Dr. Haben glottoplasty, maybe triple.

[Starfire]

Hi Evelyn, I hope everything went well!!

Sorry I didn't get to talk with you... my mom said she had a nice conversation with you while waiting at the hospital on Wednesday.

[Greeneyes]

Hi Evelyn, I hope everything went well!!

Sorry I didn't get to talk with you... my mom said she had a nice conversation with you while waiting at the hospital on Wednesday.

Yes we had a shirt conversation. I still can't believe we live in the same area and were there at the same time.

Okay, here is an update people:



Here is an image of my nice smooth neck. I've never had stitches before and I hope they don't hurt when they come out.

One thing I will say is don't fly around a holiday week. My flight home was canceled. In part due to weather, but perhaps just as much due to a ramp workers strike that apparently started on the 18th and caused all sorts of issues. Though, they wouldn't confirm that it had any bearing on the delays. So I had to get a hotel room. Went fine, just another hassle and expense that I didn't expect. Luckily I had planned for such an eventuality.

The surgery:
My pre-op doctors visit was just as expected. He took note of my current speaking frequencies, both natural and trained (recording), and explained what improvement I could expect (which I already knew about given my research prior to scheduling all this).

The surgery itself was great. I was taken to a pre-op area to get ready. They inserted the IV and got all my info and junk. Then my friend came back and we waited together for awhile (snickering about my anesthesiologists name which was Dr. Trojan). After a time the OR nurse and Dr. Haben appeared. Afterward, the anesthesiologist came in and explained what he was going to do. He was very nice, as was all the staff there. At this point they took me to the OR. If you've never been under general anesthesia, its amazing. I don't remember going to sleep. So I literally was lying in the OR one second, and lying in recovery the next second. Apparently three hours later. The surgery took longer for me due to the fact that I have a small mouth and crowded teeth. After a time, I was given my medication and post-op instructions. I was released soon thereafter.

Recovery so far has been fine although I'm worried I'm having to clear my throat too much. Pain is the same as a bad sore throat, and has already diminished to that of an average sore throat. Not talking is hard but the way I've gotten around it is to actively hold my mouth closed all the time.

I will be posting an after recording at the one month mark hopefully.



~Evelyn

[Dena]

When you need to clear your throat, lean forward and exhale fast with your cords open. It's not as good as a proper clearing but it helps. Also keep sipping cold water as it helps with the discomfort and reduces the need to clear your throat. I found a straw in ice water worked best. Take a small amount of water in your mouth, warm it for a few seconds and then swallow.

[Greeneyes]

When you need to clear your throat, lean forward and exhale fast with your cords open. It's not as good as a proper clearing but it helps. Also keep sipping cold water as it helps with the discomfort and reduces the need to clear your throat. I found a straw in ice water worked best. Take a small amount of water in your mouth, warm it for a few seconds and then swallow.

Thanks for the advice! I will try it. I just worry and say to myself each time I clear my throat; "That's it! You done it now. Everything's ruined." And I know I shouldn't, but I do anyway. I'm very much a person that expects the worst so she's not disappointed, but I want this to work so badly.



~Evelyn

[Dena]

The surgery is more rugged that we think as it will withstand sleep talking and a cough or two. You want to avoid a coughing fit and if you need the cough medicine, use it.  Dr Haben said control the things you can and don't worry about the things you can't. I even let a few word slip in the first week but other than that I was very careful because I knew how low the final voice would be and I wanted every bit of pitch out of the surgery I could get. I spent the week before surgery learning how not to cough and keep a clear throat.

Avoid anything that puts a strain on you body for the next couple of weeks at least. That seemed to be what caused the one failure I know about. In my case, I stopped my evening walk for a month to keep the dry Arizona air from causing irritation. Most of all don't worry.

[Greeneyes]

The surgery is more rugged that we think as it will withstand sleep talking and a cough or two. You want to avoid a coughing fit and if you need the cough medicine, use it.  Dr Haben said control the things you can and don't worry about the things you can't. I even let a few word slip in the first week but other than that I was very careful because I knew how low the final voice would be and I wanted every bit of pitch out of the surgery I could get. I spent the week before surgery learning how not to cough and keep a clear throat.

Avoid anything that puts a strain on you body for the next couple of weeks at least. That seemed to be what caused the one failure I know about. In my case, I stopped my evening walk for a month to keep the dry Arizona air from causing irritation. Most of all don't worry.

Yes, he told me the same. I plan on taking it easy for sure. Work will be sitting at a desk and emailing. Otherwise I will be home and resting. Also, I'm not sure the words "don't worry" exist for me right now lol, but I'll do my best.


~Evelyn

[kwala]

Yes, he told me the same. I plan on taking it easy for sure. Work will be sitting at a desk and emailing. Otherwise I will be home and resting. Also, I'm not sure the words "don't worry" exist for me right now lol, but I'll do my best.


~Evelyn

Congrats on the operation and best of luck with recovery.

[Greeneyes]

Congrats on the operation and best of luck with recovery.

Thanks!


~Evelyn

[Elaine S]

Evelyn:

I sincerely hope your recovery is progressing smoothly. Please do keep us up on how you are doing. It can seem like it drags on at times but the benefits of a measured, cautious recuperation will only benefit your new voice. The posts you have made thus far add to a growing list of helpful commentary here regarding VFS in general and specifically with Dr Haben. They are appreciated by many...

Wishing you my best in the upcoming holiday season.
Be safe
Elaine

[Greeneyes]

Evelyn:

I sincerely hope your recovery is progressing smoothly. Please do keep us up on how you are doing. It can seem like it drags on at times but the benefits of a measured, cautious recuperation will only benefit your new voice. The posts you have made thus far add to a growing list of helpful commentary here regarding VFS in general and specifically with Dr Haben. They are appreciated by many...

Wishing you my best in the upcoming holiday season.
Be safe
Elaine

Thanks! Yeah there's just really not much to report at the moment. I only just got my stitches out today. My voice is getting clearer every day, but it still comes out like a raspy whisper. Dr. Haben said this is normal though. I've only tried my voice out once a day for about 30secs. I'm trying to rest it as much as possible. After this week I will be trying to speak normally without over using my voice. So far I can definitely tell my voice is higher (though only a day ago I couldn't tell a difference). I can't say how high and I'm not going to judge it until way later, after the recovery period has passed. So far I'm very hopeful. Believe me I can worry about the big things though and I've been agonizing over it. Thinking it sounds exactly the same. Worrying that I tore my stitches. It's fine though. I'm just glad to be on the road to recovery. We'll see what happens as time passes. I'll definitely post a recording once I get to the point where I think I can make it through part of the rainbow passage without too much trouble.


~Evelyn

[Greeneyes]

One month Update!!

So it's been approximately one month since my surgery date with Dr. Haben. Here is the voice recording I promised.

http://vocaroo.com/i/s0h4pLKlLXYO

As I said in the recording I don't use a trained voice at the moment. I imagine that will change. I get the feeling I will like the way it sounds with a slightly more head voice intonation. I'd doubt I will have to push it anywhere near as far for that though. My scar is healing very well. I will post a picture later. Everything is going about like I expected when I booked the surgery. It's not exactly what I had in mind, but nothing usually is. If anyone has any specific questions or anything feel free to ask.

[kwala]

Glad things are going so well!  Sounds completely feminine to me.  Not the highest voice but as you said, it may continue to rise and you may end up raising it more as you get comfortable and begin to experiment a bit.  That is, if you want to.  It's already very good.  Off to a great start, and I'm totally jealous (in a good way ).

[Lara1969]

Sounds great and 100% feminine. I cannot wait to hear my own voice.

How is your range now? How deep and how high can you go?

[Greeneyes]

I haven't really tested my full range. I know I can't go all that much lower than what you hear in the recording. The higher I try to go the more it breaks up, so I haven't really tried. I'll see if I can get a recording done. I'm recovering from a night out at the moment (not supposed to drink with the surgery so don't follow my example). My birthday is tomorrow the 21st and my friends birthday is the 22nd so we got together with friends.


~Evelyn

[jollyjoy]

Your voice sounds very good for only 1 month! At that time, my voice was still a hot mess.

[Greeneyes]

Thanks! I'm hoping the breakup and slight raspiness will be gone in another month. I'm also hoping that the pitch increases as well. I recall watching a video from a Yeson girl and she said that they told her even at two months the voice may be close to the same as it was pre-op and would increase over the next few months. I can't wait to be able to sing again. I'm already trying, but it's still difficult.


~Evelyn

[Elaine S]

Evelyn:

Congratulations! Your voice is sounding nice. To me, your recording was consistent and sounded relaxed.

As you have no doubt heard before, listen to your body and don't strain your voice.

A belated Happy Birthday and happy solstice!

Be safe and enjoy your lovely new instrument.

Elaine

[Greeneyes]

Hello all,

I realize I've neglected this thread and haven't done my due diligence in adding progress reports. I apologize for this and hope that this update will in some way help others.

My progress since the last time I posted a recording has been steady, but slow. As with any healing process it takes time. I"m not entirely sure my healing is 100% complete. My voice doesn't fluctuate or anything, and I'm more than happy with it. My voice doesn't naturally fall in a lower pitch. I pass vocally without thinking about it, which is the entire point to vocal feminization surgery. So as it stands it was a resounding success! I still talk more with my head instead of my chest, but this is simply a result of me doing so to affect a more feminine speech pattern. Again, I don't intentionally do anything to make this happen anymore. It just works that way now. As for my scar, which I very much regret not posting a picture of as it was healing, it's pretty much gone. I didn't really do much to help it along. I did use a scar cream for about 2 weeks after the stitches came out, (probably should have done for a lot longer). Otherwise it just healed normally. Here is a current picture of it:



I'm also including a current recording of the rainbow passage:

http://vocaroo.com/i/s1XfaueEfZxn

I'd like to stress that I'm completely happy with my results. I would recommend Dr. Haben 100% to anyone looking for vocal feminization procedures. Are there things I would change about it if I could? Sure, but I think that's true of absolutely anyone. You show me a human being that wouldn't change a single thing about themselves given the chance, and I'll show you a big fat liar.

As for my lack of updates, I'm not making excuses (I should have made time), but things have been crazy for me. Between dating for the first time in forever, going on a vacation (again for the first time ever), and figuring out my GCS I've been lost for time to do much anything else. If anyone has any questions about my experience please ask. I'll be glad to answer them. As of my last post things had been quite stressful, I can say that I now have some breathing room and I am much more comfortable with my voice.

I hope you all have a great weekend!

Sincerely,
Evelyn

[KayXo]

Your voice sounds great.

[kwala]

Congratulations!