Paradoxical Vocal Cord Dysfunction is a medical illness. take a look at this webpage:
the fact that her doctor is referring her to a psychiatrist can mean a couple things. either her doctor thinks that her symptoms are somewhat psychiatric in nature because he or she cannot find any physical finding or difficulties or there is a psychiatric component of her difficulties.
The brain is a very powerful thing and can sometimes cause what are called somatic symptoms or physical symptoms created by the brain where there is actually nothing physically wrong.
Additionally, is it possible that your mother is experiencing any symptoms of depression, anxiety, or dementia (Alzheimer's disease). Those might also be reasons for the referral to a psychiatrist and not for the vocal cord problem specifically.
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Here is some more info on PVCD
Long-term Management of PVCD
-techniques aimed at focusing attention on expiration and abdominal breathing rather than on inspiration and laryngeal breathing
-early recognition of symptoms allows relaxation of neck, shoulder and chest muscles promoting normal laryngeal breathing
-allows patient to explore for potential causes
-trains the patient with relaxation techniques
-insufficient improvement with speech therapy alone
-evident psychological tumult in the patient's life
-at the patient's request
-useful for reducing stress.
-Biofeedback training has been used as a long-term treatment approach -not considered primary agent