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Getting back after Tonsillectomy


mark2112

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Hi All

This is my first post on the forum, I class myself as a guitar player who sings rather than a singer and I am quite daunted by some of the knowledgeable and talented people on here!!

I had a tonsillectomy by scalpel done by the NHS in the UK three weeks ago. This would have been bad enough but after 4 days a had serious bleed where I was admitted back into hospital, I ingested a lot of blood which gave me a lot of vocal cord swelling and I had scopes up and down my throat as they mistakenly thought I also had a gastro-intestinal bleed due to the amount of blood that I swallowed.

I was never the best singer, more backing vocals but was thinking of expanding, I am at the point of starting to test my voice again but already I noticed that my high end has gone and I have developed some hoarseness. The feelings in my soft palate are totally different from previously and I feela real lack of control.

I am looking for any advice on the best exercises to build my voice again after tonsillectomy and hopefully get my range back range and also ways to try and help reduce the swelling on my cords.

Have read snax's thread with interest, sounding great man!

Cheers

Mark

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Mark: Some of us only see the forum digest every week, and/or get separated from computer access for short periods. Please don't take this gap as any reflection on you or your recent difficulties.

I have worked with other singers who had tonsillectomies as adults & then had this kind of massive bleeding, with various compications afterwords PLUS a layer of emotional trauma. It sounds like you may have gone through some type of emergency intubation, which can bruise the vocal cords. No way to know exactly what exercises would be most helpful without knowing the current condition of your cords.

can you arrange for a detailed laryngeal exam ("videostroboscopy"), through your NHS or privately? that would be most important. Contact http://www.british-voice-association.com/ for good referrals. Once you know what exactly has gone wrong -- whether the vocal cords are scarred, weak, or just temporarily swollen-- it becomes much easier to suggest a rehabilitation & retraining approach.

regards,

Joanna

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thanks for the reply Joanna, I know I may have been a bit hasty with my other post but I was in a very dark place for a few weeks, which I apologise for. :)

I did have emergency intubation and to quote the general surgeon, he said he was "up and down my throat like a fiddlers elbow". as they decided I had so much bleeding I must have had a gastro-intestinal bleed as well!! I had just swallowed alot of blood.

I can't afford private treatment as I am self employed and never worked for the whole of July. At an ENT follow up they refused to do an exam as it was "clinically relevant to my case of bleeding". He did however confirm that it was most likely bruising and swelling from the tubing and blood.

On a plus point, 4 weeks post bleed, the improvements came on an almost daily basis to where i am at now, so I am inclined to hope that it was just swelling and bruising.

I purchased Rob's 4 pillars and now feel I am ready to tackle the big stuff again!

Cheers

Mark

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