I'm a 21 year old guy. When I'm nervous, the sound of my voice can
become problematic - the pitch rises and falls while I'm talking, and
it definitely cracks every once in a while. Other times, feeling
uncomfortable in a situation may cause my voice to become much quieter
than it should be. If I'm
feeling very relaxed and self-confident, my voice is fine. The problem
is, I don't have any conscious control over it, so it only sounds like
that when I'm in the right mood. Also, normally, if I try to change
the sound of my voice (say, to immitate someone else's voice), I can't
do it, but, when I'm in a very good mood, I can. So, essentially, I
have a problem with my voice, but the cause of the problem is all in
my head. (And, therefore, the maturation of my voice box is NOT the
issue, and surgery is NOT a solution.) Do you have any suggestions as
to how I could get better at improving my ability to consciously
control the sound of my voice?

This is in follow up to Question ID: 144115. I poorly phrased that
question, so the person who answered it misunderstood the nature of my
problem.

Dear Gremlin, 

You're right. You don't need surgery or anything drastic.

As with anything relating to instinctive behaviour, it will require
a time committment on your part to change this. 

But it can be done. 

(Some annoying teacher sent me to speech therapy - which
lasted about 4 years. I met some of the most lovely, fun
people ever!)

Here is an excellent book by Dr. Morton Cooper, for about $10.00
http://www.voice-doctor.com/bookvoicesuicide.htm

Just follow the instructions....over and over again. 
The practice alone will make it work for you. 

Best wishes

Your TaxMama-ga

Search - personal knowledge - 
Dr. Cooper is a member of the
Book Publicists of Southern California,
so I hear him from time to time.