Not much has happened and yet, there is a lot going on. Emily is in the final phase of her practicum, another family visit with my Dad here to help with Noah is coming to a close in a couple weeks, and I've had a headache on the left side of my head for the past week. Although it hasn't worsened, it also isn't going away and normal remedies like Tylenol, don't seem to be helping. I'm not symptomatic in any other way in the sense of vision issues along with the headache, but it's still something I need to checkout. The Endocrinologist did get a call last week and said it probably wasn't the Synthroid, so there's that at least...
Today was the next phase in repair and a return to normal. My voice has continued to ebb and flow between hoarse, tired, low, and seemingly everything in between. Monday, I was supposed to have my first Speech Therapy appointment, however, as I'm pulling off the highway at the exit to the University Hospital campus, I get a call from the specialist's office stating my appointment was incorrectly scheduled and that I could not be seen that day - 30 mins to my appointment! There was nothing to be done, but to reschedule, which thankfully, they were able to do the next day at 4 PM. Simply an inconvenience, seeing as how I had left work and drove 40 mins north to get there on time...C'est la vie...
When I arrived, checked in and was called back, the Speech Therapist immediately noticed the deeper, more hoarse voice I was carrying with me. And proceeded to contact the ENT she'd worked with June 4th to see if he was available to video my vocal chords in action again. Her primary concern was post-op that there had been damage to the chords during surgery with the breathing tube or nerve damage, despite the nerve-monitoring that was utilized.
I stick out my tongue, lean forward, the doctor wraps gauze around my tongue, and in goes the camera. "Sing on an 'Eee' please...","Breathe","Sing an 'Ah'...", "Now, go up a half-step..." Gag! The camera was angled funny and I had to push him away cause it was getting uncomfortable to breathe and sing. So, we took a break and continued the exercise.
There was a lot of mucus on my chords which is usually indicative of dehydration, but I assured them I was drinking plenty as confirmed by the color of my urine throughout the day, so it was then attributed to my medications. As far as function went, the chords were operating fine, minus the lateral wave pattern that seemed to be weak and inconsistent. The speech therapist assured me that they weren't worried, just baffled at why...
Nevertheless, the doctor "cleared" me and we returned to the therapist's office to discuss the next steps, recommendations, and tactics. My homework is to focus on "Clarity of Voice" and "Placement" which in singer speak usually means more "forward" and very articulative speech. We practiced some phrases and she verified I was committing to the correct behaviors before we parted. I'll check back in a few weeks on progress and hope for the best. She's confident that with consistent daily vocal exercises, which are basically just everything and anything I've done in my singing experience for the past 15+ years, that my voice will get stronger and more flexible quickly. This is a game of patience and consistency that will truly be the most challenging component of it all.
In health,
Chris
Today was the next phase in repair and a return to normal. My voice has continued to ebb and flow between hoarse, tired, low, and seemingly everything in between. Monday, I was supposed to have my first Speech Therapy appointment, however, as I'm pulling off the highway at the exit to the University Hospital campus, I get a call from the specialist's office stating my appointment was incorrectly scheduled and that I could not be seen that day - 30 mins to my appointment! There was nothing to be done, but to reschedule, which thankfully, they were able to do the next day at 4 PM. Simply an inconvenience, seeing as how I had left work and drove 40 mins north to get there on time...C'est la vie...
When I arrived, checked in and was called back, the Speech Therapist immediately noticed the deeper, more hoarse voice I was carrying with me. And proceeded to contact the ENT she'd worked with June 4th to see if he was available to video my vocal chords in action again. Her primary concern was post-op that there had been damage to the chords during surgery with the breathing tube or nerve damage, despite the nerve-monitoring that was utilized.
I stick out my tongue, lean forward, the doctor wraps gauze around my tongue, and in goes the camera. "Sing on an 'Eee' please...","Breathe","Sing an 'Ah'...", "Now, go up a half-step..." Gag! The camera was angled funny and I had to push him away cause it was getting uncomfortable to breathe and sing. So, we took a break and continued the exercise.
There was a lot of mucus on my chords which is usually indicative of dehydration, but I assured them I was drinking plenty as confirmed by the color of my urine throughout the day, so it was then attributed to my medications. As far as function went, the chords were operating fine, minus the lateral wave pattern that seemed to be weak and inconsistent. The speech therapist assured me that they weren't worried, just baffled at why...
Nevertheless, the doctor "cleared" me and we returned to the therapist's office to discuss the next steps, recommendations, and tactics. My homework is to focus on "Clarity of Voice" and "Placement" which in singer speak usually means more "forward" and very articulative speech. We practiced some phrases and she verified I was committing to the correct behaviors before we parted. I'll check back in a few weeks on progress and hope for the best. She's confident that with consistent daily vocal exercises, which are basically just everything and anything I've done in my singing experience for the past 15+ years, that my voice will get stronger and more flexible quickly. This is a game of patience and consistency that will truly be the most challenging component of it all.
In health,
Chris