Diane Newman's problems started about a year ago. The first symptom she noticed was the loss of her voice.

"I think I realized it at church," Diane, who lives just outside of Jacksonville, Florida, says. "I couldn't sing anymore. My voice was just something that was gone from me, and I didn't know why."

Next, Diane noticed she couldn't speak in long sentences without her voice changing. But the fear set in when she began having episodes that took her breath away completely.

"They were like spasms," she recalls. "It was frightening."

Diane scheduled an appointment with a pulmonologist, who checked her lungs and discussed her breathing patterns. A few days later, though, Diane noticed she was experiencing periods of confusion, and her breathing spasms worsened — to the point where she needed to go to the emergency room at a local hospital.

A doctor performed a bronchoscopy, a procedure that examines the inside of the lungs and airways with a tube called a bronchoscope, and noted Diane's vocal cords weren't moving as they should. The doctor also measured the level of carbon dioxide in Diane's body and learned it was sky-high. The nonmoving vocal cords, Diane's care team determined, were causing the buildup of carbon dioxide, leading to loss of oxygen and confusion.

Diane spent three days in the ICU while the team worked to rid her body of the harmful carbon dioxide. They then referred her to Mayo Clinic in Florida.

Mayo Clinic was 'a godsend'

Mayo Clinic saw Diane right away.

"For me, it was just a godsend," she says. "I was having such problems."

Diane met with Dr. Amy Rutt, an otolaryngologist who leads the Jacksonville Mayo Clinic Voice Center and specializes in laryngeal surgery and voice disorders.

After running some tests on Diane's larynx, or voice box, Dr. Rutt diagnosed Diane with bilateral vocal cord paralysis, a condition that occurs when both vocal cords are unable to move. In addition to difficulty breathing, bilateral vocal cord paralysis can cause trouble with swallowing and speaking.

"Prompt diagnosis is so important with bilateral vocal cord paralysis because it can be life-threatening," Dr. Rutt says.

Although Diane's paralysis couldn't be reversed, Dr. Rutt performed a procedure to allow more room for oxygen to flow through her throat and carbon dioxide to be released.

"The goal in these cases is to improve the voice and enhance long-term breathing after airway surgery," Dr. Rutt says.

Diane then met with a speech therapist to learn exercises that would help her restore her speaking ability, as well as what to do if she experienced another breathing spasm.

"That was so helpful. It gave me a lot of confidence and was very comforting," Diane says. "My doctors didn't sugarcoat things, but they were very kind and competent. They told me my voice would be different, but that it would be OK." 

Getting back to life

Today, Diane is prepared when breathing spasms occur. She's learned to breathe from her abdomen and not her chest. She's also learned not to panic when a spasm strikes but, instead, sit down and take deep breaths.

While she still doesn't know what caused her condition, Diane says her anxiety has lessened considerably.

"I'm not as concerned anymore," she says. "I feel like it's something I can handle and get through."

Diane also notes she's talking to people with confidence again.

"My breathing is much better, and my voice is almost back to normal," she says. "Everyone can understand what I'm saying, and it's a good volume. I'm sure it will continue to improve even more."

And, perhaps most importantly of all, Diane feels like she can live her life again. "I have my breath back," she says. "I can exercise more, walk more and just have a normal life because I have stamina again."

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