Hello. Frustratingly... I wrote a long post not once but twice and lost it, so I’m writing it again.. It turns out that after some time, you get automatically logged out.ㅠ I’m Hong Seon X, a 27-year-old office worker living in Seoul. Ever since I was young, I had an unusually severe square jaw, which caused me a lot of stress, and I lived with the determination that someday I would definitely get jaw surgery too. Starting 2 years ago, I joined several websites and was constantly looking into hospitals, but with so many hospitals, it was still hard to decide.. So I started going around in person. Because I work, I went every Saturday, and even after visiting several well-known facial contouring specialty clinics in the long-established Gangnam and Apgujeong areas, they all seemed similar. With my meticulous and persistent personality, it was really hard to decide. What narrowed down my decision one day was after I got to know the director of one hospital. Unlike other directors, he carefully wrote down in the treatment record the things he could promise, step by step, and he passionately explained every single part of the surgical method without missing anything. That left a very strong impression on me. Of course, there were parts I didn’t understand, and because of my personality it was hard to make a decision, so over about a year and a half, I think I visited only this hospital about 3 times^^; While waiting for a consultation, I even got the contact information of two patients who had had surgery at this hospital and came in around day 10 to have their stitches removed, and I asked them all sorts of questions. That’s how I finally made my decision. What those two patients both said was, just like in the reviews and just like the director said, on the first day after surgery there was no major pain at the surgical site, and the pain was about the level of having a wisdom tooth removed, enough that they could sleep. What I had worried about most was, “What if the pain is severe on the day of surgery?” and that proved it for me. Also, same-day discharge and the importance of surgery with minimal bleeding, only about two pieces of gauze worth and no blood drain inserted, really resonated with me. Finally, I got a one-month medical leave from work, set the surgery date for November 1, and arrived at the hospital with my beloved mom and dad, trying to calm my nervous heart. Even though my parents had cold-like body aches, they worried about me terribly. I was so grateful to them, and with a strong belief that the surgery would go well, even though I’m someone who complains a lot and gets scared easily, I actually showed a calm side and went straight onto the operating table. As soon as I asked whether it would be gas anesthesia or injection anesthesia, they said it would be an injection and that they would start anesthesia right away. I still vividly remember right up until just before my eyes closed^^; When I opened my eyes, an older coworker from my company was beside me in the recovery room. I was very cold and sleepy, and there was none of the pain I had worried about most, but the nausea was pretty severe. Since it was same-day discharge and they said it was good to walk and move around, I endured the nausea, drank warm water, and repeatedly walked around inside the hospital and rested.. My mom was sick with body aches, so she left first with my dad, and apparently asked my coworker to take care of me. I comfortably came home in the taxi my coworker got for me. I ate the thin rice gruel my mom made for me, and I was able to fall asleep easily on the first night, but because I’m sensitive, I kept waking up and falling asleep again. I naturally kept thinking of the director who had performed the surgery so cleanly and skillfully^^; I respected him so much and was grateful. I was also grateful that a surgery that seemed like it would be painful because bone is shaved down could really be this painless, allowing me to sleep and even eat thin rice gruel. I didn’t properly read the instruction sheet from the manager about what I needed to follow, and I took an anti-inflammatory that day, so I threw up all the gruel I had eaten, but I was truly grateful for a surgery without pain. What I was most worried about was pain on the day of surgery, so it was such a relief^^ I had 5 days’ worth of anti-inflammatory medication and 3 days’ worth of painkillers, but amazingly, I didn’t need even one painkiller..! It was the second day after surgery. Again, there was almost no pain, and as the swelling started and because I wanted to recover quickly day by day, I made up my mind that I needed to eat well. Starting with soybean paste soup rice gruel and kimchi broth, then samgyetang broth with blended leg and breast meat, I ate well and fillingly. I also finely blended and drank fruit and yogurt, and had milk, ice cream, and so on (I have a strong appetite and usually eat very well^^:) I ate well without feeling hungry. My mom was so surprised by my appetite that she kept laughing. Her lips even became chapped, and I felt sorry and grateful to her. That day, I actually thought about going for a walk but held back and instead went up to the rooftop and walked repeatedly, and I also did ice packs. Day 3 after surgery....ㅋ Because the swelling was truly at its peak, the bandage felt so tight and uncomfortable, but I still thought, “This much is nothing!” I took photos too..ㅋ That day, I covered my face completely and walked around Ujangsan in front of our house with my mom and dad for about 40 minutes before coming back. I guess my determination to do aerobic exercise every day, which is said to help swelling a lot, worked. I had no difficulty walking at all. That day I took one painkiller. Because the swelling made the bandage so tight that I thought it would be a bit hard to sleep, my mom said if I took a painkiller I could sleep deeply, so I took it, and as expected^^ I’m glad I did. From day 4 after surgery, the swelling went down slightly, and from day 5, the swelling noticeably started going down in earnest. Honestly, I had only made up my mind about square jaw surgery, but I realized that my cheekbones also contributed to my strong impression, so I ended up getting square jaw and cheekbone surgery together. Rather, the cheekbone swelling went down quickly and didn’t bother me much. At first, my mom strongly opposed the cheekbone surgery, but now she also realizes the importance of the cheekbones with me^^; Last Friday, the 12th, at my second visit after surgery, I had the last stitches removed, and the director gave me my pre-op photos, surgery-scene photos, and post-op X-ray. Thank you^^ With a light and happy heart, I met a friend and went to Pizza Hut. I carefully ate carbonara, tomato spaghetti, and even added salad. The spaghetti was harder than I expected and didn’t taste good, so I left a lot, but anyway, I was grateful that I could eat it.. I didn’t tell my friend that I had cheekbone surgery. She thought I only had my jaw done, but when she tilted her head and looked at my face, she said I seemed really different somehow and that it seemed like my face would get smaller once the swelling went down. She found it fascinating. The director said it was okay to eat soft rice, so on Saturday I mixed rice into pollack stew, melted and ate soft bread, and have been eating a variety of foods^^ Yesterday I met my boyfriend, went to Bonjuk and ate porridge, and when he saw my face he said he thought he wouldn’t be able to see me for about a month, but the swelling wasn’t bad, and he said I had gotten prettier again. It was really hard to decide on surgery, and I thought that after surgery it would only be difficult and that I would have to get through a very harsh time, but strangely, maybe because I’ve been doing much more comfortably than expected, time is going by very quickly.. I’ve been downloading and watching American dramas I hadn’t seen, walking my dog, and another thing,, from day 4 after surgery I think I even bathed my dog. Since I’m at home, I wash dishes and do housework, so my mom is happy..ㅋ I’m spending each day happily and gratefully. Outer appearance is important too, but now I’m determined to cultivate my inner self more, become more mature, upgrade myself, and live a worthwhile life. If you are really struggling with a complex and living with stress, it must be a difficult decision, but I’m posting this hoping that this writing can relieve even a little of that burden. I’m most grateful to the director who performed the surgery so well that I could spend the post-op time so comfortably, and I’m also grateful to the manager who replies in real time even to texts from patients at dawn. You are truly professional. For up to 3 months, I need to be careful with chewing so that the cheekbones fuse well. Right now, my chin tip and lower lip are still near the nerve line, so they feel numb and slightly uncomfortable, but I feel like it’s nothing. Time is the cure for everything^^ When I think about how I’ll change little by little up to 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year, I really feel like it’s nothing. They say the scar tissue becoming thicker and firmer is called contracture tissue, and that it takes more than a year for all of it to go away. They say the surgical effect improves by 10% each month, so I’ll have to watch it for up to a year and leave it to time! Still, I can already see that my overall facial line has softened, so I feel good.. To everyone who has surgery ahead and is worrying, fighting~! Next time I post a review, I’ll attach photos and post them together~ㅎㅎ
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