pre-surgerypre-surgeryafter-surgeryafter-surgeryon the day of surgery I had been so stressed about my face shape since I was a student
I hated it so much that I would cry every time I looked in the mirror
At first I thought about getting braces, so I tried orthodontic treatment
and also got contour injections, square-jaw injections, and more
but instead, those procedures made the jaw fat sag, and later even when I got injections again, it became hard to see results because of tolerance
When I was looking for a clinic, I thought safety was the top priority, so instead of a plastic surgery clinic I looked into an oral and maxillofacial surgery department
I looked into other hospitals too, but
after my first consultation at this oral and maxillofacial surgery clinic
I was immediately convinced, so I put down the deposit that same day
and even booked the surgery date right away before leaving
There was also an anesthesiologist for the surgery, so it felt safe, and the fact that I could also get dental treatment here made me think I really made the right choice..
And what made me trust it even more was that the director said they only perform surgery on one person a day for the best possible condition!!!
Ah, I really paid to have the surgery here, but
I’m so satisfied every day when I look in the mirror
and I’m living that ultimate productive life.. Everyone, this is a real review
The staff in charge at the consultation were also so kind and nice
(pre-surgery)
Before the surgery, they kindly told me in advance through KakaoTalk what I needed, so I could prepare ahead of time
On the day of surgery, I brought spare underwear, a charger,
sleep socks, and sauce containers, but
if you’re staying one night, you probably don’t need to bring the sauce containers or other things like a laptop ^^\n //Things needed at home - sauce container (because you can’t open your mouth well, it’s convenient for drinking water or other liquids,
I bought three cut-to-size sauce containers from Coupang and cut them to the size I wanted depending on the purpose.),
protein drinks, pumpkin juice, children’s toothbrush//
//Things to bring for hospitalization - spare underwear, sleep socks, mobile phone charger, and definitely!! a seat cushion, earplugs//
Oh, and please definitely come wearing clothes with a zipper. That way it’ll be easier to change after surgery
(on the day of surgery) contour 3 procedures: chin advancement, zygoma, square jaw surgery
After arriving at the hospital that day, I changed into the surgical gown and had a consultation with the director before going into the operating room. Not long after I lay down,
the director came in
After I said, please keep me safe before anesthesia... safe... and then opened my eyes,
the surgery was already over, lol, what?!
It took about two and a half hours
I saw in other reviews people saying things like it felt as if an elephant had stepped on them,
or it felt like they had been beaten really badly, and so on
so I was really scared,
but huh? It wasn’t painful at all lololololol
To compare it exactly, you know that numb, tingling feeling when you get anesthesia in your gums at the dentist?
That kind of numb feeling was there in my lower jaw, and that was it
There wasn’t any other painful sensation, so I sat and rested,
messaged my friends on my phone and watched Instagram Reels while relaxing (For those who had zygoma surgery,
you shouldn’t bend your head downward, so you need to hold your phone up toward the front and look at it that way)
Unlike double jaw surgery, I could breathe well, so I was fine enough to go in and out of the bathroom by myself lol
But after surgery, because of the breathing tube, I had phlegm and couldn’t
use my voice I also had to wipe my nose a lot because it kept running,
and since I had to sleep sitting up, I couldn’t fall asleep easily..keup
I was allowed to drink water 8 hours after surgery, but I was wearing the support band
and had no sensation in my lower jaw, so the nurse
kindly fed me and said it was okay even if I spilled, taking care of me like I was a child lol
They also kept coming to replace the ice packs, which was touching..
The staff in charge also came to check whether I was uncomfortable,
and when I said my butt hurt from sitting all day, they even put down a pillow for me Thanks to that, I really survived. Thank you..
(Second day)
I was discharged at 10 a.m. that morning.
While leaving, I forgot to bring the support band, but the staff member ran all the way to the pharmacy in a hurry and handed it to me ( sorry)
I’m honestly such a scaredy-cat that I’m even afraid of getting an injection in my butt,
and I whine at the nurse to give it to me quickly, that kind of scaredy-cat girl
But I had contour surgery!!! Big deal After the surgery
I felt relieved and at peace
During the consultation, they didn’t say things like it definitely doesn’t hurt or everyone else does it like that
Instead, they honestly said the first day could be a little hard, and that because the nurses would take care of me overnight I didn’t need to worry too much,
which made me feel comfortable going into surgery
When I got home, I gargled and was so hungry that I blended porridge and ate it, but it had no taste at all
so I started living on liquids only. Newcare, sports drinks, juices, and so on..
(Third day)
I had to gargle every two hours
and take medicine three times a day, so I set an alarm to wake up at dawn,
but since I was sleeping sitting up, I woke up every two hours anyway
so there was no need to set an alarm haha...
I was more swollen on the third day than on the second,
so I quickly did warm compresses
Because I kept using ice packs, they kept touching my neck, and it felt like my cold was getting a little worse,
and since I couldn’t cough up phlegm comfortably from my throat and it felt scratchy,
the inability to talk was more frustrating than the pain
I had only heard that swelling gets even worse on the third day, but all I could think was, how can it swell even more?..
Since I still couldn’t chew today, I quietly put liquid food into the sauce container and drank it!
(Fourth day)
I took pictures and marked them with my fingers so I wouldn’t lose track of how many days had passed since surgery, but looking at it now it’s so funny lol Since I can’t close my mouth and have no sensation, spilling water like that is pretty much normal...
These photos were taken on the evening of the third day, and every morning when I woke up,
the swelling was hugely puffed up, then by evening it would go down again
On the third day, too, if I only drank one thing like Newcare, Pocari, or Powerade, I’d get sick of it,
so I kept switching the drinks and drinking them
I took the solids out of pollock soup, mixed in thin rice porridge, and used a spoon to
scoop it up and swallow it, and I also put a little yogurt into my mouth
and swallowed it like that
Today my head felt so gross that I lay back
and washed my hair and took a shower too
(I washed carefully so it wouldn’t touch the wound area around the zygoma)
Since I wasn’t able to eat well, I lost weight quickly (which is actually nice... I was too chubby and wanted to lose it,
but I was too weak-willed to ever do it,
so thanks to this I got surgery and lost weight too)
Anyway, the fourth day passed safely as well.
(Fifth day)
Can you see that the swelling has gone down even more compared to the previous day?
My face shape was already starting to show a little, and the broad, masculine face I used to see from the front every day
was getting refined and had become a shape that fit my current build perfectly
I’m looking forward to how much better it’ll get as the swelling keeps going down
The swelling that had been up high is gradually moving down under my eyes,
but when I looked at other reviews, some people had bruising so severe that it spread all over
but maybe because I didn’t have much bleeding, I had less bruising than I expected. Gotta praise the director’s skill..
From day 5, I switched from cold compresses to warm compresses
I mashed bananas with a spoon and put them in my mouth to eat them, and they melted slowly, which was delicious
I also mixed a tiny bit of soy sauce into soft tofu and ate it
and I blended fruit very finely in a mixer and drank it
I recommend blending tomatoes to drink them, they’re so delicious......
Or pour milk over cereal, remove the solids, and drink the milk
You shouldn’t drink too many dairy products so the medicine is absorbed into the body faster! But if you’re completely unable to eat what you want and get stressed,
wouldn’t that be worse? So I just rationalized it for myself..
I kept the surgery a secret from my family, so only my boyfriend knows. When I meet my family later, I wonder if they’ll recognize me at once because my face shape will be so different..
I’ll just act like I got smaller because I lost weight ^^...
Sixth day)
Staying home all the time was getting stuffy, and they say walking is the best way to reduce swelling, so I finally went outside for the first time in a while
I’ve become a proper grown-up who can eat with a normal spoon instead of just a spoon for babies ^^
As I got hungrier and hungrier, I started looking for all kinds of soft foods lol
I kept broadening the range of things I ate, like tiramisu, cheesecake, ice cream, chocolate, and more
Since I’d only been eating porridge or regular drinks, I’d turned into a baby with baby tastes,
so when I drank the ramen broth my boyfriend was having mixed with water and took one sip,
it was so spicy... I was so shocked that I wondered if it had always been this spicy..
You should be careful because eating刺激ive foods before the stitches are removed can cause inflammation,
and you should also gargle often to prevent residue from getting stuck in your mouth
Compared to the previous day, the swelling has gone down more, right?
My finger pose looks weird, but it’s day 6
Now I sleep with the angle tilted back even more, almost fully lying down
My swelling is still very puffy every morning, but when I walk, I can definitely feel the swelling going down a lot
Everyone! For swelling, walking is absolutely the answer
The long-awaited! Seventh day)
After the stitches are removed a week later, I’ll be able to eat more kinds of food,
and I’m already looking forward to it, thinking, wait, it’s already been a week since surgery?!
From today I’m also trying to brush my teeth a little with a children’s toothbrush,
and of course I can’t do it refreshingly because of the stitches inside my mouth, but still
the fact that I can brush my teeth at all feels so good compared to only gargling I also kept doing the support band diligently
and kept taking my medicine regularly
Because I couldn’t open my mouth well, taking medicine was hard,
but I figured I should still take it so there’d be less inflammation and I wouldn’t hurt, right?!
I’m glad I ate a ton of delicious food the day before surgery
There are so many foods I want to eat now
Two-week mark, present)
I’m from out of town, so it takes a lot of time to go all the way to Seoul at once,
and the hospital was considerate about that
So instead of the original 1-week visit, I had my zygoma stitches and intraoral stitches removed together at the 2-week mark
Before having them removed, I was that scaredy-cat again... I searched the internet
and read reviews about how painful it was
and when I saw reviews from people who had it done at other hospitals saying it hurts so much and everyone reacts like that,
I got really scared
So I asked them to do it gently,
and the stitches on the zygoma area really didn’t hurt at all to remove,
and the intraoral stitches only stung a little?
Who said it hurt so much! It doesn’t hurt at all!
I felt like I had worried for nothing
I think many of you worry already on day 1 or 2 or even at one week because the swelling hasn’t gone down at all,
and think maybe the surgery failed,
but please wait with some patience
It’s already been two weeks since the surgery!
From birth until before surgery, for decades I was stressed because of my square jaw and
my zygomas,
wondering how I could style my hair to make them less noticeable,
how I could cover them better,
and I feel like all those hours spent in front of the mirror were a waste
Now I can tie my hair up freely,
and whatever posture I take, my face shape doesn’t look weird,
so I’m very satisfied.
Everyone, if you’re putting off surgery and going to keep stressing over your face shape for life, wouldn’t it be better to make a reservation as soon as possible
and get the surgery and recover?
There weren’t any people around me who had had the surgery, so I had no one to ask and it was frustrating, but now that I’ve had the surgery myself
I can answer questions
If you have any questions, leave a comment
Thank you for reading this long post,
and that was my honest review up to here!