Surgically Changing My Voice

By Kelly Ann


Kelly Ann has gracious consented to share some of her experiences having vocal chord surgery to change her voice.
We will follow Kelly's progress over the next few months to see how it works out.

July 26, 1996

We got back from Portland yesterday afternoon. I, sore and hurting, speechless, and very happy. Marilyn, just sore, hurting and happy.

I was happy that my first phase of surgeries are over and hopefully successful. I was happy to have had the opportunity to have them and be there with my fiancee' who held my hand through the procedure and whose hand I held as she underwent her surgery.

We got into Portland on Sunday afternoon and during the whole week the weather was unseasonably hot and sunny. Portland is a beautiful city. Clean, efficient, and safe. Oregon State Health Sciences (OHSU) was a modern and efficient hospital with a pleasant and professional staff of doctors and nurses.

Tuesday Marilyn and I underwent our surgeries. Hers was in the morning and mine was in the afternoon. She had cheek augmentation/implants and labiaplasty to complete her SRS. I had a Tracheal Shave and voice feminization surgery. I got our surgeries on video with the permission of the doctor as I will with all our following surgeries. Dr. Toby Meltzer of OHSU Plastic Surgery and Dr. Cohen of OHSU ENT were very nice and professional surgeons whom I would be more than happy to see again for further surgeries.

I had my speech/voice analysis clinic of the ENT dept. in OHSU

I had my speech/voice analysis clinic of the ENT dept. in OHSU,hard and I had to really force it. It hurt and I was in panic. The doctor consoled me. It sounded very high. He pulled again and said count for me one more time.

"1,,,2,,,3!"

Now I sounded like Minnie Mouse or worse and it hurt! I began to cry.

"It's OK!" the doctor said. It will sound like that for a good while until you retrain your voice and it will deepen slightly to a more authentic feminine range. Then the doctor tied off the settings on my vocal cords and he and Meltzer closed up. 2 hours and 2 surgeries in one sitting. Whew!

The next day I returned to ENT at OHSU at noon. Dr. Cohen rechecked me with the nose scope, up my sinuses and down my throat, fun! He said say "HE!" All I could get out was a snake hiss. Good, he said. The cords are fine. He wants me to send him a tape in 3-4 weeks for follow-up data. If for any reason the surgery should fail or I'm not pleased with the results. They will redo the surgery for only the O.R. costs.

After the surgery I could not swallow until the next morning. Then I could swallow only tiny sips of water and sometimes choked while doing it. As I choked and cleared my throat I sounded like a little girl, and still do. The next day I could do soft foods and today I can do solid foods and take my hormones again along with the pain pills and antibiotics from OHSU.

I'm not sorry I had it done. In a way, this surgery is just as meaningful and psychologically pleasing as the SRS itself. Not too many people will know what is between your legs, but when you present yourself as a female in public, whether temporary (TV) or permanently (TS), the voice and neck can make you or break you. As a TS looking at SRS early next year I had wanted this surgery for quite some time as my voice was untrainable.

In 3 weeks Marilyn and I will be back in Portland as she undergoes her throat surgery. May we both be granted good luck in sounding well as we walk among people and society as the women we were meant to be.


July 31, 1996

Today I spoke my first true words, (not choking sounds as I had been since last Tuesday).

I went to La Jolla to visit my lover, Marilyn, at her work on the top floor of the VA Hospital for lunch. I brought her a little gift to cheer her up. Her work gets to her at times and she needs the cheering up now and then. I brought her a crystal bowl and a package of scented herbs to be placed in the bowl to help make our place smell good.

Then I leaned over to her and with my best effort I said "I Love You". I had been working on that all morning. I was proud of myself and so was she.

My best voice sounds like a computer generated high pitched cartoon character which should, I said SHOULD, improve with time and training.

My surgeon suggested I seek out a voice therapist for rehabilitation of the voice but Marilyn can fill these shoes as she was professionally trained as an opera singer years ago. Her voice reflects that training and vocation when she talks. She sounds great and yet desires the voice surgery too. Such is the way of transsexuals. Constant improvement thru surgery.

It's nice to see my neck nice and flat with no ugly adam's apple protruding below my chin. This surgery has just as much impact on one as the sex reassignment surgery because you'll never sound the same again when you speak. Humans are verbal creatures. It's hell not being able to communicate outside of pen and paper. But when you are used to hearing one's voice for 40 years and to suddenly hear something entirely different leaves quite an impression on you. Plus to require voice training again and to re-learn verbal communication is an experience of a lifetime.

Our friend who had the surgery 3 weeks ago is sounding much better. Rather than a cartoon character she is sounding like a young girl now. Nothing male about the voice. I am happy to say she and her friends are quite pleased. The full benefit of this surgery will not be realized for several months and it will be quite a while before we can talk and sing as if we were born with the new voice.


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