Question about voice feminization

[Guest bobbiw]

Hi,

My name is Bobbi and I'm a closet cross dresser who attempts going out en femme infrequently when circumstances allow. I've been doing voice feminization excercises for several months with limited success. I suspect this is due to the limited amount of time I have to actually use a female voice.

I was wondering if there are any tips to assist in switching back and forth from male to female voice. All the training and excercises I've been able to find talk about permanent change from male to female. I would appreciate any guidance.

Hugs,

Bobbi

[Drea]

A good question. I personally found it very hard to be able to switch. Some people do okay with it however, unfortunately not being one of those I can't offer much.

[Charlize]

I spent a good bit of time switching from male to female. Mostly i was male in private and female in public as odd as that may sound. I found that when i went somewhere in the car i would sing in as high a voice as i could manage comfortably and that more or less primed me for my public role. I have no idea how successful that was but i do offer it as a possibility. At this point i really haven't worried about my voice. It seems at least somewhat androgynous and i'm content with that.

Hugs,

Charlize

[Guest bobbiw]

Thank you both for your replies. I have a rather long drive to work. I use my time in the morning doing exercises that I found on YouTube. After that I switch to my "male mode" for the rest of the day. Weekends usually don't allow me to practice much and as I said in my original post I don't get out much. When I do, I try to be as passable as I can and naturally my voice is an important part of that.

Hugs,

Bobbi

[Guest LizMarie]

Once I began retraining my voice, I find it very, very difficult to go back. Muscle training has shifted where I carry my larynx, which alone changes pitch and helps remove male resonance. Other changes (some appear to be due slightly to hormones, according to my ENT), have further altered pitch. The net effect is it is now very very difficult for me to get back below 150 Hz and my best chance is right after waking up in the morning. But as the day wears on, I seem to shift subconsciously and end up in the 160-200 Hz range pretty consistently. Measuring male voice frequency (I use Praat, an application intended for this) shows me rarely ever getting below 140 Hz even trying early mornings.

So the best I can do now is a high male voice, and only with a great deal of effort.

[tracy_j]

I have just downloaded and installed Praat - thanks LizMarie. I can see I am going to have fun learning how to use it although I think I have found the relevant figures. I presume it is only a small part of it's functionality that will be needed.

Tracy

[Cyndee]

Just speaking for myself, it has become more difficult to lower the voice and resonance, because I've formed habits with larynx placement and tounge action to emphasize upper resonance and overtones like over the past 3 years or so.

I can do it, however my male sounding voice sounds really "contrived" now, if I attempt it. Kinda like my old radio voice.

There is quite a bit of overlap between male and female in simple pitch terms. The inflection, resonance, overtones, spoken word rate, pronounciation, and choice of words (like totally) that are now part of my communications toolbox make up my feminine voice.

I was called ma'am and MS "lastname" multiple times on the phone today for work. That feels really good, my reward for persistance.

Good luck switching back and forth, it's gonna take effort.

Cynthia -

[Guest Ellyssa]

"Carry my larynx"? What does that mean?

Tried googling it but it got really technical.

Thanks.

[Guest bobbiw]

LizMarie & Cynthia,

Congratulations on the rewards for all your efforts. I have come to realize how much work voice is and am very happy for the success you are enjoying.

I was really interested by your comments on larynx placement. I've been doing my exercises for about 10 months and I thought I learned a couple of important things. The first was to constrict my neck muscles to position my larynx higher thereby reducing low end resonance. The second things is building the muscles to hold the uvula higher thereby using my cheek area to carry more vibration (higher frequency). I think my female voice is in the 220+ hz range measured using a free (so so) app. Please let me know if you think my surmisal is accurate based on your experience.

I am also trying to work on my speech patterns to get them to be more feminine, but as I mentioned in my original post I spend most of my time in male mode. This is the choice I've made and I'm at peace with it, but I am definitely working to become my best Bobbi when time permits and I'm happy to work hard. I'm just trying to work smart too so I apprecite your thoughts.

Hugs,

Bobbi