Re: weak voice (and chest/throat tightening)

[joan carol urquhart <jcu@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Greetings,

I have been lurking also.

I am wondering if the following accompanies a weak voice?
My mother experiences a feeling in her chest
immediately after taking sinemet (and/or requip)...
She describes it as a surging, tightening feeling in her chest
that rises up into her throat and then into the back of her mouth.
She says that it lasts for about 30-45 minutes,
and makes swallowing even more difficult.
She only expereinces it immediately after taking sinemet (and the agonist).
Has anyone else experienced this?
Her voice has always been quiet, but is not yet inaudible.

Joan U.

-----Original Message-----
From: CORINNE BOWMAKER
Date: Monday, May 15, 2000 7:56 PM
Subject: weak voice


>Hello Everyone,
>       I am usually a "lurker" reading the posts to get info/ideas for my
>Mom who has Parkinson's.  She has noticed that her voice is getting weaker
>and we more often have to ask her to repeat what she says.  She realizes
>that it is due to stiffening of the chest wall muscles and she's not
getting
>enough projection of her voice.  Are there ideas that can help her?  Are
>there some exercises that she can do to strengthen her voice/chest wall
>muscles, to get more "oomph" behind her words?  What about the voice
>amplifiers...do they sound "natural"?   Are they basically microphones?
>Thanks so much for your help!!
>
>Corinne