Great at botox, but had a bad experience with tear trough filler. Left side was filled more than right and was not symmetrical. I asked the assistant after he left the room and she went back and asked the doctor who did not come back in to discuss or look. Assistant returned saying it would even out after irritation and any swelling after procedure. It did not. I have little tiny white bumps too on both sides under my eyes. I did not have this before and it has not gone away. I bruised pretty badly after a few days and this was hard to cover up although I tried everything. People at work asked me privately if I was okay. This was most likely because I'm fair skinned, but I was left with bags under my eyes that I didn't have before and that has actually aged me. I was just looking to add a little volume to the trough area because of some loss of it due to aging and some wrinkles that were appearing. What I ended up with was much worse and makes me look older and feel more self conscious than I did before the filler. I've tried to be patient and let it resorb naturally but I had it done in January and it is August now and the bags are just migrating down my face....not really dissipating. I contacted the office to see if I could get an appointment at the end of their day to come in to see about getting injections to dissolve it (new job and not available during normal day) and at first it seemed like they would be accommodating but they stopped responding. Left me with a very bad feeling so I determined it's best not to go back there. The botox in my forehead and in-between my brows was perfect when I went at the same time as this unfortunate experience. I wanted to start off conservative and see how I liked it so it was natural... Didn't want to overdo and look too obvious. I had a bad headache for a couple days but after that when it took effect I was so happy with it. I had some strange puffiness that appeared below the center of the eyebrows that lasted a while that was between my eyes and bridge of nose that kind of made me look off that may have been attributed to it but I can't be certain. It wore off as the botox did. It wasn't a desired effect but I was most unhappy the fillers/bags that resulted under my eyes so this compounded it but wasn't my main focus. Dr. Chowdry was pleasant and entertaining and the injections did not hurt much to his benefit. He was good at that and I was much happier with the botox then the filler, although some of the puffiness between my eyes I suspect was a result of the botox. I regret going here for tear trough filler and am living with the embarrassing results every day while I pray for it to resorb quicker. 7 months so far and the bags are still there. Since I never had bags at all to begin with...this is very hard to deal with and upsetting. To be fair I'm giving two stars for the botox and the fact he give comfortable injections. Stay far away if you are considering filler or anything that takes longer to wear off. You don't want to risk the same experience I've had. It's upsetting to look older as a result of this type of treatment. Buyer BEWARE.
Hello fellow Real Self patients. Like you I have been browsing this site for some time planning, dreaming, and gathering information. My background: 49 year old female with three adult children that I raised by myself. Being a single parent, the needs of others were always put before myself. Over the years, I gained a lot of weight and with health issues arising I finally decided to take control of my health. In June of 2015 I had Sleeve Barbaric surgery. It took me 15 months but I lost 150 ibs. Half my body weight. I eat healthily and strength train at the gym but no amount of exercise was going to get rid of the excess skin from the weight loss. I looked good with clothes on and felt healthy but my journey was not complete. I decided the next step in my make over was to tackle the upper body- arm lift and breast lift all at once. Updated on 29 Dec 2016: Updated on 2 Jan 2017: First off-My apologies for the delayed post. I had technical difficulties with large photo file sizes and my Adobe suite decided to crash on me, which involved a re-install. But here I am ready to relay my story. These two photos are me getting marked up day of surgery. Mood was jovial and excited. Lots of jokes were cracked and the atmosphere was relaxed. Surgery was performed at the new Centegra Huntley hospital. What a nice place! At any point in these postings feel free to ask questions. Updated on 2 Jan 2017: My surgery was scheduled at 7:30 am and ended around 2:30 pm. Around a seven hour surgery so no way were they sending me home. I stayed overnight and the wonderful staff took great care of me. I had a morphine pump that I used every half hour so I was doing okay. Most of the soreness was in my upper arms and under arm- pit area. Both arms were kept elevated with pillows. Breasts were really not sore, which surprised me. Arms and breasts were snugly wrapped with padding and ace bandages. I was allowed to leave the hospital around 11 am. The picture attached is my admittedly poor attempt to take a selfie that night. But you get the idea. I was bandaged up and a bit stiff. Updated on 2 Jan 2017: Photos from three days after surgery. Wow, what a difference! No more loose, crepe skin! Amazing! There is some swelling but over all I'm feeling okay. I had a breast lift without implants. Bra size was D before surgery. I may consider implants after the swelling is down and I see what size I end up. At one point I was a size F so being smaller will take some getting used to. I'm very active so I may like it. It can get annoying when you can't see your feet easily...lol. I took the ace bandages off to shower and the steri -strips are left on. The instructions were to shower hair as usual, which I was able to do slowly and carefully, and let the water run over incisions. No soap or scrubbing them. I was able to lift arms up to a certain point but with careful controlled movements its surprising what you can accomplish. Updated on 2 Jan 2017: My arms and breasts have been wrapped with white gauze and ace bandages. The gauze looks deceivingly soft but after days of wearing, it was starting to get itchy. Or perhaps I'm just sensitive. I had to take off for a breather. The sterile strips stay on until they fall off by them selves. Arms are looking good. I tried to give you a few angles. I should have set my camera and tripod up to take better photos but frankly I was tired and sleeping a lot. Updated on 2 Jan 2017: Checking in with Dr. Chowdry today. He says things are coming along nicely. I am bit bloated from surgery but that is to be expected. I requested these photos from his office. Updated on 29 Jan 2017: Hello Everyone. I'm a bit late but here are photos I took 30 days post. A couple of things happened since last update. 1) I went back to work. I have a desk job/ some lifting. A co-worker knows about the surgery and moves the heavy stuff. Typing was harder than expected. My elbows were sore after the first week. 2) I developed an infection in one elbow on a Thursday. Was it caused by typing? Did I get some lotion in an open wound? Who knows but it swelled to triple size and hurt like crazy. Like please inject morphine in my elbow hurt. Not wanting to take Norco again, 800 mg of Ibuprofen took the edge off. Went back on antibiotics for a week and was really ill all weekend. That was week three. By week 4 I felt like myself again. I'm a rather impatient patient and want to bounce back fast. I have lots of projects going on. But you just can't do it with large surgeries. Even though I felt better at 4 weeks, I'm still healing. Updated on 29 Jan 2017: I wear Reebok compression shirts. Purchased one in black and one in white. from Dicks sporting goods. I wore them 24/7 for the first 30 days. I am now 39 days out and purchased a Hanes SmoothTec Comfort Flexfit wireless bra from Walmart for $13. I tried all types of bras at various retailers and couldn't find one that didn't hurt or feel uncomfortable. For me, this one works and Is inexpensive while I am healing. I switch out between the bra and the shirts or both at the same time. Some days when my arms are uncomfortable, the shirts help. Updated on 29 Jan 2017: I've been reading a lot about scar reduction recommendations and it seams everyone has their own solution. I purchased Biocorneum and used one bottle up fast. At $80 a tube, the next few months are going to get expensive. I switched to Scar Away 100% silicone and just purchased papertape. I will let you know how it goes. I tried the Scar Away silicone sheets and didn't like them. They were uncomfortable and pulled my skin whereas it called bleeding. No thanks. I also use 100% petroleum jelly. Updated on 29 Jan 2017: I have locations that are still red and sore. A couple areas are raised. I stitch under my breast bleed this weekend-very light- up enough to stain bra and compression shirt. I'm not sure if I rubbed it or what happened but will discuss with surgeon this week. Scars can get itchy and once in a while I get a needle like poke. I'm still sore but I also don't slow down. Overall I feel great and still recommend the surgery. Swelling is down in arms and shirt sleeves that were tight now fit normal! That is fun! Updated on 23 Feb 2017: Hello everyone. I am now two months post surgery and wanted to give you an update. Random stitches are poking out or "spitting" as I've seen it called on this site. Some locations its just a nuisance as the ends are pointy, other locations it becomes red, swells and then oozes blood, liquid or puss. Once the swelling goes down and scabs over its not so bad. It helps to place band aids on the areas. I have a few trouble locations: elbows, areas on my left side and left under arm. I think the elbows could be problem areas because I work on the computer a lot. I also have random sharp pains. From what I read, this too is common. I'm been using Scar away gel but with as many incisions as I have, it gets pricey. I also use plain petroleum jelly but I think it stains clothes. I'm now going to try lotion without Vitamin E. From what I read, the point is to keep them hydrated and massage them daily. I just started strength training again this week with low weight (8-10) lbs. We'll see how that goes as I'm being cautious. No sudden movements. I should clarify I can do sudden movements but I choose not too. I want the best outcome for this surgery. Sleeping: sometimes its still sore or uncomfortable to sleep on my side. Over all recovery is not bad. I'm impatient to get on with my life and have to sometimes remind myself of how many incisions I have. Updated on 23 Feb 2017: Did I mention that during recovery you want to elevate your arms? Very important as it reduces swelling and is more comfortable. I slept on my back with my arms elevated a good month. Also kept them elevated while watching TV. Updated on 28 Feb 2017: Ten week update. Still having issues with the left side. Stitches have been poking out in various spots and they are sharp. You would think by 10 weeks they would be softer. Those locations have been swollen, oozing, and uncomfortable/painful. I've been putting band aids over the areas to reduce rubbing. Last night 3 areas on my breast opened and were oozing pus/blood. Breast is sore. I called Doctors office and first available appointment is Thursday. I offered to email a photo of my breast just in case I need to start on meds and sure enough they called and I'm back on antibiotics. These dissolving stitches don't dissolve very well. My body is rejecting them. I eat a high protein diet so I don't think this is nutrition related. Very frustrating! This is the first surgery that at 10 weeks out I'm having so many issues. P.S. I don't know why one photo loaded upside down. Sometimes that happens when I'm posting to this site. Updated on 3 Mar 2017: PS took the problem sutures out. That hurt like @%$! I hope no more decide to poke out and I'm on the road to recovery (finally).
