'm going to start planning no-voice activities for my classes that week. I have instruments to my advantage, so I'm not too concerned about finding enough things to do, but I am worried about my ability to follow through with no talking.

Dr. Hayashi was adorable and very sweet... and naive. She kept saying "if you think your husband can handle it, you really should keep your mouth shut for two whole weeks." Haha! Can he handle it?! I'm pretty sure he will find it pleasantly peaceful. :) Only kidding... right, Stuart?!

In addtion to the silent weeks, I have a whole list of rules to follow. The only capitalized, bold-faced one on the page? No whispering. As a vocalist, I already knew that whispering was bad for your voice, but she explained what is happening physiologically when we whisper, and it's easy to see why it's hard on the vocal cords. I didn't see this being a difficult rule to follow, but now that I've been told not to whisper under any circumstances, I'm aware of how much I actually do it.

Getting rid of these nodules is turning out to be work than I anticipated, but both my ENT and Dr. Hayashi reassure me that I have caught them very early and will be able to heal them on my own. Now all I have to do is buy a thick notebook and sturdy pen.... ;)