My Voice, My Way
Welcome to “My Voice, My Way” – the podcast that gives a voice to those living with voice disorders.
I’m your host, Margaret Stoddart. I live with a complex voice condition – a combination of Muscle Tension Dysphonia and Spasmodic Dysphonia – and I’m also proud to serve as an Area Contact Leader for Dysphonia International, supporting others across the UK who are living with these often misunderstood conditions.
I created this podcast to raise awareness and start honest conversations about what it really means to live with a voice disorder.
Each episode, I speak with people who understand voice disorders from the inside – fellow sufferers, voice users, and expert clinicians, including ENT specialists, speech and language therapists, and clinical psychologists. Together, we explore the challenges, the treatments, the emotional impact – and the resilience it takes to reclaim our voices.
Whether you’re living with a voice disorder yourself, supporting someone who is, or working in voice care – you’re in the right place. This is a space for shared stories, practical insights, and above all – connection.
This is My Voice, My Way. Let’s get started.
Contact email: mstoddart7@outlook.com
My Voice, My Way
My Voice, My Way with Leon Maciocia
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
This episode is a really powerful and thought-provoking conversation. It is a little different, but deeply connected to what we talk about here. Many of you will know Spasmodic Dysphonia as a voice disorder—but it actually sits within a wider neurological condition called dystonia.
My guest lives with progressive axial dystonia, affecting his spine, posture, and movement. While our symptoms show up in different parts of the body, the underlying challenges are strikingly similar - unpredictable muscle patterns, the impact of stress, and the emotional and psychological toll of living with a long-term condition.
His journey spans a successful career as a Clinical Scientist, years of chronic pain, and treatments that didn’t bring the hoped-for results. But what makes this conversation so compelling is the shift from trying to fix symptoms to learning how to live alongside them - particularly through Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy.
We explore identity, loss, and what it means to live with a progressive condition—but also acceptance, resilience, and finding a new sense of purpose.
Leon Maciocia now works as both a piano teacher and a mindfulness teacher, supporting others with long-term conditions through Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy.
This episode isn’t just about dystonia—it’s about learning how to live differently, when life doesn’t go to plan.
DBS - Deep Brain Stimulation
MBCT - Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy.
CBT - Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
info@wellbeingclinic.com
01865 751111 - wellbeingclinic.com
07894 948869 - oxfordmbct.net