Kimberly Williams-Paisley is a face many know thanks to movies like “Father of the Bride,” but the actress opened up this week about losing her voice — for two years.
In a new interview with People, the actress explained that she was diagnosed with muscle tension dysphonia in 2023, after months of not being able to speak in anything more than a whisper.
Williams-Paisley said the whole ordeal began in November 2022, when she went on stage at her and her sister’s (actress Ashley Williams) annual fundraiser for Alzheimer’s, the Dance Party to End ALZ. As Williams-Paisley tried to welcome attendees, her voice failed.
“It was terrifying,” she said.
The actress said she immediately assumed it was just vocal strain and she needed rest, but when weeks went by and nothing changed, she tried different options. She went to a vocal coach and tried acupuncture and massage, but they didn’t work.
At one point, she attended the red carpet for the premiere of one of her films and realized she wouldn’t be able to speak loud enough to do any interviews, which made her panic.
“I went into the bathroom and cried, and a couple of friends held my hand,” she said.
She got a proper diagnosis of muscle tension dysphonia, which meant “the muscles in my neck were tensing up to help my vocal cords hit each other.” Williams-Paisley admitted she felt “trapped in my own body” as they figured out what to do.
“There was so much shame involved,” she said of the time where she couldn’t communicate. “I felt invisible.”
In the end, she had a surgery that physically moved her left vocal chord closer to her right, and her voice came back immediately afterward.
“Now, no matter what my physical voice is, my voice underneath is stronger,” she said. “I feel more confident. I know myself better.”
