Over the years I’ve worked with many individuals who have had a Chondrolaryngoplasty, this procedure aims to reduce the size of your Adams apply by removing some of the thyroid cartilage, pretty straight forward eh? Well, the results prove this is more complicated than you’d expect in terms of how your voice responds. Now, even though this isn’t true for everyone and results may vary just like they would with any procedure, I have noticed that in many individuals, their ability to raise their pitch becomes greatly impaired after getting the procedure done. So, before getting the procedure, I wanted to share with you the potential risks so that you can be as informed as possible.

First of all, your thyroid cartilage is actually pretty important when it comes to vocal pitch. When attempting to raise it tour Thyrohyoid membrane shortens, pulling the thyroid cartilage up towards the hyoid bone and during a Tracheal shave, if the surgeon removes too much or inadvertently weakens the attachment points of the muscles/ ligaments, the pulley system used to list the larynx becomes less efficient. This increased difficulty can lead to your pitch having a bit of a vocal ceiling.

Next, if the surgeon is a bit too aggressive when thinning the Thyroid cartilage to create that smooth aesthetic profile, the anterior (front) attachment point can become weakened or slightly shifted. If this happens the vocal folds cannot be stretched as tightly by the Cricothyroid (CT) muscle and the CT muscle is hugely important when it comes to reducing vocal weight and thinning out your vocal folds- all important things when it comes to voice feminiziation. Ultimately, this creates a loss of your top range.

Lastly, let’s talk about scar tissue and adhesions. Scar tissue can develop between the skin, the strap muscles and the laryngeal cartilages, this essentially tethers the larynx, preventing it from gliding upward during pitch changes. Think of it like trying to stretch a rubber band thats been partially glued to a desk.

Now, if you’ve already had a tracheal shave and you’ve already been experiencing this and you find yourself thinking ‘well, fuck.’ Fret not, you can still achieve a passing voice but your area of focus will largely be placed on brightening your resonance through vocal tract shortening by targeting the area above the vocal folds and refining your control of the pharynx, mouth and tongue instead of working on and inevitably straining against the structural changes of the larynx.

No matter the route you decide to go down though, I understand that dysphoria is deeply personal and everyone's priorities are different. So, do what’s best for you and if in the end you decide that you’d like some help with trans voice training, hunny, you know where to find me.

All the best,

Kylie