Taken from notes:

” Arrive at Hospital around 6:15am, and greeted by Susie the Hospital Liaison Officer. Susie checks all my paperwork and gets me to sign more documents. Not long after I am transferred to my own private room. I put on my hospital robes, and lie on the bed while my girlfriend plays Mario on her DS. My nerves at this stage are surprisingly not bad. Thanks again to Xanax I meet with the Anesthesiologist who seems like a nice switched on gentlemen. We talk about my current medications and general health. He is concerned about my blood pressure which read 162/80 from memory. I am guessing this is due to nerves before the operation, but the doctor said I should really get it checked, or I may have a short life. hehe, thanks doc! I then see my Surgeon, who seems like a lovely caring man, in a very rushed way! Lets put it this way, he must be a busy man, it took me almost 6 months just to get a consult with him! My only qualm with my surgeon (which I would not even consider a qualm) is he did not speak to me in more technical details about the procedures. The nerd in me wanted to know everything…like what type of liposuction will be performed, Tumescent, Smart Lipo, Ultrasonic? What size and shape chin implant…how will he carve it down and shape it to adapt to my chin. How many CC’s of Buccal fat will be removed from my cheeks?  Where will incisions on my face be located. I had all these questions but never the opportunity to ask. Perhaps this is my own fault. But I guess if he was to explain the semantics of every procedure to every patient, he would never have the time to do what he does best, operate.

“In the Operating Theatre” - Walk into the OR, and notice a huge team of doctors. My surgeon introduces me to a female trainee surgeon who will be watching my operation today. She seems very young and polite. My Anesthesiologist introduces me to his assistant. There are a number of other nurses and people preparing instruments in the background. Wow, all these people for me. I knew I am in good hands. The Anesthesiologist tries tapping an IV into a vein in my hand, but doesn’t seem to work. So he manages to tap a vein on the crook of my elbow. He mentions giving me something to relax, I like the sound of this. I instantly begin to feel dizzy. Then seconds later I was gone….blackness…nothing. Next thing I realise I am awake in a different room, with a friendly nurse beside me monitoring my vitals. Seems I had the urge to talk crap, but my lower lip had been numbed so I was talking garble. At this stage I am feeling very alert to my surroundings, but at the same time I have a headache like a hangover. The nice nurse crushes up some Digesic pain killers in honey for me…but the headache still persists for a while. I was told my operation lasted an 1:45mins, and the hospital was kind enough to refund me for the 15 minutes extra of surgery time I had paid. I had booked 2 hours. I am guessing I am back in my private room at around 9am. The nurses take great care of me, constantly monitoring my blood pressure and giving me pain killers and icecream. I have also been given a compression garment to wear around my head/neck. This helps with the swelling and bruising of liposuction. Overall I am feeling pretty good….in fact I don’t feel any pain at all besides my headache” I get up eventually to goto the toilet…and take a quick peep of myself in the mirror. I was expecting to look battered and bruised, but everything looked ok at this stage. After a couple of hours of monitoring, the nurses tell me its ok for me to go home. I just remember thinking wow, this entire process was a lot easier than I expected. What was all the stress about?? All the Doctors/Nurses/Staff had been very caring and professional, which created a positve experience for me.

Taken from notes

“I must say, pain and discomfort has been zero. The most painful part of the entire process was having the tape removed that held the IV into place. No kidding! I have been taking Digesic (Pain Killers) every 4-6 hours, and drinking lots of pineapple juice. I am also constantly rinsing my mouth with salt water, and spraying my arnica for the bruising. Now to the good part…how do I look?? I took a quick peep when I got home from the hospital. I removed the compression garment and looked in the mirror. And I must say, I am very impressed by what I see. Wow, I have a jaw line, a chin…my double chin is gone! At this very moment I am one happy man! Even with all tape, stitches, bruises and swelling, I really like what I see.

Here are some photos taken on the same day…before the surgery, then after. Not the most flattering photos, but you get the idea.

“First Night” - sleeping is difficult with the compression garment on, and I have also elevated the head of my bed by placing pillows under the matress to prop it up. I don’t want to sleep on my side, because I don’t want to ruin any of the work that has just been done, but at the same time I cannot sleep on my back. So once again, Xanax saves the day…I fall asleep in very high spirits.

“Not a great sleep. Trying hard to sleep on my back so I don’t put any pressure on my face. But not having much luck with that. Wake up and take my elaborate array of pills, 4 x Antibiotics a day, Zoloft, 2 x Digesic every 4-6 hours, 4 x Arnica Spray under tongue, 1 x Vitamin C, and 1 x Zinc Tablet..Todays meals consist of Protein Milks, Jelly, Yoghurt and Chicken Corn Soup for dinner. I have been feeling very dry, and drinking lots of water and Pineapple juice, which means I have been peeing all day. As for my comfort level, still no pain or feeling of swelling. Received a phone call from the nurse today to see how I am going. I tell her I feel good and this whole experience is over rated…she tells me not to get too cocky as the worse is yet to come…

Day 2 Picture

“Woke up at around 8:30am, and removed my compression garment so I could take all my tablets, and have some breakfast. Ok, now I can definately feel some tightness in my neck and chin area. It is like a pulling feeling, but still no pain or discomfort. I noticed a patch of bruising on the right side of my neck, but other than that I don’t see any further bruising. I am guessing the next few days bruising and swelling will get worse.. Just another day really…eating soft foods, and mostly working on my websites. Talked to my dad and sister on the phone today. Once again feeling guilty for telling them lies…as they ask questions about my wisdom teeth. Had an early night, 2 x Xanax’s and I am in deep sleep by 9pm.

Day 3 Before And After, Note Bruising on my right side.

Wow, the surgeons office is absolutely packed today. My previous 2 visits to the office have been quiet and peaceful. There is an obnoxious middle aged “Eastern Suburbs” woman giving the staff a hard time about the long wait. The poor girl is trying to calm her down, but not having much luck. I wait for an hour and a half to see my Surgeon. I don’t really care about the wait…I don’t have to be anywhere…but I am thinking in the back of my mind I will have a parking ticket now for sure!

Before & After Front On Photo
Note: Still a lot of bruising and swelling, but you can see a more defined and masculine jaw line.
 And best of all, my double chin has been BANISHED!

From now on I am only going to update progress weekly, as not many changes are happening day by day. I am sure the difference in the photos will be more noticeable with a weeks worth of healing. I have to go back to see the surgeon on Tues, where he will remove the stitches under my chin. I will update then with some photos of my incision scars. Keep posted!

Hi all, well I just got back from my 1 week post op appointment. All tape and stitching has been removed. I am still feeling in high spirits, despite really bad sleep lately. I am sure the compression garment is not helping in that respect. The garment is becoming more and more uncomfortable the more my facial hair grows. Its like a rough sand paper feeling against my throat. (you lucky females don’t have to worry about this :P) Good news is my PS said I can start shaving again (carefully around the incisions)…thank god for that, I haven’t shaved in over a week, and beginning to look like Teen Wolf.

As I hopped out of my car and started walking to the Surgeons Office today, I ran into him on the street. Looks like he was on his way back from lunch. I greeted him and he looked at me confused for a second…then said “Oh Brad!, I almost didn’t recognise you with that jaw line! Either he was being honest, charming, or admiring his own work…perhaps a combination of all

So no more post op appointments with my Surgeon for another month. He is by far the most loved person in the household at the moment. I am sure my girlfriend is sick to death of me mentioning him…maybe she thinks I’m gay! Either way, my surgeon has the hands of an angel, and I am forever grateful for the work he has done on me, and the way he and his team have looked after me.

Here are some more before and after pics, if you are anything like me, you are probably beginning to get sick of them. Very little has changed since the last pics, except a little less bruising, and a lot more facial hair! I can still feel swelling under my chin and around the neck…so hopefully as the months progress my neck and jaw line will tighten up a bit more. Anyway, enjoy these before and after pics, these are the last ones I will post until week 2.

Today was my first day out in public. Since my PS said I can start eating normal food again, I went and had lunch at McDonalds almost instantly. I was craving it so bad, and it was soo good! There is only so much soup and yoghurt a man can handle. Anyway, after dining at such a fine establishment, I went and did my banking. My work requires me to do the banking about 2/3 times a week….so as you can imagine I know the staff quite well. When I walked in, one of the guys I am friendly with said “how you going man?”..and kept on walking. He didn’t notice a thing. When it was eventually my turn to be served at the counter, the lady (who I also see every week) said hello, and kind of looked at me funny. It was the look of - something looks different, but I can’t put a finger on it. Perhaps she just looked at me that way because of my wolf man facial hair. I could be wrong, but I have a feeling women notice change more than men. Ok, well that was my first time out in public (besides surgeon visits)…and so far no one has said anything. Will keep you posted

The journey continues….Well I finally shaved today, which has given me the opportunity to take a photo of my Chin Implant incision. The incision actually looks a lot worse than it is due to the flash of the camera. You may also notice some brownness around the edges of the incision. This is just left over residue from the healing cream I have been applying. Yes, today I left the house, and purchased a product called Rosa Scarless Healer Cream from a Health Food shop. According to the friendly lady at the Health Food shop, this cream is the Mercedes Benz of herbal healing creams. I guess time will tell According to the bottle it contains the herbs Calendula, Hypericum, Aloe Vera. You can find more information here.

I have also pointed out the two tiny incision marks left from the neck liposuction. I cannot believe how fast these have healed up. I can barely notice them at all now, and they are probably more noticeable in this photo because I have also been applying the healing cream to them. (yes the cream is a brown colour).

On another note, I accidentally ran into my neighbour today whilst heading to the Health Food Store. My last encounter with her was 2 nights preop. I told her I would be laying low for a while since I am having my wisdom teeth removed (another person lied to :( )..anyway we said hello, and she didn’t seem to notice anything. She asked about the wisdom teeth, and I mentioned I was still a little swollen…which she agreed on. I am really surprised that one week out of surgery, no one has caught on (even with bruises and scarring).

I woke up this morning feeling very tight and swollen. I went and looked in the mirror and noticed my neck was moderately puffed up. I have to admit, for the first time since my surgery, I was a little bit concerned. Not only was my neck feeling swollen, but also my chin and bottom lip. I have not felt the swelling this severe since having my surgery 9 days ago. A few things flicked through my mind, including a bad infection, or my body has decided to reject my chin implant. I was deciding on whether to call the Surgery Office and have the nurse check me out. I figured I may need a new dose of anti-biotics. But after calming down a little I came to my senses and realised that swelling is just all a part of the healing process. I did not have a fever, which would indicate an infection. I guess what really threw me off, was the fact that the swelling kicked in on day 9. I figured after day 3, the swelling would gradually decline. Let this be a lesson to everyone that the human healing process is not always progressive. Each individual heals differently, and I do not believe their is an exact science to the healing process. I will keep an eye on my swelling, and if I do believe it to be abnormal, I will definitely contact my nurse.

If there is one thing I can recommend for those who are considering neck lipo, is purchase two compression garments, not just one. This way while garment ”one” is being washed, you can wear garment “two”. Also, it spreads the work load on each compression garment. Mine is starting to become frayed, and I am sure it is losing its elasticity. This is from repeated washing, and time in the dryer. The garment itself is not super annoying, but at the same time I would prefer not to wear it. But I have to admit, the one night I did not wear it to bed, I woke up the next morning with more swelling than normal. So I am back to wearing it religiously. As for how long to wear the Compression Garment? I really don’t know. Some surgeons suggest the first few days after surgery. Others say 6 weeks. Reading through the documents provided by my surgeon, he suggests wearing the garment for 4 weeks. He also suggested that “Postoperative massage of the areas that have been suctioned either by yourself or a trained massage therapist available  at many beauty salons is far more likely to be effective in diminishing swelling and prompting the quickest return to desired body contour”

My Face/Neck Compression Garment (Day of Surgery)

Swelling directly under the chin (the double chin area) has been more noticable in the past couple of days, compared to the first week after surgery. I am guessing this is normal and a part of the healing process. It is kind of annoying because it is starting to look like my double chin is making an unwelcome come back. But I can tell it is swelling, as it feels very tight and hard. My old double chin was nice and soft Like my surgeon said, I will not see the final results until 6-12 months after surgery. So I will just have to be patiant. Apart from the under chin swelling, no other major dramas to report. I am still very happy with how things are going.

Wow…2 weeks already! And as you can see from the photos, the healing process is going well. There are no longer any signs of bruising, which is a good thing when going out in public. I am still feeling quite swollen around the areas that we’re lipo suctioned (under chin/neck).  I am also starting to feel random lumps and hardness in the same area, this I was expecting eventually. My new chin is holding up pretty well, with only the left side feeling slightly numb. As for the buccal fat pad removal, I keep forgetting I even had this procedure. There is zero pain, tightness or discomfort coming from this area now. The only remaining evidence of the buccal pad extraction is the small incisions I can feel inside my mouth with my tongue.

I have tried my best to keep the before and after photo’s as similar as possible. But due to things like facial hair, hair cuts, head tilt, lighting, each photo can be a little different. But overall, you still get the general idea of how things are progressing.

CLICK TO ENLARGE

CLICK TO ENLARGE

On Day 8, I posted a picture of the incision under my chin. Well it is now day 14, and I have taken another photo for comparison. The other lipo incisions have disappeared, so I have not bothered with them this time. These photo’s we’re taken 6 days apart, and as you can see the healing is coming along nicely. I won’t bore you with anymore before and after photos until the 1 month stage. (unless something comes up)

I think the excitement is definitely starting to wear off. Week 1, I couldn’t stop looking at myself in the mirror. (not in a narcissistic way, I think…) I looked in the mirror more in that first week than I have my entire life. I must admit, it was very exciting to see the new changes to my face. I now feel have become used to the changes…I realise I am still healing, and things are going to keep changing over the next 6 months. But I don’t believe they will be drastic changes. Overall I am feeling pretty good. But the high and excitement of the first week has definitely gone. This is very contradictory to what I have read about post op depression which many people suffer. For some odd reason, my emotions went in the opposite direction.

Sorry, I realise I said I would not post any more before and after photos until 1 month post op…but I figured some of you would find this information helpful if you are recovering from similar procedures as me. I noticed in my 2 week post op photos, my jaw line has began to lose its definition. When looking back to my day 4 post op photos, I managed to find a similar angled photo which is good for comparing with my week 2 photo. As you can see, in the day 4 photo the jaw line is more linear. But by week two, the jaw line has become less defined and seems to be melting into my neck. I am not really concerned by this at this stage, as I am positive it is all a part of the swelling. So for those of you who experience similar loss of definition, or the double chin making its return…I would not panic yet. I am sure as the months go by the definition will make a slow come back. (i hope!)

Well I finally caught up with the immediate family (excluding dad) yesterday for my mum’s birthday lunch. I figured since we would be sitting down at a table and facing each other, someone would notice the surgery for sure! I already told my mum over the phone that I had the plastic surgery. I couldn’t handle lying to her about the wisdom teeth story any longer. She said she would keep it to herself, as she too was interested in seeing if anyone noticed.
Anyway, as soon as I arrive at the restaurant and sit down, my sister makes a comment on my weight loss (not that I have lost any). She said she could tell my face has changed shape…and asked how much weight did I lose? But other than that, nothing else was mentioned. I had planned to tell everyone what I had done, but a friend of my mother’s arrived who I had not met before. I did not really feel comfortable revealing my secret in front of a stranger. So for now, besides my girlfriend, my mum is the only one who knows. To be honest, I do not think anyone will ever notice. People notice something has changed, but they cannot put a finger on it.

My mum called me later that evening, and said she loved the results. She said my surgeon has done a really good job at keeping things natural.

As of today it has been exactly 3 weeks since my surgery. And as a 3 week anniversary gift, I woke up feeling pretty darn good. I usually wake up feeling very swollen and tight around the neck area in the mornings…but today it feels “almost” normal. Hopefully from today on that feeling of tightness and swelling will become less and less.

Yesterday I told my sister and a good friend about the surgery. My sister responded excitedly, and already plans on getting getting eyelid surgery as soon as she can scrape up the money. My brother in law called last night after hearing the news from my sister. He asked if he could touch my silicon chin implant…hehe. I told him I can draw a nipple on it, and charge him $5 a squeeze

I will post more photo’s next week.

Well it has been exactly a month today since my surgery. Suprisingly healing is progressing well. I have not had any problems to report. How am I feeling?? Overall I am feeling almost back to normal. I can feel tightness and lumps from the liposuction, but that aside things are all good. I am not particularly concerned about the lipo lumps and tightness, as I have been told a million times it will take 6-12 months for everything to settle. I have a Post Op appointment with my surgeon in about 10 days, so I am guessing he will check that everything is healing properly, and in the correct position I have added some more pre op photos. To be honest, I cannot notice that much change from the 2 week to the 4 week photos. I will post more before and after pictures at the 3 month mark.

CLICK TO ENLARGE

CLICK TO ENLARGE

Well the 3 month Post Op date has come and gone. Sorry I have not been updating more regularly, but to be honest there hasn’t been much more to report. The healing process seems to be coming a long fine. I don’t really notice or feel that I have had surgery anymore. The new chin has made itself as home. I am unable to feel it with my fingers, and I cannot feel that I have this implant attached to my chin bone. Just feels like my old chin. My under chin scar has healed up nicely, with most og the redness now gone. The only problem is, I keep getting random lumps a long the scar, which then eventually pop like a pimple. I am guessing these lumps and bumps will slowly vanish with time. As for the Neck Lipo, things are feeling much better now. At one stage I thought the tightness would never go away. But now I do not even consciously recognise it. The buccal fat incisions inside my mouth seem to be almost gone. I can still feel them slightly with my tongue. So overall, I am still very happy that I have gone through with this process. I am feeling a lot better about myself..and have adjusted to my new look quite quickly (not that it was a huge change)

Unfortunately I do not have any before and after photos to show…my digital camera battery has finally died, and won’t hold enough charge for even one photo. I have some pictures I found taken by other people in social settings. These will have to do for now until I get myself a new camera.

AT A PARTY 2 MONTHS POST OP (THE CHICKS DIG THE NEW CHIN)

3 MONTHS POST OP - IN HAWAII WITH GIRLFRIEND (NO DOUBLE CHIN!)