Turning 40 and Finding Her Voice: How Chronic Stress Stripped Tina Bakehouse of the Very Thing She Defined Herself By

When Tina Bakehouse, a teacher and performing artist, unexpectedly loses her voice, she must embark on a challenging journey to regain it, learning the power of resilience and different forms of self-expression along the way. An extrovert and enthusiastic communicator, Tina lost the very thing that defined her. Spending six weeks completely silent was a challenging exercise but, in the end, therapeutic. She avoided surgery, healed her vocal cords and learned how important relaxation is for both body and mind, especially in the midst of chronic stress.

Guest Bio

Protecting audiences from boring speakers and speeches, Tina Bakehouse started her own company, Tina B LLC, to provide speaking and storytelling consulting and coaching to help heart-centered leaders and organizations internationally and nationally communicate more effectively. With more than 20 years of teaching communication and theatre (10 years at Creighton University), Tina is passionate about educating others to enhance their speaker style. After earning two BAs from the University of Northern Iowa, one in communication studies and psychology, and the second in theatre and English teaching, she completed a master’s degree in communication studies through the University of Nebraska-Omaha and completed certificates in Advanced Professional Writing, Keirsey’s temperament theory, Holistic Coaching, and two levels of improvisation training.

Her past positions have included Malvern Bank’s Chief Creative Officer, assisting with community development and coordinating financial literacy and educational opportunities for Mills County and Golden Hills RC & D as Outreach & Communication Coordinator, promoting the arts and local foods in southwest Iowa.

Tina has performed and coordinated multiple storytelling shows in southwest Iowa, including two teen shows. She continues to use her creativity, leadership, and passion for the arts to help people communicate effectively and solve problems. Tina lives at Maple Edge Farm, a 150-year old family farm in southwest Iowa, with her husband Jon and son Anderson and her beloved goats.

Show Notes

Tina Bakehouse grew up passionate about performing arts, and after working hard to land a college internship at Walt Disney World she learned the Disney way of connecting, which she has brought to every stage of her career. As a teacher at an inner-city, midwestern high school, Tina worked hard to share her love for communication, oratory, story and language, hoping to inspire confidence and creativity in her students. Often, though, these students brought the stresses and challenges of their lives into the classroom. On one occasion, a male student of imposing stature threw a book at her and said he wished she was dead. The school administration sent the student back to her class. Tina developed severe anxiety, which led to her losing her voice.

Home remedies didn’t work and her voice didn’t return so she went to a doctor who told her she had severe vocal cord nodules. Surgery was an option but success wasn’t guaranteed. Six weeks of silence - no cheating! - was the alternative.

Stripped of the very thing she says defined her, she was forced to face mental and emotional gremlins and give her body and mind space to relax and unwind from the chronic stress of her teaching position. After weeks of silence, Tina was able to find her voice again, and was able to appreciate the importance of nonverbal communication, and cherish the moments of laughter.

In this episode, you will learn the following:

1. How Tina Used Performing Arts to Connect with People: Learn how Tina's love for performing arts from a young age drove her to a career where she shares her love of communication, story and...