Last Tuesday, January 23, I underwent the lower blepharoplasty I had been both looking forward to and worrying about, and today I had the stitches removed from the temples above my eyes and ears. I’d like to organize and share this surgery review based on the facts. The reason I’m sharing my lower blepharoplasty review is that when I decided to have the surgery, I searched through many blogs and cafes, but there were more ads than I expected and not many firsthand, self-paid reviews, so I had a lot of deliberation about where to get the surgery. I hope this post helps middle-aged people like me who are considering surgery because of under-eye bulging from fat and under-eye hollows as they age!
The issues I was worried about before surgery (ectropion, eye discharge, diplopia, blurred vision, bleeding) did not occur, and the under-eye fat and tear-trough traces were neatly corrected within just one week after surgery. Since I achieved my surgery goals and there were no special problems afterward, I think it is okay to write a lower blepharoplasty review. So I’ll organize and share the reason I chose lower blepharoplasty, the process of selecting and consulting with three plastic surgery clinics, and how the surgery proceeded on the day itself. I’ll post the recovery progress after about two months.
1. Why I decided on lower blepharoplasty I had a little under-eye fat bulging since I was young, but it got gradually worse as I got older, so for several years I had long wondered whether to get the lower blepharoplasty that would address it. The problem was that there are many cases where lower blepharoplasty goes wrong, so I couldn’t easily make up my mind to have surgery. But after recently hearing from people around me that they had lower blepharoplasty done well and were satisfied, I decided to have the surgery.
2. Selecting a plastic surgery clinic and consultation for lower blepharoplasty At the end of last year, after deciding to have lower blepharoplasty, I searched Naver using terms like 'lower blepharoplasty' and 'middle-aged eye surgery' and looked through many plastic surgery cafes and blogs. Among the plastic surgery clinics found through searches for lower blepharoplasty and middle-aged eye surgery, I carefully checked their reputations and focused on clinics specializing in eye surgery located near Gangnam Station and Sinsa Station, which I can reach from my home in Gwacheon by bus in one ride, and I arranged all the consultation appointments for one day. Among the well-rated clinics, Objet and Rieye were chosen because of their location, and I chose Rieye and Hambaknun because they are clinics with one dedicated director, which I prefer. So I planned the route in the order of Objet, Rieye, and Hambaknun, and booked all the consultations for January 8 in one day.
3. Why I decided to have lower blepharoplasty at Rieye Plastic Surgery Among the clinics I consulted on January 8, the biggest reason I decided to have lower blepharoplasty at Rieye Plastic Surgery was Director Jeon Hyo-jin. Before the consultation, I read the patient reviews of lower blepharoplasty performed at Rieye in detail, and I privately messaged the writer to ask about satisfaction after surgery and received a positive reply. After that, I thoroughly looked through the hospital website and the director’s blog, and I felt I could trust them, so I went for the consultation. As I expected, the director’s consultation was thorough and she explained everything I was curious about very well, so I felt I could trust them with my face and made a same-day surgery reservation.
4. Other pre-surgery notes (mini face lift added) After consulting at Rieye Plastic Surgery on January 8, I scheduled the lower blepharoplasty for the morning of January 23. At that time, I had only planned to have lower blepharoplasty including under-eye fat repositioning, but right before surgery I decided to add a mini face lift and have both procedures together. During the first consultation, the director recommended doing a mini face lift together with the lower blepharoplasty because the effect would likely be better, but I had planned to see the lower blepharoplasty result first and do the mini face lift later. As the surgery date approached, I decided to do the mini face lift at the same time. The reason I changed my mind was that from consultation until just before surgery, I kept looking up information about lower blepharoplasty and lifting, and I came to agree with what the director had said (my facial skin sagging was also severe), and I kept checking the director’s reputation and found more hidden good reviews about Director Jeon Hyo-jin.
5. From one week before lower blepharoplasty until the day before surgery ■ One week before surgery: I received a text message with the preoperative precautions as shown below. Just follow the hospital’s instructions carefully. After receiving the precautions, I stopped taking Tylenol, which I sometimes took for headaches, and Bacchus, which I took for fatigue recovery, starting one week before surgery. ■ The day before surgery: I also received the precautions on KakaoTalk like this the day before surgery. They said that sometimes people don’t read the precautions properly and come after taking supplements, which can prevent proper hemostasis. They said that if you do what the hospital tells you, the surgery goes well and recovery is faster. I was a little nervous and worried the day before surgery, but I slept well. Following the hospital’s instructions, I did not eat anything, including water, after 10 p.m. the night before. On the morning of surgery, I only took my usual blood pressure and hyperlipidemia medication with a sip of water.
6. Schedule on the day of lower blepharoplasty ■ On the day of surgery, I left home at a relaxed pace and arrived at Rieye Plastic Surgery near Sinsa Station at 10:20 a.m. (10 minutes early). It was convenient because I could get there directly by bus from home. After surgery, I would need to come to the hospital for follow-up checks and laser treatment to remove swelling and bruising at intervals of 3 days, 1 week, 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, and 3 months, so I thought that accessibility from home would also be important when choosing a hospital. ■ After arriving at the hospital, I changed clothes and washed my face. They told me not to come with makeup on, so I asked whether I should come with a bare face, and they said moisturizer and sunscreen were okay. In any case, I had to wash my face as soon as I got to the hospital. For changing clothes, I had to switch into hospital clothes except for my underwear. They said the underwear also must not contain any metal material. All metal items had to be removed before surgery. ■ After changing and washing my face, I heard an explanation of the surgery precautions in the consultation room and signed the surgical consent form. ■ They took photos of my pre-surgery appearance, probably to compare the changes after surgery. Looking at the photos, I could see that the skin on my whole face had sagged more than before. That is probably why the director recommended the mini face lift. They said the mini face lift works well when done together with lower blepharoplasty. In particular, they said Director Jeon Hyo-jin is very sincere about lifting. For that reason, they said the clinic’s name was chosen as Rieye (the 'ri' from lifting and the 'eye' from eyes). ■ The director came and explained the surgery in detail. I had expected that on the day of surgery they would go over it quickly since I had already received a detailed consultation before surgery, but she explained it in even greater detail. After explaining the surgery, she designed my face for the procedure, and while doing the design, she explained again how the surgery would be performed.
■ Surgery details (lower blepharoplasty + mini face lift) ※ I entered the operating room around 11:40 a.m., and the surgery ended around 3:50 p.m., so including preparation time it took a total of 4 hours. Inside that, the time spent entering the OR and preparing for surgery seemed to be about 40 to 50 minutes (I couldn’t check the clock, so I don’t know the exact time). ※ During the pre-surgery consultation, I was told that lower blepharoplasty would take 1.5 to 2 hours and the mini face lift would take 1 hour, but it seems the director performed the surgery a bit more carefully. ※ Normally the operating room feels cold, but it wasn’t cold, and they covered my lower body with a warm blanket, so it was comfortable. ※ It seemed that two nurses handled the preparation, and the preparation for surgery (setting up equipment, attaching various sensors, and placing the IV) felt very fast and professional. In particular, when they inserted the IV into my right arm smoothly and without pain on the first try, I had a feeling the surgery would go well. ※ The most important part, anesthesia, was done with a short sedation anesthesia plus local anesthesia, so during the local anesthesia I could hear everything happening during the operation without feeling pain. If the anesthesia seemed a little insufficient and it felt like it might hurt, Director Jeon Hyo-jin would ask whether it hurt and gradually add more local anesthesia as the surgery continued. The director kept asking about my physical condition throughout the operation. ※ Because it was not done under full sedation anesthesia where you wake up and the surgery is already over, and instead the surgery proceeded under local anesthesia, it was not very painful, but if the anesthesia was slightly insufficient at times, it could hurt a little. In those cases, if I said so, they immediately added more local anesthesia. Since I was awake during the surgery, I could feel through my body that the director was performing it very carefully. The lower blepharoplasty was done under local anesthesia, and the mini face lift afterward was done under sedation anesthesia, but even during the mini face lift I woke up in the middle and could feel the surgery. Thanks to that, the anesthesia wore off quickly after surgery, which was good. ※ Comfortable classical music was playing during the surgery, so it was nice to be able to undergo the procedure with a calm mind. ※ Before surgery, both hands were tied for safety. While being operated on, having to turn my face to the right and left according to the director’s instructions while my hands were tied was a little difficult. ※ My overall impression of the surgery was the same as what I had been told during the pre-surgery consultation. It was a little hard because my hands were tied, but I could feel and hear through my body and ears that the director was doing her best and working hard on the surgery.
■ After surgery, I comfortably received an IV for about an hour in the recovery room and had cold compresses applied to my eyes. The recovery room had a warm and comfortable atmosphere, and Japanese anime theme songs were playing, which made it good for settling down after surgery. The director did not use much anesthesia, so by the time I entered the recovery room, the anesthesia had almost worn off, and thanks to that I recovered quickly and had no problem going home. ■ After an hour of recovery in the recovery room, I received instructions for the prescribed medication and the prescription from the hospital, and bought antibiotics, anti-inflammatory painkillers, stomach medicine to prevent heartburn, and ophthalmic ointment at the pharmacy on the first floor of the hospital building. Because these were for cosmetic purposes, they were not covered by national health insurance, so they were a bit expensive. I showed the eye drops I had already been using to the director, and she said it was okay to keep using them, so I didn’t buy any. I had been worried that because the anesthesia had not fully worn off after surgery, I might not be able to buy the medicines properly, but that was unnecessary worry. Since the anesthesia was gone, I didn’t bother my wife, bought the medicines properly, and was able to return home alone by bus. ■ The hospital gave me the so-called tightening band and a cold-eye mask for cold compresses needed after mini face lift surgery, and I brought them home. I was told to do cold compresses for one week and wear the tightening band for at least one month and up to three months. I started cold compresses and the tightening band diligently, exactly as instructed by the hospital.
■ When I got home and ate dinner, the local anesthesia had not worn off from the right side of my nose to the right side of my lips and inside my mouth, so it was difficult to eat. When I ate and chewed, the temple area above the ear where the mini face lift incision had been made hurt a lot because it was pulled tight. After that, I took my medicine, wore the tightening band, and stayed up as late as possible to reduce facial swelling. I tried to sleep at dawn, but the surgical area was pulling so much that my head felt foggy and it was hard to fall asleep. Other worries like diplopia, blurred vision, and bleeding did not occur. I had bruising in my right eye, but I was told it would go away over time, so I did not worry. The swelling was not severe, just a little, and I diligently used cold compresses to reduce it.
7. Conclusion after lower blepharoplasty for a man in his 50s at Rieye Plastic Surgery (+ mini face lift) It has only been one week since the surgery, so it is difficult to say anything definitively, but the under-eye bulging and tear-trough lines that had stressed me since I was young have been neatly and well resolved, so I am satisfied. There is still a little bruising left in my right eye, but I think it will disappear if I do warm compresses properly for about a week, so I don’t really mind. Aside from the first two days after surgery, when the operated area pulled a lot, I had no pain or difficulty, so I think it was the right decision to have the surgery. If you are thinking about lower blepharoplasty, I recommend that you look up a lot of related information in advance, carefully check the reputations of the hospitals and directors you are recommended, and after getting a good consultation from the director, have the surgery at a plastic surgery clinic that suits you well.