During the movie Pitch Perfect, Chloe (the ginger) announces to everyone that she has vocal nodules. "I am living with nodes. But I am a survivor. I just have to pull back, because I am limited. Because I have nodes." She decides to keep singing and eventually has surgery to remove the nodes, before returning to singing again. While I appreciate the cinematic shutout to an actual issue in the music world, let me shed some light on my personal experience with nodules and why Chloe's situation just wouldn't work in real life. (Sorry Chloe).

Towards the end of my junior year of high school I was diagnosed with Mononucleosis, which is typically not too terrible of an illness, right? Wrong. Over the following 6 months, I would have a series of nearly 8 throat infections, 5 sinus infections, 2 respiratory infections, and a mixture of other issues caused by immune deficiencies. At one point, I had dropped nearly 30 pounds, 15 of which were lost in a week due to being unable to ingest any food or liquid. I lived on the couch all summer, or in my bed because I didn't have the energy to move. After a while, things began to get better. My body started to heal itself and slowly I was able to settle into my senior year. However, months of abuse had taken it's toll. Shortly before graduation, I began having trouble speaking and singing while having sharp pains in my throat. After going to the doctors for the billionth time, I was diagnosed with vocal nodules. Also, not always a big deal, especially when caught early. However, nodes do not just disappear. They can either be surgically removed, or if they are young nodes caught early, they can heal natural through vocal rest. As a senior, I was in two advanced choirs, was field commander for our marching band, was in 4 different instrumental ensembles, participated in our high school and local theater productions, and I sang weekly at church. I had also been recently accepted into Heidelberg University to study Voice Performances and Music Education. So I pretty much was using my voice to the maximum any person could.

The ENT told me that if I wanted to avoid surgery, I would have to be on complete vocal rest. For THREE months. Let me elaborate on what I mean by complete vocal rest. No singing, talking, laughing, coughing, humming, whistling, clearing your throat. Absolute silence, all day, every day, for three months. As someone who was constantly performing, and had every intention of performing for the rest of her life, I was devastated. At the time, I was in the middle of two musicals and a play, not to mention preparing for my last high school choir concert and Senior Showcase. Some of you may think I am a wimp saying this, but those three months were the hardest of my entire life. Imagine having the things you love most (singing, laughing, talking) taken away from you. Your ability to communicate is totally taken away from you. There was no calling out for help, there was no joy in music, there was only silence and sadness for what seemed like an eternity. However, what is three months of silence when compared to surgery and permanent damage that could result in never speaking or singing again ever?

In the end, I was able to stick to the Dr's orders (most of the time anyway) and my body healed itself. I was able to perform in every performance my senior year, even earning a prized solo during our final concert. I could not miraculously sing low notes, nor was it a week long process. I spent all four years of college in voice lessons, ensuring my breathing, singing, and speaking techniques were healthy and manageable. Illness may have taken its toll on my voice, but with dedication and awareness, I have every intention of never being silent again. Anyone who knows me can attest to the amount I talk.

So if you are watching Pitch Perfect and get to the part about nodes, I understand that it is kind of funny. Just remember that nodes are a serious issue singers and actors go through, even famous performers such as Adele, Julie Andrews, Dan Reynolds from Imagine Dragons, Christina Perri and many more.