It goes without saying that the worst fear for any singer or professional voice user would be the need for a vocal operation. Most singers don’t get beyond that thought, let alone contemplating the other potential consequences. How will it affect your career? Then of course there’s the financial loss, post-op recovery and rehabilitation, and worst of all....will the op be a success, and will you have a voice!
As a professional singer /songwriter and vocal teacher, I am well aware of how vulnerable we are. Our instrument, unlike a guitar or violin, is always out of its case; it gets picked up and thrown down and gets used and abused on a weekly basis except for a brief respite each day on a pillow!
Back in April of 2010 my worst fears were realised when I underwent a vocal operation to remove fibrous tissue from my left vocal chord. This came at the worst time in my career. I was in the middle of vrecording my 4th album (my debut solo album) which had to go on hold. Thankfully my op was a success and I am recovering well. I am now back at work, have a healthy set of vocal chords and a much stronger voice than I could ever have wished for. I am now preparing for the release of my album. It has been a long and difficult journey.
My 'Vlog' on You Tube is a video diary of my experience pre and post op, warts and all. As far as I know I am the only singer who has documented something like this on Youtube. I will be adding more videos containing info on exercies and advice for healthy voice use so please view the 10 videos already posted and keep checking back for more.
