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Unable to speak above a whisper following thyroid surgery

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Posted 7/10/2011 8:16 PM (GMT 0)

I am scared out of my mind that this is a permanent condition.  I have not been able to speak for 2 weeks now.  The ENT doctor reports my vocal cords are paralyzed, but it's too soon to know if it's a permanent condition.  My thyroid surgery report looks good and doesn't indicate

any complications.  I was totally blindsided by this and didn't realize thyroid surgery could possibly leave me voiceless.  My surgeon only mentioned temporary or permanent hoarseness.  Please share your experiences and provide hope, as I am a nervous wreck. 

Posted 7/12/2011 6:08 PM (GMT 0)
Michelle, I'm only a week or two ahead of you on the recovery path (my surgery was 6/15). I know that hoarseness is usually temporary, but that it was take a couple of months for that to clear up. Since that's due to laryngeal nerve injury. Is that what your ENT thinks might have happened?

My hoarseness is clearing up, but I still have some "issues." I can't sing in the upper register (head voice). I can't yell. (I can talk loudly, but when I try to yell, no sound comes out.) I go back to the ENT surgeon in 5 months for another follow up.

Give it some time. Baby your vocal cords. Try not to worry. I know it's a tall order, but it's probably the best thing you can do right now.
Posted 7/12/2011 7:10 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for replying Beth! I scheduled an appt with the ENT 10 days after my surgery, as I became desperate and needed some answers. The surgeon didn't recommend an appt with the ENT until after one month if my voice didn't improve. When I saw the ENT doctor he confirmed that both vocal cords were paralyzed. He then prescribed prednisone to help with any possible swelling or inflammation. I now have a hoarse/whisper since taking the prednisone. I've also noticed improvements in my swallowing abilities. My voice is far from normal, but I'm becoming satisfied with the baby steps toward recovery. Was your surgery a partial or total thyroidectomy? I had a total.
Posted 7/13/2011 8:27 PM (GMT 0)
I also had a total thyroidectomy. My surgeon is also an ENT, so he did double duty.

Just remember- baby steps. They moved around a lot of stuff while they were in there, and it will take a while for everything to calm down. I am glad the prednisone is helping, though.
Posted 7/14/2011 12:06 AM (GMT 0)
My surgeon denies that the laryngeal nerves were damaged or that I experienced any other complicatons, but yet my vocal cords are paralysed. Thanks for the encouragement! I really need it.
Posted 7/14/2011 4:18 PM (GMT 0)
The nerves may not have been damaged, really. They got moved around, and they might be "cranky." I don't know if they consider it a "complication" as much as an effect of the procedure. I'd continue to follow up with the ENT, though, just to make sure.
Posted 3/25/2015 5:00 AM (GMT 0)
I am 5 wks out of thyroid surgery and still can't talk. Not sure what I can do at this point. Had to quit my job as a tax preparer and I'm really concerned. Don't know if I should continue to try to talk or rest my vocal cords. Appreciate any advice.
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