Jade
Banned
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- May 30, 2022
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I was asked if I truly recommend the doctors and companies I work with, and I decided to post my answer for others as well.
I said the following.
Look, I can best explain it by sharing my experiences. I will NEVER tell you to do one thing or another because that would be unethical.
Also, when you sincerely try to help someone, they turn on you because they think you have a hidden agenda. No matter what I do, you will do whatever is in your mind, even if that is measurably incorrect. Why? Because whatever you perceive now, that's what you think is correct.
Unfortunately, like I used to, you now perceive that the doctor is everything, but I now know they are only ONE part of the equation for good results.
I can only share with you what I would do If I could start all over again. I am older than you, and I started my journey long ago. Since I started "helping" patients, I learned to hold back on my own opinions and let them decide for themselves because when you talk about surgery, only your surgeon and you are responsible for your outcome.
Of course, I could be immature and tell you exactly what to do, but that is wrong because if anything goes "wrong," you will blame me.
The worst I have seen is guys overeating salt or getting drunk and not healing correctly to the point that things get worse. Also, I have seen doctors who suture too tightly and stuff like that.
These famous doctors you mention, I was their patient once. I started with the "best," and although they didn't "botch" me, what I got was beyond ridiculous.
To be completely honest, I did not know what I was thinking. I don't know why I thought doctors were superheroes who could make me look the way I saw myself in my mind.
Looking back, I realize I, too, was part of the problem. Of course, they never said no to performing surgery on me because they were making 20k or 25k every time, but I was "wrong," too.
The SECOND time I had custom cheek implants, I flew to Miami, and the next day, I was on the operation table. Of course, I met my surgeon virtually, and of course, we corresponded via email and on the phone. I had sent him a lot of silly sketches, and he said he understood what I needed.
However, right after I woke up from surgery, I knew things were not exactly as I wanted them (even while being swollen). I would spend months analyzing what had gone wrong, and I hated myself for concluding that the doctor had done the best he could.
The third time, I was not a "virgin" by any means, and my new famous doctor knew I was "special." I was special because I was not new to plastic surgery procedures.
He replaced my chin and jaw implants. This time I was more "prepared" because I knew what I wanted from the previous results. Yes, I knew what I wanted in my mind and logic, but it never occurred to me that perhaps I could offer him a solution for my results.
Why would I even think that I could help my doctor?? I knew nothing about biology or surgical procedures. Also, when you are younger, you are somewhat intimidated by the professional you think will change your life! I was in awe of their presence, and I let my guard down: I just wanted things to be ok, and I just wanted to look "good."
Unfortunately, I would ONLY make "progress" after every surgery. I was never an unattractive person, and although no doctor had botched me, I hated myself for taking so much time off work and for spending so much money. Of course, I was depressed too.
It took four surgeries and a small fortune to realize that all I had to do was work backward. I looked at my newest CT scan and saw all the mistakes I had previously made.
Why didn't my doctor make the implant like this or like that?
Why did I think my implant would look fantastic from working on it one day to the next?
Why was I such a fricking butthole for thinking that my human doctor was a God who could make magic happen with so little information, time, and silly sketches?
My wishes and ideas were ridiculous, I needed to be objective, and I needed to be reasonable. Still, more importantly, I needed to take charge of my own fricking body.
I had proof that my silly wishes were foolish, given the approach that I had taken. I wanted to go to the moon in an airplane, but I didn't know I needed a rocket.
It all started around 2002, and this crap had become an obsession. I thought, surely, I can't be the only one going through this crap. I was a medical sales rep; for God's sake, I should know better.
I grabbed my balls and found the courage to call my previous doctors. I asked them to tell me what they had done and, more importantly, WHY they had done it the way they did.
Some of these guys were older now, and I was not the struggling kid I once was. Honestly, I felt a little bit sad for them because I could see that they were tired and somewhat scared that I wanted to sue them or something. I just wanted them to tell me why they did things the way they did. Again, they never "botched" me, but one of them did steal from me. He charged me an insane amount of money for titanium screws he didn't even use.
After talking to them, I realized that they were victims as well. They tried their best based on my requests and explanations. But what I learned the most was that they didn't have the means to do everything I wanted the way I wanted. It would have taken way too long and a lot of resources.
Side note:
I traveled to LA to meet with another one of my ex-surgeons, and a close friend/patient went with me. When I was talking to my ex-surgeon, I discovered that my friend had been emailing this surgeon for years!! He told me this guy would email him at least once per week, and he was driving him nuts.
I learned that doctors put up with a lot of crap, too, and every time, it all became more apparent that these guys were suffering as much as I was. We were all victims of the circumstances.
So what now?
They told me they didn't have enough men power to do custom implants the way I wanted and that they only had so many hours in the day.
They said the materials I wanted were too expensive and they would have to charge twice their usual rate.
But let's cut the bull, these doctors knew that guys like me would keep coming back for more, which meant a lot more money for them. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"!
Yeah, the only problem here is that we're talking about my fricking face, my youth, and my money. So, I say it is very much broken and needs fixing.
Meanwhile, I met a lady (another sales rep) who said her daughter had a custom chin implant. I was like, wait, that's my jam right there! What did you say?
Again, I have never been botched, and I don't even look odd, so I asked her about the "custom implant" and asked if her daughter was happy with it. She said it looked like nothing.
But I knew for a fact that most women who get chin implants look like crap and have them revised a year or two later, so, of course, I was intrigued.
I asked if she could recommend the doctor that had done it, and she told me she didn't know his name. I was like, wait, that smells fishy!
She told me she would ask her daughter and get back to me. Of course, she didn't get back to me - I called her. Anyway, she gave me a lady's name.
I called, and she said, "hi, how can I help you?" What the heck!!? Are you even a doctor, lady?
She said she wasn't a doctor, but if I wanted a custom implant, they could help me. Wait a fricking second!! Where is the doctor?? She said they helped doctors and patients make custom implants.
I thought she was crazy. I did some research online and found a doctor from California who has a video on YouTube where he tells an engineer to add a few MMs here and a few MMs there.
I watched the whole video and noticed that the poor gentleman looked the same or worse than how he started!!!!!
I emailed that lady and asked if they had done that for that guy, and she said no.
So what do you do? I asked. She said they "talk" and "study" what patients want. What?? Get out of here.!
She said that it is the only way to know what patients want, and it was the only way to ensure doctors and patients have a clear roadmap.
I hated her with all of my guts, but I knew she was right. I always wanted to spend more time with my doctors. I always wanted to double, triple and quadruple check the plan, but I could never do that. I always had to trust that the doctor had it all figured out. I hated calling their office because "Karen" always had a snarky attitude and always told me that the doctor was "in surgery."
I was ashamed to admit this lady was right. Somehow, she knew my sorry journey. She said (literally), "you need to slow down, understand and plan what you want to look like."
But I had made many sketches and had told my doctors what I've always wanted. She told me to set up a call, and they would see what they could do for me.
Of course, I had my chin implant made with them and befriended the doctor who performed the surgery. Having had access to the medical arena, I knew how to contact doctors and tell them what was available. To my surprise, they started to recommend their patients to me.
They knew I was pretty good with aesthetics, and I guess they just wanted me to help these guys express themselves correctly.
Literally, they said to call them when we were ready. I didn't really do a whole lot, when the guys were ready, I just sent them to the lady's team who created mine.
I did better than other reps because I went above and beyond your typical sales rep, I connected guys with surgeons overseas. So I was making a little bling from the lady and doctors too.
Now.
I am going to stop here and not bore you with the details because you'll start saying that all I am doing is promoting and selling. Yes, I do sell, and I do make commissions from patients who work with these companies and doctors, but it is not that simple.
Patients still need to do some work and put in the time. There are no secrets, basically, they'd just need to want to collaborate on what is theirs (their face).
Here's the answer to the original question.
What do you think will give you a better chance for good results, an experienced team that works alongside your doctor until your nuts turn blue, or going directly to your doctor who can't even talk to you but once or twice, depending on Karen's menstrual cycle?
