Bad mental state = Bad voice?

Dariolicious

Hey there!
So I got a fairly different topic here which I'd like to adress.
Atm my life besides music seems to get a bit out of hand and I was struggling the last few weeks to maintain my usually strong and well controlled voice.
I just had a break up with my girlfriend a bit more than a month ago and all my confidence just flew right out the door. (we've been together for 4.5 years)
However I started to train more often now, since I got nothing else to do anymore.
Is it normal that such feelings can set your voice off?
Just give it time, or should I change something?
I just realized that my mental state seems to be more important than I originally thought, so could meditation and so on help my voice aswell to be in top shape?

Cheers
Dariolicious

highmtn

Singing is such a physical AND a spiritual thing that if you are down in your spirits, it's hard to let them soar in song.

Sometimes people are able to channel sadness into their voice and let it out that way. But if it's bottled-up inside you, it may be tough to do something that is so closely related to your vulnerable, inner "You".

At times you may be able to "escape" into singing and release your energy into a song, even when you are down. Other times, you just so distracted by regret and uncertainty that you are unable to release into your music.

So yes. You can be feeling defeated at a time like this. And you may just have to sink and hit bottom before you're ready to come up for air and start looking forward to good things again. You may have to find a new friend or repair what went wrong with your old friend, but sometimes that won't happen. And so, you may just have to wait out a slump to see a little light on the horizon.

In the meantime, you can go through the mechanics of training to keep the engine in good condition, even if your heart's not in it. Your heart will heal. But it may take a while.

I'm sorry you're going through a time of loss. But there will be good days ahead, too. Prepare for them. Don't mope. Get ready now so when good times return you will be in the best condition ever! Better days are coming!

Bob

TommyM

I can totally relate to this, mate. I split with my partner and mother of my daughter after 15 years around five years ago. My mental health went downhill rapidly, I stopped singing completely and lost two octaves from my range; the power in my voice vanished, my breath control diminished, my pitching failed horribly and I ended up a mess in general. When I did start singing again, I struggled to even get out of chest voice, fell back into unhealthy vocal habits and blew out my voice constantly. In other words, my mental state definitely impacted on my vocal health.

It took me a long time to get over it but I managed it eventually with good support from friends and from my new girlfriend, so please know that it's totally possible to regain the control and skill you have there. Don't give up on yourself, but don't push yourself too hard. Hard as it can be, as Bob says there's light on the horizon, even if it's not immediately visible right now.

I taught meditation (vipassana and samatha, to be specific) for several years so I had a good base of skills to stabilize my emotional state, but to be completely honest I had to go back to square one and really confront, deal with and process what I'd gone through. Meditation can help, but without some serious self-analysis and self-honesty it's only going to function as an elastoplast over a gaping wound. If you're interested in going down the meditation route, I would recommend looking into basic concentration and mindfulness practices as they'll help you develop equanimity which can help you objectively examine the feelings you're experiencing and help you see how they're impacting your vocal health.

Good luck with everything, things will change; that's the only certainty in life, so keep on going, don't let your practice slide and try to embrace those new emotions as you'll find that you can access and channel them in a healthier way which can then give your voice a different sort of richness which comes across in performance.

Dariolicious

Sorry for my late reply, I had to clear everything a bit out.
Thank you guys for the uplifting words, I actually feel a bit better by now, it's still a come and go, however my band kept me on track and my voice is returning just fine, it even grew stronger especially in the high chest notes.
I wasn't training as hard as I might should have, however, I learned alot about my mind, how it could affect everything, so singing was alot of WORK in the last few months, now it's my passion again and I try to not carry all this fear of failing or all my worries into it.

I still despise changes though, if I don't like them atleast :P

highmtn

Hang in there, friend. Tough changes in life can distract us from the comfort we can find in pursuing our musical goals. Everything eventually works out, and we can get back into our groove. Hopefully picking up and surpassing where we were before things got rough.

Furious_Phil

This is one of the most heartfelt, moving posts that I've seen here...
Better times are ahead mate... just keep moving forward!
Maybe even try your hand at writing some music, as these times are especially generous for that sort of outlet.
There is an old saying: "The only constant in this life is change..."
Our job is to learn to embrace it and learn from the old in order to create a much better version for now and the future!
Music will always see you through the tough times, if you let it.

TommyM

Great to hear things are changing for the better, @Dariolicious! Stick at it mate, you'll be fine, this is all just fuel for the lyrical and emotional fire in coming months...

Alyona

I think from a viewpoint of a stress, it does influence on your body. That's what's ahppening to me sometimes. When I had some very stressful moments I can have sleepless nights, imunic system is a bit shaking, so my vocal chords get bigger and dryer, some disbalance is happening. And also I think that depends on emotion that is happening there. Some people go straight to grief or apathy. In this case the circulation in a body is slowed down. If you feel antagonism or anger sometimes it can fasten the circulation.

Kevins2017

Sorry to hear about the breakup but glad that things are working out. Sometimes I think with sadness or grief, it is the best time to channel them in songs. When I'm feeling down, and I have a sad song that I like, I just let out my emotions through the song. I never had a really difficult or sad situation, so I wouldn't know if it would affect the way I sing but if I had to sing during tough times, I just do the best that I can and maintain pitch. Also, with any emotions, I just channel them through songs. If I'm happy, I'll sing a happy song with such joy and passion. I am happy that you're back on track!

GaryDrumm

Use the pain, brother. Singing is an emotional and spiritual expression. If you can find a way to channel the pain and stress into your vocal performance, you’ll find a lot of strength and passion.