Transgender voice

Voice often plays an important role in the way we want people to perceive us. Transgender voice therapy is common for those that want to modify their voice in order to sound how they would like to be heard. Voices can be modified in pitch, volume, and quality. Our speech therapists can work on any aspect of the voice in order to meet your personal goals.

Some people choose to modify their voice in order to conform to their typical gender norms and / or to be seen as they would like to be perceived. This can either be through voice modification or non-verbal communication training. Transgender voice therapy can be seen as a good alternative to vocal surgeries.

SLT for Kids is a service for children aged up to 18 years old. We would not consider transgender voice therapy for those who have not reached puberty. We would usually begin to consider transgender voice cases between the ages of 16-18 before they are referred to an adult service. Children under the age of 16 may benefit from considering Pitch therapy if appropriate.

When a child is going through puberty the vocal tract will increase in size and length, these physical and hormonal changes affects vocal pitch, particularly for males, making it difficult to focus on voice therapy until these changes have fully developed.

Our initial assessments will include a detailed case history. This will allow you to discuss any concerns you may have with the speech therapist along with your personal goals. This will allow the speech therapist to create an appropriate treatment programme for you. This will be a very in depth discussion in order for the therapist to fully understand the way you would like to appear to others.

The speech therapist will make notes on the current quality of your voice and compare this to your goals, this will help them to devise a treatment plan that is specific and tailored to you. Our speech and language therapists will work with transgender clients on a multidisciplinary basis, meaning they will work alongside a psychologist when providing therapy. This is so that you are supported in a way that is psychologically, emotionally and physically beneficial to you. They will also be able to provide you with direct support and professional advice if you need to discuss any issue relating to voice and communication.

Speech and language therapy can modify your vocal quality in order to sound more masculine or more feminine.

Voice modification

This will usually involve a modification in pitch, usually making the pitch deeper or higher. All of the pitch modification therapy is done based on your goals and tailored to the way you would like to perceive your own voice. The therapy will involve lots of in depth discussions so that the therapist will be able to understand your goals fully and therefore can provide you with the best therapy tailored to the voice you would like to achieve. You can even give one of our speech therapists an example of how you would like to sound. This will involve vocal, breathing and relaxation exercises. The exercises will help you to increase the range of your pitch so that it is easier for you to reach different tones.

Non-verbal communication

As well as actual vocal modification, the speech therapist will be able to provide therapy to modify body language to appear more feminine or more masculine and conform to the gender norms.

Psychosocial factors

Throughout all of the therapy, a counselling element will be important. Psychosocial factors will be considered and discussed through everything we do, to ensure the best outcome for our patients.

Treatment can be provided alongside the support of a psychologist in order to provide you with the best outcomes, both with your communication and with your psychological and emotional wellbeing.

Speech and language therapy can be of great benefit for adolescents with transgender voice, as it can help modify their vocal quality and other aspects of communication in order to reach their personal goals. Benefits of speech and language therapy for transgender voice include:

• Reduced levels of frustration.
• Increased levels of self-esteem and confidence.
• Increased activity and participation.
• Better quality of life.
• Improved vocal quality.
• Sounding the way you would like to be perceived.

Our speech and language therapists can provide vocal hygiene therapy as well as voice exercises that can help you.

Transgender voice is when an individual wants to modify their voice in order to sound how they aim to be heard. Our speech therapists can assess and provide treatment to reach your goals. This can have many benefits for you, including improved vocal quality and self-esteem.

Our speech and language therapists will provide a comprehensive assessment and ongoing therapy for transgender voice. If you think that you would like treatment for transgender voice please email office@sltforkids.co.uk or call 0330 088 2298.