How can I make my calves smaller?
- Thread starter kahk3000
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Heyyy travelbird!HI Elle!! I am planning on going to dr Park at the end of September. I myself would love to find someone who is planning on undergoing the some surgery so I don't have to go though the process alone. I also feel hesitant about being in Korea for 2 weeks by my self. I would be super nice to share this experience with someone. I am a girl form Sweden, 23 years old.
Have you decided a date yet??
How are you? How was it? I hope everything's good.
I don't know why last post have been deleted.
I also would like to hear about your experience!
Let me know if it's possible to talk with you through skype or email.
Thank you!!
Hi everyone. I have just had my op done with dr Jong yesterday. Today is my first post op and I'd like to share my experience with some of you who are considering seeing dr Jong.
First I want to say that dr Jong is an amazingly caring and professional Doctor. He spends. a lot of time going over all concerns you may have, you'll never feel rushed. And his team is just as amazing. During the consultation dr Jong had me standing on a turning chair, took bunch of pics and measurements and captured multiple ultrasound images. He said my circumferences were 38L and 37.5R. He said that I would see at least a 3cm reduction if not more. The consultation took about 2 hours. Dr Jong only takes cash, he quoted me at $5000 and this is to be paid after the consultation. After the consultation I went check in at a place I found on Airbnb, 5 mins away from the clinic.
Day of the surgery, dr Jong spent about 40 min to go over the procedure with me again and answered questions. The nurse took me into the surgical room and stripped me down to my bra and rinsed me with some type of disinfecting solutions. Then the spinal anesthesia, which was painless and took effect rapidly. They gave me a shot to calm my nerves down and I fell asleep right away. I lied on my chest throughout the surgery and when they flipped me over, I woke up. Not too much pain after the surgery, just tightness on the back of calves and couldn't bend them straight. I slept for a good 12 hours and then the pain woke me up. Dr Jong gave me painkillers and antibiotics and some breakfast and I was fine until 5 hours later before taking another dose of painkiller and antibiotics. Dr Jong wanted me to not move at all and stay in bed for the rest of the day. Tomorrow I'll have everything removed and will check out of the clinic. I'll update more later on.
First I want to say that dr Jong is an amazingly caring and professional Doctor. He spends. a lot of time going over all concerns you may have, you'll never feel rushed. And his team is just as amazing. During the consultation dr Jong had me standing on a turning chair, took bunch of pics and measurements and captured multiple ultrasound images. He said my circumferences were 38L and 37.5R. He said that I would see at least a 3cm reduction if not more. The consultation took about 2 hours. Dr Jong only takes cash, he quoted me at $5000 and this is to be paid after the consultation. After the consultation I went check in at a place I found on Airbnb, 5 mins away from the clinic.
Day of the surgery, dr Jong spent about 40 min to go over the procedure with me again and answered questions. The nurse took me into the surgical room and stripped me down to my bra and rinsed me with some type of disinfecting solutions. Then the spinal anesthesia, which was painless and took effect rapidly. They gave me a shot to calm my nerves down and I fell asleep right away. I lied on my chest throughout the surgery and when they flipped me over, I woke up. Not too much pain after the surgery, just tightness on the back of calves and couldn't bend them straight. I slept for a good 12 hours and then the pain woke me up. Dr Jong gave me painkillers and antibiotics and some breakfast and I was fine until 5 hours later before taking another dose of painkiller and antibiotics. Dr Jong wanted me to not move at all and stay in bed for the rest of the day. Tomorrow I'll have everything removed and will check out of the clinic. I'll update more later on.
Day 2 OP
last day staying at the clinic. It really is a super busy clinic, so many patients come in to get something done. I still haven't gone outta bed by this point. Dr Jong removed the drain tubes from my calves and it was the most painful experience ever!!! Only took a few seconds but it was so painful I thought I was ganna faint. He measured my calves and they were 37L/36R and my legs looks empty with lots of skin... He said the extra skin will tighten up in time so not to worry. The apartment owner was kind enough to come to the clinic and roll me in a wheelchair to the apartment. I could not have made it myself. I didn't get much sleep last night, fell asleep at 6pm. Got up to pee once but had to use walking aid and walked very very slowly. Some of the girls could walk the next day I honestly don't know how they did it lol. Kudos to them. No pain at all today, did not take any pain medications.
Day 3 OP
Still no pain. Just tightness around stitches and ankles. I can walk a bit better in wedges today, still needing the walking aid. Today I will leave the apartment and check in to a hotel more closer to the clinic because I want a tub to bathe in and also because my boyfriend is finally here to join me on this trip. I would totally recommend the apartment to anyone who's looking for a cheaper alternative, it only cost me $44 per night and altho it's very small it has everything you need: individual washroom with towels, soap, shampoo, tv, washer, filtered water, ac. If you need the owners contact pls feel free to email me.
Boyfriend rolled me in the wheelchair to the hotel, I still wouldn't trust myself walking for more than 1 min without help. Took me a while to climb into the tub but felt great after I showered the first time in 3days After the bath I changed the dressing like dr Jong adviced me to. It was stingy when I put the solution on my stitches but went away quick. I will post more updates in a couple of days.
last day staying at the clinic. It really is a super busy clinic, so many patients come in to get something done. I still haven't gone outta bed by this point. Dr Jong removed the drain tubes from my calves and it was the most painful experience ever!!! Only took a few seconds but it was so painful I thought I was ganna faint. He measured my calves and they were 37L/36R and my legs looks empty with lots of skin... He said the extra skin will tighten up in time so not to worry. The apartment owner was kind enough to come to the clinic and roll me in a wheelchair to the apartment. I could not have made it myself. I didn't get much sleep last night, fell asleep at 6pm. Got up to pee once but had to use walking aid and walked very very slowly. Some of the girls could walk the next day I honestly don't know how they did it lol. Kudos to them. No pain at all today, did not take any pain medications.
Day 3 OP
Still no pain. Just tightness around stitches and ankles. I can walk a bit better in wedges today, still needing the walking aid. Today I will leave the apartment and check in to a hotel more closer to the clinic because I want a tub to bathe in and also because my boyfriend is finally here to join me on this trip. I would totally recommend the apartment to anyone who's looking for a cheaper alternative, it only cost me $44 per night and altho it's very small it has everything you need: individual washroom with towels, soap, shampoo, tv, washer, filtered water, ac. If you need the owners contact pls feel free to email me.
Boyfriend rolled me in the wheelchair to the hotel, I still wouldn't trust myself walking for more than 1 min without help. Took me a while to climb into the tub but felt great after I showered the first time in 3days After the bath I changed the dressing like dr Jong adviced me to. It was stingy when I put the solution on my stitches but went away quick. I will post more updates in a couple of days.
Hi Katrynn,
I am 17 days post op. I stayed in Seoul for 13 days post op.
I have read a lot of the posts here and been in contact with people that had the procedure done and I have noticed that the recovery is very individual.
This procedure is very hard mentally, I was in Seoul by my self so there was nobody to help me or push me. There were a lot of times I thought why did I do this, were my calves really that bad?? But as I feel right now, it was totally worth it. My calves were controlling my life. I would stay home a lot instead of going out with friends. I really fell in to depression. I hated shopping cause skinny jeans, skirts, shorts and boots would look so weird on me. I am very skinny and have skinny thighs so my calves were unproportional to the rest of my body.
I am 169 cm tall and my left calf was 38cm while my right one was 39cm.
I will write my recovery day by day as much as I remember of it. If someone have any questions don’t hesitate to write me!
For anyone thinking of doing this, I really recommend Dr Park. He is very nice as well as his staff. They made me feel very comfortable and they showed that they care. And Seoul is a very nice city I felt safe there for anyone traveling alone
I arrived in Seoul the 28th of September. I went straight to the clinic from the airport. When I arrived nurse Amy did my blood test and after I met dr Park. He looked at my calves and then we went through important information. He said that my ideal measurements would be 34cm (20% of your height). I though that sounded good so we scheduled my surgery the next morning at 10am.
29th September. I arrived at the clinic and dr Park drew on my calves. Later I went in to the procedure room to get the spinal anesthesia. I am extremely scared of needles. I have past out when getting vaccinated previously. So having a big needle in my spine was super scary. Just when the anesthesiologist found the spot to put the needle I moved from the pain! Do NOT do this! I got scared cause I though I messed it up. But the anesthesiologist found his mark again and I asked the nurses to hold me so I don't move again. He put the needle in and I felt me legs getting warmer and I couldn't feel my lower body. Later I feel asleep. I woke up a few hours later in the recovery room. My legs had bandages on them and my feet were super swollen. During the day Dr Park and the nurses tried to get me to walk. But when I would stand I would get light headed and start sweating so they asked me to lie down again, otherwise I would pass out. They noticed that I wouldn't walk today so around 18:00 Dr Park sent the nurses home and he stayed at the clinic with me all night. He said my recovery was slower than average because most people walk the same day. This made me worried.
Post op day 1
The nurses were back at 10 am. I had not been to the toilet since the morning the day before so I asked one of the nurses to help me. She wanted to me to walk to the toilet and I panic and said I can't walk! So she brought me a thing to pee in. I did really not want to do that so I asked her to get me a chair and then roll me to the toilet. I managed to get to the toilet but when I asked her to get me the chair to roll me back she said no. She wanted me to try to walk back. And imagine to my surprise I actually did it. I am sooo thankful to her for making me walk. I think I was scared to try it because of the pain. This was a big step for me so during the day I was walking a bit a few times. I stayed at the clinic all day and at 18:00 when the clinic was closing Dr Park drove me to my hotel.
Day 2 post op
Today I was suppose to walk to the clinic. But I keept pushing it forward thinking I will go soon, soon soon. I guess because I didn't think I could actually walk there. But around 15-16 I get a knock on my door. It's the guy from the front desk with a phone in his hand. It was Dr Park asking me to come to the clinic. This was great, just the push I needed. I got dressed stretched and started walking to the clinic. This walk before the surgery took me 5 minutes but this time it took like 20 minutes. I have read here that you walk slow but I was shocked at how slow you actually walk. And people were starring at me the whole way there. The woman that owns the hotel I stayed at said if I was korean people wouldn't have stared. It's cause I'm a white girl with long golden hair that walks strange haha. When I arrived at the clinic I was greeted by the two nurses. They had big smiles and had a gift for me. They gave me a chocolate cake that they bought. They are soo sweet. Really put a smile to my face. I didn't feel so alone anymore. Then when the doctor was ready I went in and they removed my bandages and put on new ones. Then they showed me the stretches I had to do and asked me to come back on Tuesday (this was Friday). Monday was a holiday so they were closed.
Day 3 & 4 post op
I stayed at my residence these days. I was only stretching and elevating pretty much. Day 3 I was stretching every 30 minutes but day 4 I was stretching almost every 15 minutes. This because my recovery started out slow and I needed to recover faster. Later I had the courage to take a shower. It is harder to stand up without bandages so it was a quick shower.
29th September. I arrived at the clinic and dr Park drew on my calves. Later I went in to the procedure room to get the spinal anesthesia. I am extremely scared of needles. I have past out when getting vaccinated previously. So having a big needle in my spine was super scary. Just when the anesthesiologist found the spot to put the needle I moved from the pain! Do NOT do this! I got scared cause I though I messed it up. But the anesthesiologist found his mark again and I asked the nurses to hold me so I don't move again. He put the needle in and I felt me legs getting warmer and I couldn't feel my lower body. Later I feel asleep. I woke up a few hours later in the recovery room. My legs had bandages on them and my feet were super swollen. During the day Dr Park and the nurses tried to get me to walk. But when I would stand I would get light headed and start sweating so they asked me to lie down again, otherwise I would pass out. They noticed that I wouldn't walk today so around 18:00 Dr Park sent the nurses home and he stayed at the clinic with me all night. He said my recovery was slower than average because most people walk the same day. This made me worried.
Post op day 1
The nurses were back at 10 am. I had not been to the toilet since the morning the day before so I asked one of the nurses to help me. She wanted to me to walk to the toilet and I panic and said I can't walk! So she brought me a thing to pee in. I did really not want to do that so I asked her to get me a chair and then roll me to the toilet. I managed to get to the toilet but when I asked her to get me the chair to roll me back she said no. She wanted me to try to walk back. And imagine to my surprise I actually did it. I am sooo thankful to her for making me walk. I think I was scared to try it because of the pain. This was a big step for me so during the day I was walking a bit a few times. I stayed at the clinic all day and at 18:00 when the clinic was closing Dr Park drove me to my hotel.
Day 2 post op
Today I was suppose to walk to the clinic. But I keept pushing it forward thinking I will go soon, soon soon. I guess because I didn't think I could actually walk there. But around 15-16 I get a knock on my door. It's the guy from the front desk with a phone in his hand. It was Dr Park asking me to come to the clinic. This was great, just the push I needed. I got dressed stretched and started walking to the clinic. This walk before the surgery took me 5 minutes but this time it took like 20 minutes. I have read here that you walk slow but I was shocked at how slow you actually walk. And people were starring at me the whole way there. The woman that owns the hotel I stayed at said if I was korean people wouldn't have stared. It's cause I'm a white girl with long golden hair that walks strange haha. When I arrived at the clinic I was greeted by the two nurses. They had big smiles and had a gift for me. They gave me a chocolate cake that they bought. They are soo sweet. Really put a smile to my face. I didn't feel so alone anymore. Then when the doctor was ready I went in and they removed my bandages and put on new ones. Then they showed me the stretches I had to do and asked me to come back on Tuesday (this was Friday). Monday was a holiday so they were closed.
Day 3 & 4 post op
I stayed at my residence these days. I was only stretching and elevating pretty much. Day 3 I was stretching every 30 minutes but day 4 I was stretching almost every 15 minutes. This because my recovery started out slow and I needed to recover faster. Later I had the courage to take a shower. It is harder to stand up without bandages so it was a quick shower.
Day 5 post op
I walk to the clinic and it went faster this time. I still walk a bit strange but it took just over 5 minutes. I arrived at the clinic and they changed my bandages again and asked me to stretch. The only thing he reacted on was that my angles and feet were very very swollen. He made a joke that I no longer have ankles since they were almost bigger then my calves
. So he recommended me to start massaging my feet. Later that day around 19:00 I went to the supermarket and afterward even walked a bit in the area were the supermarket is.
Day 6 post op
So by now I'm getting regrets of missing out on exploring Seoul so I decide to walk around. I went to Sinsa area, which was nice. I found Krispy crème doughnuts and a place called mango six which made delicious virgin mojitos. I walk for a bit more than an hour.
Day 7 post op
Today I went to the clinic again. I had my first aspirations. I does hurt but not a lot. The dr removed 40 cc which I believe is a lot. But that is also a good thing. It means that my calves should feel better now. Dr Park said I was doing my stretches well and said I can now walk for two hours or more. He told me to go and explore Seoul and try some Korean food. So later this day I went to Myeong-dong. I went there by subway. There were a lot of people and a lot of street food. It was nice. I also went to Lotte department store. I bought a pair of shoes cause I couldn’t fit in my. My feet are 4 times bigger than usual. I have been walking around in flipflops. So these shoes were a few sizes bigger.
I can also mention that I’m by now walking normal. No limping.
Day 8 post op
Today I went to Hongdae. It is a very nice lively area with a lot of younger people. They are preforming. Both dancing, singing and doing stand up. On my way there at the subway I met two Japanese girls and ended up hanging out with them. I was walking normally until I noticed that my new shoes had giving me the biggest blisters ever and I hurt so much I couldn’t really walk. So we went to seven eleven and I bought Band-Aid which helped a little. After shopping I decide to go to the old palace. When I was there I noticed I had been walking for 4 hours so I decided to go home otherwise me legs will swell up way to much.
But I can also mentioned that these blisters made the rest of my recovery and stretching harder. It's the worst blister I have every had. They were very deep. So be careful with which shoes you wear.
Day 10
Because I had walk so much I tried to take it more easy today. Only took a walk near the sinsa area.
Day 11 post op
Today I went to the clinic at 14:00 to do my aspirations again. I was greeted by Dr Parks very nice wife. I met her the days after my surgery as well. There were a lot of people at the clinic today so I had to wait for a while but had conversations with the other clients. One of the girls had come from Hong Kong and reassured me that Dr Park is the best and is famous for calves reductions. I got new bandages and he aspirated 15 cc. He recommended me to take it easy today cause my last days I had walk a lot.
Day 12 post op
Today I did the DMZ tour. I was very nervous about this cause I didn’t know if I would get too tired or if I wouldn’t be able to stretch enough and then have difficulty walking. One of the activities on this tour was to go down a tunnel that North Korea had made but was found by South Korea. The tunnel is long and going back up the tunnel exhausting. I though that I wouldn’t get back up but I didn’t want to miss it so I did it. Walking up the tunnel was exhausting however it was also good for me. It stretched my legs so it was easier to walk afterwards. So girls’ going up hills is good!! Haha
Day 13 post op
Today I am leaving Seoul. First I had my last appointment at the clinic. Now Dr Park was going to show me how to aspirate. He made circles where the needle should go but when he was going to show me how to put in the needle and get the fluid out I couldn’t look. I started breathing heavy. I am as mentioned earlier extremely scared of needles. Dr Park gave me my phone and asked me to video tape it instead and then ask someone else to do it for me. That was a great idea. When that was done he gave my 4 syringes and told me to aspirate once a week. He also gave me band Aids for my stitches. I also got to choose between 3 types of compression stockings. Oh and he gave me extra bandages. He told me to email him with any questions I have and to update him with how many cc I aspirate the following weeks.
When I got back to Sweden I called my health center and they will do the aspirations for me. Which I’m very happy about. I feel safer that someone with medical background is going to do this for me. So I recommend that other who are scared of needle or worried about doing it correctly to contact your health center or a nurse.
I walk to the clinic and it went faster this time. I still walk a bit strange but it took just over 5 minutes. I arrived at the clinic and they changed my bandages again and asked me to stretch. The only thing he reacted on was that my angles and feet were very very swollen. He made a joke that I no longer have ankles since they were almost bigger then my calves
. So he recommended me to start massaging my feet. Later that day around 19:00 I went to the supermarket and afterward even walked a bit in the area were the supermarket is. Day 6 post op
So by now I'm getting regrets of missing out on exploring Seoul so I decide to walk around. I went to Sinsa area, which was nice. I found Krispy crème doughnuts and a place called mango six which made delicious virgin mojitos. I walk for a bit more than an hour.
Day 7 post op
Today I went to the clinic again. I had my first aspirations. I does hurt but not a lot. The dr removed 40 cc which I believe is a lot. But that is also a good thing. It means that my calves should feel better now. Dr Park said I was doing my stretches well and said I can now walk for two hours or more. He told me to go and explore Seoul and try some Korean food. So later this day I went to Myeong-dong. I went there by subway. There were a lot of people and a lot of street food. It was nice. I also went to Lotte department store. I bought a pair of shoes cause I couldn’t fit in my. My feet are 4 times bigger than usual. I have been walking around in flipflops. So these shoes were a few sizes bigger.
I can also mention that I’m by now walking normal. No limping.
Day 8 post op
Today I went to Hongdae. It is a very nice lively area with a lot of younger people. They are preforming. Both dancing, singing and doing stand up. On my way there at the subway I met two Japanese girls and ended up hanging out with them. I was walking normally until I noticed that my new shoes had giving me the biggest blisters ever and I hurt so much I couldn’t really walk. So we went to seven eleven and I bought Band-Aid which helped a little. After shopping I decide to go to the old palace. When I was there I noticed I had been walking for 4 hours so I decided to go home otherwise me legs will swell up way to much.
But I can also mentioned that these blisters made the rest of my recovery and stretching harder. It's the worst blister I have every had. They were very deep. So be careful with which shoes you wear.
Day 10
Because I had walk so much I tried to take it more easy today. Only took a walk near the sinsa area.
Day 11 post op
Today I went to the clinic at 14:00 to do my aspirations again. I was greeted by Dr Parks very nice wife. I met her the days after my surgery as well. There were a lot of people at the clinic today so I had to wait for a while but had conversations with the other clients. One of the girls had come from Hong Kong and reassured me that Dr Park is the best and is famous for calves reductions. I got new bandages and he aspirated 15 cc. He recommended me to take it easy today cause my last days I had walk a lot.
Day 12 post op
Today I did the DMZ tour. I was very nervous about this cause I didn’t know if I would get too tired or if I wouldn’t be able to stretch enough and then have difficulty walking. One of the activities on this tour was to go down a tunnel that North Korea had made but was found by South Korea. The tunnel is long and going back up the tunnel exhausting. I though that I wouldn’t get back up but I didn’t want to miss it so I did it. Walking up the tunnel was exhausting however it was also good for me. It stretched my legs so it was easier to walk afterwards. So girls’ going up hills is good!! Haha
Day 13 post op
Today I am leaving Seoul. First I had my last appointment at the clinic. Now Dr Park was going to show me how to aspirate. He made circles where the needle should go but when he was going to show me how to put in the needle and get the fluid out I couldn’t look. I started breathing heavy. I am as mentioned earlier extremely scared of needles. Dr Park gave me my phone and asked me to video tape it instead and then ask someone else to do it for me. That was a great idea. When that was done he gave my 4 syringes and told me to aspirate once a week. He also gave me band Aids for my stitches. I also got to choose between 3 types of compression stockings. Oh and he gave me extra bandages. He told me to email him with any questions I have and to update him with how many cc I aspirate the following weeks.
When I got back to Sweden I called my health center and they will do the aspirations for me. Which I’m very happy about. I feel safer that someone with medical background is going to do this for me. So I recommend that other who are scared of needle or worried about doing it correctly to contact your health center or a nurse.
Scratch that last part, I called my health center again to make the appointment but found out it's a long process to actually get them to help me since they are not familiar with this procedure.. very disappointed. I'm very nervous now about doing the aspirations now..
Day 4 PO
Today is my first PO visit with dr Jong. I walked very slowly with the walking aid to the clinic. I still can't really bend my knees straight so I'm walking really really weird, getting lots of looks on the way to dr Jong.... When dr Jong took my bandages off, I felt like my calves looked the same as they were before the surgery, but just a bit "empty". He measured my calves and they were both 36cm. I was worried that they didn't go down in size that much but dr Jong reassured me that it's still too early to see a difference. My feet are a bit swollen but other than that everything is good. He said I just need to elevate my legs when I sleep and don't try to walk too much. He assessed my walking and told me the wedges I brought were not the most comfortable kind (strappy) so he actually told me to wait in the room for a few minutes while he went out to buy a pair of wedges for me!!! I wanted to cry lol, he is just the most amazing Doctor ever. He didn't aspirate my calves, as it's too early to tell if there's fluid accumulated inside. He advised me to practice bending my knees straight but don't walk at all except to go to the washroom. My boyfriend rolled me around and we got lots of street food. It was a really fun day, everything is so cheap in Taipei lol. We got back to the hotel at 6pm and I fell asleep at 8.
Day 5 PO
After I woke up I practiced bending my knees straight standing up, in wedges, for about 8-10 minutes and at first there was tightness and discomfort but the more I practiced the easier it became. I practiced every hour for 10 minutes and by noon I can totally walk fine without the walking aid! I still move extremely slow. I'm planning on staying in all day today and just do a lot of practicing on bending my legs straight.
I can see that the recovery process is soooo different with dr park and dr Jong. It seems like dr park advises his patients to walk right after the surgery whilst dr jong's protocol is no walking at all until at least a week later. I did ask dr Jong about this and he said he isn't sure why dr park wants his patients to walk so eagerly as it could only aggregate the wound and the legs would have fluid built up very quickly. I guess that's why dr park aspirates most of his patients but dr Jong said he's usually never need to aspirate any of his patients. But I'm sure dr park has his reasons as he's also been doing this for even a longer time.
I walk perfectly fine now except that I'm still very slow. My next post op appointment w dr Jong is oct 20 and I post another update. For those girls who have been emailing me I just want to say thank you ladies you been so supportive and have kept me busy on my trip so I didn't die of boredom. Love you all
Today is my first PO visit with dr Jong. I walked very slowly with the walking aid to the clinic. I still can't really bend my knees straight so I'm walking really really weird, getting lots of looks on the way to dr Jong.... When dr Jong took my bandages off, I felt like my calves looked the same as they were before the surgery, but just a bit "empty". He measured my calves and they were both 36cm. I was worried that they didn't go down in size that much but dr Jong reassured me that it's still too early to see a difference. My feet are a bit swollen but other than that everything is good. He said I just need to elevate my legs when I sleep and don't try to walk too much. He assessed my walking and told me the wedges I brought were not the most comfortable kind (strappy) so he actually told me to wait in the room for a few minutes while he went out to buy a pair of wedges for me!!! I wanted to cry lol, he is just the most amazing Doctor ever. He didn't aspirate my calves, as it's too early to tell if there's fluid accumulated inside. He advised me to practice bending my knees straight but don't walk at all except to go to the washroom. My boyfriend rolled me around and we got lots of street food. It was a really fun day, everything is so cheap in Taipei lol. We got back to the hotel at 6pm and I fell asleep at 8.
Day 5 PO
After I woke up I practiced bending my knees straight standing up, in wedges, for about 8-10 minutes and at first there was tightness and discomfort but the more I practiced the easier it became. I practiced every hour for 10 minutes and by noon I can totally walk fine without the walking aid! I still move extremely slow. I'm planning on staying in all day today and just do a lot of practicing on bending my legs straight.
I can see that the recovery process is soooo different with dr park and dr Jong. It seems like dr park advises his patients to walk right after the surgery whilst dr jong's protocol is no walking at all until at least a week later. I did ask dr Jong about this and he said he isn't sure why dr park wants his patients to walk so eagerly as it could only aggregate the wound and the legs would have fluid built up very quickly. I guess that's why dr park aspirates most of his patients but dr Jong said he's usually never need to aspirate any of his patients. But I'm sure dr park has his reasons as he's also been doing this for even a longer time.
I walk perfectly fine now except that I'm still very slow. My next post op appointment w dr Jong is oct 20 and I post another update. For those girls who have been emailing me I just want to say thank you ladies you been so supportive and have kept me busy on my trip so I didn't die of boredom. Love you all
Day 7 PO
Today is my second PO visit with dr Jong. I can walk perfectly fine now in wedges, in a very slow pace. My measurements are 36.3R/36.5L so they've gone up a bit since last visit due to swelling. Dr Jong reassured me again that the size will go down in time. I didn't need to be aspirates today as there wasn't too much liquid in my calves. Dr Jong asked me to come back in 2 days to remove stitches. I am healing well and making good progress he said, I'm happy with the walking progress I'm making though I'm a bit worried about the size still being big.
Dr Jong is such an amazing doctor, I just can't say this enough. His nurses are all so sweet and caring, they are really wonderful people. Yesterday all day I stayed in bed I'm trying really hard to not move at all and not push myself to walk too much except when necessary. Dr Jong advises not to stretch after at least 3 weeks post surgery to allow legs to heal. He'll go over some aftercare procedures with me when I come back on Saturday. I leave the following Monday and I'm sure he'll want to see me that morning before I take off. Will post update in a few.
Today is my second PO visit with dr Jong. I can walk perfectly fine now in wedges, in a very slow pace. My measurements are 36.3R/36.5L so they've gone up a bit since last visit due to swelling. Dr Jong reassured me again that the size will go down in time. I didn't need to be aspirates today as there wasn't too much liquid in my calves. Dr Jong asked me to come back in 2 days to remove stitches. I am healing well and making good progress he said, I'm happy with the walking progress I'm making though I'm a bit worried about the size still being big.
Dr Jong is such an amazing doctor, I just can't say this enough. His nurses are all so sweet and caring, they are really wonderful people. Yesterday all day I stayed in bed I'm trying really hard to not move at all and not push myself to walk too much except when necessary. Dr Jong advises not to stretch after at least 3 weeks post surgery to allow legs to heal. He'll go over some aftercare procedures with me when I come back on Saturday. I leave the following Monday and I'm sure he'll want to see me that morning before I take off. Will post update in a few.
Alright guys! Here's my story thus far (because I actually am having a hard time staying asleep tonight)! I'm by myself on this trip because the other girl had to cancel 
Pre-op friday
I arrived in Seoul and used the instructions on Dr. Park's website and caught the 6009 bus to Sinsa (the website tells you which bus stop but I just went to the tickets sales booths and they actually gave me a different stop)
When I got off the bus I got super lost like 2 blocks from the clinic... I didn't walk far enough :x I actually caught a taxi the last 2 blocks and the main floor store is called "Olive & Young", you see "Oz [Korean words]" in big letters on the side of the building along with the other businesses in the building. I actually walked into Olive &Young and asked the cashier how to get upstairs... I didn't have wifi so my translation app wasn't working and I kinda pointed upwards and she pointed around the corner... the entrance to the upper businesses are on the side of the building.
I finally made it in for my bloodwork and consultation. Now, I actually collect blood for a living so the next few observations are probably some stuff other people may not take note of.
She didn't wear gloves (and neither did the nurse that put in my iv but the anesthesiologist did) wearing gloves while taking blood is actually a fairly recent manditory requirement... my teachers and older coworkers remember when it wasn't manditory and some of them actually still don't wear gloves or will do things like rip the index finger off to feel for a particularly difficult vein. They also smacked at the vein to make it pop up which is also something we don't do anymore.
I also want to note that wearing gloves while collecting blood is actually meant to protect the person holding the needle from anything that the person being poked might have in their blood. The nurse not wearing gloves is their risk.
All the equipment was in sealed packages when she collected and I noticed that she collected from a single piece syringe then put it into the vails. I have only ever used needle-holster or syringes where the needle is attached separate... this makes it safer for me because the separate needle also has it's own needle-guard apart from the needlecap. I want to reiterate, this is all safe for you, the patient, just not what is used anymore (in Canadian, bigger, non-rural areas... I have heard some smaller hospitals may still use these equipment) and medical technology moves fast. A lot of the equipment advances in blood collection is normally to make it safer for the person collecting... as long as the needle-site is sanitized and the needle is sterile, you're good to go as a patient
My consult with Dr. Park went well, he looked at my calves from different angles standing falt and on my toes. He asked what kind of athletics I do, I told him I dance ballet and do contortion now ... nobody really knows what contortion is... you usually have to demonstrate or show pictures. He asked if I did it professionally because he normally does not recommend this procedure to professionals because removing the muscle makes the calf weaker. I reassured him that I had done my research and that I only perform semi-professionally because it is not my livelihood.
I also asked about liposuction in the legs, he said I did not have fat in my calves for lipo. So I asked about thigh lipo, he took a look at my thighs and told me where it was possible. He gave me quotes and the thigh lipo was given a 20% discount because I was combining it with calf resection. They would give me a receipt for a tax refund at the airport. I know Dr.Park posts all his prices online because they are non negotiable so I didn't bother to try to get a further discount.
We booked my appointment for 10am the next day and I got a taxi to my airbnb.
I made sure to make some congee (rice soup... kinda the consistancy of porridge) before going to bed.
Day of Op saturday
I found my way to the clinic with no issues this time. All the train stations have English under the Korean on the signs
There are lots of signs and arrows at the train stations and free wifi so my googlemaps and translator app were good to go!
Buying a ticket was easy! There's an English language button and an option where you can buy tickets depending on which stop you want to exit.
The voice on the PA says everything in Korean, English, Mandarin and Japanese (aw man, in Canada, we just get English and French lol) All the maps of the routes are in Korean and English.
At the clinic I got into the their hospital gown and had to take off all my piercings. Dr. Park took my before pictures and then I lay in the recovery room as a nurse inserted my IV. Then I walked with the IV bag on that rolly stand into the OR and I had to lay on my side as the anesthesiologist sanitized my back for the stuff that would paralize my lower body... there was a lot of deep breaths and contained panic about how I might never wake up or would end up paralized forever and fear of a giant needle in my spine like the spinal taps you see on house... The needle felt like a regular needle, not gigantic (whew) and I felt a warm sensation in my leg.
I woke up as they were wrapping my legs in the OR and they moved me to the recovery room where I promtly passed out again.
They gave me a button to press if I needed anything and would check in to make sure my pain was kevel was ok. My legs felt achey but I didn't want more because I didn't want to be hit with a wall of pain once it wore off.
I couldn't fall back asleep so I asked for my bag with my book in it and Dr.Park laughed and asked if I was bored XD
In the evening, he helped me to the bathroom (all the nurses had gone home) took out my IV and gave me a bunch of pills and instructions... tomorrow I have to stretch every 30 minutes and avoid walking as much as possible. I have a followup on monday as sunday is a holiday.
He remarked on how well I am walking (oh good!) and called me a cab.
I got back to my airbnb thirsty, in pain and hungry... I ate the congee I made friday night (thankyou me from friday night!) then tried very hard to sleep... I took one of the painkillers and I've been fitfully trying to
Pre-op friday
I arrived in Seoul and used the instructions on Dr. Park's website and caught the 6009 bus to Sinsa (the website tells you which bus stop but I just went to the tickets sales booths and they actually gave me a different stop)
When I got off the bus I got super lost like 2 blocks from the clinic... I didn't walk far enough :x I actually caught a taxi the last 2 blocks and the main floor store is called "Olive & Young", you see "Oz [Korean words]" in big letters on the side of the building along with the other businesses in the building. I actually walked into Olive &Young and asked the cashier how to get upstairs... I didn't have wifi so my translation app wasn't working and I kinda pointed upwards and she pointed around the corner... the entrance to the upper businesses are on the side of the building.
I finally made it in for my bloodwork and consultation. Now, I actually collect blood for a living so the next few observations are probably some stuff other people may not take note of.
She didn't wear gloves (and neither did the nurse that put in my iv but the anesthesiologist did) wearing gloves while taking blood is actually a fairly recent manditory requirement... my teachers and older coworkers remember when it wasn't manditory and some of them actually still don't wear gloves or will do things like rip the index finger off to feel for a particularly difficult vein. They also smacked at the vein to make it pop up which is also something we don't do anymore.
I also want to note that wearing gloves while collecting blood is actually meant to protect the person holding the needle from anything that the person being poked might have in their blood. The nurse not wearing gloves is their risk.
All the equipment was in sealed packages when she collected and I noticed that she collected from a single piece syringe then put it into the vails. I have only ever used needle-holster or syringes where the needle is attached separate... this makes it safer for me because the separate needle also has it's own needle-guard apart from the needlecap. I want to reiterate, this is all safe for you, the patient, just not what is used anymore (in Canadian, bigger, non-rural areas... I have heard some smaller hospitals may still use these equipment) and medical technology moves fast. A lot of the equipment advances in blood collection is normally to make it safer for the person collecting... as long as the needle-site is sanitized and the needle is sterile, you're good to go as a patient
My consult with Dr. Park went well, he looked at my calves from different angles standing falt and on my toes. He asked what kind of athletics I do, I told him I dance ballet and do contortion now ... nobody really knows what contortion is... you usually have to demonstrate or show pictures. He asked if I did it professionally because he normally does not recommend this procedure to professionals because removing the muscle makes the calf weaker. I reassured him that I had done my research and that I only perform semi-professionally because it is not my livelihood.
I also asked about liposuction in the legs, he said I did not have fat in my calves for lipo. So I asked about thigh lipo, he took a look at my thighs and told me where it was possible. He gave me quotes and the thigh lipo was given a 20% discount because I was combining it with calf resection. They would give me a receipt for a tax refund at the airport. I know Dr.Park posts all his prices online because they are non negotiable so I didn't bother to try to get a further discount.
We booked my appointment for 10am the next day and I got a taxi to my airbnb.
I made sure to make some congee (rice soup... kinda the consistancy of porridge) before going to bed.
Day of Op saturday
I found my way to the clinic with no issues this time. All the train stations have English under the Korean on the signs
There are lots of signs and arrows at the train stations and free wifi so my googlemaps and translator app were good to go!Buying a ticket was easy! There's an English language button and an option where you can buy tickets depending on which stop you want to exit.
The voice on the PA says everything in Korean, English, Mandarin and Japanese (aw man, in Canada, we just get English and French lol) All the maps of the routes are in Korean and English.
At the clinic I got into the their hospital gown and had to take off all my piercings. Dr. Park took my before pictures and then I lay in the recovery room as a nurse inserted my IV. Then I walked with the IV bag on that rolly stand into the OR and I had to lay on my side as the anesthesiologist sanitized my back for the stuff that would paralize my lower body... there was a lot of deep breaths and contained panic about how I might never wake up or would end up paralized forever and fear of a giant needle in my spine like the spinal taps you see on house... The needle felt like a regular needle, not gigantic (whew) and I felt a warm sensation in my leg.
I woke up as they were wrapping my legs in the OR and they moved me to the recovery room where I promtly passed out again.
They gave me a button to press if I needed anything and would check in to make sure my pain was kevel was ok. My legs felt achey but I didn't want more because I didn't want to be hit with a wall of pain once it wore off.
I couldn't fall back asleep so I asked for my bag with my book in it and Dr.Park laughed and asked if I was bored XD
In the evening, he helped me to the bathroom (all the nurses had gone home) took out my IV and gave me a bunch of pills and instructions... tomorrow I have to stretch every 30 minutes and avoid walking as much as possible. I have a followup on monday as sunday is a holiday.
He remarked on how well I am walking (oh good!) and called me a cab.
I got back to my airbnb thirsty, in pain and hungry... I ate the congee I made friday night (thankyou me from friday night!) then tried very hard to sleep... I took one of the painkillers and I've been fitfully trying to
Hello Lihuei sorry for the late reply I just saw your comment. I have posted a few updates on here, hope they give good info and if you have questions on anything else feel free to email me or pm.
I'm excited for your appointment, pls knee in touch as I don't find a whole lot of people updating their post surgery progress so I would love to have someone to kind of compare and share progress with. Good luck!!
I had my last op visit with Dr Jong today. He aspirated my left leg for the first time. There were only 10cc in there and he said something so little will eventually disappear itself but because I'll be sitting on the plane for 10+ hours, he felt it was better to aspirate. The aspiration did not hurt at all, the nurse numb the area first so I didn't feel a thing. I am walking completely ok right now, in wedges, with slight tightness on my right leg. Dr Jong said to starting stretching in about 3-4 weeks post surgery so now just take it easy and let legs heal.
I am having extreme skin allergic reaction from wearing stockings 24/7. My legs are super itchy and red and I can't stop scratching my legs. If any of you have experienced the same issue pls let me know how I can go about getting rid of the itch. Dr John gave me some steroids ointment but it didn't seem to help. I took the stockings off last night before bed and my legs were swollen when I woke up anything helps at this point.
Other than the allergy, everything looks good. My measurements are now 35cm each leg, down from 37.5L/38R.
I am having extreme skin allergic reaction from wearing stockings 24/7. My legs are super itchy and red and I can't stop scratching my legs. If any of you have experienced the same issue pls let me know how I can go about getting rid of the itch. Dr John gave me some steroids ointment but it didn't seem to help. I took the stockings off last night before bed and my legs were swollen when I woke up
anything helps at this point. Other than the allergy, everything looks good. My measurements are now 35cm each leg, down from 37.5L/38R.
Here's a tip for those who are going to Taipei to see dr Jong via EVA air. In case you don't get one of the first row seats with super big leg room, marn your seat or ask to have your seat selected on the second floor, windowed. There is like a bench space you get to elevate your legs on!