It may have been quieter than usual in the Office of the President at Saint Mary's the past two weeks. President Marilou Eldred recently underwent throat surgery that rendered her unable to speak above a low rasp. Earlier in the year, Eldred had been experiencing hoarseness in her voice, and it was discovered that her vocal cords had sustained damage.

"As you know, this job involves talking all the time, and my voice had been sounding very raspy, and so when I went back to see [the doctor], he said my vocal cords were deteriorating from overuse and the straining, so that's why I had the procedure," Eldred said.

According to Eldred, the procedure involves taking a piece of fat from the stomach that is utilized to rebuild the vocal cords. It left her without an incision but with ample recovery time, requiring her to completely rest her voice the entire week following the surgery. Eldred did not allow the vocal restriction to keep her from communicating or from business as usual.

"Somebody from the office came over everyday with the mail and I just wrote notes, thousands of pages of notes and e-mail," Eldred said.

According to Eldred, it is rare for her to be absent from her office for such a lengthy period. She credits her staff for helping her work while recovering.

To relate to those who were not aware of her condition, Eldred constructed a card that stated in large print that she had throat surgery and was unable to speak. She used this when she had to run errands and go to the grocery store. She found the responses of others to be amusing.

"I would show it to people and they would read this and say, `Oh, that's too bad,' and then they would start screaming at me or they whispered," Eldred said.

Eldred will have to use this card for approximately a month when it is projected that she will regain more complete usage of her voice. Even then, it may be determined that she has not fully healed and may require more surgery.

"I might have to have the procedure again because they just don't know … frequently it has to be done twice," Eldred said.

This has been a learning experience for Eldred who has gained a new appreciation for speaking and sensitivity in communication.

"I feel that I have more respect for my voice maybe than I did before,"Eldred said.

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