Susan's Place Transgender Resources

Hellooooo,

My name is Gia (nickname that most friends call me is Gigi!) and I'm a mid-twenties pre-op ts girl based in Birmingham, England. I started transition over 4 years ago and so far have only had a trachea shave operation (which as far as I Know has not affected my voice whatsoever and so this shouldn't be an issue in terms of a positive outcome from Yeson's voice surgery).

I've just joined Susan's so I'm able to post this topic and be able to partake in forums in future! Also, would love to have got a profile pic up to feel a bit more personal but I'm guessing brand new members don't get that privilege, sob sob..but anyway hi aaaaaaall!

I've found this forum incredibly useful in my research on Yeson's voice feminization and want to personally say a big thank you to all of you girls who have been for the procedure and have been amazing enough to share your experiences in such depth. The main girls that spring to mind include Jenny in particular: Hiii Jenny if you're reading! You're pretty much the first girl on this forum to have taken the jump after your own research and gone out to South Korea and given a massively in-depth account of your experience and results. So I echo lots of the other people's comments and thank yous and general gratitute to you that I've read in various topics because I genuinely think you've made such a big impact on showing the benefits of this procedure which has led to so many other ts women to feel confident enough to go for the surgery themselves, myself included! So thank you..truly...being ts comes with so many obstacles and heartaches that we have to overcome, as we all know, that you should really be proud of yourself for having made such a difference...and obviously you're results are amazing too so you should be just as proud for being brave and taking a leap of faith with Yeson before the craze had really begun :D

Oh and whilst you're reading Jenny, or anyone else...who has any further comments about your upper range increase especially with regard to singing abilities, I'd love to hear how you're progressing. I consider myself a singer..not professionally as such...but have performed many times in the past and I hope once recovered and full strength to my voice is restored, that I'll be able to benefit from the upper range and being able to sing in Alto register much easier than before.

Other girls that spring to mind and that I'd like to say thank you to are Sarah and Abi (or spelt Abby? i forget now!) who booked themselves in after going through Jenny's posts just like I did..and you both have incredible results and so both deserve lots of praise too for having shared your experiences so openly.

Aaanyway, I can say I'm currently booked in for my voice surgery on 16th June.

When I started reading these Yeson posts just a few weeks ago, it seems anyone could get in for an appointment within a month or two but perhaps this 'craze' really is exploding because that date was the absolute earliest Jessie had to offer me when I booked about a week ago (Jessie is just as helpful and lovely by email as everyone has said). In fact originally, the earliest slot Jessie had available was 27th June. When I asked twice if by any chance there was anything available earlier she offered me the Monday 16th June slot for the operation - but this date means that my pre-op consultation and examination will be Friday 13th June. And my follow-up appointment will be just 4 days after the surgery (on 20th June) after which Jessie said I can go back home to England, even though normally they ask you to have your post-op check-up 7 days after the operation. Jessie said this won't be a problem, provided I don't make a sound and keep to zero use of vocal chords for the following 3 days back at home. Just thought I'd share that in case anyone else was given a similar slot. In a way, I'm kinda happy about that as it means I'll get to have the first 3 days exploring Seoul and living it up being able to talk!

As a general intro about my voice, I'm able to maintain a decent female voice without getting clocked most of the time but I echo Jennifer and Sarah's and other girls comments with regards to wanting to just feel like my voice 'comes out' right, with no effort, no strain ever...no paranoia when talking to new people or groups of people that I'm going to be outed by my voice...just that really..so that's exactly my main motivation for wanting to go through this surgery.

For now, can I ask simply ask if anyone else is booked in for around those dates?? I was originally planning on taking my mom and brother along with me but may decide to go alone due to expense of going all together so would be good to know if any other girls (possibly out there alone) are due out there at that time who would like to meet up with whilst on our adventure! So let me know all, thanks!

Thanks and look forward to chatting to you all soon!

Gigi
X

Quote from: Gigi_J on March 27, 2014, 02:45:30 PM
Also, would love to have got a profile pic up to feel a bit more personal but I'm guessing brand new members don't get that privilege, sob sob..but anyway hi aaaaaaall!

I believe you can post a pic once you get to 15 posts. Welcome to Susan's, it won't take long to get to 15 posts :)

Quote from: Gigi_J on March 27, 2014, 02:45:30 PM
I'm currently booked in for my voice surgery on 16th June.

Congratulations!

Quote from: Gigi_J on March 27, 2014, 02:45:30 PM
When I started reading these Yeson posts just a few weeks ago, it seems anyone could get in for an appointment within a month or two but perhaps this 'craze' really is exploding because that date was the absolute earliest Jessie had to offer me when I booked about a week ago (Jessie is just as helpful and lovely by email as everyone has said).

Yeah, I can't believe how many people are getting it done now. I really think Dr. Kim and his whole staff deserve it, and I think it benefits the entire trans* community as well to further progress the technique and start to get other surgeons in on it as well hopefully.

Quote from: Gigi_J on March 27, 2014, 02:45:30 PM
When I asked twice if by any chance there was anything available earlier she offered me the Monday 16th June slot for the operation - but this date means that my pre-op consultation and examination will be Friday 13th June. And my follow-up appointment will be just 4 days after the surgery (on 20th June) after which Jessie said I can go back home to England, even though normally they ask you to have your post-op check-up 7 days after the operation. Jessie said this won't be a problem, provided I don't make a sound and keep to zero use of vocal chords for the following 3 days back at home. Just thought I'd share that in case anyone else was given a similar slot. In a way, I'm kinda happy about that as it means I'll get to have the first 3 days exploring Seoul and living it up being able to talk! :D

That'll be really cool that you have 3 days being able to talk. I really wish I could have had more time before the surgery to explore as well while being able to talk. It makes it so much more difficult not being able to talk while at the same time fearing everything you do might make you cough, sneeze, laugh, or any of the other multitude of things that you can't do during that first part of recovery :) I hope you have a really great time!

However, you will have to be more diligent with not talking or making a sound during those last [crucial] 3 days, and beyond. Just remind yourself that no matter how hard it is, it's only a short time before you'll be able to talk and stuff again. I'm just stressing this since you'll be going home during the most difficult time in the recovery and I don't want to see an accident happen that could affect your results. Just be smart and careful and you'll be fine.

Quote
I believe you can post a pic once you get to 15 posts. Welcome to Susan's, it won't take long to get to 15 posts :)

Thanks for clearing that up Sarah! And thanks for the congrats on booking my surgery. I'm sure the others won't be offended if I say that you (with Jenny) were the 2 most helpful people in terms of your posts and video uploads showing your progress that really helped me solidify my choice to go through with this surgery. It's not been an easy decision to make because there is that element of emotion and nostalgia involved due to being such an important element of ourselves that's being changed forever. Obviously, as much as there could be benefits of not having surgery..that element of 'uniqueness' that we can feel (on a good day!) with being trans and having a sexy 'husky' voice (lol)...and I've been able to have many a giggle with friends when I put on my super low male voice and shock them (quite amusing!) but I'm sure the positives far outweight the drawbacks in terms of really getting to a new level of confidence knowing that the possibility of being 'clocked' will be pretty much impossible from a voice perspective. And in my case, I'd hope after a good amount of time healing that my singing ability would return and would be able to enjoy easier access to higher registers. Did you have these little niggling thoughts and doubts before surgery though? Maybe it's quite normal...it does definitely feel like a life-changing step. 

QuoteYeah, I can't believe how many people are getting it done now. I really think Dr. Kim and his whole staff deserve it, and I think it benefits the entire trans* community as well to further progress the technique and start to get other surgeons in on it as well hopefully.

Yeah, absolutely!

QuoteThat'll be really cool that you have 3 days being able to talk. I really wish I could have had more time before the surgery to explore as well while being able to talk. It makes it so much more difficult not being able to talk while at the same time fearing everything you do might make you cough, sneeze, laugh, or any of the other multitude of things that you can't do during that first part of recovery :) I hope you have a really great time!

However, you will have to be more diligent with not talking or making a sound during those last [crucial] 3 days, and beyond. Just remind yourself that no matter how hard it is, it's only a short time before you'll be able to talk and stuff again. I'm just stressing this since you'll be going home during the most difficult time in the recovery and I don't want to see an accident happen that could affect your results. Just be smart and careful and you'll be fine.

Yeah, thanks for the warning, you're right...apart from the extra enjoyment during my time there, I am concerned about that and obviously will be extra diligent when home during that most critical of healing period - in fact, I asked Jessie if it was wise to be able to go home so soon and she simply said yes, that will be fine. I do wonder if anyone else has done that though...I've not seen anyone else in the forums who has..oh well. How did you find the not talking during your exploration of Seoul? Was it fine apart from just you know..wanting to shout at 'oh wooow, look at that!' or something..and just being so frustrated because you couldn't share your thoughts haha..nightmare!
Also, I'm looking forward to your next video to show how you've progressed at around 4 1/2 months. Your voice was incredible in your last video...so natural sounding...and it was clear in your face just how happy it's made you..and that's amazing to see.

Quote from: Gigi_J on March 27, 2014, 04:34:21 PM
Obviously, as much as there could be benefits of not having surgery..that element of 'uniqueness' that we can feel (on a good day!) with being trans and having a sexy 'husky' voice (lol)...

Yeah - I was complimented again this week for having such a great low deep and resonant voice by some woman at the sports studio. I was like "nooo, I dont like it". But she did not understand why I would not like it. I am not sure, there is something that is unique about this of course but I am not sure if I could learn to be happy with it.

I begin to wonder how expensive the surgery will be next year now that all the people flock there. Hopfeully no more than a 10% increase. Maybe I should get a quotation now for a possible visit in the next year or so :P

Quote from: anjaq on March 28, 2014, 09:05:11 PM
Yeah - I was complimented again this week for having such a great low deep and resonant voice by some woman at the sports studio. I was like "nooo, I dont like it". But she did not understand why I would not like it. I am not sure, there is something that is unique about this of course but I am not sure if I could learn to be happy with it.

I begin to wonder how expensive the surgery will be next year now that all the people flock there. Hopfeully no more than a 10% increase. Maybe I should get a quotation now for a possible visit in the next year or so :P

I knoooow...there are times our uniqueness can be a benefit in that way...and our voices when required can command respect more than the average woman ;) but still...for me it does come down to my voice failing when I'm talking to groups of new people for instance..or in any case when I feel under pressure for it to come out right and it drives me craaaaaazy because other than that I'm quite a confident person, grrrrr. So that's why I want to go through with this.

And I suppose yeah...knowing how popular the procedure is getting, Dr. Kim could get greedy (much like Dr. Suporn did I suppose and upped his prices over the years with regards to SRS) when bookings skyrocket...but for such a short operation it would seem a little crazy to be paying much more than the current amount. Saying that he could always justify it by pure fact that it really can be a life-changer for us TS gals...arguably even more so than SRS in terms of being able to live every day life without our pasts being clocked. But I can't imagine him increasing them too much over the next year or so, so you should be fine to wait a bit longer, I think!

Quote from: Gigi_J on March 27, 2014, 02:45:30 PM
Aaanyway, I can say I'm currently booked in for my voice surgery on 16th June.

Mid June will likely be a monsoon season in Seoul. Heavy showers and high humidity are typical, but be prepare for the scorching sun, too. The amount of dust in the air will be minimal, good for your throat.

I do not like the humid and hot air of Seoul downtown areas in summer. I avoid going to Seoul in June, but sometimes I have to.

barbie~~

Quote from: Gigi_J on March 29, 2014, 02:11:22 PM
I knoooow...there are times our uniqueness can be a benefit in that way...and our voices when required can command respect more than the average woman ;) [......]But I can't imagine him increasing them too much over the next year or so, so you should be fine to wait a bit longer, I think!

Ah - no I cannot really command respect that way. My voice is just rather deep but it is not "male" in that it is loud. If I want to be loud, I do have to go up in pitch, otherwise I am not getting the loudness. I think it is because I lost the male resonance deliberately, so I cannot booom with my voice. on the contrary, my low pitch voice is rather soft and not very loud, so it is causing some issues at times, but it is unique and people seem to like it because it remids them of radio speakers or they think it is erotic in some way.
Re the surgery - welll - I dont have that sort of money anyways now. If I want it, it will have to wait, if prices go up, I will have to deal with it - in a way money is not the issue so much for me in terms of surgeries - it takes me some years to get money of that sort but I can get it. My focus is usually more on the risks and effect of procedures. Money then is only a time limiting factor ;)

Dear Gigi,

Quote from: Gigi_J on March 29, 2014, 02:11:22 PM
I knoooow...there are times our uniqueness can be a benefit in that way...and our voices when required can command respect more than the average woman ;) but still...for me it does come down to my voice failing when I'm talking to groups of new people for instance..or in any case when I feel under pressure for it to come out right and it drives me craaaaaazy because other than that I'm quite a confident person, grrrrr. So that's why I want to go through with this.

Yes to your 2nd sentence and no to your 1st. It never occurred to me that having two voices was any sort of benefit. Whenever it happened to me that I slipped into the old voice by accident or because I was nervous or mad about something, it never was a source of respect, but one of deep embarrassment, I'm sorry to report.

Amy

QuoteMid June will likely be a monsoon season in Seoul. Heavy showers and high humidity are typical, but be prepare for the scorching sun, too. The amount of dust in the air will be minimal, good for your throat.

I do not like the humid and hot air of Seoul downtown areas in summer. I avoid going to Seoul in June, but sometimes I have to.

barbie~~

Thanks Barbie - I was curious about this issue so I checked wikipedia out (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seoul#Climate) and made a decision that mid June was gonna be a much better choice, in that regard, than the end of July (the first slot Jessie offered me until she said June 16th was possible!). Going by the climate chart there, I'd say it's better than July and August, at least no? As you've been I'll trust your judgement tho! ;p

Quote from: anjaq on March 29, 2014, 05:41:13 PM
Ah - no I cannot really command respect that way. My voice is just rather deep but it is not "male" in that it is loud. If I want to be loud, I do have to go up in pitch, otherwise I am not getting the loudness. I think it is because I lost the male resonance deliberately, so I cannot booom with my voice. on the contrary, my low pitch voice is rather soft and not very loud, so it is causing some issues at times, but it is unique and people seem to like it because it remids them of radio speakers or they think it is erotic in some way.
Re the surgery - welll - I dont have that sort of money anyways now. If I want it, it will have to wait, if prices go up, I will have to deal with it - in a way money is not the issue so much for me in terms of surgeries - it takes me some years to get money of that sort but I can get it. My focus is usually more on the risks and effect of procedures. Money then is only a time limiting factor ;)

Makes sense. When I get loud without controlling my voice around people I know well I can let my booming scary (definitely male-tinged) voice come out on occasion (much to the amusement of my friends). And one of the things I found hardest when feminizing my voice was to speak a little quieter...I've always been one to speak quite loud at times...ahhh well!
I'm lucky that I'm making enough money to be able to afford these things at the mo so I just feel like I need to go for this - obviously with the help of the other girls here my concern about risk is minimal now...sure you probably feel the same but in any case..there's no rush whilst you're saving...it's just great to know there's finally a procedure out there to get good results with relatively no risk and consistent results.

Quote from: AmyBerlin on March 30, 2014, 09:58:36 AM
Dear Gigi,

Yes to your 2nd sentence and no to your 1st. It never occurred to me that having two voices was any sort of benefit. Whenever it happened to me that I slipped into the old voice by accident or because I was nervous or mad about something, it never was a source of respect, but one of deep embarrassment, I'm sorry to report.

Amy

Yeah, I know what you mean...I've had countless times I've felt that deep embarassment when I've felt my voice come out not quite as expected when under pressure and thinking too much about it, as I've said above regarding one of the main reasons I want to go through with this procedure. And of course, sometimes if I hear myself on a recording or a vid, I can cringe at how unfeminine I think my voice sounds when I'm around friends I've known since before transition for instance...I think another member here (Either Sarah or Jenny, I think) said that was one of her biggest difficulties...keeping her new female voice constant even around family and people she's known from before transition. What I meant is...around good friends, I tend not to have this worry and can embrace my more 'varied' vocal ability let's say! I'd like to think, though I live 'half' stealth (meaning I'm very open my trans status with friends and people I care to tell...as for everyone else, it's none of their business and I don't inform them at all), that I'm quite proud of my journey in terms of my (so far!) successful transition and so I don't ever feel like I should apologise or feel embarassed for being trans...so on some level I feel I'm selling out having to alter my voice but it's a very deep discussion and having soul-searched considerably, I definitely think the benefits are well worth it. It's still our voice after all....just a higher one with the male lower frequencies cut off!

Speaking of which...can I ask those who have been to Yeson and recovered enough to answer: Would you say you're voices post-op are 'the same' or very similar as your pre-op trained female voices when using a similar frequency, for instance? Or is there a fundamental change in vocal quality (other than general 'softness', that I've heard a couple describe) that makes it quite different to your pre-op higher frequency voice? I obviously heard a few pre-op voices but most of these were on the low end so I haven't heard many 'practiced female' pre-op voices (up in the 200 hz range) to compare with the post-op voices in the same frequency, (if that makes sense..hope so!)

Thanks again all,

Gigi   

Quote from: Gigi_J on March 30, 2014, 02:57:26 PM
Thanks Barbie - I was curious about this issue so I checked wikipedia out (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seoul#Climate) and made a decision that mid June was gonna be a much better choice, in that regard, than the end of July (the first slot Jessie offered me until she said June 16th was possible!). Going by the climate chart there, I'd say it's better than July and August, at least no? As you've been I'll trust your judgement tho! ;p

Giji,

Regarding the air quality, June is similar with July and August. Any day of summer will be fine for your throat. Typically, July is the peak of monsoon rain and August is the hottest month. In Seoul, it is very cold in winter and very hot and humid in summer. I do not understand why so many people live in that area of extreme climate. Anyways, long-term weather forecast here says that it will be hotter in the upcoming summer. We already saw cherry blossom earlier than usual.

barbie~~

Hey Gigi - I'll be arriving there from the US on the day of your surgery.  Best wishes for a speedy recovery & a beautiful voice!

Cheers :)
Kim

Quote from: barbie on March 31, 2014, 02:11:11 AM
Giji,

Regarding the air quality, June is similar with July and August. Any day of summer will be fine for your throat. Typically, July is the peak of monsoon rain and August is the hottest month. In Seoul, it is very cold in winter and very hot and humid in summer. I do not understand why so many people live in that area of extreme climate. Anyways, long-term weather forecast here says that it will be hotter in the upcoming summer. We already saw cherry blossom earlier than usual.

barbie~~

Sorry for the delay Barbie..been a busy week or so! Well..it's good to know the humidity is good for our throats at least..because humidity for my general happiness and comfort is atrocious (!) I get sticky and frustrated and my hair, normally smooth, ends up looking like a poodle..sob sob! I have a feeling the humidity level in Seoul from what I've been told will make all the other humid places I've spent time in seem relative un-humid..oh well :D

In terms of hotel location for my stay, do you think Jenny's choice for instance (The Hotel Prince Seoul) in the Jung-gu district is a good choice in terms of being in walking distance to places of interest? I read that that's actually on one of the main shopping streets. I suppose staying in Gangnam itself wouldn't be the best idea would it, being mainly a business district? I know taxis are super cheap but it would be nice to have some things around the hotel.

Thanks,
Gigi

Quote from: kimdp999 on April 09, 2014, 02:50:28 PM
Hey Gigi - I'll be arriving there from the US on the day of your surgery.  Best wishes for a speedy recovery & a beautiful voice!

Cheers :)
Kim

Awww, congrats on booking your surgery too Kim. If I stick with my current date (op on 16th June) we'll stay in touch and hook up whilst out there if you like. Are you travelling alone? I may well be taking my Mother and Brother...they both fancy a little trip away..not 100% sure yet!

There's a slight chance I may push my date forward towards the end of July..main reason being I've yet to quit smoking (I know..I'm so bad!)...I'm dreading it but I know if I want the best results I have no choice. I was told smoking an electric cigarette isn't ideal either as the liquid you inhale obviously contains nicotine which of course passes over the vocal chords and would affect healing. So I'm really trying to be intelligent about this for such an important and life-changing procedure. My only worry is pushing the date forward to late July will mean the humidity and heat is even worse than June so I should probably stick to June but I looked yesterday and so many of the hotels are already getting booked up quick..and flight prices are starting to increase..so I'm starting to panic a bit! Have you already booked everything Kim? And sending loads of luck for a great recovery too!

Gigi

Quote from: Gigi_J on April 22, 2014, 07:43:49 AM
Sorry for the delay Barbie..been a busy week or so! Well..it's good to know the humidity is good for our throats at least..because humidity for my general happiness and comfort is atrocious (!) I get sticky and frustrated and my hair, normally smooth, ends up looking like a poodle..sob sob! I have a feeling the humidity level in Seoul from what I've been told will make all the other humid places I've spent time in seem relative un-humid..oh well :D

In terms of hotel location for my stay, do you think Jenny's choice for instance (The Hotel Prince Seoul) in the Jung-gu district is a good choice in terms of being in walking distance to places of interest? I read that that's actually on one of the main shopping streets. I suppose staying in Gangnam itself wouldn't be the best idea would it, being mainly a business district? I know taxis are super cheap but it would be nice to have some things around the hotel.

Thanks,
Gigi

Gigi,

I guess most people here tended to stay at hotels near Yeson clinic, and I understand that it is a convenient and safe way. But, if you are looking for affordable hotels, I would recommend choices like Jenny's, staying at the old town (Gangbuk), where there are many traditional and historic places to visit, even within a walking distance.

Once you become familiar with the Seoul metro system, you can trip to any place in Seoul easily.

At my standard, hotel prices are expensive in Seoul anyway, but far less than Hawaii, where I recently visited. I stayed at a rental house during my visit to Big Island, Hawaii. I could make reservation through http://www.vrbo.com/ , and I shared the house with my four colleagues, saving a lot. You may also search a rental house at vrbo.com by a searching keyword like 'seoul' or 'gangnam'. I see some rental houses in the old town of Seoul. In Gangnam area, it usually costs > $130 per night, but in the old town, it costs $48-$55 per night. But, a house attracts my eyes, and you may study a little bit this house: http://www.vrbo.com/3587009ha

Weather is unpredictable, and I am not sure whether June will be better than July for your visit to Seoul.

barbie~~

Hey Gigi, all set, staying at the Riviera, I think I could have made a better hotel choice (less$$), but it's only nine days (keeping my fingers crossed :)).  I'm horrible about keeping up on here, but I will do my best to keep in touch.  Hope all goes and well and good luck with the smoking cessation, I know it's a horrible habit to kick ??? (fortunately not from personal experience).

Cheers :)
Kim

Quote from: kimdp999 on April 25, 2014, 06:32:44 PM
Hey Gigi, all set, staying at the Riviera, I think I could have made a better hotel choice (less$$), but it's only nine days (keeping my fingers crossed :)).  I'm horrible about keeping up on here, but I will do my best to keep in touch.  Hope all goes and well and good luck with the smoking cessation, I know it's a horrible habit to kick ??? (fortunately not from personal experience).

Cheers :)
Kim

Awww thanks Kim and sorry for the delay....I wonder, if you arrived 2 days ago, could you surgery day have been today? arghh....good luck if you're about to have it...and if you've already had it, sending lots of luck for a great recovery and let us know how things go!!

G x 

Quote from: barbie on April 22, 2014, 01:29:44 PM
Gigi,

I guess most people here tended to stay at hotels near Yeson clinic, and I understand that it is a convenient and safe way. But, if you are looking for affordable hotels, I would recommend choices like Jenny's, staying at the old town (Gangbuk), where there are many traditional and historic places to visit, even within a walking distance.

Once you become familiar with the Seoul metro system, you can trip to any place in Seoul easily.

At my standard, hotel prices are expensive in Seoul anyway, but far less than Hawaii, where I recently visited. I stayed at a rental house during my visit to Big Island, Hawaii. I could make reservation through http://www.vrbo.com/ , and I shared the house with my four colleagues, saving a lot. You may also search a rental house at vrbo.com by a searching keyword like 'seoul' or 'gangnam'. I see some rental houses in the old town of Seoul. In Gangnam area, it usually costs > $130 per night, but in the old town, it costs $48-$55 per night. But, a house attracts my eyes, and you may study a little bit this house: http://www.vrbo.com/3587009ha

Weather is unpredictable, and I am not sure whether June will be better than July for your visit to Seoul.

barbie~~

Thanks so much, very helpful! Had a look at your link and some great priced options available there, very impressed.......will be trying to make a decision and book something over the next week or so! And hmmm, if you say July and August aren't necessarily any worse in terms of soaring temperatures and humidity then that definitely gives me pause for thought...just in case I do want to push my operation date forward to July. Thanks Barbie!

Well my flight's finally booked (with Korean Airlines, woo!) so no going back now....op is confirmed for June 16th (my own dates for pre-op consultation and final check-up are a bit different to the norm as I explained in my opening post)...a little scared....with anticipation..but mainly excited! I've still yet to book my accomodation though I'll be doing that in the coming week or so.

Soooo, If anyone else is out there around that time, feel free to let me know and maybe we can meet up over there and keep each other's morales up during recovery! Charlotte if you're reading, I think I read you'll be out there around then right?

Over the next few days, I'll get round to recording some voice samples so I can document my experience and results.

Well gone bed time here in England so that's it for now ... chat sooooon!

G
x

Hey gigi congrats!!! So happy to hear that! Ill be there but when are u coming? Im leaving korea on the day of your surgery.

Quote from: Jmtl on May 15, 2014, 07:26:35 AM
Hey gigi congrats!!! So happy to hear that! Ill be there but when are u coming? Im leaving korea on the day of your surgery.

Aww thanks Joanne - and good luck for your date too! I'm arriving in Seoul on 12th June...have my pre-op examination on 13th June  (Friday 13th...kinda glad that's not my op day ;p)...and then have a whole weekend of being able to explore Seoul (with my mother who wanted a break abroad so am taking with me!) whilst still being able to talk (something I'm very happy about obviously!) before the op on Monday 16th. I then have an earlier post-op exam than usual (as I state in first post above).

You out there alone? Be more than happy to meet up over that weekend if you like!

Gigi

Gigi,

At the present, I have no schedule in June, but will keep in mind 14-15 June. If I have any business in Seoul on those dates, I will PM you.

We had unusually chilly May this year, which is good news for you.

barbie~~

Quote from: barbie on May 15, 2014, 10:22:08 AM
Gigi,

At the present, I have no schedule in June, but will keep in mind 14-15 June. If I have any business in Seoul on those dates, I will PM you.

We had unusually chilly May this year, which is good news for you.

barbie~~

Great news then Barbie..if that means June could be cooler :D Sure, Pm me when you know...be fun to hook up with a few of you gals!!

mwah,
G

Quote from: Gigi_J on May 15, 2014, 10:00:37 AM
Aww thanks Joanne - and good luck for your date too! I'm arriving in Seoul on 12th June...have my pre-op examination on 13th June  (Friday 13th...kinda glad that's not my op day ;p)...and then have a whole weekend of being able to explore Seoul (with my mother who wanted a break abroad so am taking with me!) whilst still being able to talk (something I'm very happy about obviously!) before the op on Monday 16th. I then have an earlier post-op exam than usual (as I state in first post above).

You out there alone? Be more than happy to meet up over that weekend if you like!

Gigi

Hey gigi!!! Thank you!! And Goodluck on your operation day, dot worry about the friday 13th day, just think its a goodluck day. :) hehe oh, thats nice that you are taking your mother with you. I would love to take my mom but she is busy working, so i will take my friend. And yah, for sure we can meet up and have a lunch or something but im gonna be in a mute mode that time. Haha

Btw, did u book your hotel yet?  i booked the one that yeson reffered its very close to their clinic you can walk i think but its us$80, so im still checkin some cheaper places on airbnb as we are staying 12 days there. I know its a bit long! Lol ok, give me news! Cant wait for our new voice! :)

Quote from: barbie on May 15, 2014, 10:22:08 AM
Gigi,

At the present, I have no schedule in June, but will keep in mind 14-15 June. If I have any business in Seoul on those dates, I will PM you.

We had unusually chilly May this year, which is good news for you.

barbie~~

Hey barbie!! Yah, it would be great if you come and meet us for a lunch or something. Dont forget to let us know your june schedule!!! Thanks!:)

Quote from: Jmtl on May 16, 2014, 08:31:19 AM
Hey barbie!! Yah, it would be great if you come and meet us for a lunch or something. Dont forget to let us know your june schedule!!! Thanks!:)

Sure!

My latest schedule in Seoul is May 30-31. And Korean government is totally unpredictable, and any government official can have a business meeting at any date he/she wants, and requests my attendance.

barbie~~

Quote from: barbie on May 16, 2014, 11:39:10 AM
Sure!

My latest schedule in Seoul is May 30-31. And Korean government is totally unpredictable, and any government official can have a business meeting at any date he/she wants, and requests my attendance.

barbie~~

Yay!! Ok great!!! Thanks!! :) But where u usually reside?? Looks like you have to travel all the time. I hate jetlags! Lol

Quote from: Jmtl on May 16, 2014, 11:42:38 AM
Yay!! Ok great!!! Thanks!! :) But where u usually reside?? Looks like you have to travel all the time. I hate jetlags! Lol

I reside near the airport whose route to Seoul is the busiest in the world  :o

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World's_busiest_passenger_air_routes

And, I fly about 100 times per year. Going to Seoul to me is like commuting everyday.

barbie~~

Quote from: barbie on May 16, 2014, 11:54:33 AM
I reside near the airport whose route to Seoul is the busiest in the world  :o

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World's_busiest_passenger_air_routes

And, I fly about 100 times per year. Going to Seoul to me is like commuting everyday.

barbie~~

Oh wow!!! I didnt know it was the busiest airport!! Im so glad you told me , thanks!! So we would need to go more earlier for our flight to go back.

And i heard the air is pretty poluted there, we would need a mask specially after operation. And thats a lot of travelling for you. Its about an hour drive from the airport to seoul right?!

Quote from: Jmtl on May 16, 2014, 01:16:17 PM
Oh wow!!! I didnt know it was the busiest airport!! Im so glad you told me , thanks!! So we would need to go more earlier for our flight to go back.

And i heard the air is pretty poluted there, we would need a mask specially after operation. And thats a lot of travelling for you. Its about an hour drive from the airport to seoul right?!

Air is not so much bad in June. You can take a bus or subway trains, and it can take more than one hour depending on your hotel location. You need to study the routes of Seoul subway network, and purchase a prepaid public transport card.

barbie~~

Quote from: barbie on May 17, 2014, 10:29:49 AM
Air is not so much bad in June. You can take a bus or subway trains, and it can take more than one hour depending on your hotel location. You need to study the routes of Seoul subway network, and purchase a prepaid public transport card.

barbie~~

Awesome! Thank you barbie! :) do you know any nice beach close to seoul??

Quote from: Jmtl on May 30, 2014, 08:08:09 PM
Awesome! Thank you barbie! :) do you know any nice beach close to seoul??

We had severe yellow dusts during the past 3 days, which is very unusual in May. Even I did not exercise outdoors for 3 consecutive days. Weather forecast says it will be cleaner after rain next week.

No beach in Seoul, but there are many beaches within 1-3 hours of driving. A closest one is near Incheon airport. http://www.expedia.co.kr/Eulwangri-Beach-Incheon.d6143566.Place-To-Visit?rfrr=Redirect.From.www.expedia.com%252FEulwangri-Beach-Incheon.d6143566.Vacation-Attraction

A better beach in the Yellow Sea is Daecheon beach: http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264510

But, if you want to see crystal-clear sea water, the eastern coast of the Korean peninsula is better. The city of Gangneung has several beaches, and you can go there by bus.
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=1070806
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264253

barbie~~

You can monitor the level of yellow dust in Seoul at the following site:

http://www.kma.go.kr/weather/asiandust/graph.jsp?area=1&stnId=201&view=1

0~30: Good
31~80: Average
81~120: Slightly bad
121~200: Bad
201 ~: Very bad

And, the next-day model forecast at:

http://www.airkorea.or.kr/airkorea/warning/main.jsp?action=dust&leftShow=yellow
(map graphics in the below. Blue denotes the level is low, no problem for your respiratory health).

barbie~~

Oh. English-version is also available.

http://web.kma.go.kr/eng/weather/asiandust/timeseries.jsp

http://web.kma.go.kr/eng/weather/asiandust/forecastchart.jsp

barbie~~

Quote from: barbie on May 31, 2014, 02:20:11 AM
We had severe yellow dusts during the past 3 days, which is very unusual in May. Even I did not exercise outdoors for 3 consecutive days. Weather forecast says it will be cleaner after rain next week.

No beach in Seoul, but there are many beaches within 1-3 hours of driving. A closest one is near Incheon airport. http://www.expedia.co.kr/Eulwangri-Beach-Incheon.d6143566.Place-To-Visit?rfrr=Redirect.From.www.expedia.com%252FEulwangri-Beach-Incheon.d6143566.Vacation-Attraction

A better beach in the Yellow Sea is Daecheon beach: http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264510

But, if you want to see crystal-clear sea water, the eastern coast of the Korean peninsula is better. The city of Gangneung has several beaches, and you can go there by bus.
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=1070806
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264253

barbie~~

I'm in Seoul the week after next, worried about the heat and humidity though. I'm just not used to such hot (!) temperatures. Is the humidity very bad?
Not sure whether I'll just end up staying in the apartment the whole time I'm there with the Air Con on!  :-\
I'd like to do a day trip to Gangneung/Gyeongpo beach but it looks like a long way nearly 3 hours each way and taxi/bus/taxi ride to get there.  I think I might wilt like a flower on the way there.  ;) :)

Quote from: Charlotte on May 31, 2014, 07:14:11 AM
I'm in Seoul the week after next, worried about the heat and humidity though. I'm just not used to such hot (!) temperatures. Is the humidity very bad?
Not sure whether I'll just end up staying in the apartment the whole time I'm there with the Air Con on!  :-\
I'd like to do a day trip to Gangneung/Gyeongpo beach but it looks like a long way nearly 3 hours each way and taxi/bus/taxi ride to get there.  I think I might wilt like a flower on the way there.  ;) :)

You can see humidity and other weather status of Seoul at: http://web.kma.go.kr/eng/weather/forecast/current_korea.jsp
It is 68% now in Seoul.
Yes. Hot temperatures yesterday were the record highest in May, and it is very very unusual. Nobody suspects global warming.
Fortunately humidity is not so high and you can enjoy night outdoor activity.

As you know, taxi is very cheap here, and you can go to Gyeongpo beach by taxi after arriving Gangneung by bus. It is worth going there, and you can sightsee urban areas. You have better choose a luxurious bus, rather than a plain bus. As the last bus starts at 10:00 PM, you  will have enough time to see around Gangneung.

Sokcho is a nice alternative destination of Gangneung. http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?areaCode=32,5
It is nearly the same distance to Gangneung. If you like climbing, then Seoraksan National Park (OeSeorak) is a perfect destination, but you should get up very early. I like climbing Seorak Mt.
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264211
http://www.summitpost.org/seoraksan/729739

My favorite destination of Seorak Mt. is Ulsanbawi.
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264169
http://davidandpaul.blogspot.kr/2011/11/sokcho-city-between-mountains-and-sea.html

You may need a lot of guts to see the below at the peaks of Ulsanbawi. It is not so high compared with other famous mountains around the world, but the entire climbing trail is full of thrilling, panoramic and surreal scenes, which you can not feel from the photos.

(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcfs5.tistory.com%2Fupload_control%2Fdownload.blog%3Ffhandle%3DYmxvZzIzMDUwQGZzNS50aXN0b3J5LmNvbTovYXR0YWNoLzAvMDcwMDAwMDAwMDAzLkpQRw%253D%253D&hash=254099615b2616e9b5c16c0e5606e198cfa2a66c)
(https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3714/12283339936_3cbe2ba6cb_o.jpg)


It is easy to reach the peak. Even my little daughter could climb there when she was just 4 years old.

barbie~~

Quote from: barbie on May 31, 2014, 11:09:17 AM
You can see humidity and other weather status of Seoul at: http://web.kma.go.kr/eng/weather/forecast/current_korea.jsp
It is 68% now in Seoul.
Yes. Hot temperatures yesterday were the record highest in May, and it is very very unusual. Nobody suspects global warming.
Fortunately humidity is not so high and you can enjoy night outdoor activity.

As you know, taxi is very cheap here, and you can go to Gyeongpo beach by taxi after arriving Gangneung by bus. It is worth going there, and you can sightsee urban areas. You have better choose a luxurious bus, rather than a plain bus. As the last bus starts at 10:00 PM, you  will have enough time to see around Gangneung.

Sokcho is a nice alternative destination of Gangneung. http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?areaCode=32,5
It is nearly the same distance to Gangneung. If you like climbing, then Seoraksan National Park (OeSeorak) is a perfect destination, but you should get up very early. I like climbing Seorak Mt.
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264211
http://www.summitpost.org/seoraksan/729739

My favorite destination of Seorak Mt. is Ulsanbawi.
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264169
http://davidandpaul.blogspot.kr/2011/11/sokcho-city-between-mountains-and-sea.html

You may need a lot of guts to see the below at the peaks of Ulsanbawi. It is not so high compared with other famous mountains around the world, but the entire climbing trail is full of thrilling, panoramic and surreal scenes, which you can not feel from the photos.

(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcfs5.tistory.com%2Fupload_control%2Fdownload.blog%3Ffhandle%3DYmxvZzIzMDUwQGZzNS50aXN0b3J5LmNvbTovYXR0YWNoLzAvMDcwMDAwMDAwMDAzLkpQRw%253D%253D&hash=254099615b2616e9b5c16c0e5606e198cfa2a66c)
(https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3714/12283339936_3cbe2ba6cb_o.jpg)


It is easy to reach the peak. Even my little daughter could climb there when she was just 4 years old.

barbie~~

고마워 언니   I hope I got that right!  ;)

Yes a luxury bus to Gangneung sounds like a good idea. Do you know how to tell the difference between a luxury bus and a regular bus in Korean?

Sokcho beach also looks pretty.  :)

Quote from: Charlotte on May 31, 2014, 12:13:38 PM
고마워 언니   I hope I got that right!  ;)

Yes a luxury bus to Gangneung sounds like a good idea. Do you know how to tell the difference between a luxury bus and a regular bus in Korean?

Sokcho beach also looks pretty.  :)

http://www.thesouthkoreatravelguide.com/gangwon-do/busschedules/gangneung_bus-terminal-timetables.html

Superior express buses are called '우등' (pronounced as "woo deung") in Korean. Most buses are actually superior express.

There are two bus terminals in Seoul. 'Seoul' terminal is located in Gangnam, while 'Dong-Seoul (East-Seoul)' terminal is located in Gangbuk. I guess 'Seoul' terminal would be better for your trip.

barbie~~

Quote from: barbie on May 31, 2014, 02:20:11 AM
We had severe yellow dusts during the past 3 days, which is very unusual in May. Even I did not exercise outdoors for 3 consecutive days. Weather forecast says it will be cleaner after rain next week.

No beach in Seoul, but there are many beaches within 1-3 hours of driving. A closest one is near Incheon airport. http://www.expedia.co.kr/Eulwangri-Beach-Incheon.d6143566.Place-To-Visit?rfrr=Redirect.From.www.expedia.com%252FEulwangri-Beach-Incheon.d6143566.Vacation-Attraction

A better beach in the Yellow Sea is Daecheon beach: http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264510

But, if you want to see crystal-clear sea water, the eastern coast of the Korean peninsula is better. The city of Gangneung has several beaches, and you can go there by bus.
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=1070806
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264253

barbie~~

Oh wow!! Lots of beaches there too. Thanks a lot for the infos barbie, i will definitely go and check those beaches there, as i have 12 days there. Cant wait! :)  But have to leave very early though as it is a long bus ride. I am staying close to yeson clinic , the hotel princess. Is the bus station close there?

Quote from: barbie on May 31, 2014, 11:09:17 AM
You can see humidity and other weather status of Seoul at: http://web.kma.go.kr/eng/weather/forecast/current_korea.jsp
It is 68% now in Seoul.
Yes. Hot temperatures yesterday were the record highest in May, and it is very very unusual. Nobody suspects global warming.
Fortunately humidity is not so high and you can enjoy night outdoor activity.

As you know, taxi is very cheap here, and you can go to Gyeongpo beach by taxi after arriving Gangneung by bus. It is worth going there, and you can sightsee urban areas. You have better choose a luxurious bus, rather than a plain bus. As the last bus starts at 10:00 PM, you  will have enough time to see around Gangneung.

Sokcho is a nice alternative destination of Gangneung. http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?areaCode=32,5
It is nearly the same distance to Gangneung. If you like climbing, then Seoraksan National Park (OeSeorak) is a perfect destination, but you should get up very early. I like climbing Seorak Mt.
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264211
http://www.summitpost.org/seoraksan/729739

My favorite destination of Seorak Mt. is Ulsanbawi.
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264169
http://davidandpaul.blogspot.kr/2011/11/sokcho-city-between-mountains-and-sea.html

You may need a lot of guts to see the below at the peaks of Ulsanbawi. It is not so high compared with other famous mountains around the world, but the entire climbing trail is full of thrilling, panoramic and surreal scenes, which you can not feel from the photos.

(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcfs5.tistory.com%2Fupload_control%2Fdownload.blog%3Ffhandle%3DYmxvZzIzMDUwQGZzNS50aXN0b3J5LmNvbTovYXR0YWNoLzAvMDcwMDAwMDAwMDAzLkpQRw%253D%253D&hash=254099615b2616e9b5c16c0e5606e198cfa2a66c)
(https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3714/12283339936_3cbe2ba6cb_o.jpg)


It is easy to reach the peak. Even my little daughter could climb there when she was just 4 years old.

barbie~~

This is an amazing view!!! Would love to go there too!! :)

Quote from: Jmtl on May 31, 2014, 01:37:38 PM

Oh wow!! Lots of beaches there too. Thanks a lot for the infos barbie, i will definitely go and check those beaches there, as i have 12 days there. Cant wait! :)  But have to leave very early though as it is a long bus ride. I am staying close to yeson clinic , the hotel princess. Is the bus station close there?

Yes. It is close. From Yeson to Seoul terminal, it takes about 30 min including walking. Just take subway line 3 at Apgujeong station and get off at Express Bus Terminal Station.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apgujeong_Station
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Express_Bus_Terminal_Station

barbie~~

Quote from: Jmtl on May 31, 2014, 01:37:38 PM
Oh wow!! Lots of beaches there too.

I think  your guys may have better go to Busan, the second largest city, if you like beaches. Although the distance to Busan is longer, actually it takes shorter time than to Gangneung when you take a Korail express train. It takes about 2.5-3 hours from Seoul to Busan by KTX.
http://www.letskorail.com/ebizbf/EbizBfIndex_eng.do

On business days, you even do not need to make reservation except Friday. There is at least one KTX train to Busan every 20 minutes. Haeundae beach and Taejongdae are popular places.

http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264155
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264167

barbie~~

If you really want to see beaches, then the best destination in Korea is actually my home town, Jeju island. It takes about 3 hours from Gangnam to Jeju airport including walking, taking subway, and waiting in Gimpo airport. I can guide for your girls by my car, except June 10 and 11 when I have classes.

barbie~~

Quote from: barbie on May 31, 2014, 02:14:16 PM
If you really want to see beaches, then the best destination in Korea is actually my home town, Jeju island. It takes about 3 hours from Gangnam to Jeju airport including walking, taking subway, and waiting in Gimpo airport. I can guide for your girls by my car, except June 10 and 11 when I have classes.

barbie~~

Thank you so much barbie for all the infos. :)  I will check all of those places. Is it pretty cheap to fly to that island?

Quote from: Jmtl on June 01, 2014, 09:32:26 AM
Thank you so much barbie for all the infos. :)  I will check all of those places. Is it pretty cheap to fly to that island?

There are several low-cost airlines, and a round trip fare can be as low as US$80 if you make reservation earlier. Typically, it is ca. US$200 or more. At daytime, at least one airplane departs to Jeju from Seoul every 5 minutes.

barbie~~

Quote from: barbie on June 01, 2014, 08:29:17 PM
There are several low-cost airlines, and a round trip fare can be as low as US$80 if you make reservation earlier. Typically, it is ca. US$200 or more. At daytime, at least one airplane departs to Jeju from Seoul every 5 minutes.

barbie~~

Ok, awesome! Im here now in seoul! :) so far i like the area gang-nam. Its just that its raining, not much to do. But hopefully tomorrow will be sunny. :) ok so you live in jeju island, i saw an advertisement in the korean air and its nice island. :) ill try and come down there. :) thank you babie!

Quote from: Jmtl on June 02, 2014, 09:27:01 PM
Ok, awesome! Im here now in seoul! :) so far i like the area gang-nam. Its just that its raining, not much to do. But hopefully tomorrow will be sunny. :) ok so you live in jeju island, i saw an advertisement in the korean air and its nice island. :) ill try and come down there. :) thank you babie!

Nice to hear that you arrived in Seoul. June 4 is the nationwide election day and a day off. June 6 is the memorial day, and also a day off. But most stores and restaurants will be opened. Asian dust is minimal. After today, the rain will stop, according to the unreliable weather forecast here. PM me if you are going to visit Jeju island.

barbie~~

Big sorry for the delay guys....I've been in Italy the last week or so...I've just left my apartment I was renting there to move back to England properly just in time before I head out to Seoul next Wednesday. I will catch up on these messages but I just wanted to say Congrats on your surgery Joanne......I read you post on Jenny's thread! You feeling OK? Wishing you a nice easy recovery! What day do you leave?

I arrive on Thursday 12th and my operation is on Monday 16th!

Gigi

Quote from: barbie on June 03, 2014, 01:04:33 AM
Nice to hear that you arrived in Seoul. June 4 is the nationwide election day and a day off. June 6 is the memorial day, and also a day off. But most stores and restaurants will be opened. Asian dust is minimal. After today, the rain will stop, according to the unreliable weather forecast here. PM me if you are going to visit Jeju island.

barbie~~

Thnak you barbie!! Yah i heard its holiday today. I hope some stores are open. Went to myeong dong yesterday. Oh boy! Lots of stores, i was in heaven! Ok, we probably cant make it to the island. But let me know when u have schedule to come to seoul next week! Have a great holiday! ☺️

Quote from: Gigi_J on June 05, 2014, 12:11:39 PM
Big sorry for the delay guys....I've been in Italy the last week or so...I've just left my apartment I was renting there to move back to England properly just in time before I head out to Seoul next Wednesday. I will catch up on these messages but I just wanted to say Congrats on your surgery Joanne......I read you post on Jenny's thread! You feeling OK? Wishing you a nice easy recovery! What day do you leave?

I arrive on Thursday 12th and my operation is on Monday 16th!

Gigi

Gigi!!!! :) no worries! I love italy!! What city did u stay at?? About me, yah im doin fantastic! Thank you! This is the most hardest thing in the recoevery which is not to talk and to cough, sometimes u cant just control it, it will come out.  But everything else is ok, koreans are very warm, nice people and very friendly, they will help u a lot and smiling all the time. :) im leaving on sat june 14, so we can meet for a lunch or somethins just let me know. Where u staying btw? 

Quote from: Gigi_J on May 15, 2014, 10:40:55 AM
Great news then Barbie..if that means June could be cooler :D Sure, Pm me when you know...be fun to hook up with a few of you gals!!

mwah,
G

I probably will be in Seoul on June 16-17 and June 23-24. I can arrive in Seoul one-day earlier on Sunday, if your girls want to have dinner together with me.

barbie~~

Quote from: Jmtl on June 05, 2014, 06:39:18 PM
Gigi!!!! :) no worries! I love italy!! What city did u stay at?? About me, yah im doin fantastic! Thank you! This is the most hardest thing in the recoevery which is not to talk and to cough, sometimes u cant just control it, it will come out.  But everything else is ok, koreans are very warm, nice people and very friendly, they will help u a lot and smiling all the time. :) im leaving on sat june 14, so we can meet for a lunch or somethins just let me know. Where u staying btw?

Hey Joanne!! Sorry for delay again..I'm so stressed and have left myself with so many things to do at the last minute...I leave for Korea tomorrow arghhhh! :D

Glad to hear you're doing well and in good spirits...I'm dreading not being able to talk or cough or clear my throat but nice to know the odd accidental one is normal!! Great....ill be arriving Thursday afternoon Local time and my pre-op examination is on Friday at 1pm. If you want to meet up on Friday evening (probably best) or Saturday (before u fly home) that would be great, let's do it..I'll be with my mother (how geeky haha). Private message me here and we'll arrange it ... or my UK number is +44 7929 378431 - I'll try and keep that on in Korea although I'm tempted to get a sim card for cheaper calls when I get to Seoul....can I ask what you did? I will soon be reading through some of the old threads about some of the girls hiring a wi-fi egg etc....I haven't decided what I want to do yet but will have to decide tomorrow before the flight hopefully so I can sort it at the airport if necessary....I know, I'm very late at organising myself when I'm busy :DSee you on Friday then hopefully...byeeeee!

Oh and I plan to put a couple of recordings of myself up on here very soon..probably on Thursday evening or Friday - so that I have my pre-op voice to compare with my post-op result and to get your opinions. I'd planned to do this sooner but as I said...busy times lately...I tried to do too much too quickly!

And Hi Barbie...if you're around on 16-17th as u said above...maybe we can arrange a meeting too..would be nice...chat soon!

Gigi

Almost forgot...

I'm staying at the 'Fraser Place Central Seoul' Residenced Apartments/Hotel in Jung-gu. You?? Got great reviews and have a 1 bedroom suite there with separate bedroom and lounge and full kitchen area etc and the place also has a rooftop terrace and a gym and swimming pool so it looks very nice and will let others know how it is! 

Chat soon,
G

Quote from: Gigi_J on June 10, 2014, 02:45:02 PM
Hey Joanne!! Sorry for delay again..I'm so stressed and have left myself with so many things to do at the last minute...I leave for Korea tomorrow arghhhh! :D

Glad to hear you're doing well and in good spirits...I'm dreading not being able to talk or cough or clear my throat but nice to know the odd accidental one is normal!! Great....ill be arriving Thursday afternoon Local time and my pre-op examination is on Friday at 1pm. If you want to meet up on Friday evening (probably best) or Saturday (before u fly home) that would be great, let's do it..I'll be with my mother (how geeky haha). Private message me here and we'll arrange it ... or my UK number is +44 7929 378431 - I'll try and keep that on in Korea although I'm tempted to get a sim card for cheaper calls when I get to Seoul....can I ask what you did? I will soon be reading through some of the old threads about some of the girls hiring a wi-fi egg etc....I haven't decided what I want to do yet but will have to decide tomorrow before the flight hopefully so I can sort it at the airport if necessary....I know, I'm very late at organising myself when I'm busy :DSee you on Friday then hopefully...byeeeee!

Oh and I plan to put a couple of recordings of myself up on here very soon..probably on Thursday evening or Friday - so that I have my pre-op voice to compare with my post-op result and to get your opinions. I'd planned to do this sooner but as I said...busy times lately...I tried to do too much too quickly!

And Hi Barbie...if you're around on 16-17th as u said above...maybe we can arrange a meeting too..would be nice...chat soon!

Gigi

Hi gigi!!! Dont worry about it to much! But i know what u mean.. Everything will be ok. :) i can meet you on friday after your check up with dr. Kim. As im staying 5 mins from his clinic. And we can get a bite or something. Thats the only day i can meet you coz my flight is very early on saturday.

Ok for phones and wifi, i rented the two. It is very cheap, maybe gonna pay $80 for both for 12 days. If i were you just get the wifi router. So you can use your own phone for internet. I didnt use the phone much, i just used it to text jessie. But its ok, its still cheap for both. I rented the olleh one from the arrival place of the airport. But i booked it online before i went to korea.

Ok, ill just pm you.. And we can connect from there, so get the wifi egg router hehe ok, have a safe flight and hope to see u soon!!!! Take care!!

Quote from: barbie on June 10, 2014, 03:19:05 AM
I probably will be in Seoul on June 16-17 and June 23-24. I can arrive in Seoul one-day earlier on Sunday, if your girls want to have dinner together with me.

barbie~~

I wont be able to see you barbie
As i am leaving on sat. :( but you can meet with gigi.. :) enjoy girls!!!

Quote from: Gigi_J on June 10, 2014, 02:49:45 PM
Almost forgot...

I'm staying at the 'Fraser Place Central Seoul' Residenced Apartments/Hotel in Jung-gu. You?? Got great reviews and have a 1 bedroom suite there with separate bedroom and lounge and full kitchen area etc and the place also has a rooftop terrace and a gym and swimming pool so it looks very nice and will let others know how it is! 

Chat soon,
G

That sounds amazing place!! Its good that u get a 1 bedroom suite, i think the hotels here are in small sizes. So that 1 bedroom will be perfect for both of you. :) ok.. Talk soon!! :)

Awwww thanks for the positivity Joanna, I need it :D

Ok so why did you rent the phone too...because your normal one doesn't work in Korea? I have a Samsung Galaxy S2 (so its not very new!) but I'm pretty sure it's GSM etc and works there....so I spose the best thing to do is rent a wireless egg, like u said. I checked on the Incheon Airport website and can see 'Olleh Rent a Phone Service' that can hire out those wireless eggs so maybe I'll go there. I assume I can get one without reserving? I would reserve one now but it says reservations have to be made 3 days in advance, ooops! And their shop is in the arrivals area you say? I'm actually using the Yeson pick-up service so I'm worried it will be rude to keep them waiting when I try and find this damn egg hahah...but I suppose I should do or I'll be stuck with extortionate data costs arghh!!

Going to bed now..it's 3:30am here and will be getting up quite early to finish my packing and organising...luckily it's a 7:30pm flight so I have time...hopefully you'll have replied about the things I mentioned above and I'll sort it out :D thank you so much for helping me! And as soon as I'm settled into my Hotel I'll be in a much more relaxed place to message you and see if we can organise thsi meet on Friday after my examinations. Are you with a friend or alone? I forget now without reading through your threads. I do wonder how interesting it will be meeting up when you can't talk...poor Joanna!! haha.

See u soon...hug!

G
P.s. I currently have dark hair...I'll change my avatar at some point so u can recognise me ;p Or I'll send you my facebook details in a private message maybe!
G

Quote from: Gigi_J on June 10, 2014, 09:30:45 PM
Awwww thanks for the positivity Joanna, I need it :D

Ok so why did you rent the phone too...because your normal one doesn't work in Korea? I have a Samsung Galaxy S2 (so its not very new!) but I'm pretty sure it's GSM etc and works there....so I spose the best thing to do is rent a wireless egg, like u said. I checked on the Incheon Airport website and can see 'Olleh Rent a Phone Service' that can hire out those wireless eggs so maybe I'll go there. I assume I can get one without reserving? I would reserve one now but it says reservations have to be made 3 days in advance, ooops! And their shop is in the arrivals area you say? I'm actually using the Yeson pick-up service so I'm worried it will be rude to keep them waiting when I try and find this damn egg hahah...but I suppose I should do or I'll be stuck with extortionate data costs arghh!!

Going to bed now..it's 3:30am here and will be getting up quite early to finish my packing and organising...luckily it's a 7:30pm flight so I have time...hopefully you'll have replied about the things I mentioned above and I'll sort it out :D thank you so much for helping me! And as soon as I'm settled into my Hotel I'll be in a much more relaxed place to message you and see if we can organise thsi meet on Friday after my examinations. Are you with a friend or alone? I forget now without reading through your threads. I do wonder how interesting it will be meeting up when you can't talk...poor Joanna!! haha.

See u soon...hug!

G
P.s. I currently have dark hair...I'll change my avatar at some point so u can recognise me ;p Or I'll send you my facebook details in a private message maybe!
G

Hahahha u made me laugh there gigi!!! Yah u have to find that damn egg. :) im pretty sure you guys will exit at gate 2, coz thats what jessie told me, but im not sure what happened to us and we exited at gate 3. Lol so the guy from yeson is waiting at no. 2. He is a very nice guy and dont worry he will wait for you to get that egg. The olleh is located between gate 5-6 i think. You will see most of them there, many choices, so yah i think u dont need to book before. 

Yeh,  supposed to rent a sim card but they said they dont have, so i just rented the phone instead.
Ok, sweet dreams and soon you will be here!! Yay!!

Ps. I traveled with a friend. Talk soon gigi!! :) good night!!

Quote from: Jmtl on June 10, 2014, 10:37:19 PM

Hahahha u made me laugh there gigi!!! Yah u have to find that damn egg. :) im pretty sure you guys will exit at gate 2, coz thats what jessie told me, but im not sure what happened to us and we exited at gate 3. Lol so the guy from yeson is waiting at no. 2. He is a very nice guy and dont worry he will wait for you to get that egg. The olleh is located between gate 5-6 i think. You will see most of them there, many choices, so yah i think u dont need to book before. 

Yeh,  supposed to rent a sim card but they said they dont have, so i just rented the phone instead.
Ok, sweet dreams and soon you will be here!! Yay!!

Ps. I traveled with a friend. Talk soon gigi!! :) good night!!

Hiiiiiiiii from Seoul :D Sorry for the delay....got here quite a few hours ago but needed to check into the hotel and get  little sleep because I thought I was gonna die from sleep deprivation (I couldnt sleep a wink on the 11 hour flight!).

LOL....well I got the dumb egg!! (from Oleh like u..thanks again for the recommendation!)....the wifi-egg alone is gonna cost 88 dollars for 10 days...but that's OK....the important thing is having internet when out and about so yeah, we probably won't bother with a sim! In the end, you said you only rented the phone and not the sim card....so does that mean you're paying a high price for any calls and text messages you make because you're using your home phone provider's roaming services?

You were right, the guy who collected us was super nice and smiley and super cute (and super short loool) - lovely guy...and the trip to the hotel was stress-free!

Ok soooooo....my appointment at Yeson tomorrow for my pre-op examination is at 13:40 - I don't know exactly how long that takes but I assume a few hours from what I've read?

If you private message me here with an idea about the kinda time you'd like to meet and any ideas about what we could do...a bite to eat...or a drink....we're easy :D then that would be a good start and I'll let you know tomorrow when I'm done at Yeson and we can decide....as long as you're sure you're happy to meet up knowing you can't talk....if you change you're mind and want to just hav a relaxing day with your friend with no temptation to talk that absolutely fine too.. so no pressure at all!

Hope you're still having a stress-free recovery and chat tomorrow then! As you probably remember, my operation day is actually Monday so I'm doing my best to stay topped up on echinacea and lots of  vitamin C etc as I'm so nervous about falling ill or catching a cold over the weekend...that would be a nightmare but fingers crossed!

Chat soon!

Gigi

Good luck, Gigi and we're looking forward to hear from your experiences and how it all goes afterwards

Quote from: Gigi_J on June 12, 2014, 10:02:43 AM
Hiiiiiiiii from Seoul :D Sorry for the delay....got here quite a few hours ago but needed to check into the hotel and get  little sleep because I thought I was gonna die from sleep deprivation (I couldnt sleep a wink on the 11 hour flight!).

Giji,

It is terrible not being able to sleep for 11 hours. I always drink several glasses of red wine in the flight to sleep. This relieves me a lot. If I do not sleep in the flight, it is so much boring.

No Asian dust in Seoul, and the weather forecast says it will be like summer this weekend and next week, the highest temperature will be 28-29 degree Celcius (82-84 F). I am sure it will be cool at night (lowest temperature is 21 C or 70 F).

There are two hotels of Fraser Place Central in Jung-gu, and I think you are staying at the hotel named "Serviced residence". As I remember, it is a quite expensive hotel in the old-town (Gang-buk) of Seoul, and the price is nearly the same as those in Gangnam. I guess you got a special discount offer. As I will have a meeting on June 23-24 near Seoul train station, which is very close to the hotel, I may be able to briefly meet you even on June 23-24, too (I will have to hurry up to fly back to my hometown on June 24).

On the map, I see a small park, an art hall and an old cathedral. Of course, there is 24-hour convenience store (711).

(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fbbs.catholic.or.kr%2Fattbox%2Fbbs%2Finclude%2FreadImg.asp%3Fgubun%3D100%26amp%3Bmaingroup%3D2%26amp%3Bfilenm%3D%25BC%25AD%25BC%25D2%25B9%25AE%25B0%25F8%25BF%25F8%252Ejpg&hash=807d0a2937765d7ce2f1e92076e4ffbe7f1ff3d0)

I guess the best way to go to Yeson is taking a taxi (cab). It will cost about 10,000 KRW (= US$ 10), taking less than 20 minutes.

By subway, it takes about 47 mins from the hotel to the Yeson Clinic (Walking for 9 minutes to City hall station to take Line 2 --> Transfer to Line 3 at Euljiro_3-ga_Station --> Getting off Apgujeong_Station, go to Exit 1, walking for 12 mins. (about 813 m = 0.5 mile to Yeson).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/City_Hall_Station_(Seoul)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euljiro_3-ga_Station
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apgujeong_Station

barbie~~

Quote from: Gigi_J on June 12, 2014, 10:02:43 AM
If you private message me here with an idea about the kinda time you'd like to meet and any ideas about what we could do...a bite to eat...or a drink....we're easy :D then that would be a good start and I'll let you know tomorrow when I'm done at Yeson and we can decide....as long as you're sure you're happy to meet up knowing you can't talk....if you change you're mind and want to just hav a relaxing day with your friend with no temptation to talk that absolutely fine too.. so no pressure at all!

Near City hall station, there are a bunch of Korean-style restaurants in Bukchang dong (or Bukchang food street). Take Exit 8 of City hall station, cross the street.

http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=260864

Also you can eat at KFC.

barbie~~

Quote from: Gigi_J on June 12, 2014, 10:02:43 AM
Hiiiiiiiii from Seoul :D Sorry for the delay....got here quite a few hours ago but needed to check into the hotel and get  little sleep because I thought I was gonna die from sleep deprivation (I couldnt sleep a wink on the 11 hour flight!).

LOL....well I got the dumb egg!! (from Oleh like u..thanks again for the recommendation!)....the wifi-egg alone is gonna cost 88 dollars for 10 days...but that's OK....the important thing is having internet when out and about so yeah, we probably won't bother with a sim! In the end, you said you only rented the phone and not the sim card....so does that mean you're paying a high price for any calls and text messages you make because you're using your home phone provider's roaming services?

You were right, the guy who collected us was super nice and smiley and super cute (and super short loool) - lovely guy...and the trip to the hotel was stress-free!

Ok soooooo....my appointment at Yeson tomorrow for my pre-op examination is at 13:40 - I don't know exactly how long that takes but I assume a few hours from what I've read?

If you private message me here with an idea about the kinda time you'd like to meet and any ideas about what we could do...a bite to eat...or a drink....we're easy :D then that would be a good start and I'll let you know tomorrow when I'm done at Yeson and we can decide....as long as you're sure you're happy to meet up knowing you can't talk....if you change you're mind and want to just hav a relaxing day with your friend with no temptation to talk that absolutely fine too.. so no pressure at all!

Hope you're still having a stress-free recovery and chat tomorrow then! As you probably remember, my operation day is actually Monday so I'm doing my best to stay topped up on echinacea and lots of  vitamin C etc as I'm so nervous about falling ill or catching a cold over the weekend...that would be a nightmare but fingers crossed!

Chat soon!

Gigi

Gigi!!!! It was nice meeting you and your sweet mom today even if its a very short time. I wish you Goodluck on monday and a prompt recovery. Have fun in seoul!! And safe journey!! Please let me know if you have any questions. :) You are beautiful!!

Kisses. joanne :)

Quote from: Jmtl on June 13, 2014, 02:52:56 AM


Gigi!!!! It was nice meeting you and your sweet mom today even if its a very short time. I wish you Goodluck on monday and a prompt recovery. Have fun in seoul!! And safe journey!! Please let me know if you have any questions. :) You are beautiful!!

Kisses. joanne :)

Big sorry for the delay and thanks sooo much for coming into Yeson to meet me...was so sweet of you and it was a real surprise...it's funny how we recognised each other immediately even though we've only seen one small avatar pic of each other :D and ooooh pleeeease *blush*...you're absolutely gorgeous yourself...my mum said the same! It's taken me so long to write this post because after another few hours of tests and examinations at Yeson, we came back to the hotel and had to sleep...I told you briefly at Yeson that we were both sleep deprived but that really was an understatement - I've been exhausted but ironically woken up so many times when I've tried to sleep..very odd because I never normally suffer from insomnia, booo! So I'm hoping tomorrow I'll feel a bit more normal...I've literally had about 9 hours sleep in 3 days and still feel stupidly jet-lagged.

But on the positive, my day at Yeson went really well (even though I was diagnosed with assymetrical vocal folds and considerable vocal tremor...quite like Jenny who started her amazingly in-depth thread on her experience...and he thinks he can help resolve that...oh and my mean frequency for my relaxed 'male' voice was determined as being at around 130 hz....and Dr. Kim has decided to tie off the normal 1/3...unlike Jenny who had a similar diagnosis and had 1/2 of hers tied...I think due to quite thick vocal cords) and now I'm just looking forward to the op on Monday.
It's a little after midnight at the moment so I'm going to try and get some more sleep but I'll go into more depth about my examination in my next post. In any case, you looked amazingly happy and in good spirits and that was great to see...I'm still laughing at me waiting for you to talk for the first few seconds of our meeting...I promise you that was the sleep deprivation and the sheer surprise at seeing you walking into Yeson with that big smile :D
So what time do you leave tomorrow? Btw did you have the botox injection? I'm assuming Dr. Kim will suggest it for me. Ooooh and...I hope you enjoyed your shopping you said you were going to do today!! Where did you go? Maybe you can recommend the best place for me and my mum to go shopping tomorrow (mainly clothes shopping but other stuff too I guess like souvenirs and gifts)?

In any case, thanks again for making my day at Yeson that little bit more fun and I wish you all the best on your return home and continued recovery and we'll stay in touch...you're so lovely!!

G   

P.s. Just spotted and replied to your private message...I was so EGGcited to see it :D So you're flight is at 6am it seems, arghh so early, you poor girl...have a safe trip and reply whenever you have time!!

Gxx

Well...it's done...operation complete, hurraaaaah!!

Dr. Kim worked his magic (hopefully!) around 9am local time after quite a few final nerves..when the gravity of what was about to happen really sunk in and how much this is likely to change my life for the better. Yep, the last minute jitters totally caught me by surprise as I'd been SO serene until I was sat in my room (room number 3!) just imagining some of you gals I've chatted to on here who had possibly sat right there in that same spot on my red sofa as I waited for Dr. Kim him to come in for our pre-op chat and informed consent form signing!! I think Dr. Kim could tell..he was so sweet and held my hand when I was on the table and the mask was put on my face and I was given the injection (making you feel that tingle go aaaaaaaaaall the way up your arm just before you black-out...was my first general anesthetic so I think that's part of the reason I felt quite nervous too) Arghhh...all went well though by all accounts and loved Dr. Kim letting me take a look at my new shorter vocal cords with the camera (looking nice and neat I think!) shortly before I was discharged and allowed to go back and relax in my (amazing!) hotel that feels like home to me now.

I will say, despite having prepared myself for some discomfort on waking up immediately after the op by reading the many other accounts of yours on here, it really was uncomfortable/painful, my god! Just remember waking, all spaced out, and my throat genuinely felt like it was on fire...so sore...forget 'cold'..how about full-blown flu or tonsillitis, sob sob, haha! So the hour and a half or so before I was allowed water...and most importantly, ice cream (!) felt like forever...the ice cream was by far the most useful in helping with the pain..mmmm that godly cold vanilla ice cream truly was heaven and immediately started taking that pain away. I called my nurse (the sweetest, smiliest, cutest girl I think I've ever met..she reminded me of a Japanese cartoon character :D I didn't catch her name) 2 more times to get more of it! Luckily, she was still smiling both those times and I didn't bother her with the call button for the rest of my time there!!

Aaaanyway, I won't say too much more about that other than I've had a nice easy recovery evening. Just dying for some time to pass now so I can get some recovery days under my belt and will probably take a big sigh of relief when I reach the 7 day 'full heal' milestone when I won't have that constant worry that I could tear my cords apart by accidentally coughing too hard etc! (So far had couple coughs (totally involuntary!!) from build up of phlegm. So involuntary that I didn't have the time to open my mouth and 'whoosh' the air out (as lovely Jessie advises) so I absolutely sh*t myself both times but all OK I think as no pain...and I confirmed with Jessie that yes, if we do tear our sutures apart, we know about it very quickly because it would be VERY painful...ouch...touch wood...come on God/Universe, pls let me heal ok without any big hiccups!! As some of you may have read, I was a smoker but quit a month or more back and thank god I did. I've had enough time to lose any sign of smoker's cough so surely that's a blessing..I'd have been an idiot to have this procedure with the extra risk of hard coughing. Although Dr. Kim did put my mind at ease quite a lot when discussing the possibility of the odd few coughs we might have; explaining that, while it's good to avoid coughing, ultimately the vocal folds just tense and move once or twice during a cough so shouldn't cause any problems..unlike speaking during this recovery time which is far more traumatic and risky due to the sheer number of times per second they move during voiced phonation. 

Due to my stupidly busy times shortly before coming to Korea (with my house-moving etc), my thread didn't quite become that perfect, organised one I'd hoped for with all my pre-op voice samples on before my trip etc but hey ho...my life is often chaotic and disorganised, nothing new there! But on Sunday I was able to record a couple of last minute voice clips of the Rainbow passage to upload here which you'll find below. Please excuse the quality with some background humming and the quietness of the recording (no idea why). I tried my best to resolve it as my mic (inbuilt on my laptop) in the past has been very good and hasn't had that issue but sadly I couldn't figure out what the issue was...but if you turn it up loud you should be able to hear me quite clearly. Please note (and this might sound like I'm making excuses) that my voice was feeling quite worn out and wasnt feeling overly relaxed (!), partly due to the pressure of having to record them just before going to bed last night to get a few hours sleep before my early morning surgery. But I don't claim my voice is THAT much better than below normally or anything. If I thought my voice was that amazing and easy to maintain I probably wouldn't have bothered with Yeson in the first place :D I'd appreciate any thoughts from any of you though. I've never had much chance for an impartial opinion on my voice...be it my 'male' voice or feminised voice! Anyway I hope these are most useful for comparison when I start being able to use my new voice...eeeeek...I am excited..a lot...I won't lie!

I didn't take a photo of that page analysis Dr. Kim shows you with the main facts and figures obtained from my pre-op examinations but I can say that I was told (and shown!) that my cords were somewht asymetrical with one a little thicker than the other and could see on the super slowmo cam recording that their motion during phonation were far from perfect...with the thinner one being a lazy b*tch and not moving quite as perfectly and in-time with the thicker one. Dr. Kim said this could have happened the last few years since I began transition from my trying to overcompensate or strain or push too much air through (etc etc, it's late so I can't remember everything he said) from trying to feminine my voice. That's very possible..or maybe my cords were always a bit special needs, guess there's no way of being 100% sure but it's irrelevent I guess. Fact is, Dr. Kim claimed he was able to at least improve them and 'balance them out' more with the way he sutured them this morning so fingers crossed that this will improve the general health of my voice in the long-term. He's told me that I'll need botox for my considerable vocal tremor as I said in my last post..I must say it was a LOT more than usual..think partly due to nerves I don't know..or lack of sleep..yeah my voice defo wasn't in its best shape that day of the examinations but I'm sure everything he said was very true and that my vocal tremor is more than average! My 'male'/lower range voice as I said above was determine as 130 Hz. And my raised voice...which I took as just my most comfortable raised 'feminised' voice came out at 160hz...quite low but probably quite close to how my female voice normally is when I'm speaking in a relaxed way and not trying too hard to get quite a bit higher, which happens when meeting new people (or cute boys!) etc! ;P
Anyway sorry all if you're reading and it's getting longwinded - I'm blabbing again (bit tired!) and this has got quite long so I'll just go ahead and post along with my voiceclips and chat very soon. Gonna have my first night's sleep since the surgery now and hope I don't talk in my sleep or anything, arghhh...it happens quite often..and I'm a bit of a sleepwalker at times too....what a freak I am ;)

A Very Happy Gigi,
x

https://soundcloud.com/user819247001/pre-op-male-voice         - my old male voice, arghhh!

https://soundcloud.com/user819247001/pre-op-feminised-voice-medium-high-and-very-easy-to-maintain                - My most used (with friends and family etc) and easy to maintain feminised voice. I consider it quite low and think it's gender neutral (if not overly male!) at some points (sadly!) but as above, very comfortable to use and requires very little effort so my voice of choice for most times.
     
https://soundcloud.com/user819247001/pre-op-feminised-voice-2-slightly-higher-and-little-less-easy-to-maintain              - This is my slightly higher feminised voice which I feel is less gender neutral or ambiguous at points than my Pre-op feminised voice 1 one. It's a little more effort to maintain which is why I consider it the voice I use around strangers etc.

Thoughts anyone? :) go easy on me, scared I've highlighted the crapness of my female voices with the above clips :D
Oh and btw, if anyone knows an easy way for me to put these into praat (by being able to play them thru my speakers and recording them on praat and then cutting out that annoying lower hz drone so that it doesnt affect the calculation) pls let me know..that way I'll be able to calculate the average frequency of each of them a lot better. I'd experimented with praat quite a few times at home many weeks ago but didn't have time to use praat for these as I recorded them so last minute i.e. the night before my operation!! ooops.


P.s. Big kiss to you Joanna, hope you're still recovering well. I just saw your private message, will read now. It's late so I might have to reply tomorrow. Take care and chat very soon!
P.p.s. Barbie - Hope you're well and that you got my private message i sent at the weekend. Shame I won't be here around 23rd - 24th when you're gonna be around to be able to hook up. If you end up coming earlier (before my departure day of 21st) just let me know! Chat sooooon!

Good luck on your healing process, Gigi! So happy to hear that everything went well.

I'm going to be sitting in one of those rooms in 17 days or so. So looking forward to it. :D Thank you so much on the update on what kind of "pain" to expect after the operation :D

-MegC

Congrats for your surgery! good to hear it all went well and interesting that there is a bit of relaxation about the strictness of the no coughing rule. It is next to imposible to absolutely never cough for 7 days ;)

I totally like your pre op feminized voices though. I wish I could do it like that ;) - ah well, tomorrow is voice training again.

Awww thanks guys, appreciate it :D

Oooh, excited for you, MegC. I wonder if you'll have room 3 too :P And glad you found that bit of info about my experience immediately waking up after the op useful....I know it's so helpful to have an idea of what to expect...keeps our nerves at bay I feel! That's why people like Jenny need sooo much praise because she went out there with hardly any of this luxury..and we all know the paranoias we give ourselves when experiencing things and not knowing if it's normal! Can't believe I had my op yesterday now..so surreal...you'll be there in no time. Oh btw, any quick comments about my pre-op voice clips you'd like to share with me? Any comments from anyone would be appreciated even if super negative, I certainly wouldn't be offended especially as I'm hoping to have the voice of a floating angel when my recovery is done lol ;)

And many thanks for your comments Anjaq, was nice of you - I only had 2 weeks of voice therapy about 3 years ago and then my voice therapist left the job for another one in a different part of the country...then it took so long to get re-referred for a replacement I didn't end up going back. I'm sure you'll see great results if you stick at it...far better than the results I got going it alone, I'm sure!

Saying that, Dr. Kim has recommended I get a good voice therapist after the recovery period back in England to get the best results possible alongside my Yeson voice exercises and to make sure I don't slip back into any bad habits that may lead to continued asymmetry of my vocal cords - something he's said he's been able to correct for the most part during surgery (hopefully!). Oh and to ensure I don't continue with the over-breathiness I was doing etc. I think.Can't do any harm so I'm definitely going to make sure I do that.

G

:) thanks for sharing your experience
I wish you a quick recovery and cant wait to hear your new female voice :)

Just one question though
is the  pain immediately after surgery bearable?
I  mean would you think that is possible that someone could start coughing uncontrollably or  something?
its one of  my concerns...

You're welcome and thanks for the kind words, FalseHybridPrincess!

Well, it's bearable sure but really, reaaally unpleasant...you feel groggy and spaced-out because of just waking up from the anaesthetic and that burning feeling in the throat really is the cherry on top of the cake...not!! As I said above, to me it felt like that nasty burning horrible feeling in the throat when you have tonsillitis or something (and I've had that a few times, horrible!) BUT...it passes very quickly...within an hour or so it's already much less and after 2 or 3 hours, it doesn't feel anywhere near as bad anymore and then it's just a little bit of odd sensation when you swallow but no real discomfort or pain anymore...so in that sense, I guess it's a breeze and I'm just a wuss for being such a baby for that first hour or 2! The icecream was a godsave...as long as you're eating that, that feeling goes 95%...then when you stop, the pain comes back (that only lasted a couple of hours as I said)...that's why I asked for two more ice creams after my first hahah!

Congrats on the successful surgery and here's wishing you a speedy recovery:)!  Great to read how girls are experiencing/recovering from the surgery, the information is priceless.  I'll be heading to the clinic this afternoon for the consult.  Another life changing event :)

Cheers
Kim

Gigi,

Congratulations on getting voice surgery done! I am particularly interested in this thread because like me, you already have a feminine high-pitched pre-op voice, and it will be interesting to see how your post-op voice sounds like, particularly your chest voice.

It seems from the results I've seen on this forum, girls who started off with a feminine pre-op voice see only a slight increase in pitch post-op, while other girls see a more drastic increase. I'm looking to get VFS done sometime next spring, but I have been having my own doubts about getting it since I already have a passable voice, and wouldn't want to blow $10k US on something that changes my voice only very slightly. I think if my post-op chest voice ended up sounding anything like my trained pre-op voice, I would be more than happy with my results. Please keep us updated and here is me wishing you a speedy recovery!

Kim - Hope your pre-op consultation/examination went well yesterday...if you follow the usual schedule (unlike me who had consult last Friday and then the op on Monday) I'm guessing your surgery is today (?) so sending lots of luck and wishing you a speedy recovery too!

Roni - Thanks for the congrats. Of course I'll be keeping you all informed on what happens - I read a few of your other comments in other threads and related fully to your thoughts about whether to go thru this VFS because you already have a passable voice that you can use effectively....but like you, I understand totally that desire to have a voice I can call my own that just 'comes out' in the right pitch with no effort whatsoever and no risk of falling back to a lower frequency (Oh...and like you, I also lose all control of my feminised voice when a little hammered with friends...not good ;) ) To me that would be worth almost any price...so I'm very happy with the price Yeson charges...do wonder if it'll shoot up though as the procedure is getting so popular with so many of us worldwide...who knows. 

Communication with my mother at times (who I decided to bring..for my sins! ;p ) has been really hard at times ... typing everything feels stupidly slow and there's been the odd occasion I've got a little irate and trying to communicate important things and ended up whispering when I only intended to mouth the words. It hasn't happened often luckily and I haven't had any pain or anything so Jessie says everything is fine but obviously I'm to refrain from doing it in future! With hindsight, it would have been far less risky to come alone in that sense with absolutely no temptation to mouth anything and risk that happening but there u go....on the plus side, it felt nice having her here coz I did feel a lot more nervous than I thought I'd be on the morning of the op and the company has been good...and to be fair, I think It would have been just as risky had I brought a friend. I haven't actually tried to talk properly by accident as yet which is a good thing. Like Abby when I read her thread though, I remember trying to talk as soon as I came round from the anaesthetic...I was so spaced I'd clearly forgotten where the hell I was...no sound came out at all and no damage done but still....what a spaced-out tw*t I was...hilarious.

Hey Thanks Gigi - Everything went fine, the consult was on Tuesday & the surgery was on Wednesday.  Apparently I had some type of trauma (probably early childhood) which caused my larynx to be slightly tilted and of course asymmetrical.   It sounds like it'll probably take me more time & voice training to achieve the voice I desire.  The surgery was fine, absolutely no issues and great post op care, and I was feeling better before I left.  Other than my throat getting dry frequently it feels fine now.  I'm paranoid about catching a cold  or doing something else bad so I'm pretty much being a recluse now.  I'll go back to the clinic on Tuesday for my check up & botox shot then fly back to Portland on Wednesday provided everything is OK.

Cheers:)
Kim

Quote from: Gigi_J on June 16, 2014, 12:37:52 PM

P.p.s. Barbie - Hope you're well and that you got my private message i sent at the weekend. Shame I won't be here around 23rd - 24th when you're gonna be around to be able to hook up. If you end up coming earlier (before my departure day of 21st) just let me know! Chat sooooon!

Giji,

I am glad that the surgery went well as expected. You will have a lovely and feminine voice in several months, I am sure.

I just returned from my 2-day trip to Daegu city of the mainland. The semester is over this week, and I am now officially in summer break. I have been busy making exams for grade, presentations in conference, and reports to government. I am going to fly to Seoul in the morning of June 22. Hopefully we may meet together at someplace on the planet. I have never been in England, meaning that it is highly likely that I will be there in the near future.

It rains here in Jeju island, far cooler than in Seoul.
It may take 1 or 2 hours more to fly from Seoul to the West (opposite direction of the jet stream).
Anyway enjoy your flying to your home. Wine is not allowed for sake of your throat?

barbie~~

Hi guys!

Hope you're well Kim and still having an easy recovery back home!

And thank you Barbie....bit sad I didn't get to see you in Seoul like I did Joanna but if you're ever in England we'll make up for it and hook up for a coffee or cocktail..when caffeine and alcohol are back on the menu of course!

This will be a briefish post but will do a longer one later. For now I'll say yesterday was officially 2 weeks post-op and recovery has been going pretty much problem free. I say 'pretty much' because a couple of days after arriving back home, I did start having a 'frog in the throat' feeling (was really quite unpleassant but bearable!) when I swallowed. I had a hunch it was the effect of the botox as the sensation did feel like it was in my throat muscles too. I contacted Jessie and she didn't seem too concerned so that put my mind at ease and luckily as a few days passed the feeling went and now it's pretty much gone.

On my post-op checkup (in my case done on day 5 post op instead of the usual 7 days post-op) he said I could start the 'few words a day' phase on day 12 post-op to give my vocal folds a bit of time after the Botox. I'll confess that on day 7 post-op a couple of days after I returned home (when most are normally able to start saying a few words), I was able to say a few words (obviously I was extremely gentle and quite and pushed just enough air to see if I made any sound..and by miracle, I did!) and without saying more than a few gentle words the effect was noticeable immediately...and surprisingly clear sounding (not hoarse at all really altho as I said I did say it incredibly quietly) it was very surreal...the feeling of clicking into the 200hz range (i recorded it on praat) with absolutely no effort was an amazing feeling and obviously I felt ecstatic feeling that everything was on track.

So after that, I went back to silence as per Dr. Kim's instructions to wait 5 more days to start speaking a few words. So that day (last Friday) came and I said a few more words..and have continued to say a few more words a day since...only there's definitely more hoarseness and crackiness apparerent. And to be honest, I think this is likely to be effect of the botox having had a bit more time to fully kick in. In any case, I will be happy to upload a couple of voice samples either later today or very soon so you can guys can give me your impressions.

I have a very important question though that I'd like a bit of help with. When I (very gently) test my range, I'm still able to say a word (or glide down gently with a very quiet tone) to a very low pitch...around 90-100 hz according to praat, which is almost as low as I could go pre-op. Is this normal?? I think I remember seeing a couple of posts from Amy about her still being able to reach such a low note early on in her recovery but I don't think I saw any posts of other girls (such as Jenny, Sarah,Abby etc...hi guys if you're reading!) that state this. I mean I'm guessing this could be because the vocal cords, being this early, still have some time to lose the swelling...but it's definitely something that made me feel a bit sh*t if I'm honest. Like a couple of others said...with the elation of discovering a seemingly effortless upper range and the sadness of discovering I can still go low, it is somewhat of a rollercoaster emotionally but I'm just hoping this is normal!! Anyone care to comment or help me out with this concern? :D I know it's super early days and still have a lot of healing to do so I don't want to sound crazy paranoid or anything - maybe just some reassurance would be good because I don't recall reading much at all about this particular ability to go super low again.

Thanks guys,

Gigi

Hi Gigi,
Try not to worry it is very early days and I wouldn't get too hung up on what Praat say. The trouble with Praat is it is too clever for its own good. I never really trust the numbers it gives me because I'm not convinced I understand how to use it. It's such a complex program. Ultimately it's about how your voice sounds to others and of course yourself.

I'm at the 1-2 words per day stage myself and what I've been doing is recording myself with a high-end condensing microphone and playing it back on a loop. I have tried putting it on Praat but the clips are so short it's probably pointless.

Right now it feels like that stage when you've had a rhinoplasty done and you can see the tip of your nose and it looks cute but you're just dying to see what the rest of the nose looks like!  :D

Thanks for the reply Charlotte and good luck on your recovery too!

Well, more than praat (the tests I did were pretty accurate I think) I have a tuner app on my fone that gives the exact frequency in hz of any tone it hears - that also confirmed I'm able to go down to around the 90-100hz. So yeah, pretty sure that's the case....I've also stayed in touch with Joanna who I met in Seoul (such an amazing girl!) and we've spoken loads since both getting back home. in fact, she also says she has been able to go as low as she could pre-op so in that sense I know I'm not alone. But if anyone who's thru recovery wants to put both of our minds at rest a little with their own similar experiences of this, I'm sure she would appreciate it as much as I would!

Gigi

Hi Gigi,

Loving your thread and it's the only VFS thread I have followed up on from time to time, I wish you great healing and great results as the weeks go by, what's the name of the tuner app that you have for the frequency in hertz? I'm also in the UK (Manchester,) so I should be able to find it too :), I have long thought I wouldn't really benefit from VFS, but as time goes by I feel I would love to sound the most female I can without using all the effort I seem to use... What is your opinion on that? I noticed your preop voice wasn't that masculine to begin with, mine is even higher pitched even in effortless mode but I do feel as though I make an effort when I speak in more public places and when I am in work environment, and sometimes feel my throat tired at the end of the day... Thank you for sharing with us and the community, I believe it's so important to share our stories like this in forums so the new-comers have some help along the way. Let me know your thoughts, thanks hun x x

I am so excited to hear your new voice recordings! I can't wait to book a flight to Seoul and get my voice done right away! It seems like girls on Susan's have experienced mixed results from Yeson, though.

Quote from: Roni on July 01, 2014, 07:20:42 PM
I am so excited to hear your new voice recordings! I can't wait to book a flight to Seoul and get my voice done right away! It seems like girls on Susan's have experienced mixed results from Yeson, though.

That was to be expected. There are few procedures that are always giving the perfect experience. I was so amazed at Jennys experience. Now I get the impression that it is not always like that, but also it gives me the impression that we can get a more down to earth view on the procedure by looking at different peoples experiences. I have not really seen anyone getting a worse voice than before, but I saw that some girs have been disappointed at a lack of change, at least in the early stages. Some seem to have improved already, but since most who have done it more recently than the "pioneers" are not that long post op, I guess it will take some time to see what will be after 6 Months. I think directly post op, swelling and botox really make it hard to judge anything (swollen and thus thickened vocal chords make a deeper sound as much as long vocal chords)

Hi guys,

I'm still hoping some post-op girls can put my mind at ease about the lower end of my range still being there.

For now, here are two short clips of my post-op voice so far. I decided to use the last sentence of the rainbow passage. As I said in my last post, I was pleasantly surprised (in fact, I'll be honest...I was ecstatic!! very surreal happy feeling!) at the immediate result..the ability to talk at this pitch with zero effort...just able to 'click into' it....and especially how soft and clear my voice seemed to sound when I said a few short things on Day 7 post-op. This was recorded on the evening of that day...I will have said a few words in the morning. And a few more on the evening and this is what I recorded. As I explained in my last post too...this was 2 days after I received my botox (because for my schedule I got my post-op checkup and my botox on day 5 post-op) and I'm pretty sure it hadn't kicked in by that point. The next day or 2 is when I started experiencing the slight 'frog in the throat' sensation when I swallowed (which has now passed) and I'm quite sure that was linked to the botox - as, though Dr. Kim doesn't explain this himself, some googling proves that botox always takes between 2 and 5 days to start having its effect...it's never immediate. 
So, after my few tests of saying a few words on day 7, I then went back to silence to wait for day 12 post-op (as per Dr. Kim's instructions) to start saying a few words again. Once I started again on day 12, I definitely noticed that my voice wasn't as good as day 7 - I'm hoping (!) this is due to the botox now having kicked in fully - as you can hear my voice is a lot more breathy and when I raise pitch for intonation and hit higher frequencies (on the other times I've said a few words), there's definitely more weakness and crackiness evident where the voice cuts out...where it didn't do this on the couple of times I spoke on day 7. I'm being very careful to stick to minimal speaking during this period until I can start 'general conversation' - yesterday for instance I chose to say not a single word the whole day - and I'm hoping with a bit more time passing, this new hoarseness/crackiness and extra breathiness and this general feeling of takinga little more effort to get the words out sounding stable will pass.

I think I may be the first person here to have a better quality voice on my earlier recording than my later one........gotta laugh! What do you think guys? I do wonder though...if other girls who have the botox decide to not try saying a few words until another week has passed, it may be that they too would have a clearer sounding voice around day 7 (before the botox has had time to kick in and relax the muscles controlling phonation) but in the majority of cases, people don't do what I did and test at day 7...and most then report their first attempts at speaking being very weak and breathy...but considering my experience, this could be more due to the botox than due to the ability of the new vocal folds to create clearish sounds themselves. Any Thoughts?

Btw, these were recorded on my phone as the sound comes out better quality than my laptop mic - and were recorded very quietly not putting any strain so my mouth was close to the mic. When I played them into Praat, the first recording (day 7) came out around 205 hz average (spot on considering that's supposed to be where I should end up according to Dr. Kim...adding 75hz to my pre-op 'male' / fundamental frequency of 130hz). The second recording I did today came out a little lower, around 195-200hz (dont want to say an exact figure because I had to play the sound from my phone to put into praat so that reduces the quality slightly and the exactness of the sound). I definitely notice my voice wants to crack and becomes voiceless when it tries getting into higher frequencies when I sweep up on a word for intonation for example...as above, I'm hoping this is the effect of the botox. Maybe some of you can confirm this thought? 

https://soundcloud.com/user819247001/short-test-day-7  -


https://soundcloud.com/user819247001/post-op-day-16 -

Gigi

P.s.

Carly - thanks for the wishes. And in response to your question, I think I have talked about that in this thread if you look back. My main wish out of the surgery was to be able to just 'get there' in terms of pitch with absolutely no effort...so yeah...for a general improvement and to feel like I could just have a voice that was my own..without feeling like I'm constantly having to keep control of it at the higher pitch levels.

Roni - there you go! My first couple of post-op clips! Feel free to give me your thoughts. I still feel very surreal that my earlier voice test seemed to be better quality and generally softer and more perfect than my later one...which is a lot more breathy and a bit more unstable.

Anjaq - Absolutely agree. In my case, the extra hoarseness and breathiness I'm experiencing now compared to day 7, I can definitely see I'm in this for the longhaul in terms of seeing how things progress over the following months. In my case, it almost feels a bit more of an emotional rollercoaster because my voice was better quality at day 7 - though of course these were done very quietly and my mouth pretty much next to my phone mic...so they sound loud but obviously they weren't! And yeah, I hope you're right about the swelling and that being the main cause for my ability to still go super low...to around 90 or 100hz....though of course it feels like more effort to get down there so that's a good sign...and as the swelling subsides and the folds get thinner, these lower frequencies should slowly but surely lift...that's my hope...I hate them still being there!!

General standard advice #2: Take your time :P ;)
No, seriously - imagine you had no day 7 recordings, like most girls here dont have, would you still think it is a success so far? I think the botox really does a lot of change especially in the terms of crackiness and such. Plus I believe that as in many surgeries, healing can go weird ways and swelling can go up even more after a week and then subside later. I would not worry - it is great that you can easily do this pitch and that this is I presume your no-effort pitch now? In that terms then itis a great success, the hoarsness will go away, I am sure of it - time and botox wearing off will do that :) - and regarding the low ends - if you still can do them, but you have to deliberately push to get there, I would not worry now. The goal was that these low tones dont get into the way of your daily voice, laughing and all that - who cares if they are still there if you can barely reach them with effort ;)

Wow! I'm speechless. Wonderful :)

Thanks Anjaq :D I'll reply to your points a little more when other people have had a chance to let me know their thoughts!

Carly - Sorry I forget to say...the name of the app I use is gStrings - it's very easy to use and I love it! And ahhh, a Manchester girl, hiiii *waves* I went to uni there so have a big place in my heart for the city and visit often!

Epic! You sound like the narrator on forensic detectives (Crime night, on Discovery channel) :D That's a compliment :D

I wish you the best in the healing process, and must those syllables come flowing out of you in the very near future ;) I'm heading off to Yeson my self tomorrow o.O with the examination on monday and op on tuesday. Kind of freaked at the moment :p

All the Best, Meghan! :) (y)

Quote from: EllieM on July 02, 2014, 10:28:16 AM

Wow! I'm speechless. Wonderful :)

Didn't expect that kinda response, especially with my most recent crappier quality voice but thank you!!!  :D

Quote from: MeganChristine on July 03, 2014, 02:51:52 AM
Epic! You sound like the narrator on forensic detectives (Crime night, on Discovery channel) :D That's a compliment :D

I wish you the best in the healing process, and must those syllables come flowing out of you in the very near future ;) I'm heading off to Yeson my self tomorrow o.O with the examination on monday and op on tuesday. Kind of freaked at the moment :p

Are you serious, Megan? LOL u just gave me the biggest smile. Thanks for that!! I really was feeling very down the last couple of days with the quality of my voice now when I say a few words being pretty crap but hope it's due to all the points I put above and possibly tiring out the voice with a few more words than I should have been saying too....I easily went over the '2 to 3 words' when I was testing it..though I was super careful to be the most gentle I could be with the smallest amount of air for it to come out clear!

Since Yesterday morning I've not said a word and I've decided to not say a single word for another couple of days to give it a total rest and see if that improves things. Also might be lucky in that the effect of the Botox might start wearing off a bit lessening the excess breathiness making it very hard for words to come out nice and crisp in the upper range (like they did on day 7..incredibly!)...which is where my voice feels most comfortable being now obviously...though I can still go low...but it feels less comfortable..very strange sensation..more on that later. Still hoping for few others to give their thoughts but not many so far, boooooo!

So the last week I've been chomping on pomegranate, blueberries, goji berries (researched my super fruits!), walnuts, aloe vera drink...interestingly the same I discovered in Korea, Tesco here in England have just started selling it, so happy, you have no idea...I thoroughly recommend drinking that if you get bored of water...actually I recommend it over water personally....the brand is 'Grace' but there are several brands in Korea so u can go for any....tastes great and filled with tonnes of bits of actual Aloe Vera. If you already know about Aloe Vera, you'll know the many health benefits it has, among which soothing and anti-inflammatory properties and I really think it's a great thing to be washing around over the surgical area post-op. Maybe that's part of the reason my voice sounded so clear and crisp on day 7, who knows..I lived on the stuff over there and now I'm able to carry on drinking it in massive quantities here too. Even when this is all healed I'll continue because Aloe Vera is so healthy. As well as sipping on 2 or 3 bottles of that a day, ive just made myself a ginger tea by boiling fresh ginger root and adding honey......it's a tad spicy as we know...but not enough to irritate, I'm pretty sure...and again....both ginger and honey have great properties that likely benefit our healing. So even though I've never pigged out on junk food all the time like some people I know, I'm suddenly becoming a major health freak...and yet I'm genuinely loving it...been doing this for a week or so and i swear I'm starting to feel different..genuinely feel glowing today!!!

Sending looooads of luck for your op anyway...go get em...you'll be fine!! Strangely I had zero nerves at all during the build-up...it was literally only when I was sat in the recovery room waiting for Dr. Kim to pop in for our chat just before being taken to the operating room that I suddenly thought 'Oh ->-bleeped-<-!' and I genuinely freaked a little. But you'll be waking up in what feels like seconds..and just remember to keep asking for ice cream..keep pressing that call button haha..the nurse couldn't be sweeter about it as I wrote in an earlier post :D..it's the one thing that totally numbs that horrible burning/cold symptoms sensation you'll likely feel for the first 2 or 3 hours after waking up until it subsides.

Big hug,

Gigi

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 03, 2014, 07:30:53 AM
Are you serious, Megan? LOL u just gave me the biggest smile. Thanks for that!! I really was feeling very down the last couple of days with the quality of my voice now when I say a few words being pretty crap but hope it's due to all the points I put above and possibly tiring out the voice with a few more words than I should have been saying too....I easily went over the '2 to 3 words' when I was testing it..though I was super careful to be the most gentle I could be with the smallest amount of air for it to come out clear!

Yes, I'm serious. It was my first thought :) Got a flashback to Crime Night on Discovery. The one day in the week, Thursday, where I would actually watch the tellie.
You are very welcome :D

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 03, 2014, 07:30:53 AM
Since Yesterday morning I've not said a word and I've decided to not say a single word for another couple of days to give it a total rest and see if that improves things. Also might be lucky in that the effect of the Botox might start wearing off a bit lessening the excess breathiness making it very hard for words to come out nice and crisp in the upper range (like they did on day 7..incredibly!)...which is where my voice feels most comfortable being now obviously...though I can still go low...but it feels less comfortable..very strange sensation..more on that later. Still hoping for few others to give their thoughts but not many so far, boooooo!

Hey, come one people give it up for Gigi here! ;)) I bet you are quote anxious to get some feed back. The excitement and the insecurity of the healing process kicked in much? ;) I thought it was lovley, could hear the "roughness" had been shaved off, and it was much more clear.

I'll probably go totally crazy my self in three weeks time, haha!   

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 03, 2014, 07:30:53 AM
So the last week I've been chomping on pomegranate, blueberries, goji berries (researched my super fruits!), walnuts, aloe vera drink...interestingly the same I discovered in Korea, Tesco here in England have just started selling it, so happy, you have no idea...I thoroughly recommend drinking that if you get bored of water...actually I recommend it over water personally....the brand is 'Grace' but there are several brands in Korea so u can go for any....tastes great and filled with tonnes of bits of actual Aloe Vera. If you already know about Aloe Vera, you'll know the many health benefits it has, among which soothing and anti-inflammatory properties and I really think it's a great thing to be washing around over the surgical area post-op. Maybe that's part of the reason my voice sounded so clear and crisp on day 7, who knows..I lived on the stuff over there and now I'm able to carry on drinking it in massive quantities here too. Even when this is all healed I'll continue because Aloe Vera is so healthy. As well as sipping on 2 or 3 bottles of that a day, ive just made myself a ginger tea by boiling fresh ginger root and adding honey......it's a tad spicy as we know...but not enough to irritate, I'm pretty sure...and again....both ginger and honey have great properties that likely benefit our healing. So even though I've never pigged out on junk food all the time like some people I know, I'm suddenly
becoming a major health freak...and yet I'm genuinely loving it...been doing this for a week or so and i swear I'm starting to feel different..genuinely feel glowing today!!!

I know those fruits and berries and I love them :) we have this place called Smoothie Exchange where I work, and I'm such a sucker for "go green" :D We have become health nuts here :p I usually put frozen bananas in the blender with coconut milk/almond milk and make ice cream of that, topped with blue berries and raspberries.

The only "poison" I must have is coffee, so it's going to be quite interesting being without it for two months. Yep, I'll call it detox or even rehab, but I can already see a major relapse when the two months are over.

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 03, 2014, 07:30:53 AM
Sending looooads of luck for your op anyway...go get em...you'll be fine!! Strangely I had zero nerves at all during the build-up...it was literally only when I was sat in the recovery room waiting for Dr. Kim to pop in for our chat just before being taken to the operating room that I suddenly thought 'Oh ->-bleeped-<-!' and I genuinely freaked a little. But you'll be waking up in what feels like seconds..and just remember to keep asking for ice cream..keep pressing that call button haha..the nurse couldn't be sweeter about it as I wrote in an earlier post :D..it's the one thing that totally numbs that horrible burning/cold symptoms sensation you'll likely feel for the first 2 or 3 hours after waking up until it subsides.

Thank you so much :D So excited, freaked and eager at the same time. As I type this it's only 19hours 52minutes and 21 seconds to take off. :D Maybe I'll be sitting examination room 3 on Monday too.
Going to try and make some voice samples before it's gone for good. Haha! I wonder if I'm ever going to be able to impersonate Gollum again.

Big hugs
-MegC

Hey Gigi love!!

You know, it does sound to me like your voice is just settling a little it sounds breathy like it's finding itself, and now that I heard a couple more examples of other girls before and afters, time plays a big role in the settling and the pitch only goes higher, I can definitely hear big improvements Hun!

Please keep posting you sassy sista!!

Oh and thanks for the info on the app and all that, I think I'll do some recordings myself and see how it goes, I'm thinking of basically leaving it up to y'all to decide if up I should go for it, I do find the idea of Korea like its way far but I think the fact that you went there all the way from the UK yourself says it can be done!! How much would u say it was in pounds with exchange rates right now? (Sorry for cheeky question)  I'll be looking into the Dr. In Belgium too...

Omg just read you went to uni here?! We do just need to just get together one of these days for drinkies.!

Hugs Gigicakes

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 01, 2014, 11:38:32 AM
Hi guys!

Hope you're well Kim and still having an easy recovery back home!

And thank you Barbie....bit sad I didn't get to see you in Seoul like I did Joanna but if you're ever in England we'll make up for it and hook up for a coffee or cocktail..when caffeine and alcohol are back on the menu of course!

This will be a briefish post but will do a longer one later. For now I'll say yesterday was officially 2 weeks post-op and recovery has been going pretty much problem free. I say 'pretty much' because a couple of days after arriving back home, I did start having a 'frog in the throat' feeling (was really quite unpleassant but bearable!) when I swallowed. I had a hunch it was the effect of the botox as the sensation did feel like it was in my throat muscles too. I contacted Jessie and she didn't seem too concerned so that put my mind at ease and luckily as a few days passed the feeling went and now it's pretty much gone.

Giji,

Yes. It seems that you returned home without any serious problem and your VFS results are as good as expected.
The monsoon season started here, and the first typhoon of this year is approaching the peninsula.
For a while, I am scheduled to fly to Seoul at least once every week, but I am anyway on summer break.
A lot of tourists are visiting here Jeju island.
Yes. I wish to meet you on someday.
Take care of your throat.

barbie~~

Quote from: MeganChristine on July 03, 2014, 04:01:30 PM

Yes, I'm serious. It was my first thought :) Got a flashback to Crime Night on Discovery. The one day in the week, Thursday, where I would actually watch the tellie.
You are very welcome :D

Hey, come one people give it up for Gigi here! ;)) I bet you are quote anxious to get some feed back. The excitement and the insecurity of the healing process kicked in much? ;) I thought it was lovley, could hear the "roughness" had been shaved off, and it was much more clear.

I'll probably go totally crazy my self in three weeks time, haha!   


I know those fruits and berries and I love them :) we have this place called Smoothie Exchange where I work, and I'm such a sucker for "go green" :D We have become health nuts here :p I usually put frozen bananas in the blender with coconut milk/almond milk and make ice cream of that, topped with blue berries and raspberries.

The only "poison" I must have is coffee, so it's going to be quite interesting being without it for two months. Yep, I'll call it detox or even rehab, but I can already see a major relapse when the two months are over.

Thank you so much :D So excited, freaked and eager at the same time. As I type this it's only 19hours 52minutes and 21 seconds to take off. :D Maybe I'll be sitting examination room 3 on Monday too.
Going to try and make some voice samples before it's gone for good. Haha! I wonder if I'm ever going to be able to impersonate Gollum again.

Big hugs
-MegC

I'd never seen that program before but I youtubed it and that's when my huge smile came...she has an aussie accent tho! Are you American? Sorry I forget if you've said where you're based in other posts. I know Americans seem to think our British Accent and Aussie accents are similar at times but to us they're very different...haha in any case, accent aside, yes I was beaming at your comment once I'd heard her voice...as she sounds a bit like .. wait for it....Gillian Anderson! Arghh I think her voice is divine...if I'm fortunate enough to be able to sound anything her I'll be a VERY happy lady :D
Gotta say you may well be responsible for a future frozen banana/coconut milk etc. addiction as I now have my sights firmly set on trying it and loving soon...great tip!

Weeeeell...I forget the exactly time you wrote your post yesterday but you should be just about on your way to Seoul now, right? Safe trip and shall chat when you're there....if you're like me and obsess to a silly amount, yes you will likely be going a bit mental in 3 weeks time...probably sooner! If you're in room 3 it will be weird (/cool? ha) knowing I sat right there...I did wonder who else had been there before me..odd feeling...as if the experience itself wasnt surreal enough! And having reread a few posts, it turns out even one of our top Yeson gals Jenny can still get down to around 130hz (though quite quiet as it's the very bottom end obviously!) so that put my mind at little at ease knowing it only has to lift 30 odd hz for me to have the same bottom end as her (my pre-op lowest was around 80hz at a push)...as I can still reach 100hz ish..or at least i could when i tested it gently about 3 days ago before i went silent again ... and Gollum isn't overly low is he?....so it's very likely you won't lose him and he be your precious forever...aww bless! :P

Quote from: calicarly on July 04, 2014, 04:20:03 AM
Hey Gigi love!!

You know, it does sound to me like your voice is just settling a little it sounds breathy like it's finding itself, and now that I heard a couple more examples of other girls before and afters, time plays a big role in the settling and the pitch only goes higher, I can definitely hear big improvements Hun!

Please keep posting you sassy sista!!

Oh and thanks for the info on the app and all that, I think I'll do some recordings myself and see how it goes, I'm thinking of basically leaving it up to y'all to decide if up I should go for it, I do find the idea of Korea like its way far but I think the fact that you went there all the way from the UK yourself says it can be done!! How much would u say it was in pounds with exchange rates right now? (Sorry for cheeky question)  I'll be looking into the Dr. In Belgium too...

Omg just read you went to uni here?! We do just need to just get together one of these days for drinkies.!

Hugs Gigicakes

Thanks for the kind words Carlycakes...of course I'll be sure to keep this thread updated...and well if you upload some voice clips I and others can give you our honest opinions as to whether the surgery would be worth it for you, if you like..if you already have such easy of control up at the higher pitches you never know...we may just say you don't need it.....and of course if we hook up for drinkies when I'm recovered and next up in Manchester I'll hear it myself but that won't be for another while yet, boooo...yes went to Uni and miss Manchester dearly sometimes :(..perfect sized city for my taste and even been tempted to move back on occasion but resisted so far in favour of trying new places..and no worries about the app name...sis! ;p mwah!

Quote from: barbie on July 04, 2014, 01:44:41 PM
Giji,

Yes. It seems that you returned home without any serious problem and your VFS results are as good as expected.
The monsoon season started here, and the first typhoon of this year is approaching the peninsula.
For a while, I am scheduled to fly to Seoul at least once every week, but I am anyway on summer break.
A lot of tourists are visiting here Jeju island.
Yes. I wish to meet you on someday.
Take care of your throat.

barbie~~

Thank you Barbie...well ... in the sense there were no sutures tearing and blood spurting, I spose I did return safe!! Just hope my worries subside about the continued lower end of my range and general improvement of my voice when I start speaking again. But I'm probably being a paranoid idiot...I knew I would be like this no matter what .. earlier I was going through some other threads to remind myself of the progress of the other girls here and most were saying their voices sounded like craaaaap for quite a good amount of time! I guess because (amazingly..and quite strangely i guess) my voice sounded quite good when I said a few words on Day 7, that's made me look down on my later results i.e. the words I said a couple days ago...whereas had I not spoken on day 7 and not heard a relatively pleasant horseness and crackiness-free voice, I probably wouldnt be having this paranoia now...that's life!

As for the monsoon season, I'm so glad I got outta there when I did..just before the full-on summer hell hit! For the last couple of days of my stay the humidity and heat ramped up big time and I started to find it pretty unbearable...whereas the entire time before those last couple of days was amazing ... the temperature and weather in general (sunny most days) was just perfect..not too hot and not too humid....ideal....so lucky with my dates! If I go to South Korea again (which I'd like to), I'll be sure to check Jeju island......let me know when you're in England of course and thanks again for the kind words...really appreciate it!

Hugs,

Gigi

 

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 04, 2014, 04:30:54 PM
I'd never seen that program before but I youtubed it and that's when my huge smile came...she has an aussie accent tho! Are you American? Sorry I forget if you've said where you're based in other posts. I know Americans seem to think our British Accent and Aussie accents are similar at times but to us they're very different...haha in any case, accent aside, yes I was beaming at your comment once I'd heard her voice...as she sounds a bit like .. wait for it....Gillian Anderson! Arghh I think her voice is divine...if I'm fortunate enough to be able to sound anything her I'll be a VERY happy lady :D
Gotta say you may well be responsible for a future frozen banana/coconut milk etc. addiction as I now have my sights firmly set on trying it and loving soon...great tip!

Weeeeell...I forget the exactly time you wrote your post yesterday but you should be just about on your way to Seoul now, right? Safe trip and shall chat when you're there....if you're like me and obsess to a silly amount, yes you will likely be going a bit mental in 3 weeks time...probably sooner! If you're in room 3 it will be weird (/cool? ha) knowing I sat right there...I did wonder who else had been there before me..odd feeling...as if the experience itself wasnt surreal enough! And having reread a few posts, it turns out even one of our top Yeson gals Jenny can still get down to around 130hz (though quite quiet as it's the very bottom end obviously!) so that put my mind at little at ease knowing it only has to lift 30 odd hz for me to have the same bottom end as her (my pre-op lowest was around 80hz at a push)...as I can still reach 100hz ish..or at least i could when i tested it gently about 3 days ago before i went silent again ... and Gollum isn't overly low is he?....so it's very likely you won't lose him and he be your precious forever...aww bless! :P

Goood, give into your addiction. ;))
This might sound really stupid, but it hit me yesterday that this burning sensation you feel in the throat would be "something like" the Twilight vampires felt when they are hungry. :p Haha! And the voice changes, just as it did with Bella, whom in the end got a voice that sounded like syllables :p HAHA! I'm such a geekette. :p

Gollum! Gollum! It would be awesome if I still could do the Gollum-"impersonations" afterwards too, and from what you're telling that might be the case :D his voice is more of a gargling type.

Which brings us to Gillian Anderson, I loved her voice! And I loved X-files, until the season where the whole show started it's decline into rubbish.

I'm not from from the states but form the last outpost before the North pole, Norway, not sure with the rest of my countrymen but I sure hear the difference between an aussie and a british :D Love both of the accents :)

You were totally right :D I was on my way to Seoul when you read it. My intension was to reply to this yesterday, but I was totally pooped after a 17 hour long flight so didn't even bother going out looking for food. Haha! I understood the situation when I fell asleep sitting upright on the couch watching "Europa Report".

It's strange to think about it, but tomorrow will be the last day I speak for a while as well as with this voice in general. Going to have to make some recordings before it's too late :p

Well, it's almost 4pm here. Think I've recovered somewhat form the jetlag and heading out to take some pictures. YAY!


Huggers

-MegC

Quote from: MeganChristine on July 06, 2014, 01:50:01 AM
Goood, give into your addiction. ;))
This might sound really stupid, but it hit me yesterday that this burning sensation you feel in the throat would be "something like" the Twilight vampires felt when they are hungry. :p Haha! And the voice changes, just as it did with Bella, whom in the end got a voice that sounded like syllables :p HAHA! I'm such a geekette. :p

Gollum! Gollum! It would be awesome if I still could do the Gollum-"impersonations" afterwards too, and from what you're telling that might be the case :D his voice is more of a gargling type.

Which brings us to Gillian Anderson, I loved her voice! And I loved X-files, until the season where the whole show started it's decline into rubbish.

I'm not from from the states but form the last outpost before the North pole, Norway, not sure with the rest of my countrymen but I sure hear the difference between an aussie and a british :D Love both of the accents :)

You were totally right :D I was on my way to Seoul when you read it. My intension was to reply to this yesterday, but I was totally pooped after a 17 hour long flight so didn't even bother going out looking for food. Haha! I understood the situation when I fell asleep sitting upright on the couch watching "Europa Report".

It's strange to think about it, but tomorrow will be the last day I speak for a while as well as with this voice in general. Going to have to make some recordings before it's too late :p

Well, it's almost 4pm here. Think I've recovered somewhat form the jetlag and heading out to take some pictures. YAY!


Huggers

-MegC

How you recovered from the Jetlag in a matter of hours I have no idea....I'm now perplexed and I don't like you, wink....it took me 2 or 3 days to fully adjust! Glad you got there safe n sound, woo!

I know it's a 'gargling' type of Voice you massive geekette..I wasn't born in a ditch in Somalia!! :D It is, however, quite a high pitched (relatively speaking!) gargling kinda voice muahah. In fact I'll feed a clip of his voice into Praat later and see what comes out, how do you like that geekdom! Sure you'll still be able to do him post-op...and like you I'm a bit of a schizo at times...loool kidding, well actor/actress...I find it great release......and love impersonations..so we'll keep in touch about our progress on all that. Oh you hid your mysterious roots well btw....Scandinavians always speak such perfect English we rarely notice..but I know you guys cheat and watch English TV most of your lives :P...in your case Forensic Detectives!  Though I'm a late starter, I've just recently got into Game of Thrones...omg should have started far sooner, I LOVE it...so you see, my super cool Norwegian friend I am somewhat of a secret geek myself shhh! Also...any excuse to have a lazy few hours (often in bed) with Jon Snow aka Kit Harington...mmm he's so gorgeous...loved him in Pompeii too..which incidentally I watched on my flight out to Korea (the 12 hour direct flight from London Heathrow that I couldn't sleep a wink on!)..the ending scene from that made me sob and want his babies, no joke!

Enjoy your first look around Seoul!!

Mwah!

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 06, 2014, 04:53:03 AM
How you recovered from the Jetlag in a matter of hours I have no idea....I'm now perplexed and I don't like you, wink....it took me 2 or 3 days to fully adjust! Glad you got there safe n sound, woo!

I know it's a 'gargling' type of Voice you massive geekette..I wasn't born in a ditch in Somalia!! :D It is, however, quite a high pitched (relatively speaking!) gargling kinda voice muahah. In fact I'll feed a clip of his voice into Praat later and see what comes out, how do you like that geekdom! Sure you'll still be able to do him post-op...and like you I'm a bit of a schizo at times...loool kidding, well actor/actress...I find it great release......and love impersonations..so we'll keep in touch about our progress on all that. Oh you hid your mysterious roots well btw....Scandinavians always speak such perfect English we rarely notice..but I know you guys cheat and watch English TV most of your lives :P...in your case Forensic Detectives!  Though I'm a late starter, I've just recently got into Game of Thrones...omg should have started far sooner, I LOVE it...so you see, my super cool Norwegian friend I am somewhat of a secret geek myself shhh! Also...any excuse to have a lazy few hours (often in bed) with Jon Snow aka Kit Harington...mmm he's so gorgeous...loved him in Pompeii too..which incidentally I watched on my flight out to Korea (the 12 hour direct flight from London Heathrow that I couldn't sleep a wink on!)..the ending scene from that made me sob and want his babies, no joke!

Enjoy your first look around Seoul!!

Mwah!

Tihihih! I'm used to work shift, so I have developed a nice way to cheat Jetlag, but I must admit it is much harder traveling into the future than into the past :p So this is kind of a message from your future, and here's a spoiler :p The sun will go down today too :p

I took a powernap after breakfast today and forced my self into the shower after that, then I went on hilariously long walk all the way from Gangnam to the Han River, then along the river from Hannam Bridge (Olympic rodeo), past Seongsu Bridge (eonju-ro) to the underpass at Seolleung-ro. From there I walked down Apgujeong-ro Yeson's office. By then my legs was beyond FUBAR so walked back to the nearest metro station and took that back to hotel. which is located a couple of blocks from Gangnam station. Now I'm pretty close to the level of pooped I was yesterday, so I imagine I'll fall asleep quick today too. Haha!


HAHAHA! I totally lost it at the ditch! We trickses, we cheatses, filthy little vikings! You are so right :D I remember when we got SKY back in the 80's. From that very moment I was a sucker for SKY and SuperChannel. DJ Kat show and on the weekends Fun Factory with Andy, Crocker and Snoot! hahaha! That's how I learned English. And since I'm a super geekette I never used a operating system or software in my own native language, that helps too ;) Hmm, Kit Harington, Well hello there ;) He's pretty handsome, but I must admit that Emily Blunt is "helluvalotmore" down my street ;)

Haven't seen Pompeii yet, but I assume that would be something would need to do, if they have it :D Or I could just do what geeks to do see it. :p

But now a midnight snack before I head to bed :D first appointment tomorrow at 1:30pm! *SQUEEEEEEEL!*


huggers

-MegC

Little tied up but just wanted to get a quick message in to say I hope you're pre-op examination went well and as it's getting close to bedtime in Seoul, I'm sending all my best wishes and loads of luck for your operation tomorrow...you'll be fine..even if you're still freaking! I left some lucky angel dust in room 3 just in case you end up using that room! ;p

Big hug,

G

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 07, 2014, 08:18:12 AM
Little tied up but just wanted to get a quick message in to say I hope you're pre-op examination went well and as it's getting close to bedtime in Seoul, I'm sending all my best wishes and loads of luck for your operation tomorrow...you'll be fine..even if you're still freaking! I left some lucky angel dust in room 3 just in case you end up using that room! ;p

Big hug,

G

Awww, thank you fellow Geekette ;) I could feel the all the love and magic in Examination room 3. It's kind of weird knowing that so many have been sitting in that very same chair.

The examinations went really well, and I learned allot about my voice. I tend to use my left vocal fold much more than the right, and because of that there is a gap between the folds in one end. I also use about twice as much air to make a sound. All these things will be corrected, and I will be in the need of the botox shot to paralyze the muscles so I can retrain my brain to utilize both sides :D

I'm so excited! It's like 1am here now, and I'm not able to sleep... Just finished a couple of records... just for the history books :p "The voices that vanished". :p




Normal Voice (https://soundcloud.com/megashayd/normalspeak/s-Nusxd)

Everyday Voice (https://soundcloud.com/megashayd/everydayspeak/s-c4pwS)


Huggers

-MegC

Quote from: MeganChristine on July 07, 2014, 10:58:13 AM
Awww, thank you fellow Geekette ;) I could feel the all the love and magic in Examination room 3. It's kind of weird knowing that so many have been sitting in that very same chair.

The examinations went really well, and I learned allot about my voice. I tend to use my left vocal fold much more than the right, and because of that there is a gap between the folds in one end. I also use about twice as much air to make a sound. All these things will be corrected, and I will be in the need of the botox shot to paralyze the muscles so I can retrain my brain to utilize both sides :D

I'm so excited! It's like 1am here now, and I'm not able to sleep... Just finished a couple of records... just for the history books :p "The voices that vanished". :p




Normal Voice (https://soundcloud.com/megashayd/normalspeak/s-Nusxd)

Everyday Voice (https://soundcloud.com/megashayd/everydayspeak/s-c4pwS)


Huggers

-MegC

Aww, I found it just as hard to sleep the night before. Like you that's also when I recorded some voice clips for the history books. Love your voice clips btw...have a good Norwegian friend who sounds almost the same...crazy I know!! That looovely Nordic accent makes me dream of mystical fjords and glaciers and...Frida from Abba :D

Glad your examinations went well - oooh I remember gagging repeatedly when doing those tests with the laryngoscope down my throat like it was yesterday...urgh! Think I wrote a few posts ago that I was diagnosed with pretty much the same as you - except possibly more severe. Yes, I think my vocal fold function was proper special needs sadly...my left fold was extremely lazy and irregular (forget the medical term now, my mind is mush after a long day) which caused a very irregular vibrating action when the 2 folds came together. Used a lot more than average air to phonate and also had vocal fold assymetry which Dr. Kim has apparently treated by way of his suturing technique to 'balance' them out - so fingers crossed all these things he does will make our voice qualities in general much better aside from the pitch increase.

Anyway big luck again for tomorrow you lovely gal and let us know you're safe and well once it's all over and done with! Hug!

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 07, 2014, 11:14:54 AM
Aww, I found it just as hard to sleep the night before. Like you that's also when I recorded some voice clips for the history books. Love your voice clips btw...have a good Norwegian friend who sounds almost the same...crazy I know!! That looovely Nordic accent makes me dream of mystical fjords and glaciers and...Frida from Abba :D

Glad your examinations went well - oooh I remember gagging repeatedly when doing those tests with the laryngoscope down my throat like it was yesterday...urgh! Think I wrote a few posts ago that I was diagnosed with pretty much the same as you - except possibly more severe. Yes, I think my vocal fold function was proper special needs sadly...my left fold was extremely lazy and irregular (forget the medical term now, my mind is mush after a long day) which caused a very irregular vibrating action when the 2 folds came together. Used a lot more than average air to phonate and also had vocal fold assymetry which Dr. Kim has apparently treated by way of his suturing technique to 'balance' them out - so fingers crossed all these things he does will make our voice qualities in general much better aside from the pitch increase.

Anyway big luck again for tomorrow you lovely gal and let us know you're safe and well once it's all over and done with! Hug!

Haha, yep, me and my fellow countrymen from Ogdenville :P ;)) Frida from Abba. It's quite hilarious but I used to hate Abba, I guess it's the type of music that grows on you :p The voice quality == OMG!

You have a nåvegian fweeeend? Awesome :D Where does he/she live?

Strangely enough I didn't gag once - I think I was more focused on the fact that someone was pulling my tongue! :p Hahaha! Had to do it three times since the cam was little off skew on the second pass.

Hm, Maybe we all do have some sort of disorder on our vocal folds, since we all try to compensate in some way :D

I'll send an update tomorrow after the op :D


Big hugs!

-MegC

Quote from: MeganChristine on July 07, 2014, 11:26:51 AM
Haha, yep, me and my fellow countrymen from Ogdenville :P ;)) Frida from Abba. It's quite hilarious but I used to hate Abba, I guess it's the type of music that grows on you :p The voice quality == OMG!

You have a nåvegian fweeeend? Awesome :D Where does he/she live?

Strangely enough I didn't gag once - I think I was more focused on the fact that someone was pulling my tongue! :p Hahaha! Had to do it three times since the cam was little off skew on the second pass.

Hm, Maybe we all do have some sort of disorder on our vocal folds, since we all try to compensate in some way :D

I'll send an update tomorrow after the op :D


Big hugs!

-MegC

How's it going Meg!!? All gone OK? Thinking of u!

And my Norwegian friend lives here in Worcester...she's ace..a great drinking partner too!!

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 08, 2014, 07:49:34 AM
How's it going Meg!!? All gone OK? Thinking of u!

And my Norwegian friend lives here in Worcester...she's ace..a great drinking partner too!!

Hello hello hello :D

Everything is fine. :D 1/3 of the vocal fold tied off. The burning sensation to begin with was ANNOYING 2K14 + 12 Pro Deluxe, but the ice cream to care of that quite fast. it's no been 13 hours since the operation, and I don't feel any pain at all, just something that could remind of the end of a bad cold. Mucus production, mmmmm, seeexheeey. Scared there hell out of me when i unintentionally coughed up exactly that. Tried my best not to make any noise or anything, but the resistance was futile. I just hope nothing happened, I recon I would feel a great deal of pain if it did tear? o.O Oh great, WELCOME Anxiety!

Bought some more Ice creama to have in the freezer here, and the Aloe Vera-drink.. OMG! HEAVEN! I'm going hunting for that tomorrow :D Been sleeping throughout most of the postop recovery, so my sleep for tonight might be kind of bonked.

Hmmm... Worcester, Don't know of anyone living there, but I have a couple of friends living in London :D Sadly enough, I've just been to London. Haven't seen the other parts of England. o.O


Walking past all the coffee places here is hard now... :/ 2 months left before I can drink my poison again.

Big Hugs!

-MegC

Quote from: MeganChristine on July 08, 2014, 09:15:58 AM
Hello hello hello :D

Everything is fine. :D 1/3 of the vocal fold tied off. The burning sensation to begin with was ANNOYING 2K14 + 12 Pro Deluxe, but the ice cream to care of that quite fast. it's no been 13 hours since the operation, and I don't feel any pain at all, just something that could remind of the end of a bad cold. Mucus production, mmmmm, seeexheeey. Scared there hell out of me when i unintentionally coughed up exactly that. Tried my best not to make any noise or anything, but the resistance was futile. I just hope nothing happened, I recon I would feel a great deal of pain if it did tear? o.O Oh great, WELCOME Anxiety!

Bought some more Ice creama to have in the freezer here, and the Aloe Vera-drink.. OMG! HEAVEN! I'm going hunting for that tomorrow :D Been sleeping throughout most of the postop recovery, so my sleep for tonight might be kind of bonked.

Hmmm... Worcester, Don't know of anyone living there, but I have a couple of friends living in London :D Sadly enough, I've just been to London. Haven't seen the other parts of England. o.O


Walking past all the coffee places here is hard now... :/ 2 months left before I can drink my poison again.

Big Hugs!

-MegC

Yaaaay, great news...but omg, lazy Meg! Sleeping thru most of your bed-rest time...lucky you...I didn't get a wink...just kept scrolling the channels .. and pressing the buzzer for more ice cream of course! Glad it worked to numb your cruddy post-op pain too!!

And don't worry...I coughed once, as quick as lightening and involuntarily when I got back to the hotel few hours later...scary isnt it! But no, rest assured that unless there's searing pain (and probably blood!) no damage will have been done...straight from Jessie's mouth! So relaaaaaaaax...by all accounts it takes a LOT to mess it up and tear the stitches a part...a lot more than the odd, even strong cough....a scream for instance! Obviously be very careful and try your best to be perfect but when you realise that you can start relaxing a bit more!!

If you're on facebook private message me and we'll add each other if u want...then if you ever want to see more of England other than London (and don't worry..most Londoners don't think there's an England beyond London..how wrong they are!! ;p) come over! I have an ulterior motive in being so nice...and that is that I'd love to see Norway too of course ;) My Norwegian friend hasn't been back in a few years.

Rest up then now..and relaaaaaaax...and let me know how the Aloe drink goes down...mmmm...I'm sipping one right now!

Hug,

Gigi

P.s. Were you in Room 3 in the end? You didn't say!!

And I hear you about the coffee - I was gagging for it in Seoul but after the first couple of weeks, I stopped craving it ... now I actually feel a lot more energised than I used to be, even after the caffeine boost..and having read some articles about quitting caffeine completely, i think I may well stay off it long-term now....never thought I'd say that!

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 08, 2014, 10:18:40 AM
P.s. Were you in Room 3 in the end? You didn't say!!

And I hear you about the coffee - I was gagging for it in Seoul but after the first couple of weeks, I stopped craving it ... now I actually feel a lot more energised than I used to be, even after the caffeine boost..and having read some articles about quitting caffeine completely, i think I may well stay off it long-term now....never thought I'd say that!

Me too!  I'd have killed for Starbucks frappuccino with caramel squiggles! It was SO hot out there

I had my VFS 13 days ago... not sure what room it was but it was directly at the end of the corridor. Had a nice sofa for my partner to chill on :) 

I said 3 words on day 11 and recorded it into Praat and was fairly shocked to see that my average frequency had risen from 143 to 231hz! WTF? Is that even possible? But I had a tiny sneeze this morning and some sort of clot came up... I'm really worried about it. So scared I've damaged something.  My wife pointed out that because mine bled a little it could have come from my lungs and not the op site... fingers crossed!!! These post-op two months are really bloody stressful, nearly as bad as the fear of catching a cold pre-op!

Quote from: Livvykins on July 08, 2014, 11:14:44 AM
Me too!  I'd have killed for Starbucks frappuccino with caramel squiggles! It was SO hot out there

I had my VFS 13 days ago... not sure what room it was but it was directly at the end of the corridor. Had a nice sofa for my partner to chill on :) 

I said 3 words on day 11 and recorded it into Praat and was fairly shocked to see that my average frequency had risen from 143 to 231hz! WTF? Is that even possible? But I had a tiny sneeze this morning and some sort of clot came up... I'm really worried about it. So scared I've damaged something.  My wife pointed out that because mine bled a little it could have come from my lungs and not the op site... fingers crossed!!! These post-op two months are really bloody stressful, nearly as bad as the fear of catching a cold pre-op!

Urgh I can imagine...I flew out of South Korea on 21st June and so glad I did...the weather the last 2 days was getting unbearably hot and stuffy!

Congrats on your surgery and great result on your average frequency! Defo a good start and will hopefully lead to a great recovery.

Awww really sorrry to hear about the strange clot that came up when you sneezed...that's very odd so ask jessie just to be sure and see if she has any ideas. Unless you had any pain though I guarantee you you're worrying over nothing...at this point the vocal folds will have healed very firmly over the permanent sutures so surely the pain would be all the worse if anything had happened so you'll be fine!
Tell me about it....the stress and general up and down emotions in anticipation of getting the result we want. The 20th July (my general conversation state date) can't come soon enough so I can start experimenting lots more and really starting to get a hang of it all and getting over the odd paranoid feeling that maybe I'm just not meant to have a beautiful floating angel voice! ;p

If you heard my voice clips above btw, feel free to gimme your thoughts if you like. I realise I said more than the '2 to 3 words' recommended to record them but only a few more and was super gentle.

As for the catching the cold beforehand leading to the op being cancelled, omg, remember the stress well! Luckily my obsessive daily doses of echinacea may have helped...it's miraculous that stuff...even if the affect is placebo to an extent it's always seemed to keep my immune system strong when I've needed it!

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 08, 2014, 02:15:29 PM
Urgh I can imagine...I flew out of South Korea on 21st June and so glad I did...the weather the last 2 days was getting unbearably hot and stuffy!

Congrats on your surgery and great result on your average frequency! Defo a good start and will hopefully lead to a great recovery.

Awww really sorrry to hear about the strange clot that came up when you sneezed...that's very odd so ask jessie just to be sure and see if she has any ideas. Unless you had any pain though I guarantee you you're worrying over nothing...at this point the vocal folds will have healed very firmly over the permanent sutures so surely the pain would be all the worse if anything had happened so you'll be fine!
Tell me about it....the stress and general up and down emotions in anticipation of getting the result we want. The 20th July (my general conversation state date) can't come soon enough so I can start experimenting lots more and really starting to get a hang of it all and getting over the odd paranoid feeling that maybe I'm just not meant to have a beautiful floating angel voice! ;p

If you heard my voice clips above btw, feel free to gimme your thoughts if you like. I realise I said more than the '2 to 3 words' recommended to record them but only a few more and was super gentle.

As for the catching the cold beforehand leading to the op being cancelled, omg, remember the stress well! Luckily my obsessive daily doses of echinacea may have helped...it's miraculous that stuff...even if the affect is placebo to an extent it's always seemed to keep my immune system strong when I've needed it!

OMG it was SO hot and stuffy, but I absolutely loved Seoul!  I had to buy a new case to bring back all the cosmetics I bought! The palaces and stuff were nice as well... (priorities though!) Did you buy many clothes out there?  I was expecting too but didn't at all.  Although I got some nice bits in 'Doota!' such a cool store.

Gratuitous Seoul shopping photo...

(https://www.susans.org/forums/gallery/0/34951-060714100916.jpeg)

I emailed Jessie and she didn't sound all that worried, but said if I pop to an ENT here and get a picture that they would have a good look. There's been no pain so I think I'll give it a week or so before thinking about an ENT and see what happens

I did another short (but slightly longer) voice recording last night and it came out at around 211hz which seems a lot more reasonable.  It could because the first one was so short that the average was higher...

I listened to your voice clips and thought you sounded amazing, for such a short space of time as well! You must be really pleased!  I might post the one I did last night on here later, although I hate the sound of my own voice and I wasn't making any resonance effort... I just wanted to hear the natural pitch it came out at.  Question... do you find that when you talk it's like your brain hasn't caught up and it try's to use a lower register that's not available any more so you have to adjust how you're using your voice?

Ok, I know it's gross but no one else is posting post-op pics, so I'm going to as I think it's proper clever! I'm sure everyone's look very similar but here is mine :)

(https://www.susans.org/forums/gallery/0/34951-060714101927.jpeg)

Haha, I know what you mean... I was taking every immune boosting supplement out there, and this horrible 'First Defence' stuff that's disgusting but is meant to protect you from germs... I was a bit snuffly on the plane flying out and pretty much had a panic attack!

I just realised that we'd have been in Seoul at the same time! I arrive on the 21st June, had my pre-op on the 23rd, op on the 25th, post-op consult on the 1st.

-Livvy x

Livvy - 211 Hz sounds good :P - I guess I would be fine even with less LOL - I am almost as scared as going too high in pitch as going too low ;) - Weird, isn't it. Most girls here would rather have it higher than not but I know one woman who had a VFS some years ago and I found it off beack then as she was big and then had this tiny voice to go with it ;)
I sure hope you will not hate your voice anymore though :o - should that not get all better now?

I totally would like to know the answer to

QuoteQuestion... do you find that when you talk it's like your brain hasn't caught up and it try's to use a lower register that's not available any more so you have to adjust how you're using your voice?

as well! :)

Congrats Meghan for getting past the hospital day :)

Quote from: anjaq on July 09, 2014, 10:26:06 AM
Livvy - 211 Hz sounds good :P - I guess I would be fine even with less LOL - I am almost as scared as going too high in pitch as going too low ;) - Weird, isn't it. Most girls here would rather have it higher than not but I know one woman who had a VFS some years ago and I found it off beack then as she was big and then had this tiny voice to go with it ;)
I sure hope you will not hate your voice anymore though :o - should that not get all better now?

Hey! Yeah I'd certainly be happy with that.  My starting was 143, so with an average increase of 75hz (which would put me at 218) it's certainly not bad at all for such a short space of time... I'm trying to be relaxed about it all though, it's so early days that although it's a good indicator it might not end up like that at all... I have no idea

I'm quite small around 5'6 so a higher voice suits I think... I'd be very happy for my voice just to pass, anything else would be a bonus!  Also... I really want to still be able to sing properly!  I think the problem with me is that if I can hear my old self in my voice, I won't be convinced I sound fem... Just the same that I've never been convinced I look female because I can still elements of how I was in the mirror.  It's probably crazy... I've started having NLP to help myself deal with the dysmorphia.

I envy everyone starting at 140. I originally have 110 although I rarely slip that deep anymore. . I am 5'8, so not that tiny and especially I am big. I really owuld love to sing, but nowadays I do not really dare to. I totally get the issue about hearing the old elements and seeing them. I was hoping VFS would be good in getting that better. FFS supposedly helps with the visual issues as well. But I think some elements will stay. Maybe some psychological help would really be beneficial. My voice really is a problem, so I knwo that, but everyone tells me my face is good and I dont see it. But NLP sounds scary

Quote from: anjaq on July 09, 2014, 02:01:25 PM
I envy everyone starting at 140. I originally have 110 although I rarely slip that deep anymore. . I am 5'8, so not that tiny and especially I am big. I really owuld love to sing, but nowadays I do not really dare to. I totally get the issue about hearing the old elements and seeing them. I was hoping VFS would be good in getting that better. FFS supposedly helps with the visual issues as well. But I think some elements will stay. Maybe some psychological help would really be beneficial. My voice really is a problem, so I knwo that, but everyone tells me my face is good and I dont see it. But NLP sounds scary

Honestly NLP is amazing and not scary at all (considering all the other things we go through), and so so much more powerful than standard psychological help... I had some along with a bit of CBT in my early 20's for anxiety, was very effective!

FFS can help SO much, but like VFS the results aren't instant... We're told they're not instant, we except pre-op that they're not instant, we tell the surgeon we totally understand that it won't be instant... but the second we've had the surgery we're like AGHH OMG there's no difference!!! And when the changes do come, they're so slow that we just don't notice them and your brain doesn't see or hear (in the case of VFS) the changes. We're a bit of a nightmare aren't we... ;)  I'd hate to be a surgeon (although the salary would be nice!) FFS made a huge difference to me but it took a year before the swelling had gone down. I'm so hopeful that VFS will make as big a difference, it certainly has the potential to. My confidence and self-esteem suffer so much because of my voice, so fingers crossed!!

Hi Anja,

Quote from: anjaq on July 09, 2014, 10:26:06 AM
I totally would like to know the answer to
Question... do you find that when you talk it's like your brain hasn't caught up and it try's to use a lower register that's not available any more so you have to adjust how you're using your voice?
as well! :)

The answer is a shocking YES. Especially with singing, which I've started again. The treble range is now almost back to pre-op levels, and the lower end cuts off at a very soft C3.

It's so ingrained in me to take it easy on the volume if I venture below G3, and not to sing below D3 at all, that I sometimes still sing deliberately soft down there, and all that comes out is barely above a whisper, when indeed I should have sung at medium volume in order to make the phrase come out right.

Another one of the tricks my mind is playing on me is that I still unconsciously raise my voice when talking and the words are at a silly high pitch then. Of course, I hear it and relax. But it's still happening, 3 months post.

Greetings,

Amy

Sorry for the delay Livvy!

Ewww groooooss! ;p just kidding....your vocal chords look veeeery neat in those pics. Because my schedule was a little different to the norm and I had my post-op checkup on day 5 post op, all 4 of my photos were all the same...relaxed open position, tut..because it was too early for me to make any sounds during the examination but hey ho.

Yes I know....you arrived on the day I left...shame! U look so pleased with yourself in that pic with the bags, cute! I did a little shopping here and there but no clothes....just the odd piece of jewellery and...Soju! ;p For when I'm allowed to drink again of course. Spent most of my time (with my mother!) exploring and, like you, was so impressed by the various palaces and absolutely loved the sereneness of Hanok Village...and the cable car up to the Namsan tower and the amazing views over Seoul (that's when you really appreciate how enormous the city is), among many other things.

One thing I was very happy about was my choice of Hotel...the Fraser Place Central Seoul...we had a 1-bedroom deluxe suite and it was enormous with 2 (!) bathrooms, separate lounge and kitchen and I requested a high-floor and the view from the floor to ceiling windows (one in the bedroom..one in the lounge/kitchen) was incredible...it was the perfect self-catered place in its own right and yet still felt like a hotel with a restaurant, games room, roof-top terrace, swimming pool, full room service etc etc...loved the area being so close to City Hall Metro and best of all, the price was great so I'd recommend it to anyone.

I was talking with super cool Norwegian gal Meg (who has been posting in this thread just a couple of days ago and has just had her op) about how happy I was to be in Jung-gu...loved spending some time exploring Gangnam but I found it very full-on and at times a bit claustrophobic so Jung-gu and north of the river in general definitely turned out to be more my kind of place and that's where we spent most of our time.

Quote from: Livvykins on July 09, 2014, 03:19:37 AM
I listened to your voice clips and thought you sounded amazing, for such a short space of time as well! You must be really pleased!  I might post the one I did last night on here later, although I hate the sound of my own voice and I wasn't making any resonance effort... I just wanted to hear the natural pitch it came out at.  Question... do you find that when you talk it's like your brain hasn't caught up and it try's to use a lower register that's not available any more so you have to adjust how you're using your voice?

Thanks for the comments on my clips so far - still anxiously awaiting my general convo start date so I can really get a feel for things. Like you, I'll probably worry lots expecting miracles immediately but like everything, patience will no doubt be key in the coming months. I met one girl, Joanna (who has also posted in this thread if you look back) in Seoul who had had her operation about a week before me...amazing girl and we stay in contact via email at the moment. (In case you're reading this, I hope you don't mind me saying Joanna!) She has started her general conversation and if she speaks in her relaxed voice she says the pitch is still the same as her pre-op but she sounds very confident and hopeful that results will start to happen soon and I'm sure she's right...Dr. Kim reiterates after all that many people don't experience any pitch increase until a couple of months post-op.

As for when I talk...if I say a few words and try to not talk in a lighter head or mixed voice, I am actually able to sink quite low to almost pre-op levels. I can feel in my throat that this is lower than it ideally wants to be but those lower pitches are definitely still available to me. Are you saying you've tried to say a few words at a lower pitch and they're just not available to you at all? I'd say that's likely great news and that you're recovery will be a quick one but I find this issue a bit confusing. Some girls on here have stated like you that these lower pitches aren't available very early in recovery and then this lower range (along with their higher range) extends as time goes on. And yet a couple of other girls have confirmed they had almost pre-op ability when it came to lower pitches and that this raised (i.e. the lower range progressively went up) as recovery went on. So this difference in recovery isn't something I fully understand but oh well...fingers crossed both mean an equally good recovery!

Gigi

Here's a shot I got of me and gorgeous Jessie on the day of my post-op checkup!

(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi90.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fk246%2Fsuperjax00%2F54e8e4c8-e4ce-43cc-8bc0-b0b671fd4ea6_zpsbbb3db31.jpg&hash=9fd99e7c6b40c4ee4edda26624c681536a44e017) (http://s90.photobucket.com/user/superjax00/media/54e8e4c8-e4ce-43cc-8bc0-b0b671fd4ea6_zpsbbb3db31.jpg.html)

Quote from: AmyBerlin on July 09, 2014, 02:46:11 PM
Hi Anja,

The answer is a shocking YES. Especially with singing, which I've started again. The treble range is now almost back to pre-op levels, and the lower end cuts off at a very soft C3.

It's so ingrained in me to take it easy on the volume if I venture below G3, and not to sing below D3 at all, that I sometimes still sing deliberately soft down there, and all that comes out is barely above a whisper, when indeed I should have sung at medium volume in order to make the phrase come out right.

Another one of the tricks my mind is playing on me is that I still unconsciously raise my voice when talking and the words are at a silly high pitch then. Of course, I hear it and relax. But it's still happening, 3 months post.

Greetings,

Amy

Hi Amy,

Amazed time has flown and you're 3 months post-op already...I've heard your voice clips and your 2 month review and you're sounding great.

Just spotted your post actually - can I ask: I notice you said in one of your previous posts on another thread that immediately post-op you could still get considerably low on the scale, to almost pre-op levels, I seem to remember. Yet you say above that that you're now almost back to preop levels and can reach down to a C3 (which is around 130hz). Could you please tell me about this when you have a minute? It might really help to put my mind at ease as to what is normal in terms of our lower range and how this progresses with recovery.
With the limited test I've done to not strain anything, I was still able to get as low as 100hz (although that was more than a week ago) and haven't tested my lower range with a few words since as I want to await my general convo date.

Many thanks!

Did you compare your lowest voice pre op with the lowest sounds post op?
IIRC Amy was about as low pre op in the lower possible range (not normal speaking range, but really trying to go as low as possible) at around 80 Hz - 130 Hz means a 50 Hz increase in the lower limit, which is good I think (she had only a 2 suture surgery). So you have to compare these absolut elowest notes with each other. I think it is perfectly normal to reach your previous old speaking range if you really try to go as low as you can, as the lower limit usually is still way below that

Hey Anjaq,

I'll test properly when I get to my general convo date but, like I said, the last time I gently swept down at super low volume (a week ago), I could go down to around 100hz. Pre-op the absolute bottom I could get to was around 80hz approx (I forget the exact note).

I forget Amy's post where she describes the lowest note she could get to very early in her recovery but seem to remeember her saying it was very close to her pre-op bottom end. I'd love to hear Amy, if you're reading, I can't find that post of yours now :/

I also remember reading in someone's thread that Jenny was able to bottom out at around the 130hz range after some post-op recovery time but think in her case her bottom end was a lot higher earlier on in recovery. This is why I'm unsure about this issue - for some the bottom ends starts higher and extends lower with more recovery. For others, it starts super low similar to pre-op and goes higher with more recovery.

Now if I were to end up being able to bottom out at around 130hz, I'll be very happy. I just didn't like that I could still reach as low as 100hz at all. To me that still means I can reach very low masculine levels...maybe a psychological thing but it scares me! I hope I'm being a paranoid stress-head and with any luck when my general convo date starts, perhaps my bottom range won't be as low...who knows....totally guessing as this is an issue I know very little about so would love to hear other people's experiences if poss.

Dear Gigi,

I just saw this, so I'd like to answer your questions:

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 12, 2014, 08:58:50 AM
I notice you said in one of your previous posts on another thread that immediately post-op you could still get considerably low on the scale, to almost pre-op levels, I seem to remember. Yet you say above that that you're now almost back to preop levels and can reach down to a C3 (which is around 130hz).

Post-surgery, I never was able to reach down to pre-op levels on the low end: pre-op, my bottom note on a normal day was E2 (82.4 Hz). Post-op, my lowest note on the worst of days was a Bb2 (116.5 Hz, a diminished fifth higher), and on a normal day, it is a C3 (130.8 Hz). So in terms of lowest possible note, I've had about a 50 Hz increase.

In terms of speaking pitch, or F0, I went from around 150 Hz (old male voice)/180 Hz (trained voice) to 209 Hz, which constitutes a 60/30 Hz increase. Mind you, I've only had a 2-suture surgery, so more is to be expected if you received 3 sutures.

What I said was "almost back to preop levels" was my high register. Preop, the transition point to falsetto was around E4 (330 Hz). I used to be able to reach up to B4 (494 Hz) in falsetto and extend this to G#5 (831 Hz) with flageolet aka whistle register. Nowadays, there is no real break in the voice and modal voice extends from the C3 up to E5 (660 Hz), but this range is nowhere near final, it still keeps extending at the top. I haven't been able to reach into flageolet post-operatively. It just doesn't speak yet or maybe it works differently now and I'm doing it wrong. My voice teacher tells me not to worry about it and concentrate on working on the part of my voice that does speak easily.

A bit of vocal advice: Gigi, please don't strain testing your low end. Extremely loud low notes are more stressful for the voice than trying loud high notes.

Regards,

Amy

Quote from: AmyBerlin on July 15, 2014, 01:54:03 AM
Dear Gigi,

I just saw this, so I'd like to answer your questions:

Post-surgery, I never was able to reach down to pre-op levels on the low end: pre-op, my bottom note on a normal day was E2 (82.4 Hz). Post-op, my lowest note on the worst of days was a Bb2 (116.5 Hz, a diminished fifth higher), and on a normal day, it is a C3 (130.8 Hz). So in terms of lowest possible note, I've had about a 50 Hz increase.

In terms of speaking pitch, or F0, I went from around 150 Hz (old male voice)/180 Hz (trained voice) to 209 Hz, which constitutes a 60/30 Hz increase. Mind you, I've only had a 2-suture surgery, so more is to be expected if you received 3 sutures.

What I said was "almost back to preop levels" was my high register. Preop, the transition point to falsetto was around E4 (330 Hz). I used to be able to reach up to B4 (494 Hz) in falsetto and extend this to G#5 (831 Hz) with flageolet aka whistle register. Nowadays, there is no real break in the voice and modal voice extends from the C3 up to E5 (660 Hz), but this range is nowhere near final, it still keeps extending at the top. I haven't been able to reach into flageolet post-operatively. It just doesn't speak yet or maybe it works differently now and I'm doing it wrong. My voice teacher tells me not to worry about it and concentrate on working on the part of my voice that does speak easily.

A bit of vocal advice: Gigi, please don't strain testing your low end. Extremely loud low notes are more stressful for the voice than trying loud high notes.

Regards,

Amy

Hi Amy!

Thank you so much for clarifying that...invaluable information about where you say you noted your breaks and how you modal voice extends so much further up now you're post op too. It'll be very useful information for when I start experimenting from next Monday, my general convo date. Glad we have a musical genius in here that can help us get to grips with more technical aspects!

And don't worry. I did my lower range test extremely gently - at a whisper practically because that's the only volume i could get out at that low pitch - and that was on about day 16 post-op. I probably shouldn't have done that anyway as it's still very early (and I'm an impatient worrier) and the vocal folds are obviously likely to still be at their most swollen, which I suppose, may allow them to make lower frequency notes more easily (due to being thicker).
Interestingly I did a very quick and gentle tone down to my lower range today and it's now 116hz the lowest I can go so hopefully that's a positive sign!

I really am so impressed with how my voice is starting to take shape day by day - and will update on Monday, hopefully with a recording, when I start general conversation.

Thanks again...really appreciate the help!! Tschuuuuus ;p (ich hab Deutsch in der Schule gelernt...es ist schon eine lange Zeit seit ich sprach...manchmal muss ich mein Wörterbuch!! Aber ich liebe Deutschland und Deutsch zu reden!)

G

Hey Gigi!

Hope you are well and your voice is recovering?

I'm finally allowed to talk and have certainly been taking advantage of it!

I recorded a quick one month video for Jessie yesterday... I was very hoarse and had no vocal stamina as I'd been talking on and off all day, which is probably why it starts off well and gets worse by the end.  I really should have recorded it first thing when my voice was rested... I thought I'd share it here anyway though :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJ4UE27Xsj4&index=1&list=UUoVY86enVDAqxSscn5ro8Rw

Hopefully my month two recording will be less hoarse!

Liv x

Quote from: Livvykins on July 28, 2014, 09:01:02 AM
Hey Gigi!

Hope you are well and your voice is recovering?

I'm finally allowed to talk and have certainly been taking advantage of it!

I recorded a quick one month video for Jessie yesterday... I was very hoarse and had no vocal stamina as I'd been talking on and off all day, which is probably why it starts off well and gets worse by the end.  I really should have recorded it first thing when my voice was rested... I thought I'd share it here anyway though :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJ4UE27Xsj4&index=1&list=UUoVY86enVDAqxSscn5ro8Rw

Hopefully my month two recording will be less hoarse!

Liv x

Yes. A little bit hoarse, but definitely feminine voice. In 2-3 months, it certainly will be more natural and feminine.

barbie~~

Sounds really great Liv...u should be happy!! And it doesn't sound overly hoarse either...it's gonna get much better....I'm a little over 1 month and 2 weeks post-op now and I'd planned to get a recording up a week or so ago. I'll try and get one on tonight.

One of the things I can say is that...I'm happy my pitch is raising...and when I read the Rainbow Passage I can always get averages of around 200-210 hz effortlessly (read other girls always get nice high hz readings reading it too)...and when I mentally concentrate on keeping a nice high pitch, it's obviously effortless compared to how it was pre-op with very little sense of 'pulling it up' whatsoever. But....when I talk to some friends and especially my family...my voice can drop way down to around 150hz...still sounding feminine I think with the harsh masculine edge gone but still....to me this is disappointing and something I've been getting a little frustrated about.

I went into this surgery hoping for a quick fix in terms of just 'getting there' pitch wise - not a nice pitch when I focus on it. But then it's early days and I know some girls still have no pitch raise whatsoever after a couple of months post-op. And then there's the talk about having to 'train our brains' into using the higher pitches naturally. So maybe I'm not abnormal at all in that sense. Would you agree with any of the above? Are you finding yourself talking in lower pitches with people? Obviously not as low it could go preop...but say..in the 150hz range?

Good luck on your continued recovery anyway and I'll get either a vid or voice clip of my Rainbow passage reading up very soon!

Gx

Quote from: Gigi_J on July 30, 2014, 12:38:16 PM
Sounds really great Liv...u should be happy!! And it doesn't sound overly hoarse either...it's gonna get much better....I'm a little over 1 month and 2 weeks post-op now and I'd planned to get a recording up a week or so ago. I'll try and get one on tonight.

One of the things I can say is that...I'm happy my pitch is raising...and when I read the Rainbow Passage I can always get averages of around 200-210 hz effortlessly (read other girls always get nice high hz readings reading it too)...and when I mentally concentrate on keeping a nice high pitch, it's obviously effortless compared to how it was pre-op with very little sense of 'pulling it up' whatsoever. But....when I talk to some friends and especially my family...my voice can drop way down to around 150hz...still sounding feminine I think with the harsh masculine edge gone but still....to me this is disappointing and something I've been getting a little frustrated about.

I went into this surgery hoping for a quick fix in terms of just 'getting there' pitch wise - not a nice pitch when I focus on it. But then it's early days and I know some girls still have no pitch raise whatsoever after a couple of months post-op. And then there's the talk about having to 'train our brains' into using the higher pitches naturally. So maybe I'm not abnormal at all in that sense. Would you agree with any of the above? Are you finding yourself talking in lower pitches with people? Obviously not as low it could go preop...but say..in the 150hz range?

Good luck on your continued recovery anyway and I'll get either a vid or voice clip of my Rainbow passage reading up very soon!

Gx

Thanks Gigi, I guess I'm more encouraged than anything, my vocal chords definitely feel like they've been reset and that my natural speaking voice is now that much higher which I'm very pleased about, but I still think I've got a lot of practising to do before it sounds natural and female

I'm guessing you were given this graph as well?

(https://www.susans.org/forums/gallery/0/34951-010814144701.jpeg)

Which shows that according to Yeson our pitch isn't really meant to rise until well into a year post op... I wonder if this graph is given out to manage expectations when it does take much longer to rise, or because that is actually the time it takes most people based on their experience.  I know a couple of girls that have been to Yeson... One of their voices is identical after a month post op, and the others was up maybe 40 hz.  So maybe the norm is a lot less pitch increase after a month than we've had? Dr Kim told me that I could expect a pitch increase after starting to do the exercises which isn't till two months... I guess it's really not an exact science

I think in general people tend to speak in a higher pitch when concentrating on reading... my wife's pitch for example was 238hz when reading rainbow passage and 199hz when just chatting. Mine seems to be around 210-220hz now (up from 143hz) when I'm reading in a relaxed manner and 200-210 when chatting. I did record rainbow passage yesterday whilst trying to raise my voice a little and it shot up to an average of 240hz... Probably a little high.  I'm trying to practise resonance without raising pitch, which I'm finding a little challenging. I

I would imagine despite everyone saying that it's not a quick fix, and it will require time and practise in order to achieve a great result, we all go into this op thinking it WILL be a quick fix... lol Me included! 

I can't wait to hear (or see) your 6 week post op recording!  I'm sure it's going to be beautiful!!

I sent my one to Jessie who said that the result was amazing so far, and asked if I'd mind her using it to make a before/after video... which I'm actually quite pleased about because I've lost the recording I did pre-op so have had nothing to compare too... I'll post the link on here when Jessie sends it to me :)

Liv x

Hi

Interesting descriptin "the vocal chords have been reset" - what do you mean by that?
I think your voice is great anyways - but of course, if you think you can perfect it by more practice, thats good. I would not say you need a "lot of practising" though, but of course its a matter of ones own standards to aim for ;)

Quote from: Livvykins on August 01, 2014, 04:16:49 PM
Which shows that according to Yeson our pitch isn't really meant to rise until well into a year post op...

Thats odd - I was getting the impression here that for many the voice is higher at only 2 months post op. What would take a year to heal to get a igher pitch? Or is it mostly because it is a brain adjustment thing?
Interesting that in the graph, one starts out actually BELOW the "male F0" line - does he say the pitch actually goes down at first?

QuoteI think in general people tend to speak in a higher pitch when concentrating on reading...

Definitely - also I find that people enunciate words more, use  more melody and a different prosody when reading. Using more melody may also raise average pitch, which always also includes the high pitched sylabils

QuoteI'm trying to practise resonance without raising pitch, which I'm finding a little challenging.

Indeed - I try the same now because rasing pitch causes my voice to strain, so I try to just get my resonance right and female and not play too much with pitch at the same time, but it seems at times that if I get resonance really good, my pitch will automatically go up a bit. Not enough in my mind but I guess for some people this is why they dont want a surgery - resonance control is essential anyways and if pitch automatically  goes up with it - why should one force oneself to keep pitch low when doing resonance changes - if both go hand in hand and both are desired...

Quote from: anjaq on August 02, 2014, 06:33:10 PM
Hi

Interesting descriptin "the vocal chords have been reset" - what do you mean by that?
I think your voice is great anyways - but of course, if you think you can perfect it by more practice, thats good. I would not say you need a "lot of practising" though, but of course its a matter of ones own standards to aim for ;)
Thats odd - I was getting the impression here that for many the voice is higher at only 2 months post op. What would take a year to heal to get a igher pitch? Or is it mostly because it is a brain adjustment thing?
Interesting that in the graph, one starts out actually BELOW the "male F0" line - does he say the pitch actually goes down at first?

Definitely - also I find that people enunciate words more, use  more melody and a different prosody when reading. Using more melody may also raise average pitch, which always also includes the high pitched sylabils
Indeed - I try the same now because rasing pitch causes my voice to strain, so I try to just get my resonance right and female and not play too much with pitch at the same time, but it seems at times that if I get resonance really good, my pitch will automatically go up a bit. Not enough in my mind but I guess for some people this is why they dont want a surgery - resonance control is essential anyways and if pitch automatically  goes up with it - why should one force oneself to keep pitch low when doing resonance changes - if both go hand in hand and both are desired...

Hey there,

I think what I was tying to say in a clumsy way, is that my base pitch when I open my mouth and talk naturally has got that much higher. And now when I try and raise my pitch it goes up from the base pitch.  Does that explain it any better?

Yeah, you see that confuses me too...  I think all of the actual healing is done by 2 months, since you're then allowed to sing and shout.  You're meant to start the vocal exercises at 2 months which is supposed to start the process of your pitch raising... So it's a bit confusing that it goes up straight away for so many.  I was also told that it takes longer for the pitch to go up if you have the Botox injection, as it completely relaxing the vocal chords. I guess some of it could be the brain adjustment... So basically I don't know lol It really does seem to be different for everyone, which is why I wonder if they give this out to manage expectation if it does take a long  time to go up.

I think one of the problems is that when I try and add resonance, I quite often sound like Barbie... I think getting resonance sounding natural could be more important than pitch.  One of my girl friends (who's actually a singer) has a lovely and very feminine voice. When I measured the pitch, it came out at 148hz, which is at the top of the male range but yet she sounds very much a girl... I think this surgery can make a huge difference, but I think getting resonance right is essential as well

Liv x

Interesting, I hope the pitch start increasing when the Botox starts to wear off, preferably earlier ;))

My sister did note that my voice was kind of the same, but without the base :)

I know for me (2 weeks to talk again) that Dr. Kim said I would see most of my pitch increase somewhere between the two to four month mark and then a gradual increase after that. I had the Botox injections and right now if I talk at all it is very hoarse and weak, but definitely higher. He said with me that I would need professional voice lessons to teach my brain how to work with the new vocal folds and not use my old habits from 48 years. At around the four month mark I'm supposed to send them a sample of my voice and possibly start taking medication that somewhat does the same as the Botox to give me time to reprogram my brain. Most days I say nothing at all, but then curiosity gets the better of me and I say a few words. I started at 137hz and Dr. Kim figures I should get up to 211hz. :-)

Quote from: Livvykins on August 03, 2014, 04:30:34 PM
I think what I was tying to say in a clumsy way, is that my base pitch when I open my mouth and talk naturally has got that much higher. And now when I try and raise my pitch it goes up from the base pitch.  Does that explain it any better?

That sounds great. So your base pitch is higher and everything else follows from that? But for others this is only coming along with voice training after some months, it seems.

Quote
I think one of the problems is that when I try and add resonance, I quite often sound like Barbie... I think getting resonance sounding natural could be more important than pitch.  One of my girl friends (who's actually a singer) has a lovely and very feminine voice. When I measured the pitch, it came out at 148hz, which is at the top of the male range but yet she sounds very much a girl... I think this surgery can make a huge difference, but I think getting resonance right is essential as well

Oh geez - I would not want to sound squaky girly - I am almost 40 now, the times for teenage squeakiness are over for me. So you think adding female resonance post op will actually increase pitch even more and make it too high? I know that adding resonance to my natural pitch at 110 Hz will get me to 140-150 Hz just because of the resonance changes.
I would really think getting a feminine sounding low voice would almost be needed to also sound good at a higher pitch, but maybe that was a wrong assumption and I stressed myself too much in setting a barrier up that I told myself I will need to manage to sound totally female in a low pitch range before doing any VFS. On the other hand - if I could manage to get a 100% female voice at my 140 Hz, possibly I would be able to get used to it and be fine with that - I am not sure I can get there though.

Hello guys,

Excuse the delay....I've been very tied up lately and rather than concentrate 100% on my voice with all the over-worrying I was doing I figured I'd ease off on my paranoias a little and let another week or so pass and get on with other things. One of those is a breast enlargement which I'm having on 24th of this month! Having managed with my natural A cups and a lot of padded bras and silicon enhancers for a few years, I decided to treat myself to a nice proportionate enlargement - it's been nice to have something else to think about rather just just my vooooooooooice!

Anyway,below is a link to a recording of the Rainbow passage I did around a week ago...so just over 6 weeks post-op. Although when I talk to family and friends I was pushing my hz range down as I explained in my last post, when I'm using my voice alone I was always talking higher .. from the 170hz range up (where it feels most natural now) and with almost zero effort (as I've explained before) I knock out rainbow readings at anywhere from 190 to 220hz. On this occasion it came out at around 205hz when measured with Praat. Feel free to let me know your thoughts. Was listening to my pre-op female voices and it's funny that I actually think they sounded quite good (lol) but my mom said she can defo hear the difference...mainly in volume...which I guess makes sense as putting a lot of volume into the higher pitches pre-op when having to tighten and lift in that way wasnt the easiest thing. I feel now.....with a little over a week until I reach my 2 month milestone, my volume has increased massively, even at the upper ranges ... although I do have to drop volume down a little when in the 200hz range and above to avoid the odd bit of cracking - but all in all I think it's good for this point in recovery as I understand it.

https://soundcloud.com/user819247001/6-weeks-post-op-rainbow-reading

I'll describe more in a future post but about 4 days ago something just 'clicked' in terms of what I was doing with my resonance - very hard to describe but it's felt like a massive hurdle that's been crossed and all of a sudden I don't find myself dropping down to lower pitch levels when talking to others half as much as I was - I seem to be constantly talking at no lower than 170 or 180hz and if I do, there's no slight harshness to the voice like there was when I felt I was pushing myself down a bit to more familiar old levels...I find it sounds incredibly female sounding even as low as 160hz so I've been very excited - I always thought I had my resonance down pretty well so I can't say for sure, just yet, whether this is just a case of resonance or whether something else that just 'feels different' about my voice now but it's very exciting.

One thing that I'm loving is that over the last week or so 'm finding the 'chest voice' (I suppose it's that! or mixed) is opening up to the upper ranges a lot at the moment. So whereas a couple of weeks ago, anything I said at above 210hz or so felt extremely light and heady with very little body, now my chest voice is able to go up with a lot of fullness and this continues to climb - in fact the rainbow reading above was my attempt at showing the extra 'bite' I have in that range now...although if I want to sound extra suave and ladylike it's very easy to add the lighter breathy quality back into the voice ;p it's just really exciting to experiment and really feel the progress lately and have been feeling really positive these last few days about all these changes...more to come soon I'm sure!

Quote from: MeganChristine on August 03, 2014, 06:23:11 PM
Interesting, I hope the pitch start increasing when the Botox starts to wear off, preferably earlier ;))

My sister did note that my voice was kind of the same, but without the base :)

Absolutely Megan!! Even before this recent 'Eureka' moment a few days ago - when talking with friends, even when I felt I was talking at quite low hz ranges around them, they all noted that the old 'harsh/bassy' edge had gone...high fiiiive! ;p

And if my feelings over the last week or so are anything to go by with these changes I'm noticing I'd say your going to be feeling the same very soon!

Also sorry I haven't been as available to chat as much as we were these last few days...will message u now my Norwegian angel! ;p

OMG, Gigi! Your voice sounds INCREDIBLE! We are talking about a lightspeed jump from the previous recording!

So looking forward to the point where the voice just clicks into place :D Might be just 14 days away, then. Hmmm... maybe I should lay off the coffee until then :p

Oh that is so great to hear that things clicked for you, Gigi!  ;D
And now I increasingly see that people report to have lost the " base" by-tones to the voice even at a lower average pitch. This really sounds so great and your voice is just perfect - no hint of something like a wrong resonance or low pitch. Pretty neat :)

The recording sounds amazing Gigi!! Love your voice :D

That happens to me sometimes, when I am around family my voice tries to crawl downwards for some reason. But I was listening to my mom the last time I saw her and she was speaking lower than me! Must have been 160-170hz average.

And yes I too go much higher when I am alone. Rainbow passage feels weird to do anything under 215hz, but in normal everyday conversation I am around 185-195... sometimes lower down into 160-170s if I'm around people I know really well.

I definitely go up when readin or on the phone and down around comfy people. Interestingly people claim that my lower voice is better, less fake and maybe even more female sounding than the higher pitches. For this reason I actually considered not aiming for a high pitch anymore but somehow get used to the lower pitch - what gain would it be for me to do the higher pitch if it sounds less good after all. So at least for now it may be contraproductive to try and raise my F0, but I try rather to use higher pitches just for some words to create more of a melody. I am not sure what VFS would do there - if it gives me what I have now if I do the higher pitches, I would not be happy with it as they do often not sound that good.

Jenny, if you go as low as 160 Hz, which is basically just some semitones higher than what I usually have now, how does your voice sound then? Like a woman who wants to deliberately speak low? Do you get vocal fry then? Does resonance change - I mean, in the lower range, more likela a male resonance can set in, right?

Greetings

It sounds way different than it used to when I go that low, basically all chestiness is cut out... the sound still remains soft.

Resonance is truly an afterthought now- I really have to force myself to lower my larynx and it just sounds ridiculous.

My absolute bottom end is near 138hz, that is where vocal fry kicks in. Pre op that limit was around 77hz

So resonance got easier for you then? And even if you loose it, it still is different. That sounds pretty cool. I was at the voice trainer today - she keeps bringing up the surgery almost every time now and thinks about if this would be for me and what would possibly change, I think she is curious and would like to see what happens to me if I go for it ;) - She said that since my upper range is so incredible, I should at least have not much issue with high pitches, but she thinks of course that since I have that whole spectrum, I should basically just use it and that would already be enough. Seems my main issues are tension and monotony.
Still, I hope to have the money for Dr Kim by early 2015 as there is basically only one time I could afford that 8 week gap and that is in February/March.
Sinc eI have now dropped in pitch to get rid of the strain and tension, it would be odd though - it cannot really easily be explained away.

Hi lovely ladies!


So I've done a little 6 week video... it's pretty much me just nattering and I've been mega hoarse so apologies... probably due to far too much talking and not enough resting! I'm going to try and shut up for the rest of the week! ;)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoD12zhfJpM&list=UUoVY86enVDAqxSscn5ro8Rw

Hahaha! Totally brilliant, Livvykins. I think I woke up all the neighbours on that one :D

Sounding wonderful as usual :D

Quote from: MeganChristine on August 12, 2014, 06:25:46 PM
Hahaha! Totally brilliant, Livvykins. I think I woke up all the neighbours on that one :D

Sounding wonderful as usual :D

haha, thanks Megan!  It's nice to have my own theme tune, even if it's the music for a cartoon pig :)

I don't think I've had that "click" moment yet but hopefully if I actually give things a chance to heal (I'm SO impatient!) I might see a big improvement :) 

I'm still waiting for Jessie to sort my pre-op sample out, which I'll certainly post here... it will be just as useful to me I think as I've no idea what I sounded like before now... it should give me some perspective  She said I should get it this week.

Yeah, really looking forward to the "click" myself. A tad impatient too, yet it's quite extraordinary that it's been six weeks for you and five for me. Even tho we want things NOW, it seems like time is passing quite quickly :

The video is funny, with the intro. I like the voice - it seems a bit low from swelling - it sounds like you have a laryngitis - a bit lower pitch and some hoarseness. I guess it will just take some rest and it will pass - other than that , it is IMO cleraly female sound and again I notoced that one of the features of this VFS seems to be that the undertones are gone - which is interesting as this is usually ascribed to resonance control. So even if pitch does not go up too much, the change in voice quality may be already worth it. I would like to know however how all of this relates to the botox, which supposedly makes the voice softer as well (Jenny was IIRC suggested to get botox injections every half year or so to keep the voice soft and not have the vocal tremor). Anyways - good to hear this and Hopefully your "surgical laryngitis" will go away soon ;)

Hi guys,

Sorry for the delaaaaay...and thank you for the nice comments...appreciate them! And thanks for saying you love my voice Jen....I know you Americans like our English accents (so I hear anyway!) but we love a bit of American over here :P

Also thanks for sharing that it's quite normal for you to slip to 'lower' ranges (around 160-170hz) when talking to people you know really well....that's definitely helped put my mind at ease. The important thing, as we've reiterated, is that those ranges sound far softer than they did pre-op so I think I've finally got over those paranoias and will see how things develop. Although I would like to be able to maintain a nice 180-190hz range around people I know well too...but like everything, I'm sure it just requires practice and a conscious effort on our parts to not drop a little because we're so used to old habits.

It's my 2 month general convo start day next Monday but there have been days I've acted as if I had no limit to talking anyway...apart from the voice getting a little tired there haven't been any adverse affects and even a couple of hours of not talking would usually resolve it and seems to 'reset' it so it sounds fresh again very quickly! Luckily though as I currently work freelance I do have days where I can be totally silent at home which I'm sure is good in terms of giving my voice that well needed rest to continue it's healing a bit...although strangely I've found after a day or two of practically no speaking because I'm on my own...my voice can then seem like it's gone back a couple of steps and feels more limited with speaking range and volume...no doubt due to lack of practice...oh the irony!

Interestingly though yesterday and did a gentle lip triill to test my upper range and it peaked around 525 hz...somewhere around the c5 on the scale...which is such a relief..because when I last tested about 2 weeks ago, my upper range was shocking and felt soooooo gutted when i tried to sing along to quietly to a couple of songs - there was no chance I could hit any of the higher notes that I could get to easily pre-op...barely went over 400hz and even that felt like a struggle! So seems like it's improved a tonne..happy days. Once the general convo day arrives, I think I'll use that excel sheet that Abby kindly put together to keep track of range over the weeks after starting the voice exercises. Hopefully it'll improve lots more and look forward to seeing just how much upper range I (and others here) gain. If it's anything like Jen and others' experiences though, I'm staying positive.

Come next Monday I'll get onto recording another clip of perhaps some general convo...or perhaps a lil vid with a super cool dance routine like Liv .... ;p was impressed Liv, keep it up ;) You're sounding great!

Gigi

This is nice... a thread which almost all of us had surgery at the same time so we can track the progress together ;D

Girls, should we still use the "larynx raising" method to change the resonance? I recently sent Yeson a feedback recording and my F0 has exceeded 210 Hz (ori. 170)... but somehow it still sounds like a high pitch adolescent boy :embarrassed: and I suspect it's because the resonance and tonal quality.

Should we still change apply the feminine techniques (resonance/articulation) besides the pitch?

I think definitely one should still use these techniques, just not the pitch raising. Originally I thought that pitch is the only thing that changes and all else still has to be done, but some people reported that at least the resonance wa snow easier to control and some of the male  voice parameters besides pitch are gone, but definitely some things have to be done still to make all the other aspects of the voice besides pitch sound feminine. No surgery can change your articulation, melody, intonation or anything in the prosody.

Quote from: alexiakk on August 23, 2014, 12:40:26 AMShould we still change apply the feminine techniques (resonance/articulation) besides the pitch?

Prosody, articulation, and resonance are all essential to the female speaking voice. Having a good base frequency and timbre is great but it would be as bare bones as driving a car with just a seat, chassis, and engine.

I find timbre of the voice is often confused with resonance: thicker timbre in the voice = more inherently masculine vocal tone at the same frequencies. That's why older women who speak in the lower baritone range (~A=110hz) are still readily clocked as female - their pitch may be lower, but the timbre is lighter. Timber exists in terms like thinner/thicker, lighter/heavier, and brighter/darker.

Resonance involves the relaxation and openness of the throat, soft palate, sinuses etc so that the harmonics of the voice will amplify and project via the natural structure of the head. In this, you will more essentially 'feel' the resonance of your voice as vibration throughout or in a particular area of the head - often upper sinuses, forehead, or sometimes the tippy-top of the head. I associate this with volume, beauty, and clarity of speech / singing.

As an example, reducing resonance would be akin to coating parts of a saxophone with rubber so the instrument vibrates less (in terms of the voice, let's use mucous as a comparison), whereas creating a lighter / thinner timbre or base frequency would be like using a thinner reed. Or, also heading to Yeson. I notice consistently that Yeson girls have a lighter timbre in addition to higher pitch.

I'm hoping to do Yeson soon myself. Having the locations of all the frequencies shift will certainly take some getting used to, but once it's mentally mapped I'd imagine the prosody/diction/inflection will be easier than before. Especially after wrestling this voice to submission daily :3

Quote from: Rachelicious on August 23, 2014, 07:47:19 AM
As an example, reducing resonance would be akin to coating parts of a saxophone with rubber so the instrument vibrates less (in terms of the voice, let's use mucous as a comparison), whereas creating a lighter / thinner timbre or base frequency would be like using a thinner reed. Or, also heading to Yeson. I notice consistently that Yeson girls have a lighter timbre in addition to higher pitch.

Thanks Rachel. I'm a Yeson post-op too :P
And yeah my voice did get higher and lighter, but the resonance is just not correct :embarrassed:
and I don't know whether "raising the larynx" is the only way to change resonance  :embarrassed:

I kinda want to find a vocal coach now as it seems like I can produce upper resonance, but only when I'm really forcing it (in terms of singing)...

Quote from: anjaq on August 23, 2014, 04:55:15 AM
I think definitely one should still use these techniques, just not the pitch raising. Originally I thought that pitch is the only thing that changes and all else still has to be done, but some people reported that at least the resonance wa snow easier to control and some of the male  voice parameters besides pitch are gone, but definitely some things have to be done still to make all the other aspects of the voice besides pitch sound feminine. No surgery can change your articulation, melody, intonation or anything in the prosody.

Yeah Anja, I think this is correct practically and physically :)
The Yeson website clearly says "Thus, by altering the larynx, pharynx, and the chambers which produce the sound, a male sounding voice can be changed to a female-sounding voice."

So I think it's probably a good time to start learning techniques -  :)

Much of what applies to beautiful singing voice will apply to feminizing resonance in general.

I'm not in the position to do a huge write-up right now, but a high soft palate - the part behind the roof of your mouth - is a great place to start, and from there relaxing the jaw and diaphragmatically supporting the breath. Keeping lots of space open in the back half of the mouth/throat by having it very relaxed.

Imagine your voice as a laser beam - with poor resonance, it has no chamber in the throat or mouth to amplify, and is diffused instead of focused. Practice trains the sinus/throat/mouth cavity to expand like a concert hall that creates a feedback loop with the sound. Good resonance feels more like it's coming from the oral chamber or above than the chest, with the whole interior & exterior of the mouth area super relaxed so they can vibrate at their best.

Some days are better than others based on swelling / dehydration / irritants / mucous, so vocal health factors in too. I definitely recommend coaching! I learned resonance through singing in chamber choir. Resonance is a special focus of good choirs because peoples' voices need to sound beautiful & blend together.

Also, choirs which happen to have a dearth of one particular voice type are usually eager to fill vacancies! A good option depending on your situation may be GALA Choruses. http://galachoruses.org/chorus-map

Quote from: Rachelicious on August 23, 2014, 04:27:47 PM
Much of what applies to beautiful singing voice will apply to feminizing resonance in general.

I'm not in the position to do a huge write-up right now, but a high soft palate - the part behind the roof of your mouth - is a great place to start, and from there relaxing the jaw and diaphragmatically supporting the breath. Keeping lots of space open in the back half of the mouth/throat by having it very relaxed.

Imagine your voice as a laser beam - with poor resonance, it has no chamber in the throat or mouth to amplify, and is diffused instead of focused. Practice trains the sinus/throat/mouth cavity to expand like a concert hall that creates a feedback loop with the sound. Good resonance feels more like it's coming from the oral chamber or above than the chest, with the whole interior & exterior of the mouth area super relaxed so they can vibrate at their best.

Some days are better than others based on swelling / dehydration / irritants / mucous, so vocal health factors in too. I definitely recommend coaching! I learned resonance through singing in chamber choir. Resonance is a special focus of good choirs because peoples' voices need to sound beautiful & blend together.

Also, choirs which happen to have a dearth of one particular voice type are usually eager to fill vacancies! A good option depending on your situation may be GALA Choruses. http://galachoruses.org/chorus-map

I really have to thank you Rachel. Yeah I think "having a beautiful singing voice" indeed helps feminine resonance a lot! What I do in singing is basically pulling up my chest voice, and pulling up even more when I go higher (so that sounds squeaky lol, even if it's cis-girls doing that)

I actually did send a famous vocal coach my recording and she said the first thing I'll have to learn is to produce a clear resonance without forcing :) so I think here I have the solution. I was probably affected by Christina Aguilera too much hahaha...

Yes - I think these things about resonance are all very true. My voice coach tries to get me to do at least most of them, but honestly I am sometimes afraid to really do them especially outside the lessons because I feel that while getting all that resonance to work makes my voice sound a lot more clear and healthy and it fixed my hourglass-glottis - it also seems to amplify those darker heavier timbres in my voice that I eliminated by forcing them away in the past. I know that this force is bad and so I know I have to let it go, but I am scared about the timbre. Some people seem to manage to get it changed with training only and have a clear feminine timbre - I am not sure how this works. Especially not without forcing it.

So hearing that a VFS can maybe change the timbre plus raise the pitch, even if it is not a lot, really gets my hopes up. If I can trust my voice to not have male timbres in it or low pitches that are really way low, I think I would have much more security to fully allow my resonance to play out loud and clear. So I really hope this is a correct assessment, Sadly most of the voice examples now are only 2 months post ob when the medication and/or Botox is still in effect, both of which also alter the timbre a lot, as I have heard recently.

So I really hope this is true - if it is, I am really close to booking the flight LOL ;)

Quote from: anjaq on August 23, 2014, 06:43:56 PM
Yes - I think these things about resonance are all very true. My voice coach tries to get me to do at least most of them, but honestly I am sometimes afraid to really do them especially outside the lessons because I feel that while getting all that resonance to work makes my voice sound a lot more clear and healthy and it fixed my hourglass-glottis - it also seems to amplify those darker heavier timbres in my voice that I eliminated by forcing them away in the past. I know that this force is bad and so I know I have to let it go, but I am scared about the timbre. Some people seem to manage to get it changed with training only and have a clear feminine timbre - I am not sure how this works. Especially not without forcing it.

So hearing that a VFS can maybe change the timbre plus raise the pitch, even if it is not a lot, really gets my hopes up. If I can trust my voice to not have male timbres in it or low pitches that are really way low, I think I would have much more security to fully allow my resonance to play out loud and clear. So I really hope this is a correct assessment, Sadly most of the voice examples now are only 2 months post ob when the medication and/or Botox is still in effect, both of which also alter the timbre a lot, as I have heard recently.

So I really hope this is true - if it is, I am really close to booking the flight LOL ;)

Well definitely not those super masculine chesty resonance lol (remember it IS a resonance too xD)

When they went over the voice lessons for me to do in three weeks, they specifically stated to not raise the larynx.  They told me to keep the throat relaxed and gave me two different styles of exercises. One was to work with the oral cavity and the second was the nasal cavity to get the correct resonance. They also told me to focus on projecting the voice out in front of the face. When I focus on the projection even this soon into my recovery I can hear a difference.

Quote from: northcountrymassage on August 24, 2014, 10:38:59 PM
When they went over the voice lessons for me to do in three weeks, they specifically stated to not raise the larynx.  They told me to keep the throat relaxed and gave me two different styles of exercises. One was to work with the oral cavity and the second was the nasal cavity to get the correct resonance. They also told me to focus on projecting the voice out in front of the face. When I focus on the projection even this soon into my recovery I can hear a difference.

This. Larynxes get used to jumping upward when speaking because of the need to feminize the pitch. My electro person has noticed this before as unusual, if I try to speak while getting throat work done. It's not natural to massively shift upward for common speech, so these post-op directions sound on-point.

I think I could not stop my larynx from being a bit up. It has just become natural to me over the past 15 years... I think it also just sits a bit higher now if relaxed and I have to push it down to get my "old voice"-
And it is after all simulating a shorter distance between larynx and mouth, which makes a lot of difference. If I try keeping it down and only do the projection and "speaking in the front" part of my voice control, it sounds like a guy trying to talk femme or maybe a gay male or something.
So I am a bit doubtful if that really can be working out like that. Just changing the mouth resonance alone to feminize the voice? Maybe it is somehow enough if the pitch is high enough as even guys with high pitches are getting misgendered on the phone although they have a male resonance, but I would not want to have an androgynous voice again. I have that now at my low pitch already....
It would be interesting to hear of others who had the surgery , if they still do resonance control with the larynx position or really just the change in the articulation ("speaking with the mouth")?

Quote from: anjaq on August 30, 2014, 04:33:47 PM
I think I could not stop my larynx from being a bit up. It has just become natural to me over the past 15 years... I think it also just sits a bit higher now if relaxed and I have to push it down to get my "old voice"-
And it is after all simulating a shorter distance between larynx and mouth, which makes a lot of difference. If I try keeping it down and only do the projection and "speaking in the front" part of my voice control, it sounds like a guy trying to talk femme or maybe a gay male or something.
So I am a bit doubtful if that really can be working out like that. Just changing the mouth resonance alone to feminize the voice? Maybe it is somehow enough if the pitch is high enough as even guys with high pitches are getting misgendered on the phone although they have a male resonance, but I would not want to have an androgynous voice again. I have that now at my low pitch already....
It would be interesting to hear of others who had the surgery , if they still do resonance control with the larynx position or really just the change in the articulation ("speaking with the mouth")?

I think I still do larynx position... I can't help it, I've been doing it for so long

Livvy x

Quote from: anjaq on August 30, 2014, 04:33:47 PM
I think I could not stop my larynx from being a bit up. It has just become natural to me over the past 15 years... I think it also just sits a bit higher now if relaxed and I have to push it down to get my "old voice"-
And it is after all simulating a shorter distance between larynx and mouth, which makes a lot of difference. If I try keeping it down and only do the projection and "speaking in the front" part of my voice control, it sounds like a guy trying to talk femme or maybe a gay male or something.
So I am a bit doubtful if that really can be working out like that. Just changing the mouth resonance alone to feminize the voice?

The larynx matter I'd imagine is because they know a lot of us are used to drastically shifting the larynx in order to speak. This is because we have to do that in order to hit the notes we want. It would be the equivalent of sliding a note on the guitar up to the 12th fret. Imagine if you had to go up to the 12th fret just to play anything decent. Nothing below 12th fret, please. And then, at the 12th, on most guitars you've only got up to like the 17th or 19th fret beyond that. There aren't any more fretted notes. It's pretty intense using the instrument in such a limited fashion, really.

Post-Yeson it would be like only having to slide up to the 5th fret to play the same notes, if you even have to slide at all. Shifting the larynx (pitch) that high post-Yeson should be for phrasing/prosody purposes, as it rightfully should be for us, not a general matter of how one speaks. The notes are on lower shelves. So from what I've read the laryngeal muscles need speech practice in order to for you to really learn and get comfortable with where these new sounds are. Resonance I'm a lot less concerned about though, honestly. I think that will if anything, like the larynx, just inherently require less effort, because of not having this thick timbre & low pitch to account for. Now for beautiful speaking prose? Yes, that will probably take practice, but probably not as much as one is doing now.

I am not sure. I heard now some people who had a VFS and do not use resonance control and they do not sound as good without this as they do with it. So I think while it may be easier, resonance control still is needed - and the shifting of the larynx is something that is not really done for pitch reasons only , is it? I can do the same note with a shifted larynx and with it shifted another way and it sounds different even if the pitch is the same. So that part is about resonance really, not pitch. The pitch seems much more to come from the tension of the vocal chords and to do that some part of the larynx moves up in order to stretch the vocal folds. In that sense you are probably right - doing that stretching and then trying to stick to that tension is really a strain. Which is why I cannot keep a high pitch for too long and rather go down to my regular speaking range but still use resonance control to get a low pitched female voice.

Quote from: anjaq on August 13, 2014, 06:54:05 AM
The video is funny, with the intro. I like the voice - it seems a bit low from swelling - it sounds like you have a laryngitis - a bit lower pitch and some hoarseness. I guess it will just take some rest and it will pass - other than that , it is IMO cleraly female sound and again I notoced that one of the features of this VFS seems to be that the undertones are gone - which is interesting as this is usually ascribed to resonance control. So even if pitch does not go up too much, the change in voice quality may be already worth it. I would like to know however how all of this relates to the botox, which supposedly makes the voice softer as well (Jenny was IIRC suggested to get botox injections every half year or so to keep the voice soft and not have the vocal tremor). Anyways - good to hear this and Hopefully your "surgical laryngitis" will go away soon ;)

Anjaq: from that can I assume that if we don't get have regular botox after surgery we'll have a tremor which wasn't there before surgery?

Hi girls!

I'll add this to to this thread as well...

So I've finally got my pre-op video from Jessie! :)

It's been really useful for me to hear as I completely forgot to make a recording before my surgery...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGENszqXrXI

@livvykins: totally awesome!

6 days to I hit the 2 month mark and I'm not even remotely close to that :/

Quote from: Teslagirl on September 01, 2014, 05:37:14 PM
Anjaq: from that can I assume that if we don't get have regular botox after surgery we'll have a tremor which wasn't there before surgery?

I was told I do have  a tremor now - so it seems that most of the patients coming to Yeson do have such a termor pre op and thus are given the Botox. I do not think having regular Botox injections beyond the healing period makes sense. It is a characteristic of the voice, if it is strong , maybe this is a good idea, but as I understand it, it does not originate from the surgery but rather is there before and is an issue when it comes to healing the voice

Hey lovelies!

Right I promise this will be the last video I post for a while!

This is my more official 2 month update video that I have to send Yeson. You can tell it's official because I bothered with some makeup this time, as Jessie wants to make a before/after vid for their channel from it...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CedNbW-Oqm0&feature=youtu.be

O x

PS I'll post in the other thread as well. Not wanting to spam it around, but there are different people in each

Quote from: anjaq on September 03, 2014, 04:19:03 PM
I was told I do have  a tremor now - so it seems that most of the patients coming to Yeson do have such a termor pre op and thus are given the Botox. I do not think having regular Botox injections beyond the healing period makes sense. It is a characteristic of the voice, if it is strong , maybe this is a good idea, but as I understand it, it does not originate from the surgery but rather is there before and is an issue when it comes to healing the voice

I think the Botox is important if you do have a tremor, because the surgery can make it a lot more pronounced... especially to begin with

Quote from: Livvykins on September 03, 2014, 05:36:49 PM
I think the Botox is important if you do have a tremor, because the surgery can make it a lot more pronounced... especially to begin with

Thanks Livvy. I was wondering if regular botox would be necessary, but from what you say it probably is a temporary thing.
Your voice gets better and better, particularly when I hear your pre-op voice next to your post-op voice. It seems so feminine and effortless now.
I have a question you might be able to help with. I am a teacher. From what you now know, do you think I will still be able to project my voice to a class after recovery from surgery?

Quote from: Teslagirl on September 04, 2014, 11:40:12 AM
Thanks Livvy. I was wondering if regular botox would be necessary, but from what you say it probably is a temporary thing.
Your voice gets better and better, particularly when I hear your pre-op voice next to your post-op voice. It seems so feminine and effortless now.
I have a question you might be able to help with. I am a teacher. From what you now know, do you think I will still be able to project my voice to a class after recovery from surgery?

Hey Teslagirl

Well the Botox lasts 3-4 months depending on various factors... When it runs out, you have pills to take for an length of time.

Aw thanks so much for the compliment! It's not quite effortless at all yet, it's still hoarse a lot of the time, but it's slowly getting better :)

Hmm... that's a difficult one.  It depends what you mean by "recovered from surgery" as this can take up to a year... certainly if I'm talking at any volume, my voice gives up very quickly... but I'm only two months in, and I've only just started doing the exercises.  I think eventually yes you won't have any problems projecting, but it will take time...

O x

Quote from: Livvykins on September 04, 2014, 01:06:28 PM

Hmm... that's a difficult one.  It depends what you mean by "recovered from surgery" as this can take up to a year... certainly if I'm talking at any volume, my voice gives up very quickly... but I'm only two months in, and I've only just started doing the exercises.  I think eventually yes you won't have any problems projecting, but it will take time...

O x

Thanks Livvy. I wonder if anyone here has had VFS at Yeson and is a teacher? If so really appreciate your opinions on using your voice in a classroom situation (or perhaps anyone else who has to speak up); giving presentations for example.

Secondly, I've only just had FFS (a month ago). My nose is still a bit delicate. Do you think I'd be OK for surgery with Yeson next Easter? I take Warfarin, but Dr Ousterhout was able to work around that and I'm hoping Dr Kim will be able to do the same.

Thank you,

Sarah.

Hey there Teslagirl,

I do work as a teacher. My voice was not strong after 1 month for a classroom situation. It weakens and gets hoarser very fast.
After a month you're only able to do very short conversations. I'm juts days from my 2 month mark, and my voice is still not suitable for heavy classroom duty.

I adapted to the whole situation and tend to start a multiway communication to engage the students on the subject. This far it has worked like a charm... but believe me, you don't feel like talking on the weekends :p

Quote from: MeganChristine on September 05, 2014, 06:35:17 PM
Hey there Teslagirl,

I do work as a teacher. My voice was not strong after 1 month for a classroom situation. It weakens and gets hoarser very fast.











After a month you're only able to do very short conversations. I'm juts days from my 2 month mark, and my voice is still not suitable for heavy classroom duty.

I adapted to the whole situation and tend to start a multiway communication to engage the students on the subject. This far it has worked like a charm... but believe me, you don't feel like talking on the weekends :p

Hello Megan, thanks for replying. From what you've experienced so far, do you have confidence that eventually your voice will be strong enough for regular classroom duty (say a lecture)?
I listened to your five week voice and although your pitch has not yet raised much, the purity and clarity of your post-op voice is amazing. It is totally female already and any pitch increase will only help. I think this is what I've deduced from the voices I've heard. Although the Yeson procedure is described as a pitch altering surgery, the main effect seems to be this increase in clarity. Your voice seems effortless now, whereas your pre-op voice (like the rest of us I imagine) sounds controlled and not effortless. Very well done! I might try to go to Yeson in the Easter holiday and after that student interaction in my college will be minimal. You have such a difference before and after.

Oh ok. So after 2 months it still is not good for teaching work, that is a bit suboptimal. If I aim for doing this in spring (just as Teslagirl this would be because only then there is a gap where I would have loss student contact), 8 weeks would be about the maximum time I can retreat from teaching. Effortlessness would be really the best result.

If the primary barrier is volume as opposed to longevity, you could use a portable headset amplifier until it came back to full strength. I've seen teachers do this without it being questioned at all.

Please note that I have 7,5 hours of classroom activity each day. I'm no ordinary teaching situation. For normal teachers, at least, here where I live you only have 4 hours of classroom activity each day. The rest is preparations etc.


Do also note that we are all individual. My healing process might differ quite substantially from others... :D

So what's optimal or not totally depends on how fast you are healing and how you are healing.

Quote from: MeganChristine on September 06, 2014, 03:31:07 PM
Please note that I have 7,5 hours of classroom activity each day. I'm no ordinary teaching situation. For normal teachers, at least, here where I live you only have 4 hours of classroom activity each day. The rest is preparations etc.


Do also note that we are all individual. My healing process might differ quite substantially from others... :D

So what's optimal or not totally depends on how fast you are healing and how you are healing.

Wow, 7.5 hours of teaching per day! We're not quite that intense. The most I do is probably six hours, but then not every day.Because the college year has been finishing earlier and earlier, I'm hoping that most of my teaching will be out of the way after Easter and I'll only have to talk with colleagues. I'm in the Midlands BTW.

Yep, it is quite intense. It's no like this everyday, tho.
I tutor intensive courses which usually last for 9 days and up to a month. The education is modular, so the participants has to graduate from one module to be allowed to start on the next.

I'm an external hired in every now and then to teach in the field of pneumatics :D More precise, breaks, on huge rolling machines that can be insane 8000ft long and weight thousands of tons


I'm located oversea in the last outpost before the North Pole ;))

Ok, for me , teaching is rarely more than 2-3 hours, although there are block courses where i have to be with the students all day long for a week, but i do not have to talk all the time then.
The important thing to me is that eventually after 6 months or 12 it will all be good again. Sadly few have that experience yet to say if the voice is as strong, loud, powerful as before, is one gets strained more or rather less, if shouting is ok... Most here are jus some weeks post op

Hey lovelies!

Question... Has anyone started taken the pills that were given to you by Yeson? 

I'm getting the time that I was told to start taking them... I just googled what kind of drug they are, and I'm pretty worried about taking them... Has anyone had any negative effects?  Clonazepam sounds pretty hardcore to me

It is pretty hardcore... Have not started on them yet, but starting to get to that marker myself.

I'm not even sure if I'm going to do it. Not a very good thing to have benzodiazepines in your blood, if you are involved in an accident...

Can I ask those who have had it done; is the botox injection given whilst you're under anaesthetic, or afterwards when you're awake? If afterwards, does it hurt a lot?

Sarah

From the reports I have read, it is given about a week after the surgery, so one is awake for it. Must be an unpleasant experience. So far I only know one person who did not get one.

Quote from: anjaq on September 24, 2014, 08:49:19 AM
From the reports I have read, it is given about a week after the surgery, so one is awake for it. Must be an unpleasant experience. So far I only know one person who did not get one.

Eek! Someone tell me they use a local anaesthetic, please!

Does Botox hurt a lot if injected? :(
Otherwise - if they inject an anaesthetic first, this also hurts, whats the gain?

Quote from: anjaq on September 25, 2014, 10:59:12 AM
Does Botox hurt a lot if injected? :(
Otherwise - if they inject an anaesthetic first, this also hurts, whats the gain?

Yes, but you wouldn't need to inject so deeply as most of the pain will be due to nerves just below the skin. It would be nice to hear from someone who has had it done. Anyone?

Yeson have a great new web site (new to me anyhow) and they have a section on botox.
They say:

"The injection of botulinum toxin (Botox) is currently the most effective treatment (for dysphonia)  However, this is a temporary treatment which improves the voice for a period of three to six months after which the voice symptoms gradually return. The treatment requires continual injections to maintain a good speaking voice."

So it looks like you don't actually need botox after VFS because it's temporary. It probably offers a short term fix for post-surgery roughness in the quality of the voice, but you'd need regular injections (!) to maintain the effect (and even then it becomes less effective over time). There is a picture of the injection taking place, and it does not look fun: http://www.yesonvc.net/disease/spasmodic_clinic_05.asp.

Do you think I'd get away with not having it?

From what I have heard now it seems that it has two effects in VFS - it makes the voice better for some months during recovery, so you can after the 1-2 months of voice rest sound good again and people will not say that you got worse. It gives a good voice, a good feeling and enables a normal interaction in daily life. As it wears off this effect has to be kept up with medication and then later with voice exercises until hopefully no additional intervention is needed? The other effect seems to be that using the voice while it is not in a relaxed state early on, it can damage the voice. My voice doctor explained to me that generally if there is hypertension or assymetry occuring and the voice is too forced, the vocal folds will "smash together" instead of gently touching. So I gues this is also why botox is given, so you dont tend to do this sort of thing. Apparently I did this in the past and the solution was to do voice rehab but with VFS you need to wait for some months until you can do that, so that is probably why they bridge that gap with botox and medication.
Thats how I think about it at least.

Amy got away without Botox. Her way to get this was to concentrate on really doing clear and nice sounds during the voice examination to avoid jitter and vibrato or "vocal tremor". If you can make a very clean sound, I think they can skip Botox as it means you can use your voice in a soft way that does not do any damage. I can imagine to have good voice training before that focussed on relaxation and also to have some sort of singing experience might help. My voice analyst told me last week that I have an excellent low jitter and voice health index now, so I guess I would have some chance there ;)

Oh and I think Jenny or Sarah was told to get regular Botox injections later on, but I dont think they went ahead with it and it still seems good.

Hey everyone!

Time is going so quickly...

Here's my 3 month post op vid :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dWgaKFy1e9I

It really is amazing :) - And seriously, it does not sound the slightest bit male. ;)

Quote from: Livvykins on September 29, 2014, 06:08:03 PM
Hey everyone!

Time is going so quickly...

Here's my 3 month post op vid :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dWgaKFy1e9I

You sound so naturally female! Have you tried singing since the surgery?

ps: That's a lot of guitars...