Iconic rom-com actress speaks about health condition that left her unable to speak for two years and becoming 'invisible'

Kimberly Williams-Paisley, who is best known for her breakthrough role in Father of the Bride and is also married to country singer Brad Paisley, has discussed how she had a “challenging couple of years” when she inexplicably lost her ability to speak.

The 53-year-old actress, who played Annie Banks, the daughter of Steve Martin’s George Banks in the 1991 romance film, recalled how her battle with muscle tension dysphonia, which began in 2022, left her feeling “invisible” and isolated. She also had to stop working due to the condition.

“I felt trapped in my own body,” she told People while explaining how the voice disorder left her unable to speak in anything more than a whisper. The condition is characterised by a strained, effortful voice that can then tire and possibly cause damage to the vocal folds, according to the NHS. The cause is not very well understood by medical professionals, but it can be treated with speech and language therapy and sufferers are advised to avoid overusing their voice.

For Williams-Paisley, the muscles around her voice box became too tight. As a result, the mum-of-two, who has been married to Brad Paisley for 21 years, said that she had no choice but to turn down acting jobs. She also began withdrawing from her loved ones and declining social invitations because she felt “there was so much shame” and she “couldn’t be part of the conversation”.

The actress said that she felt she had to “fight to be heard” while she found the most effective treatment for her but realised that “no matter what [her] physical voice is” it is her voice “underneath is stronger”.

The condition also affected her mental health as well as her physical health, and she said it caused her to “self-blame” as she assumed that she was not “breathing properly” or that she had somehow done something wrong. “Days when I didn’t want to do anything. Days when I was extra tired. Cycling anxiety thoughts in the middle of the night. I wouldn’t say I had clinical depression, but I was sad,” she told the publication.

She added: “There were days when I grieved and sobbed I wondered ‘who am I without my voice?’” She also feared throughout her two year ordeal that she may have lost her voice entirely.

Her family were very supportive of her during her health ordeal. She said her husband would encourage her to join him in “vocal warm-up” exercises while their sons William Huckleberry, 17, and Jasper Warren, 15, stepped up as they saw her at her “most vulnerable”.

In August, Williams-Paisley underwent a laryngeal nerve procedure after getting diagnosed with a partially paralyzed vocal cord. Now, she says, her voice is “much better” and she feels “empowered” - although her voice is still not back to full strength and sounds different than it once did.

“I still can’t yell down the road,” she said. “And at the end of a long day of talking, I'll sound a little more raspy than I used to, but I think that's sexy. And I've learned that when you talk quieter, people lean in, which is not bad either.”

She went on to say that the experience has also taught her to never “leave things unsaid” or take her “voice for granted”. “I want to be brave in using it,” she added.

She also shared her experience with her Instagram fans. “I haven't wanted to share about this much until now because it felt too vulnerable. I took for granted my ability to "use my voice" before — for my career, for a good cause, for a timely joke, for SELF-EXPRESSION, for a loud dinner party,” she wrote online. “Instead, I've been the quietest in the room. I've felt meek. New people I've met thought I was a shy or reserved person. I've felt trapped in my body.”

She went on to say that although she wasn’t able to use her voice properly for two years, she has found ways to use her voice in other ways. She explained: “I've healed old emotional wounds. I've learned the strength and beauty of silence. I've become a serious meditator. I'm deadlifting over a hundred pounds. I'm taking better care of my body. I'm managing stress. I'm dissolving shame. I'm feeling more whole, empowered and joyful.”

Famous friends left their comments of support on the post. Country singer Sheryl Crow called Williams-Paisley her “hero” and said that she had taught her about “holding your power without raising your voice, without throwing your fist in the air, but by observing and embracing what life hands you with grace and determination”.

Husband Brad also commented and said his wife is now starting “a great new chapter” but joked he will miss the silence.