Gerald Harsen
UPDATE: 9 Years Gerald Harsen had 19 Botox shots for his
severe Spasmodic Dysphonia condition before undergoing a program
of Direct Voice Rehabilitation. None of the Botox shots worked.
December 2004
Dear Dr. Cooper,
It has been nine years since you treated me for my condition
of spasmodic dysphonia. My voice continues to improve as I
frequently practice the techniques taught to me during my
stay with you in 1995. I have received no treatments since
that time. I am an agent with Penn Mutual Life Insurance Company
and my career depends on my ability to speak well. I consider
the time spent with you to be the best investment I could
have made.
I continue to refer to you people I encounter with voice
problems. I also welcome calls from those you consider to
be prospective clients that would like to discuss my experience
to help them understand what is involved in their recovery
from spasmodic dysphonia. Please feel free to use this letter
in any way you like to help others understand that there is
a cure.
Sincerely yours,
Gerald N. Harsen, CLU, ChFC
UPDATE: August 2001
July 30, 2001
This letter will bring your records up to date as to my progress
since my last correspondence dated March 19, 1998. My Spasmodic
Dysphonia condition is now mostly a thing of the past. I can
speak with relative ease and comfort throughout each day,
and my voice improves further with each year that goes by.
I have received no treatment what so ever since the four weeks
spent at your clinic in March 1995.
I have empathy for anyone suffering from Spasmodic Dysphonia
because of my own experience. Please feel free to refer any
patients, speech pathologists, or others interested in discussing
my experience.
I maintain personal records of diagnoses of Spasmodic Dypshonia
from institutions such as Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, William
Beaumont Hospital in Detroit, MI, and Loyola University in
Maywood, IL. And, I have received Botulinum Toxin injections
from Dr. Daniel Truong, Dr. Michael Rontal, and Dr. Robert
Bastian during the period of January 1989 through November
1994.
Please call me.if I can be of any assistance in your efforts
to assist other individuals with this condition.
Sincerely yours,
Gerald N. Harsen, CLU, ChFC
UPDATE: 6 Years
March 19, 1998
Dear Dr. Cooper:
The purpose of this letter is to provide you with testimony
about my personal experience with abductor spasmodic dysphonia.
You have my permission to reproduce it and use it in any way
you believe to be appropriate as an aid in helping others
with this condition.
My condition was diagnosed in January 1989. It was then confirmed
by several additional physicians and specialists, and I subsequently
began the recommended treatment of botulinurn toxin injections
later that year. I continued to receive approximately three
or four injections per year until November 1994. These injections
provided neither a temporary, nor permanent benefit. Even
if they had become beneficial, I was concerned about the long
term effects of botulinurn toxin and about the prospects of
continuing the painful, expensive injections over the balance
of my lifetime.
When I heard about your direct voice rehabilitation successes
late in 1994 1 knew that it may hold the promise of a permanent
recovery of my voice. I then made a commitment to travel to
Los Angeles and enroll in your program. My Spring 1995 stay
lasted four consecutive weeks during which I worked intensely
under your supervision and care for 41 hours per week.
The diligent application of the techniques taught by you
during those four weeks has allowed me to achieve a good,
and continually improving, quality of speech. Talking today
still requires a conscious, affirmative effort, and I do eventually
tire during the day due to the extensive use of my voice in
my business. I have also not yet reached the high quality
of voice enjoyed prior to the 1989 diagnoses of spasmodic
dysphonia. But, the improvement in my voice from March 1995
until today has been miraculous.
Thank you again for guiding me to a natural and permanent
improvement in voice quality.
Sincerely,
Gerald N. Harsen, CLU, ChFC |
