Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 2: Adjusting your voice
• Part 2 of 2: Making it more credible

There are many reasons people might want to pretend that they have lost their voice, such as playing a part in a play, a role in a movie, or making an illness seem worse. But trying to get rid of your voice can damage your vocal cords, and that's definitely not recommended. The next time you pretend to lose your voice, pretend you have strep throat. Laryngitis is caused by swollen vocal cords, and it is a common cause of voice loss that can be caused by viral and bacterial infections, yelling or singing too much or too loud, and smoking. The symptoms of strep throat include inability to speak or not being able to speak at a regular volume, hoarseness, a hoarse voice, and a crackling or wheezing voice.

To step

Part 1 of 2: Adjusting your voice

1. Sound hoarse. One of the signs of laryngitis is hoarseness, which refers to a hoarse, tense sounding voice when you have overused it.
   • To make your voice sound hoarse and growling, you can practice vibrating your vocal cords, such as imitating the croaking of a frog.
   • Also practice making "bèh" sound (like a sheep), as this will also vibrate your vocal cords.
   • After practicing with certain sounds, you can try to create the same raspy sound in your speaking voice.
2. Make your voice crack and drop. Another common phenomenon of laryngitis is experiencing unintentional changes in the volume and pitch of your voice while you speak.
   • When you speak, try to crack your voice when you say certain words, then drop your voice for a moment so that it is quieter than usual. Alternate this by speaking in your normal (but hoarse) voice.
3. Try to whisper tense now and then. In addition to the cracking and dropping of your voice, you also need to whisper more if you want to pretend you've lost your voice. When you have laryngitis, your vocal cords will often have a hard time producing sound, and you can repeat this by intermittently letting your voice fade in a tense whisper as you speak.
   • Make sure to alternately let your voice crack or drop, or to whisper and speak hoarse at a normal volume.
   • When you let these different voice effects blend together, try to make the transition as natural as possible so people don't know you're trying to force it.
4. Cough when you talk. Laryngitis often causes a roughness in the throat and a dry throat, so it is common for people who have lost their voice to sometimes cough when they speak.
   • Don't cough too much, just let out a few dry coughs every now and then if you've been talking for a while.
   • A cough occurs when your body forcibly expels air from the lungs, which is different from vibrating your vocal cords to create speech, which means you can still cough if you've lost your voice.

Part 2 of 2: Making it more credible

1. Complain about the symptoms in the days leading up to your loss of voice. In addition to performing various vocal effects to give the impression that you have lost your voice, there are other things you can do to support your act. If you want to build a credible foundation for your loss of voice, complain about a sore or tickle throat and cough one or two days before losing your voice.
2. Talk less than you normally would. Regardless of what causes laryngitis, the best remedy is always to give your voice a rest. This means that if you really lost your voice, you would try to give it a rest so you can recover more quickly.
   • Try to use your body language more, such as nodding or shaking your head, rather than speaking when communicating with someone.
3. Write down things to communicate. A throat infection often accompanies a sore throat and cough, and both of these things can make it difficult and painful to speak. In combination with speaking less and using your body language more, try to write things down to communicate, instead of talking through.
   • You can alternate between speaking in voice and writing (to rest your voice) to give the impression that you have strep throat.
4. Drink lots of water. Another effective remedy for strep throat is to drink plenty of fluids, especially water. To support your act, drink a lot of water. Especially if you have to talk for an extended period of time, take small and frequent sips of water.
5. Suck on throat lozenges. Throat lozenges and cough syrups are common remedies when people have lost their voices, so you can do the same to make your so-called strep throat more believable.