How to Improve Nasal Resonance After Sinus Surgery

Sinus surgery is a last-resort procedure that can help to alleviate symptoms when all other medical means have proven ineffective. Although sinus surgery can help to provide some measure of relief, the operation itself can come with a host of unwanted side effects, one of which can be vocal changes. Vocal changes occur due to the changes in the airways, artificially distorting the voice and creating a "nasal resonance"--the off-pitch sound of someone "talking through his nose." With some time and effort, you can take steps to correct this situation.

Instructions

• 1

  Consult with a local vocal coach or speech therapist to discuss the possibility of improving nasal resonance through the use of voice lessons. Vocal training can help to improve nasal resonance by retraining you on proper speech mechanics, compensating for the surgical alteration that triggered impaired resonance.

• 2

  Talk to your doctor about the possibility of further surgical procedures to attempt to restore some measure of resonance to your voice. While there is no guarantee that anything can be done, a skilled plastic surgeon might be able to perform further reshaping to offset some of your speech difficulties.

• 3

  Practice articulating words at home to find ways to minimize nasal resonance. According to information about proper pronunciation published on the speech website OldandSold.com, the key to improving nasal resonance is to loosen up the muscles of your nose. To practice this, begin making a smooth "mmmmm" humming noise during your exhalations, aiming to keep your nasal passages as tension-free as possible to reduce nasal resonance.