Opera singer Charity Tillemann-Dick received a double lung transplant in 2009. She's written a memoir, Encore, about the experience.
"When I woke up from the surgery, I saw the nurses and my mother, and I was just so profoundly grateful to be alive and I opened my mouth to say "thank you" and nothing came out. My voice was gone."
Hear more inthis NPR interview with Scott Simon.
