I worried about dark circles for 30 years, then had a consultation in August 2022 and surgery at the end of September~ Even in photos of me as a newborn, the tear trough area was deeply indented, and from high school my teachers would worry and ask, 'Are you very tired?' because my dark circles were so deep and dark. Life was so hard that I had neither the time nor the money for surgery, and only now was I finally able to do it. My satisfaction is truly, truly huge!!
At first, I went in thinking about lower eyelid fat repositioning plus fat grafting, but both the manager and the doctor recommended fat grafting only. They said that if I did lower eyelid surgery, there was too high a chance of losing my under-eye aegyo-sal, and my eye shape would change too much, lowering my satisfaction. I decided on fat grafting and ended the consultation by saying, 'Please put some into my flattened nasolabial folds too!' lol During the consultation, the doctor seemed to be tired in the afternoon, so he wasn't especially warm, but on the surgery day and during the second touch-up he was extremely kind lolol I also liked that the consultation manager did not excessively push any other surgery (I paid a 100,000-won deposit)
The first surgery (fat harvest + grafting, under anesthesia) was at 10 a.m. I woke up in the recovery room at 1:30, rested a bit more, and then went home. Right before the surgery I paid the remaining balance, worked out the design with the doctor, changed clothes, and went into surgery almost right away, I think.
The postoperative swelling lasts 1 to 2 weeks. I may be the type who swells easily anyway, but to anyone looking at me, I looked like someone who had definitely had a procedure or surgery. I think daily life and activities are possible, but since the fat should not shrink, and you shouldn't laugh or talk a lot anyway, I recommend doing it when you can rest for as long as possible! The newly transferred fat definitely feels somehow hard and not like my own, but over time it becomes softer and more natural.
I was really careful not to use my facial expressions much and hardly spoke. I was also very careful with skincare and makeup because I was afraid my precious fat would shrink T_T And I ate more than usual on purpose, to raise the take rate!
When I came back for the one-month checkup and looked at the before-and-after photos, the difference was so clear that I was deeply moved. Truly... it felt amazing to solve something that had stressed me out for my whole life. And the nasolabial folds, which I had only done because I was already doing the procedure anyway, also turned out to have a very high satisfaction level! And thanks to my own efforts, they said my fat take rate was quite high compared with other people.
When I said I was very satisfied now, they said it was still only one month in, and that after another two or three months the fat that did not survive would start to shrink, and after the second session I would be even more satisfied than I am now. In fact, starting two months after the first surgery, I could see the fat decreasing. Of course, it's still much fuller and prettier than before surgery haha
So I booked the second surgery for mid-December, using the frozen fat left over from the first session and with local anesthesia on the face. The second session was included in the surgery price, so there was no extra charge.
They do a quick design check before surgery, then immediately start. Because I was awake at that time, I was extremely nervous T_T But the doctor must have noticed, because he held my shoulder and said, 'It'll be over quickly, don't be too scared, it's okay~' and I was grateful haha Local anesthesia hurts, of course, even if only briefly, but after that there's no sensation so it's fine. When they inject the fat, you get a weird sensation like 'Oh?! something's going in?' which makes sense, since they're putting fat in... lololol And it ends in 30 minutes. No recovery is needed then, and you can be discharged right away. I think I was prescribed antibiotics.
The first time there was only swelling, no bruising or scabs, but the second time there was swelling along with injection marks and bruising. So I just told people around me that I had gone to a dermatology procedure haha... Likewise, the swelling lasts 2 weeks and the injection marks plus bruising last 2 to 3 weeks (I think it varies by person; I swell easily and bruise very easily). I bought bruise cream at the pharmacy and applied it, and thankfully it disappeared quickly.
And now, in a few days, it will be three months since I had the second touch-up surgery! It has been five months since the first surgery. I'm writing this while looking in the mirror, and from any angle at all, there is absolutely no under-eye hollowing. People with severe under-eye hollowing will know this, but when you lift your head and get hit by fluorescent lights or other lighting, the tear troughs sink in deeply and cast strong shadows. All of that is completely gone... T_T I wish I had done it sooner, but what could I do when I only had the means now haha... The nasolabial folds I did at the same time improved a lot too. I'm very satisfied with that as well. And perhaps because I was careful, they said my fat take rate was quite high.
I was told that after about 3 months, the fat could be considered my own and even pressure from facial massage and the like would be fine, but I still plan to be careful until 6 months after the second surgery because I'm a coward...
Anyway, I'm living very satisfied now~ All the staff were kind, and the hospital facilities were clean and good, but the reason I took off one star is that, as other reviews also said, the hospital itself is not very large, so I wasn't sure whether it has the facilities to respond if a major emergency happens, like a serious medical accident. Surgery can never be fully predictable This got very long, but I hope it helps someone who is looking for information!