He's Back!

If you would like to learn more about Spasmodic Dysphonia (or maybe would like to make a charitable donation!) please go to The National Spasmodic Dysphonia Association.

Hi All!

Well, he's back!







Yes, it is Mr. Timer!
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Oh, how I have missed him. NOT!
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For those of you who may not remember Mr. Timer, here is his story.
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When I was still really struggling with my voice I was rather . . . intent (okay, obsessive) about my vocal exercises. Susan, my speech therapist, told me to them three or four times a day but that doing them more would only help. Enter Mr. Timer.
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I decided that I would need something to remind me to do my exercises and I dug Mr. Timer out of my school stuff.
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I set this "friend" for an hour and then went about my daily routine. Every time the timer went off, I stopped whatever I was doing and did my exercises. Then I reset the timer and continued doing whatever I was doing.
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Every day, all day long I carried Mr. Timer around with me listening for that beep which meant that I needed to do my exercises. Every day. All the time. Imagine how "fun" that soon became!
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However, I persisted and did this for well over a year as my voice gradually progressed.
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When Susan finally told me that I could cut back on my exercises, Mr. Timer went into semi-retirement. I was still doing oral reading and so he helped me make sure I did the correct amount of reading each day.
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Soon, I decided that Mr. Timer could totally retire. He was shoved into a drawer where I pretty much ignored him until his battery ran down and he "freaked out." Instead of taking Mr. time out of the drawer, replacing the battery and then using him, I yanked the battery out and shoved him back in the drawer.
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He is such a tangible reminder of the "bad times" I have had with my voice.
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Now it is time to bring out Mr. Timer and dust him off (and give him a fresh battery) so that he can help me with my exercises as I strive to fend off the vocal decline which appears to think it will take over.
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Mr. Timer. I have such a love/hate relationship with him.
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Trisha
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Voice Update: With the help of Mr. Timer, I read out loud for at least an hour and a half. I also managed to talk to the cats and myself for a long time as I puttered around the house. When Hubby came home we went walking and I talked most of that time too. This isn't to say that I didn't have my times of silence - I did. I took a nap and then read silently after Mr. Timer said I had read for an hour. Hubby said my voice seemed to be better! Yeah! It must work!