Hi guys
Since I am now 1.5 months post-op for Vline and Fat Graft (FG) I thought it's time to write my review.
This is my fourth surgery (first two in Taiwan, last two in Korea - all for different things).
After a lot of research and consultations with many of the main clinics here in Seoul, I decided to do my surgery at TL.
I had surgery with Dr Kim, the director of TL.
WHAT I WANTED
I have a small face already but it is long. I had a chin implant placed 7 years ago which gave me a tapered chin but it changed my smile and made me look bulky and not cute.
I wanted to have a more defined and delicate face shape without looking like a fake alien.
I took in pictures of Natalie Portman and Angelababy.
I ended up getting my chin implant removed, vline with T-osteotomy, chin pushed back a little and minor shaving at the sides of my jaw. I kept the angle below the ear though.
I also got FG to forehead, smile lines and cheeks.
WHY I CHOSE TL
The main reasons I chose TL were:
1 Six months ago my BF and I decided to go on consultations for a chin implant for le BF. When we got to TL the consultant and Dr pointed out BF don't need a chin implant, just lipo under the chin to get rid of the fat. So BF did TL's Power V Lift. They warned that it might not fix the whole problem as the neck muscles were causing some of the bad look. However the results were Amazing. BF is obsessed with new chin line haaha and I was very impressed with TL.
2 Secondly, TL doctors have all graduated from Yonsei Medical School and are all board certified. Yonsei is one of the top three "Ivy League" universities in Korea. Here we call it the "SKY" universities.
3 Thirdly, but perhaps most importantly TL has all the proper emergency safety equipment in case of an accident. They had backup generator in case the power fails during operation, 1 on 1 anaesthesiologist with you during surgery and a defribrillator to restart the heart in case anything happens during surgery. As I discovered during my research, the majority of clinics in seoul DO NOT have this basic equipment. Damn scary la.
4. Fourthly, good reviews in Korean
5. Both during BF's surgery and my consultation the doctors were very professional, experienced and not at all interested in the up-sell (in fact the doctors specifically told both me and the BF we didn't need the procedures either we thought we did or the consultant suggested).
6. Great after care for the BF (and me, as it turned out later)
PRE OP
I went for three pre op consults in total - one 5 months before surgery, one the day before and finally the day of surgery.
Dr Kim is a very serious guy but also has a funny side. He did the consults in Korean, which i understand (but not everything) so I had Regina accompany me to translate everything. I think Dr Kim understands English but feels more comfortable in Korean. But seeing as I speak both I can safely say if you have Regina with you, you won't miss anything
I was so super nervous la. Way more worried than any of my other surgeries cox this is bone, permanent, scary operation, scary recovery etc.
I felt a lot more relaxed after I saw how many pre-op tests they did. I had heart check, chest X-ray, blood and urine tests. Surprisingly that totally calmed me down because then i knew that A. They know what they are doing B. I've done everything I can haha
p
For my FG surgery they stripped me right down undies to fully dissinfect my body with this brown dissinfectant then into surgery gown and pre-op hospital room. I also had lines drawn on my face to guide doctor where to place the fat.
The last thing I remember is going into the surgery room, lying on my tummy and getting the first shot for light sedation. Next thing I wake up in my post-op bed.
IMMEDIATELY POST OP
I was very groggy and my throat was in AGONY! So painful i kept asking for water. Regina told me to take it easy and have a little rest. 2 hours after she let me have some water. I could barely get it down because my throat was so sore from the surgery tubes and my lips had already swelled to 3 times their usual size. Regina was an absolute angel. She even wiped the drool of my face because i couldn't swallow haha.
By the time I left the clinic it was 7:30pm. I had my surgery second of the day (at about 1pm).
Regina bought medicine from the pharmacy for me and helped me to get home.
Then I was feeling okay because the post op drugs still kicking in ahaha.
RECOVERY
Ladies (and men!) do not kid yourself. This is a Major Surgery. The recovery is no joke.
The first few nights were tough. I could only breathe through my nose but my throat was SO SORE. It was awful. I was up every hour and couldn't sleep.
I had an air purifier with Vicks vapour running constantly and I kept sucking on Medicated throat lollies to dull the pain in my throat. I highly recommend bringing both with you, as well as nose clearing solution in case you get a packed nose, otherwise you're done haha:0
I didn't have much appetite but was eating pumpkin soup, porridge, drinking pineapple juice etc. I found congee got stuck in my stitches for the first few days and j couldn't clean it out properly so it wasn't good at first. Later I was drinking protein shakes, eating very very soft scrambled eggs, Chinese cereal drinks etc.
Two days post op I had a check up to clean my stitches. I was feeling very faint and dizzy and Dr Kim came to see me before his surgery. He said I was too low on fluids and ordered me to be put on a drip, which I did. After that I felt much better and my healing improved from then on.
Recovery was a long, slow road that is still continuing.
I had my face tape off at 1 week post op and my first de swelling massage and laser at TL. I looked like a square faced Oompa Loompa no joke haha.
I was hideously swollen for a good 3 weeks despite weekly laser treatment and only started to look more hUman around the month mark. Even now I can still see visible swelling and my chin is still tender to the touch. This is mostly related to the T-osteotomy though, not the shaving.
My bottom lip was also super big for about a week and I kept dribbling everywhere. The lips cracked too so I applied a lot of Vaseline. Damn attractive one:o
For the FG, I had the needle inserted just above my butt and a few stitches there. They came out two days post op.
Where the fat was taken at my love handles was super sore for a week and bruised for about 3 weeks. It also hurt to lower myself onto my bum for a while haha
My FG on my forehead looked really plastic and blown up for about 3-4 weeks. It was also sore.
For those who are interested in vitamins after surgery (only), I took Arnica (ointment and tablets), bromelain, papaya enzyme, multi vitamin, fish oil, rutin and vitamin C. I was told not to take any vitamins or non-prescription meds pre-surgery.
I had my mouth stitches taken out at 3.5 weeks and Dr Kim saw me briefly. All my healing was normal. He said about 30-40% of the swelling was remaining.
I wore my head strap continuously since my surgery and slept elevated for 1 month post op. I also avoided alcohol for 1 month pre-op and 5 weeks post-op.
1.5 MONTHS POST OP
I obviously still have a way to go with my swelling but I'm getting a better idea of the final results.
I LOVE IT!!!!
Dr Kim did a great job. My new chin is perfect. It is so cute, perfectly straight and matches my face perfectly. It looks so natural, no one would ever know I had surgery. I look so much younger too without a bulky lower face. It's just what I wanted.
I also love my forehead. It has settled really naturally and looks super cute and soft.
I have my top up for FG scheduled for 2 weeks.
I have thought about it and I won't be giving out photos. Sorry guys but this surgery was only for me not for anyone else so I'd like to keep it private. I hope you understand and that my review can help you prepare enough for your own surgeries.
MY ADVICE TO PREPARE FOR SURGERY
A lot of people seem to focus on things like "which doctor speaks English", "which clinic gets back to me quickest", "which consultant is pushy" etc.
This is probably the WORST way to pick a clinic to go for surgery.
Why? Because you are travelling to Korea - why would the best doctor necessarily speak English?! Why does quick email response mean good face?!
And my advice about consultants is to largely ignore them. They are there to do a job and they get paid money (a tiny bit!) to do it. They run based on numbers in the door. Of course there is the temptation for them to upsell you. But they are not the one that matters - THE DOCTOR IS - ie the guy who will be cutting your face open. Listen only to him and what he tries to tell you (or sell you).
Lastly, it is very inaccurate to base your assessment on who goes to the clinic or how busy it is on one or two trips there. I worked that out by looking at TL's waiting room (5th floor) and post-op room (1st floor) during my and the BF's consults and surgeries.
I have probably been there 10 times now and each time it's different. The first few times (during new year) it was packed out. There were probably 70% koreans, 20% chinese and 10% English speakers.
Post op room however is totally different. Again nearly always packed but not always. Probably 95% koreans. I saw 1 other English speaker in all the different times I went there.
So that's it for now. If I missed anything I will update but that is my surgery experience to date
Good luck planning for your surgeries and hope you all have successful outcome!
Since I am now 1.5 months post-op for Vline and Fat Graft (FG) I thought it's time to write my review.
This is my fourth surgery (first two in Taiwan, last two in Korea - all for different things).
After a lot of research and consultations with many of the main clinics here in Seoul, I decided to do my surgery at TL.
I had surgery with Dr Kim, the director of TL.
WHAT I WANTED
I have a small face already but it is long. I had a chin implant placed 7 years ago which gave me a tapered chin but it changed my smile and made me look bulky and not cute.
I wanted to have a more defined and delicate face shape without looking like a fake alien.
I took in pictures of Natalie Portman and Angelababy.
I ended up getting my chin implant removed, vline with T-osteotomy, chin pushed back a little and minor shaving at the sides of my jaw. I kept the angle below the ear though.
I also got FG to forehead, smile lines and cheeks.
WHY I CHOSE TL
The main reasons I chose TL were:
1 Six months ago my BF and I decided to go on consultations for a chin implant for le BF. When we got to TL the consultant and Dr pointed out BF don't need a chin implant, just lipo under the chin to get rid of the fat. So BF did TL's Power V Lift. They warned that it might not fix the whole problem as the neck muscles were causing some of the bad look. However the results were Amazing. BF is obsessed with new chin line haaha and I was very impressed with TL.
2 Secondly, TL doctors have all graduated from Yonsei Medical School and are all board certified. Yonsei is one of the top three "Ivy League" universities in Korea. Here we call it the "SKY" universities.
3 Thirdly, but perhaps most importantly TL has all the proper emergency safety equipment in case of an accident. They had backup generator in case the power fails during operation, 1 on 1 anaesthesiologist with you during surgery and a defribrillator to restart the heart in case anything happens during surgery. As I discovered during my research, the majority of clinics in seoul DO NOT have this basic equipment. Damn scary la.
4. Fourthly, good reviews in Korean
5. Both during BF's surgery and my consultation the doctors were very professional, experienced and not at all interested in the up-sell (in fact the doctors specifically told both me and the BF we didn't need the procedures either we thought we did or the consultant suggested).
6. Great after care for the BF (and me, as it turned out later)
PRE OP
I went for three pre op consults in total - one 5 months before surgery, one the day before and finally the day of surgery.
Dr Kim is a very serious guy but also has a funny side. He did the consults in Korean, which i understand (but not everything) so I had Regina accompany me to translate everything. I think Dr Kim understands English but feels more comfortable in Korean. But seeing as I speak both I can safely say if you have Regina with you, you won't miss anything
I was so super nervous la. Way more worried than any of my other surgeries cox this is bone, permanent, scary operation, scary recovery etc.
I felt a lot more relaxed after I saw how many pre-op tests they did. I had heart check, chest X-ray, blood and urine tests. Surprisingly that totally calmed me down because then i knew that A. They know what they are doing B. I've done everything I can haha
p For my FG surgery they stripped me right down undies to fully dissinfect my body with this brown dissinfectant then into surgery gown and pre-op hospital room. I also had lines drawn on my face to guide doctor where to place the fat.
The last thing I remember is going into the surgery room, lying on my tummy and getting the first shot for light sedation. Next thing I wake up in my post-op bed.
IMMEDIATELY POST OP
I was very groggy and my throat was in AGONY! So painful i kept asking for water. Regina told me to take it easy and have a little rest. 2 hours after she let me have some water. I could barely get it down because my throat was so sore from the surgery tubes and my lips had already swelled to 3 times their usual size. Regina was an absolute angel. She even wiped the drool of my face because i couldn't swallow haha.
By the time I left the clinic it was 7:30pm. I had my surgery second of the day (at about 1pm).
Regina bought medicine from the pharmacy for me and helped me to get home.
Then I was feeling okay because the post op drugs still kicking in ahaha.
RECOVERY
Ladies (and men!) do not kid yourself. This is a Major Surgery. The recovery is no joke.
The first few nights were tough. I could only breathe through my nose but my throat was SO SORE. It was awful. I was up every hour and couldn't sleep.
I had an air purifier with Vicks vapour running constantly and I kept sucking on Medicated throat lollies to dull the pain in my throat. I highly recommend bringing both with you, as well as nose clearing solution in case you get a packed nose, otherwise you're done haha:0
I didn't have much appetite but was eating pumpkin soup, porridge, drinking pineapple juice etc. I found congee got stuck in my stitches for the first few days and j couldn't clean it out properly so it wasn't good at first. Later I was drinking protein shakes, eating very very soft scrambled eggs, Chinese cereal drinks etc.
Two days post op I had a check up to clean my stitches. I was feeling very faint and dizzy and Dr Kim came to see me before his surgery. He said I was too low on fluids and ordered me to be put on a drip, which I did. After that I felt much better and my healing improved from then on.
Recovery was a long, slow road that is still continuing.
I had my face tape off at 1 week post op and my first de swelling massage and laser at TL. I looked like a square faced Oompa Loompa no joke haha.
I was hideously swollen for a good 3 weeks despite weekly laser treatment and only started to look more hUman around the month mark. Even now I can still see visible swelling and my chin is still tender to the touch. This is mostly related to the T-osteotomy though, not the shaving.
My bottom lip was also super big for about a week and I kept dribbling everywhere. The lips cracked too so I applied a lot of Vaseline. Damn attractive one:o
For the FG, I had the needle inserted just above my butt and a few stitches there. They came out two days post op.
Where the fat was taken at my love handles was super sore for a week and bruised for about 3 weeks. It also hurt to lower myself onto my bum for a while haha
My FG on my forehead looked really plastic and blown up for about 3-4 weeks. It was also sore.
For those who are interested in vitamins after surgery (only), I took Arnica (ointment and tablets), bromelain, papaya enzyme, multi vitamin, fish oil, rutin and vitamin C. I was told not to take any vitamins or non-prescription meds pre-surgery.
I had my mouth stitches taken out at 3.5 weeks and Dr Kim saw me briefly. All my healing was normal. He said about 30-40% of the swelling was remaining.
I wore my head strap continuously since my surgery and slept elevated for 1 month post op. I also avoided alcohol for 1 month pre-op and 5 weeks post-op.
1.5 MONTHS POST OP
I obviously still have a way to go with my swelling but I'm getting a better idea of the final results.
I LOVE IT!!!!
Dr Kim did a great job. My new chin is perfect. It is so cute, perfectly straight and matches my face perfectly. It looks so natural, no one would ever know I had surgery. I look so much younger too without a bulky lower face. It's just what I wanted.
I also love my forehead. It has settled really naturally and looks super cute and soft.
I have my top up for FG scheduled for 2 weeks.
I have thought about it and I won't be giving out photos. Sorry guys but this surgery was only for me not for anyone else so I'd like to keep it private. I hope you understand and that my review can help you prepare enough for your own surgeries.
MY ADVICE TO PREPARE FOR SURGERY
A lot of people seem to focus on things like "which doctor speaks English", "which clinic gets back to me quickest", "which consultant is pushy" etc.
This is probably the WORST way to pick a clinic to go for surgery.
Why? Because you are travelling to Korea - why would the best doctor necessarily speak English?! Why does quick email response mean good face?!
And my advice about consultants is to largely ignore them. They are there to do a job and they get paid money (a tiny bit!) to do it. They run based on numbers in the door. Of course there is the temptation for them to upsell you. But they are not the one that matters - THE DOCTOR IS - ie the guy who will be cutting your face open. Listen only to him and what he tries to tell you (or sell you).
Lastly, it is very inaccurate to base your assessment on who goes to the clinic or how busy it is on one or two trips there. I worked that out by looking at TL's waiting room (5th floor) and post-op room (1st floor) during my and the BF's consults and surgeries.
I have probably been there 10 times now and each time it's different. The first few times (during new year) it was packed out. There were probably 70% koreans, 20% chinese and 10% English speakers.
Post op room however is totally different. Again nearly always packed but not always. Probably 95% koreans. I saw 1 other English speaker in all the different times I went there.
So that's it for now. If I missed anything I will update but that is my surgery experience to date
Good luck planning for your surgeries and hope you all have successful outcome!