Voice Therapy V.S. Voice Feminisation Surgery

In the realm of voice feminisation currently, more surgeons now offer pitch raising surgery. The most common of these is glottoplasty which involves surgery to shorten the length of the vocal cords (also known as vocal folds). The allure of surgery can be tempting yet the reality is that full voice feminisation is possible for most individuals who seek appropriate voice therapy.  In this blog post, we’ll delve into the intricate world of voice modification and explore why prioritising specialist voice therapy is a strategic choice.

When all voice is gone – the silent reality of aphonia

There are times, in some people’s lives when all voice will be gone.  For most of us, it will be a short-lived experience. But the transient loss of voice associated a virus or infection provides a taster of the reality of total absence of voice known as aphonia.

What is Muscle Tension Dysphonia?

Muscle tension dysphonia is a commonly used term amongst ENT (Ear Nose & Throat) consultants / Otoloryngologists and voice specialist Speech & Language Therapists. It is often used as an umbrella term encompassing vocal hoarseness or voice difficulty relating to vocal strain.

Trans-Vocal: Presenting at the 31st World Congress of the IALP, Taipei 2019

Attending the 31st World Congress of the International Association of Logopedics and Phoniatrics (IALP) this August was most definitely one of my 2019 highlights.  Not only did it give me the opportunity to be ‘trans-vocal’, it also gave me the chance to co-present with fellow voice specialist professionals; attend a range of presentations about voice; meet up with old friends … Read More

Farewell Rhiannon

Nearly two and a half years ago, a new graduate SLT called Rhiannon Grebert approached me after attending my Vital Voice course. She was interested in any work opportunities i could offer her. Following a period of observation, training and supervision, Rhiannon came to work at my practice part-time. Rhiannon’s specific interest was working with transgender Voice. She has worked … Read More

Diamond Group Session – April 2019

In typical springlike weather, the Diamond April group session blew into action. This is my longest established voice group and is named Diamond because of its endurance. I’ve run many other more formatted groups both within the NHS (first in 2002) and in private practice and new groups are currently planned for the future but the diamond group is worth … Read More

Courses, Presentations and Research

The first quarter of 2019 was characterised by busy clinic practice and delivering varied teaching and presentations. During an unusually sunny February, I taught two courses at my treatment rooms and gave a presentation at University College London (UCL) :  2 day Vital Voice Course  2 day Working With Transgender Voice Course (one free place given to a very newly … Read More

The Girl With No Voice

10 year old Mary had not voiced for over 3 months. Not one vocalisation related to speech had ensued from her vocal tract in that time. She had already seen two ENTs and one speech therapist with no return of Voice. The second ENT, referred Mary to me. Both ENTs had assessed Mary’s laryngeal anatomy as normal with no evident … Read More