Breath: Its Connection To The Voice & Easing Anxiety
Author: Jesse Nerenberg, Reg. CASLPO, Speech-Language Pathologist
Date: Wednesday, June 25, 2025
Table of Contents
Introduction
Breathing is something we do without thinking. Most adults take between 12-20 breaths per minute, which translates to over 20,000 times a day. But when we begin to pay attention to how we breathe, we can discover powerful tools for improving our voice and calming our nervous system. As a speech-language pathologist (SLP) at Well Said, I often see how breath patterns impact not only how someone sounds, but also how they feel. When clients come in with voice issues or communication challenges, breath is often one of the first places we start. I often tell clients that your breath is like the gas in the tank of the car. Without it, you cannot even get going.
In this post, we’ll explore the connection between breath, voice, and anxiety. Whether you’re dealing with a tired-sounding voice, difficulty projecting, or feeling overwhelmed in social situations, your breathing may be playing a larger role than you realize. Let’s look at how breath supports healthy voice use, how it can spiral with anxiety, and what you can do to begin using your breath as a tool for your communication.
Breathing and the Voice
Every time we speak, we’re using air. In fact, you can actually think of speaking as being simply a controlled form of exhalation. Voice happens when air from the lungs passes through the vocal folds (also called vocal cords) in the larynx, causing them to vibrate. These vibrations create sound, which then travels through your throat, mouth, and nose and becomes your voice. Without a steady, supported stream of air, it’s difficult to speak with strength, clarity, or control. Just like one’s fingers will strum the strings of a guitar to make them vibrate and produce sound, the pressure of that airflow causes the vocal folds to vibrate. (It is actually a bit more complicated than that, but just knowing that consistent airflow can aid with a consistent voice is the main takeaway here).
Many people think of voice as something that happens in the throat, but really, it starts much lower, in the lungs. Your breath is the fuel for your voice (just like the gas in the tank of the car!). When that fuel is flowing well, your voice is more likely to sound clear, full, and flexible. But if your breathing is shallow, tense, or inconsistent, your voice may sound tight, thin, breathy, strained, or crackly. You might run out of air too quickly when you speak, forcing you to take rapid, noisy breaths. Or you might feel like your voice gets tired easily, even after just a short conversation.
Good voice production relies on what we call breath “support.” This doesn’t mean breathing harder or louder; it means using the muscles of your lower body, especially your diaphragm and abdominal muscles (accessory respirators) to control the flow of air in a way that supports speech. It is actually less about force and more about coordination. When we use our breath in this way, we’re more likely to speak with ease and less likely to put excess pressure on the throat and vocal folds.
The Cost of Disconnected Breathing
Many of us have learned poor breathing habits over time. Life demands, stress, posture, and other aspects of modern life can shift us into shallow breathing, using only the upper chest or neck muscles instead of the diaphragm. This kind of breathing is often fast, uneven, or held in ways that disconnect us from our body’s natural rhythm. This is referred to as a “clavicular” breathing pattern since it is centered around the collarbone (aka the clavicle).
Shallow breathing limits how much air is available for speech. It also tends to make us feel rushed or tense. If you have ever tried to speak while nervous, you may have noticed your breath becoming quick or high in your chest. Your voice may have sounded thin or shaky, or you may have needed to pause frequently to catch your breath. This is your breath and nervous system reacting to stress. Luckily, this is something you can learn to shift.
Disconnected breathing not only impacts how you sound, but also how you feel. When the breath is out of sync with the body, the nervous system often stays in a state of high alert. This can make speaking situations (meetings, phone calls, social gatherings) feel more difficult. And if you already experience anxiety, that breath pattern can become both a symptom and a cause of feeling overwhelmed. Our body is generally in one of two modes: “rest and digest” or “fight or flight” mode.
Breath and Anxiety
The relationship between breath and anxiety is circular. When we’re anxious, our breathing tends to become fast and shallow. But shallow breathing can also trigger or increase feelings of anxiety, even when there’s no clear external cause.
This happens because breath is tied directly to our autonomic nervous system (the part of the nervous system that controls automatic functions like heart rate and digestion). Shallow, rapid breathing signals to the body that we might be in danger. It activates the sympathetic nervous system (the "fight or flight" mode) which prepares us to respond to a threat. The problem is, if you’re just trying to order food or give a presentation, this response isn’t very helpful. While our modern human lives are generally quite safe, we are still animals, and in nature predators and dangers are everywhere.
On the other hand, slow, steady, diaphragmatic breathing activates the parasympathetic nervous system (the "rest and digest" mode). This calms the body, lowers the heart rate, and sends a message to the brain/body that everything is okay. You are subtly telling your body: “You are safe”. Over time, practicing this kind of breathing can help reduce anxiety symptoms and bring more ease into speaking situations.
Unlike something like our heartbeat, the breath is one of the few automatic body functions we can also control voluntarily. That makes it a powerful doorway into regulating how we feel. When we change how we breathe, we change the signals our body sends to the brain and how we experience the world.
The Role of Awareness
So where do voice and anxiety meet? They meet in the breath. Many people who struggle with their voice (whether due to vocal fatigue, hoarseness, or performance anxiety) are not fully aware of how they are breathing when they speak. Some hold their breath just before talking. Others push their voice out using tension in the throat or shoulders. These habits may develop over time without conscious thought, especially in high-pressure environments or after illness or injury.
Bringing awareness to your breath is the first step. You don’t need to fix anything right away. Just begin to notice:
Where in your body are you breathing from?
Is your belly moving when you inhale, or is your chest rising?
Do you tend to hold your breath when you think, listen, or prepare to speak?
Do you feel tension in your shoulders, neck, or jaw when you talk?
Is the flow of your breath connected to the flow of your words?
These are not judgment questions. They’re starting points. Building awareness helps us understand our patterns and make space for change.
As an example, I was recently working with a client who was unhappy with how their voice sounded. They wanted a stronger, more powerful and assertive voice. Immediately, I noted that they had quite a bit of vocal “fry” present in their speech. This crackly, irregular, somewhat rough sound (think Britney Spears or Paris Hilton) is not necessarily harmful, but is often associated with reduced breath support. By training this client to use their breath and airflow in a more coordinated fashion we have been making some nice progress towards finding a more consistent and powerful handle on their instrument.
Reconnecting with Breath
The good news, as I have just noted in the above example, is that breath is trainable. You do not have to be a singer or a yogi to learn how to breathe in a way that supports your voice and helps calm your nervous system (but singing and yoga certainly will not hurt!). As an SLP, I often work with clients to build a more functional relationship with breath. This might include gentle body-based exercises, voice tasks, or simple breathing strategies woven into everyday life.
Here are a few principles I often share:
Breathe low and wide.
Try breathing so that your lower ribs expand outward and your belly softens as you inhale. Imagine filling a balloon in your abdomen. On the exhale, let the air flow out slowly and steadily, without collapsing your chest or gripping your throat. Placing a hand on your belly when seated or using a book when laying flat on your back and moving it with your breath can be a helpful exercises.Exhale on sound.
You can pair your breath with gentle sound to coordinate airflow and voicing. Try humming as you exhale or saying a long “ah” in a relaxed tone. Notice how your breath supports the sound, and how the sound gently rides on the air.Practice pause and release.
If you find yourself holding your breath or clenching before speaking, try pausing, exhaling, and softening your body. A small reset can reduce tension and help you begin the next sentence with more ease.Stay connected to the body.
Breath lives in the body, not in the head. Any time you feel your thoughts racing, bring your attention back to your feet, your belly, or your hands. This grounding can help you reconnect with the physical rhythm of breath.Use the breath between thoughts.
Many people rush through speaking without allowing time for breath. Pausing to breathe does not make you sound unsure, it actually gives your listener time to process and gives you time to recharge your voice. I tell my clients to speak “slow and assured like a lion” not “quick and fast and scared like a gazelle”.
Voice Therapy and Breathing Support
If you are noticing voice fatigue, tension, or difficulty speaking clearly, it may be worth working with a speech-language pathologist. An SLP trained in voice can assess your breath patterns, vocal habits, and physical alignment to help you find a more efficient and comfortable way of using your voice.
Voice therapy often includes breath retraining, vocal warmups, postural alignment, and strategies to reduce vocal strain. And while every person’s needs are different, breath is almost always part of the conversation.
Likewise, if anxiety is a barrier to communication, breath work can be a helpful piece of a larger plan. Breath regulation alone is not a cure for anxiety, but it can be a reliable anchor.
Breath as a Bridge
Breath is more than a background process, it is a bridge between voice and body, between mind and nervous system. It connects the way we sound with the way we feel. By bringing attention to the breath, we gain more than just better vocal control. We gain access to calm, presence, and a stronger sense of agency in communication.
You don’t need to become a perfect breather to make a difference. Small shifts in how you breathe throughout the day, especially when you speak, can build over time.
If you're curious about how breath is playing a role in your voice or anxiety, consider reaching out to a speech-language pathologist (SLP) at Well Said. Together, we can explore how to bring more ease into your voice and more steadiness into your breath.
To speak with a psychotherapist or one of the speech-language pathologists at Well Said: Toronto Speech Therapy, schedule an initial consultation by clicking the link below or calling (647) 795-5277.
