How will hormones change my voice?

Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) is an important part of the transition process for many transmasculine and transfeminine individuals. While HRT helps to induce many positive changes, people often assume that it will also provide a “quick fix” for their voice. In reality, many people continue to have concerns regarding their voice even far into HRT. Those taking estrogen find that hormones do not help to feminize the voice at all. While testosterone has been shown to lower pitch (thereby resulting in the perception of a “deeper” voice), many transmasculine individuals find that they are not satisfied with the overall quality of these results.

There are many factors that impact perception of gender, both anatomical and cultural. Voices typically gendered as male have lower pitch range, chest resonance, unique intonation patterns and a variety of non-verbal qualities. HRT helps in this process by thickening of the vocal cords which in isolation leads to a “classic” sounding transmasculine voice. However, just because your pitch has been lowered, some studies have shown that without training, you are not necessarily using the full spectrum of your new pitch range. Additionally, HRT can not teach you how to change your resonance or alter your intonation patterns. Individuals need to learn to effectively utilize their new pitch range as well as establish a new set of behavioral skills (i.e., changing speaking patterns and overall voice quality) in order to help make their voice align more closely with their gender. 

Unfortunately there is no quick fix to changing your voice. Your voice is a muscle that you have been using the same way for your entire life, so changing it requires work. However, committing to training and continued practice can lead to great results and a voice that is more reflective of you!