don't clear your throat

I went to speech therapy today. And the biggest take away from today was DON'T CLEAR YOUR THROAT. When I do that, my VC bang into one another. And I do it the whole stinkin' day long. Don't be me. lol

So she got me a small bottle of water to swallow I sip with all the gunk...instead of clearing my throat. Helps. Some. I think clearing my throat is a habit just because I have a lot of gunk from allergies.

We walked around a little bit and did some 'rescue breathing'..this time one sniff in and three pursed exhales, lather rinse repeat. Helps. And she let me feel around her middle to see what proper breathing is supposed to feel like so I can feel it on me too. Yes we probably looked like a weird pair walking around outside holding each other around the middle, but at this point, who cares. LOL

And she showed me how to feel the anatomy of my throat and do some different massage techniques at different points. Interesting..again...more than I ever wanted to know about my throat. lol

But she feels like I am making progress. Slowly. But I'm getting there. She is encouraged by where I am today. And that encouraged me.

She did tell me she is going to amend my care plan to include two more sessions just to get me more comfortable and get me across the finish line.

I adore my therapist. : )

PS..when I spelled "swallow" up there, I accidentally spelled it "swaller" which was immediately followed by a 'you might be a redneck' joke inside my head. ; )