Surgery with Dr. Haben in two days

[Roni]

Yeah that's controlled substances only I think.

However regular scrips go across state lines all the time. I go to my endo in NY and get my hormones filled in NJ.

For refills for controlled substances in NY you need to get a dr visit because of state law. I would imagine that's probably why Dr H had that stipulation.

Ahh ok, that should explain it. Well my point still stands. Since cough medicine is controlled, be sure to get another refill before leaving New York. I feel like Robitussin and Mucinex (both recommended by Dr Haben as he could not send me a cough syrup prescription) are both subpar, and in my opinion actually made my phlegm slightly harder to deal with. Both over-the-counter drugs thin out your mucus, making it more watery, and in my case the watery "drip" like feeling at the back of my throat and lungs probably worsened my coughing. I stopped taking both drugs the last two days and must say I have not been coughing as much. Coincidence or not I will never truly know.

[Dena]

In another response I mentioned that my hoarseness was related to an asymmetry in my vocal cords, something he addressed in surgery and as previously mentioned at the 9 day mark, talking in a calm and normal voice, it was a marked improvement over my previous one. I haven't measured my voice in a month or more as it hasn't changed. When I used PRAAT I used the AVERAGE (drawing a line between the middle of the highs and lows) for my analysis and then of course the EEEE or other steady state vowel or consonant sounds are easy to suss out.

Again, the 9 day post-op clip from early June, not great but 9 days? I'll take it... Dr Haben said my everyday voice was about 160htz pre-op, to start with but I thought my voice was really poor sounding and got sired about 50% of the time on the phone.

http://vocaroo.com/i/s1BBzLgrTIJ1

Be safe and my very best wishes to you.
Elaine

At 9 days that is a pretty fantastic recording. My voice for the first two weeks was nothing more than a whisper. The recording is on the low end of female but what is lacking is inflection. It's hitting the high notes and range of frequencies that says FEMALE. The pitch could go lower and as long as the range and high notes are in there it would remain  female.

The following chart if you don't already have it will help you understand the Praat information better.
http://www.nyspeechandvoicelab.net/transgender/voice-feminization/

[Elaine S]

Dena:

Thank you for the linkie. I added it to my collection.

Be safe and I hope you have a wonderful day.
Elaine

[kwala]

Well, my post-op check up went very well and I had a safe and easy flight home.  Time to stock up on movies and keep my lips zipped for a few weeks (at the very least)!

[Roni]

Well, my post-op check up went very well and I had a safe and easy flight home.  Time to stock up on movies and keep my lips zipped for a few weeks (at the very least)!

That's awesome! If you don't have a humidifier at home already, I would consider getting one.

I bought a humidifier today upon Audree's recommendation. I used to cough about once every hour, but I have NOT COUGHED since turning it on 6 hours ago! It's a pretty bittersweet moment as I know I won't be struggling with coughing issues any further, but at the same time I'm kind of angry at myself for not having bought a humidifier earlier. My voice definitely sounds higher than it was, but who knows how much of a pitch increase I have lost in the long run having been coughing the last week.

If you're ever facing a cough you cannot suppress, be sure to breath out FIRST, and THEN cough WHILE breathing out. I actually read this technique on Yeson's VFS website. When you cough while breathing out, you put less strain on your vocal folds than if you had just let a sudden burst of air erupt from hacking out a quick cough. Wish Dr. Haben had told me about this technique also.

Additionally, if you ever decide to supplement yourself with over-the-counter drugs, there are certainly better options to choose from in my opinion. I believe Sudafed worked a LOT better for me. It clears congestion in your sinus canals, as opposed to Mucinex or Robitussin which aim to "water down" your mucus, making it a lot more difficult for me to suppress my coughs actually.

Have a speedy recovery and keep us all updated! <3

[kwala]

That's awesome! If you don't have a humidifier at home already, I would consider getting one.

I bought a humidifier today upon Audree's recommendation. I used to cough about once every hour, but I have NOT COUGHED since turning it on 6 hours ago! It's a pretty bittersweet moment as I know I won't be struggling with coughing issues any further, but at the same time I'm kind of angry at myself for not having bought a humidifier earlier. My voice definitely sounds higher than it was, but who knows how much of a pitch increase I have lost in the long run having been coughing the last week.

If you're ever facing a cough you cannot suppress, be sure to breath out FIRST, and THEN cough WHILE breathing out. I actually read this technique on Yeson's VFS website. When you cough while breathing out, you put less strain on your vocal folds than if you had just let a sudden burst of air erupt from hacking out a quick cough. Wish Dr. Haben had told me about this technique also.

Additionally, if you ever decide to supplement yourself with over-the-counter drugs, there are certainly better options to choose from in my opinion. I believe Sudafed worked a LOT better for me. It clears congestion in your sinus canals, as opposed to Mucinex or Robitussin which aim to "water down" your mucus, making it a lot more difficult for me to suppress my coughs actually.

Have a speedy recovery and keep us all updated! <3

Thanks for all the tips, I already have a humidifier as well as an air purifier so I'm covered there.  So far I haven't had a real cough, but a few times I've accidentally cleared a bit of phlegm while breathing.  Totally gentle so I'm not worried, but I will continue to watch more closely and remain as silent as possible.  I was actually able to run several errands and go grocery shopping by myself without saying a word to anyone! I never realized how much spicy food I keep around the house.  I found it necessary to stock up on some more mild items to keep my stomach acids at bay for the next few weeks.  The suspense is killing me, but I'm determined to give my cords the best chance to heal in the most optimal way.   

I forgot to mention earlier that I did have a very very tiny chip in one of my upper front teeth.  It's not noticeable and the only reason I even noticed it is because I ran my tongue over the area after surgery and could feel a small jagged and sharp patch where a tiny shard of enamel had fallen off.  Not something I'm concerned about, it's only visible when I'm pressed right up against the mirror and I'm sure it will get worn down the more I eat and brush, but just thought I'd mention it for folks considering this surgery in the future.

[Dena]

I had my teeth chipped twice but not by Dr Haben. One time I ran into a window air conditioner and the other time I bit down wrong. Both times the dentist touched it up so the sharp edge was gone. The prilosec will solve the problems with stomach acid but if you cough or have to clear your throat as the result of the spicy food, that's not a good thing. I went to a soft food diet with things that wouldn't get stuck on the way down and I was really happy at the 3+ week mark when we had a family outing at a Mexican food place and I could eat something exciting.

[Roni]

Yeah stay away from spicy food! I really thought I could handle it (I LOVE spicy food), but always felt like coughing every time I swallowed the food.

[warmbody28]

rest that voice. wait till your like 2 months post op and use to your new voice. your going to be so excited 

[iKate]

Yeah stay away from spicy food! I really thought I could handle it (I LOVE spicy food), but always felt like coughing every time I swallowed the food.

I stayed away from it as well but I never feel like coughing with spicy food unless it goes down the wrong pipe. And I'm talking Caribbean spicy... scorpion peppers, curry etc.

[Dena]

If you need more cough medicine, you might ask your personal doctor if he/she can renew it one time. I did an internet search on the stuff and it can be really nasty stuff and that's why it has the controlled substance label on it. The maximum safe dose is what Dr Haben list on the bottle and some people can only tolerate half that dose.
The proper name of the cough medicine is Generic TUSSIONEX Pennkinetic Extended-Release Suspension

[kwala]

So I finally made it to post-operative day 8 and tried to say a few words today.  Nothing much to report as I barely have a voice lol.  The best I could produce was a scratchy whisper that barely has any tone to it.  I'm going to give it a few more days before I try again.  Looks like I won't be one of the super fast healers, but that's okay with me   Hopefully next time there will be at least a little more substance so I can comment on the pitch level.

[jollyjoy]

Yeah day 8 I had pretty much no voice too. Best of luck with you recovery!

[Dena]

The first 2 1/2 weeks, you are are on limited voice usage. I really couldn't figure out what that was but as my voice wasn't working, I limited that time to a few words of testing and left it at that. Don't get in a big hurry for the voice because it will still take a month or two before it is anywhere near the final pitch. At 3 months, I think my voice still has a little more pitch to give but I admit I am getting tired of waiting for it. 

[warmbody28]

Ahh ok, that should explain it. Well my point still stands. Since cough medicine is controlled, be sure to get another refill before leaving New York. I feel like Robitussin and Mucinex (both recommended by Dr Haben as he could not send me a cough syrup prescription) are both subpar, and in my opinion actually made my phlegm slightly harder to deal with. Both over-the-counter drugs thin out your mucus, making it more watery, and in my case the watery "drip" like feeling at the back of my throat and lungs probably worsened my coughing. I stopped taking both drugs the last two days and must say I have not been coughing as much. Coincidence or not I will never truly know.

I had no idea you were a Haben girl? i need to visit this site more often. Im glad so many people are starting to pick him.

[Roni]

I had no idea you were a Haben girl? i need to visit this site more often. Im glad so many people are starting to pick him.

Yes! Haben girl here! It's a bit too early to decide whether I will be singing praises about Dr Haben just yet, as I am only 2.5 weeks post-op. As it stands my pitch hasn't gone up that much, if at all. However it seems my lower ranges have diminished and it is currently harder for me to go down to my natural male voice. Additionally, it has proven a LOT easier for me to reach and maintain my trained voice. It also seems a little easier for me to control chest resonance. But as for the actual pitch increase, which is what I wanted from the surgery in the first place, not too hot about the results at the moment.

[Roni]

But I will analyze the success of my results in 1-2 months, after letting my vocal chords heal.

[kwala]

So I made a post a few days ago that somehow disappeared, but I'll try again.
I'm at 18 days post op so I thought I would give an update.  My voice is still very very weak, almost non existent.  I've barely been speaking at all but the few times I try I get a tiny bit of tone for the the first few words and then it's all breathy.  The tiny bits of tone before the voice gives out are definitely higher than what I expected to come out so it seems like this is going to work out well! Now I just have to keep being disciplined and stay quiet.

I have resumed clarinet playing since I have to go back to work tomorrow and everything feels totally normal which is a huge relief!  Even if I don't get the pitch elevation I'm hoping for, I'll be grateful for any boost I do get knowing that my career wasn't jeopardized in the process:)

[Dena]

Another victim of the server hard drive crash.

We seem to be seeing a batch of people who are more like me and are taking longer to recover from surgery. It appears the people who went before me were luckier and had a much faster recovery. The voice will get better as time goes on so just relax and try not to use it until it's ready.

[jollyjoy]

I'm sure it will heal as time goes on. Just don't go out too much during your recovery because it's cold and flu season. I know it's difficult to keep silent, I've been resting my voice for over the last 6 weeks, and now I'm getting used to not talking.