My 2022 trip to South Korea consisted of 3 major procedures I had considered doing, one of which was Miradry, a procedure to reduce excessive underarm sweating. I may write about my other procedures as well, as I am quite satisfied with the other work done too so far, but it is too soon to tell. This post will serve as a progress report for Miradry, as I am still monitoring the results.
Excessive underarm sweating (hyperhidrosis) is something I suffered with for years, and was not aware of any permanent ways of reducing sweat aside from Botox, which is not a permanent solution. I am from a country with four seasons, and even during the cold of winter I sweat excessively in my underarms for no reason.. During the summer time I suffer even more, as I feel like I have to shower at least twice a day as to not offend anyone's nose and because my skin and clothes feel icky after a few hours out doing activities with friends. I was considering Botox to the underarms as I’ve heard good things about this method, except that you would have to continuously get Botox to the area every 6 months or so to maintain the effects. Needles to the armpits kind of freaks me out.. It's such a sensitive and ticklish area for me. I’m not down to do this every 6 months.
This trip, I met with a friend who had Miradry planned, and this was to be his second Miradry procedure. I had asked him back in 2019 what it was about but I was too pre-occupied with my other concerns during that trip to really delve into what Miradry was. Since he had the procedure done before and was going back to the same clinic, I had trust in wherever he was going, because generally he is a diligent person who does his research. This saved me the work of finding clinics to consult with, as I was able to just join him for his consultation and see if it was for me.
We consulted at HerShe clinic, located in Cheongdam. I recall that I quite liked this area, as I was here before to consult for nose back in 2019 at CDU. It was a breath of fresh air being in a more discreet, posh area, especially after consulting all day in Gangnam, where the vibes were very money-hungry, rushed and pushy. On Navermap, the location reads as “Hush Plastic Surgery”. Another thing I like about this clinic is that they do not aim to be busy nor do they want lots of customers coming in and out like a revolving door. The clientele are discreet, so when you have an appointment you're not left sitting and waiting for long, and they do not overbook so I did feel that sense of care and attentiveness that was not stretched and thinned out. I appreciate how our time and anonymity is respected. Unlike some plastic surgery clinics in Gangnam where many times I am left waiting for even up to an hour amongst 5-10 other people in the waiting room area, and not being able to meet for long with the doctor/plastic surgeon even though I took a 15+ hour flight to see him.
We were greeted by the manager who also acted as our translator since he spoke perfect conversational English. I actually had some translators lined up for this trip, but there was no need for this particular appointment which saved me some money and coordinating. He walked us through all the details of the procedure, what to expect, what it aims to achieve, who will be administering the procedure, duration, aftercare, and price. I was quite satisfied with the information relayed to me. The procedure aims to reduce up to 80% of sweating, and a side effect may include reduced hair and odour. Shortly after, we were taken to another room to consult with the Plastic Surgeon who performs the Miradry procedure. He seemed knowledgeable and passionate about the effects of this procedure, and after my friend scheduled his second and final Miradry appointment, I was convinced and scheduled one for myself too. We also asked about skin treatments as we saw some of their pamphlets in the waiting area. We decided to book appointments for that too, but more about that maybe in another post.
When it came time for my procedure day, I already observed the after effect it had on my friend for a few days. I was prepared for the swelling and possible redness and bruising. Some nights he went out all night partying and he reported back that he did not sweat or stain his shirts at all, and he still smelled fresh. I think drinking will probably delay the deswelling part, but it shouldn’t affect the outcome of the Miradry procedures effectiveness. I chose not to drink for this trip to deswell faster for all of my recovery.
The procedure is performed while you are awake, and anesthesia is administered to the underarms. I was pleasantly surprised when it was time for anesthesia, the method looks different from how my friend described it to be for his first session he had back in 2017. The needles were extremely thin, and it's about 3 or so spaced out needles going in at once. It felt like pricks which was bearable. And after that you are completely numb while the Miradry machine works its magic. The whole procedure took between 1-1.5 hours. I was later told that those were the thinnest needles that can possibly be used for anesthesia.
Afterwards my arms were quite numb because of the anesthesia, so I rested in another room to recover and warm up. Not long after I got bored and hungry so I got changed and left the clinic with my friend to enjoy the rest of our day. I was also provided a care package that included pills to take, 2 ice packs and some instructions for recovery. We grabbed lunch, went back to the hotel to ice my armpits for a little bit then went out again to go shopping. My underarms were definitely swollen and still a bit numb, but I was able to commence my usual touristy activities. It was another thing checked off the list of things I wanted to do.
It’s day 4 now since Miradry, and I don’t feel the need to use deodorant.. I hope not ever again. I used to carry my powdered deodorant in my purse or backpack in the summer to use every few hours. I'm really hoping that I can start to wear more white shirts after this. I don't own many because they would quickly get stained in the underarms and ruin the shirt. My swelling went away really fast compared to my friends, but that could be because I didn’t go out to drink and party. My day 4 looks like his week 1 haha. I also stopped icing my armpits after day 2, I think my deswelling was especially fast, but everyone recovers differently. I was already taking antibiotics from a previous procedure so maybe that helped? We also walk a TON every single day, so I recommend lots of walking for deswelling faster in general and also drinking lots of liquids to flush out the anesthesia.
I will end this post here for now as I realized it is quite lengthy, but if anyone has any questions, I will try to reply if I’m not too busy
still enjoying my final days here in Korea, and I am totally loving every bit of it. I’m so glad that my experience here this time was all positive. I absolutely love my results so far, and I hope to continue to see the benefits even after I fly home.
Excessive underarm sweating (hyperhidrosis) is something I suffered with for years, and was not aware of any permanent ways of reducing sweat aside from Botox, which is not a permanent solution. I am from a country with four seasons, and even during the cold of winter I sweat excessively in my underarms for no reason.. During the summer time I suffer even more, as I feel like I have to shower at least twice a day as to not offend anyone's nose and because my skin and clothes feel icky after a few hours out doing activities with friends. I was considering Botox to the underarms as I’ve heard good things about this method, except that you would have to continuously get Botox to the area every 6 months or so to maintain the effects. Needles to the armpits kind of freaks me out.. It's such a sensitive and ticklish area for me. I’m not down to do this every 6 months.
This trip, I met with a friend who had Miradry planned, and this was to be his second Miradry procedure. I had asked him back in 2019 what it was about but I was too pre-occupied with my other concerns during that trip to really delve into what Miradry was. Since he had the procedure done before and was going back to the same clinic, I had trust in wherever he was going, because generally he is a diligent person who does his research. This saved me the work of finding clinics to consult with, as I was able to just join him for his consultation and see if it was for me.
We consulted at HerShe clinic, located in Cheongdam. I recall that I quite liked this area, as I was here before to consult for nose back in 2019 at CDU. It was a breath of fresh air being in a more discreet, posh area, especially after consulting all day in Gangnam, where the vibes were very money-hungry, rushed and pushy. On Navermap, the location reads as “Hush Plastic Surgery”. Another thing I like about this clinic is that they do not aim to be busy nor do they want lots of customers coming in and out like a revolving door. The clientele are discreet, so when you have an appointment you're not left sitting and waiting for long, and they do not overbook so I did feel that sense of care and attentiveness that was not stretched and thinned out. I appreciate how our time and anonymity is respected. Unlike some plastic surgery clinics in Gangnam where many times I am left waiting for even up to an hour amongst 5-10 other people in the waiting room area, and not being able to meet for long with the doctor/plastic surgeon even though I took a 15+ hour flight to see him.
We were greeted by the manager who also acted as our translator since he spoke perfect conversational English. I actually had some translators lined up for this trip, but there was no need for this particular appointment which saved me some money and coordinating. He walked us through all the details of the procedure, what to expect, what it aims to achieve, who will be administering the procedure, duration, aftercare, and price. I was quite satisfied with the information relayed to me. The procedure aims to reduce up to 80% of sweating, and a side effect may include reduced hair and odour. Shortly after, we were taken to another room to consult with the Plastic Surgeon who performs the Miradry procedure. He seemed knowledgeable and passionate about the effects of this procedure, and after my friend scheduled his second and final Miradry appointment, I was convinced and scheduled one for myself too. We also asked about skin treatments as we saw some of their pamphlets in the waiting area. We decided to book appointments for that too, but more about that maybe in another post.
When it came time for my procedure day, I already observed the after effect it had on my friend for a few days. I was prepared for the swelling and possible redness and bruising. Some nights he went out all night partying and he reported back that he did not sweat or stain his shirts at all, and he still smelled fresh. I think drinking will probably delay the deswelling part, but it shouldn’t affect the outcome of the Miradry procedures effectiveness. I chose not to drink for this trip to deswell faster for all of my recovery.
The procedure is performed while you are awake, and anesthesia is administered to the underarms. I was pleasantly surprised when it was time for anesthesia, the method looks different from how my friend described it to be for his first session he had back in 2017. The needles were extremely thin, and it's about 3 or so spaced out needles going in at once. It felt like pricks which was bearable. And after that you are completely numb while the Miradry machine works its magic. The whole procedure took between 1-1.5 hours. I was later told that those were the thinnest needles that can possibly be used for anesthesia.
Afterwards my arms were quite numb because of the anesthesia, so I rested in another room to recover and warm up. Not long after I got bored and hungry so I got changed and left the clinic with my friend to enjoy the rest of our day. I was also provided a care package that included pills to take, 2 ice packs and some instructions for recovery. We grabbed lunch, went back to the hotel to ice my armpits for a little bit then went out again to go shopping. My underarms were definitely swollen and still a bit numb, but I was able to commence my usual touristy activities. It was another thing checked off the list of things I wanted to do.
It’s day 4 now since Miradry, and I don’t feel the need to use deodorant.. I hope not ever again. I used to carry my powdered deodorant in my purse or backpack in the summer to use every few hours. I'm really hoping that I can start to wear more white shirts after this. I don't own many because they would quickly get stained in the underarms and ruin the shirt. My swelling went away really fast compared to my friends, but that could be because I didn’t go out to drink and party. My day 4 looks like his week 1 haha. I also stopped icing my armpits after day 2, I think my deswelling was especially fast, but everyone recovers differently. I was already taking antibiotics from a previous procedure so maybe that helped? We also walk a TON every single day, so I recommend lots of walking for deswelling faster in general and also drinking lots of liquids to flush out the anesthesia.
I will end this post here for now as I realized it is quite lengthy, but if anyone has any questions, I will try to reply if I’m not too busy
still enjoying my final days here in Korea, and I am totally loving every bit of it. I’m so glad that my experience here this time was all positive. I absolutely love my results so far, and I hope to continue to see the benefits even after I fly home.
