'I thought I would never be able to sing again': Singer Shekhar Ravjiani reveals being diagnosed with vocal cord paresis; check signs

Shekhar Ravjiani, Bollywood's renowned singer, music composer, and member of the Vishal-Shekhar duo, recently revealed on Instagram that he almost lost his voice two years ago due to left 'vocal cord paresis.'

Sharing an emotional post, Shekhar opened up about the life-changing health challenge that he suffered two years ago. He shared the story in a couple of pictures, mentioning how for the first time he lost his voice due to a condition called left vocal cord paresis, diagnosed by Dr. Nupur Nerurkar.

"I was destroyed. Honestly, I was pessimistic¡­ I thought I would never be able to sing again,¡± he wrote.

Credit: shekharravjiani

The singer further revealed that his condition emotionally impacted both him and his family, who were deeply concerned about his health. Determined to recover and get back to life again, the ¡®Ishq wala love¡¯ singer continued to work and sought help. He mentioned that in the middle of this, he had to travel to San Diego for a couple of weeks and connected with Dr. Erin Walsh via a Zoom call because of the pandemic restrictions.

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Shekhar went on to write, "I remember tears rolling uncontrollably down my face as I could tell her that I wanted to sing again." The first thing Dr. Walsh told him to not blame himself for what happened to his voice.

¡°We spoke at length and she made me feel comfortable and eventually, miraculously, she made me believe that I could sing, which was the first step. But each time I cried, I croaked, and began to hate the sound of my voice... but, she was unwavered and kept working on my voice and spirit. Her sheer determination, dedication, and her positivity made my paralysed left vocal cord come back to normal within a few weeks," Shekhar added.

Seeing the post, fans, family, and friends couldn¡¯t stop themselves from praising his dedication towards his art. Here¡¯s what Vishal Dadlani, the other half of the Vishal-Shekhar duo wrote:

"You¡¯ve got an iron will, @shekharravjiani . Watched you do this, watched you work on it with single minded dedication, despite the fear. Takes courage of another level, man. Still watching you take good care of your voice and your mental health as we all should. Of course, I¡¯m learning from it, and am still grateful to be taught and inspired by you every day, man (sic)."

Credit: shekharravjiani

What is vocal cord paresis?

According to the Weill Cornell Medicine, Sean Parker Institute, the word ¡®paresis¡¯ means partial paralysis. Vocal fold paresis refers to a vocal fold with motion impaired (but not absent; that condition is called vocal fold paralysis) because the nerve in the muscles of the fold is damaged.

What are the causes of vocal cord paresis?

The most common cause of the condition is a viral infection such as a cold. On the other hand, vocal cord paralysis is a condition that is caused by a virus or an inflammatory disease such as cancer, thyroid, or other tumours. Sometimes, it can also be a side effect of a neurological condition. Paresis is generally not caused by tumours, although there can be very rare exceptions.

Symptoms of vocal cord paresis

• Noticeable vocal fatigue
• Loss of projection
• Difficulty talking with background noise
• Limited pitch
• Lack of vocal endurance
• Micro-aspiration (minor intake of saliva and fluids) during the day