No More Double Chin!

Having worked as a Practice Manager for a Plastic Surgeon for many years in NYC I was hesitant to have any procedure done by anyone else other than my former boss (well know board certified female Plastic Surgeon). I was waiting for my vacation to have some downtime while I was still living in NYC to have the under-chin liposuction done but unfortunately my husband's company's had to relocate him to Tampa with very short notice, so I was never able to have the procedure done.

I have NEVER not had a double chin, even when I was at my thinnest weight it never went away, I hated taking pictures, and always did the almost above head 45 degree selfies to try and hide it. I also never wore my hair up and, in the Florida heat/humidity it was miserable. Finally, I made the decision to at least start researching surgeons here in Tampa that #1 were ACTUALLY Plastic Surgeons (there is a big difference between Cosmetic Surgeons and Plastic Surgeons) and #2 the photos they posted online were actually their work, had a large amount of photos of the procedure, and had great reviews.

I found Dr. Gruber here on RealSelf and then proceeded to neurotically (I'm an analytic Virgo and have worked in the industry) looked at every social media site and website she was on, as well as reading all her glorious reviews. She is Board Certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery and a member of ASPS (very important) these are the only surgeons who should perform any plastic surgery procedure..lipo, tummy tucks, beast augs..etc. I fell in love with her before and after photos especially of the chin liposuction.
I booked a consult (which is totally Free!) and headed to her practice in Town and Country. The office is gorgeous and the front staff were so friendly! I met with Ashley first (Patient Coordinator), she was super awesome, so friendly and made me feel so comfortable and well supported while going through the logistics of the procedure. While I have working knowledge of how consults usually go I was really blown away by the care and confidence Ashley has for patients and how well she thoroughly explained what I was to expect. Then I met with Dr. Gruber and she showed me what she will be able to achieve. Dr Gruber spelled out what her realistic expectation was for my procedure, the pro's and con's of having liposuction, which is everything that an excellent surgeon should do with patients. I booked the procedure during my consult. The quote is all inclusive and it clearly stated everything we had talked about in the consult.
Surprisingly on surgery day I was not nervous, I felt totally at ease in the hands of Dr Gruber and her assistant Olga, I knew I made the right decision. The procedure itself was a breeze! Totally painless and I was awake, Dr Gruber and Olga chatted with me, played music and talked through what was going on and where she was taking the fat from (apparently I have stubborn fat! lol). When the procedure was almost done Dr. Gruber had me stand up and look in the mirror and showed me small areas of fat that she was going to leave in order to achieve the best natural looking results (this is where her knowledge of liposculpture came into play and the being awake part of the procedure really is important, she sees how how the body/face moves and is able to tweak things while in the OR with the patient's consent). The results are IMMEDIATE, like you get up off the OR table and you see what she took out! After about an hour, I was wrapped up and ready to go. I was given a great goody bag with chucks, post op instructions, my immediate before and after pics all nicely printed out and more importantly Dr Gruber's number (this is something very few surgeons do, I have heard that some only give you an office number and you have to be connected through an on call service). I wont lie and say the healing was a breeze, the day after is rough not so much pain wise, it's just you cannot get comfortable and talking is a bit hard with the compression garment.. it was bearable. I had the procedure done the Thursday before Thanksgiving, I went to work the next day for a couple hours (my husband drove me, you cannot drive bc of the pain medication) and layed low on the weekend. I highly suggest to have at least 3 days down time to heal up. I expected the swelling and bruising and it was not bad at all.
I was blown away at my first post op appointment that Monday, I finally had no double chin, the incisions were so small that they healed up over the weekend (I'm 3 months out and I have 0 scars). I was so happy at that appointment, I had to hold back the tears and to tell you the truth I tear up every time I think of that first unveiling, it might seem trivial to some but finally seeing that I had no double chin something that has plagued me my entire life to be gone was liberating.
So I'm now 3 months in, most of the swelling has gone away and the results are fabulous! I just came back from my 3 month check up and I literally do not think anything about the consult, procedure, or aftercare could be done better. My mom is actually going to come up from Miami Beach to have a consult with Dr. Gruber for the same procedure.
I highly recommend Dr. Gruber; the confidence in her skill set, patient care and ethics are apparent the moment you meet her during the consultation.
I have to thank Dr. Gruber and her whole team for giving me confidence to finally wear my hair up and giving me the chin I never had!