When work ends, so do many of the mental, social and physical demands that kept us sharp, and often our sense of purpose goes with them. So what might fill that space? After 27 years of voice work, I would suggest something surprisingly simple: your own voice.
I run voice and healing retreats in New Zealand and the UK, and more and more of the people who join me are retired or approaching it. Many go home and do something new. Some finally take the journey they kept postponing. Some find the courage to change how things work in a long relationship. And some, like Paula, surprise themselves entirely.
Paula came to one of my UK retreats. Over our days together she found her voice, and with it a confidence she hadn’t felt in years. She took that confidence home and used it to grow her retirement business to new heights.
Why does voice work have this effect? Many of us spent our working lives holding back: softening our opinions in meetings, keeping the peace at home, fitting the roles expected of us. The voice is where much of that holding back lives. When we breathe fully and sound without apology, confidence in the voice spills into confidence in life.
What the research says
Science is catching up with what singers have always felt. In the Community of Voices trial at the University of California, San Francisco, 390 older adults with an average age of 71 sang in community choirs. After six months, they felt significantly less lonely and more interested in life than those who had not yet started. For retirees missing the connection that work once gave them, that matters.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden found that when a choir sings together, the singers’ heart rates rise and fall in unison. Singing slows the breath, and slow breathing has a soothing effect on the body and supports heart health. Slow-breathing practices have also been linked to lower blood pressure and reduced anxiety, and singing is associated with the release of feel-good brain chemicals such as dopamine, endorphins and oxytocin.
Even humming helps. A study at Sweden’s Karolinska Institute found that humming increased nitric oxide in the nose fifteen-fold compared with quiet breathing out. Nitric oxide is a molecule the body uses to regulate blood flow and support immunity.
Where to begin
You might not think you can sing and sound, but you might be surprised. It is one of the most common beliefs I hear, and one of the most joyful to see dissolve. It’s a matter of giving it a go.
Start at home. Hum for a few minutes each morning and feel the vibration in your chest and face. Sing along to the songs you loved when you were young. Let your out-breath grow until it is twice as long as your in-breath. If you enjoy it, look for a community choir, singing circle or voice workshop near you, or get in touch and join me in one of my in-person or online spaces. Sounding together is where this work really takes hold.
Retirement gives many of us something we haven’t had for decades: time, and permission. Your voice may be the very place to begin.
Bryony Rogers is a voice empowerment coach, sound healer and Reiki Master Teacher with 27 years’ experience. She runs voice and healing retreats in New Zealand and the UK
