Virtual Consultation Review

Dr. Charles Lee has made me feel human again. After an initial rhinoplasty with Dr. Yoo left me feeling depressed and ugly (as it was so not at all what I asked for) it was nice just feeling respected and listened to during my virtual consultation.
One thing I have learned, that I wish I knew previously, is that Dr. Lee has more of a natural/subtle aesthetic. Dr. Yoo has more of a IG/plastic surgery aesthetic. Do not go to Dr. Yoo expecting something natural and vice versa, even if he tells you it will be customized to your face. Know what aesthetic you want, and go to the doctor accordingly. I recommend getting a consultation with at least both before choosing.
I scheduled the appointment yesterday, immediately got a text from Angela and we coordinated the Facetime for the next day. There was a last minute opening and I was able to Facetime a couple of hours earlier. The consultations were night and day.
Personally, I felt Dr. Lee was far more conversational, and I didn't have to lead the conversation. He knew right away what went wrong with my primary, and took the time to truly listen to me and educate me. I explained to him what I had discussed and said I wanted during my initial consultation with Dr. Yoo and that I was always happy with my bridge and side profile and only cared about the front. I told him the exact same things I had told Dr. Yoo during my primary consultation.
Dr. Lee also explained that DCF is difficult since you cannot always predict how a patient's skin will absorb the DCF so sometimes, in patients where the outcome looks perfect, it's because they were lucky enough that their body absorbed the right amount of DCF. Other times, as with myself, the body doesn't absorb as much. Sometimes surgeons over project a bit because they anticipate the body to absorb more than it does. I think this is where years of experience come into play, because Dr. Lee has likely seen far more biracial patients and can better predict how much their bodies will absorb the DCF.
He had nothing bad to say about Dr. Yoo and was very professional. He said that he revises Dr. Yoo's patients sometimes, just as Dr. Yoo revises his. It seems like as far as asian rhinoplasty goes these are two of the biggest players, and I just hope in the future anyone wanting a asian rhinoplasty schedules a consultation with both, so no one has to suffer the way I did.
As we discussed my aesthetic preferences together, he morphed in front of me what we were discussing. This did NOT happen with Dr. Yoo. I had walked into Dr. Yoo's office and there was a 2D morph pre-prepared that wasn't very visually helpful as it looked so similar. I also think Dr. Lee, because he has been doing this much longer, is a far better communicator, morpher and educator. As a patient, it is incredibly challenging since you don't know what you don't know, and it's hard even just finding the right medical terminology to explain what you want. It is very important that you walk away from your consult feeling educated and confident. Trust your gut instinct.
Ultimately, I have not yet chosen him as my revision specialist because I have learned my lesson and plan on getting several other consultations, but it was so reassuring speaking with him and it was a 10/10 consultation. My last follow up consultation with Dr. Yoo was a few months ago and he basically insulted me and I'm shocked he would speak to a patient in that manner. He also insisted there was no way my breathing could possibly be worse and that he didn't believe me and thought it was psychosomatic. Which, if I had made a mistake and didn't want to admit it, is probably what I would say as well. However the collapsed internal valve and over-projected tip that Dr. Lee instantly recognized shows that it was not psychosomatic. Dr. Lee was basically the polar opposite of Dr. Yoo and I look forward to seeing my morphs :)