Ep 5 Joanna Lott - Speech Pathology and Vocal Health

Why do we do this? Vocalizing, especially when it’s imperfect, is joyous. The more perfect you try to make it, the less you may get to enjoy it. Joanna Lott is a Speech Pathologist at the University of Virginia Voice & Swallowing Clinic. She does voice therapy, voice evaluations and voice treatment. If you are a heavy voice user in your vocation, have an injury, or are going in for a preventative appointment, Joanna will see you at the same time as laryngologist Dr. James Daniero (our episode 4 guest) and help you chart a treatment plan. What we love about Joanna is that she is a singer who has been a part of the New York City audition scene and has a personal understanding of the investment it takes to come back from vocal injury. In this episode, we will talk about what brought her to this work, how gendered beliefs of the voice can lead to vocal fatigue, how shaming beliefs about your voice can affect your relationship to your voice, and the power of a practitioner who understands the voice journey from the inside out.