D, Spiegel VFS, need advise

[Rachel]

I will be seeing Dr. Spiegel Wednesday for a consultation. One of the topics I want to discuss with him is trachea shave and VFS. I would like to know if anyone has gone to Dr. Spiegel for a trachea shave and VFS. Opinions and advise are welcome.

Some background. I smoked from age 11 to age 46. Dr. McGinn ( as well as my therapist and Primary care doctor who treats many trans patients) said she did not recommend having my trachea shaved. My voice is on the higher side for a male voice.

I am also seeing Dr. Spiegel for a  FFS consultation. Dr. McGinn said my cheeks and nose are fine and feminine. She also said my chin is ok. I need some soft tissue on my jaw reduced.  Due to cost I will be asking the doctor to list procedures in order of need, most to least with a cost breakdown. 

Any advise to make the consultation more productive is welcome, thank you.

Rachel

[Dena]

I have no knowledge of the doctor but smoking is a complication that can make voice surgery a problem. Smoking can lower the voice and slow healing. Depending on your initial voice, Dr Haben may used the triple to counter smokers voice. If you were lucky and your voice is still high, VFS will be all that's needed. You also don't want to return to smoking while healing because it may result in a lower voice.

[Rachel]

Thank you Dena. I am smoke free for 7 years. My resting voice is high for a male voice. I have been told that by several woman.

[Dena]

I just realized you might be very new to this area so I am providing a link to Dr Haben's site which is informative no matter which doctor you see and a table containing normal voice ranges. You should use a program like PitchLab on a mobile device or praat which you will find in the stickies in the voice area to determine where your voice is. At best your voice can be move 80Hz but if you have a naturally high voice, you may not need to move that much. It is important you understand where your voice is and how much it needs to be moved. If you can't reach an agreement with the doctor or the doctor is unable to explain everything, use another doctor. You only have one shot at getting this right.

If you haven't had it already, speech therapy may be needed. Without the proper speech pattern, your voice will sound like a very high male voice. This is why sometimes a female with a very low voice can still sound feminine. Feel free to ask me any questions you might have about voice because the more you know going in, the more you will like the outcome.

http://www.professionalvoice.org/feminization.aspx
http://www.nyspeechandvoicelab.net/transgender/voice-feminization/

[Rachel]

Thank you.