Nobody arrives at the decision to undergo cosmetic surgery without a little bit of internal conflict. Even considering these procedures can be daunting to men and women alike, and it can be easy to feel passive throughout the process too! But it’s your body, and it’s always best for you to take control by communicating with your chosen professional.
Here’s everything you should ask your cosmetic surgeon during your initial consultation.
1. How would I benefit from surgery over non-surgical treatments?
When it comes to procedures like facelifts, your facelift surgeon must now contend with a myriad of non-surgical options for facial correction, ranging from creams and serums to skin peels, clay masks and the like. There are definite advantages to these non-surgical options, but experienced facelift surgeons tend to recommend surgery to clients on a case-by-case basis, depending on whether or not they believe their client can benefit from deeper layer treatment. Be sure to ask your surgeon exactly what they believe you’ll have to gain from undergoing surgery that you might not be getting from topical treatments.
2. What surgery would you recommend for me?
Your surgeon may also emphasize that despite all these procedures being more or less the same, the body under the knife is different every time and it’s considered best practice to keep all cosmetic procedures client-specific. Ask your surgeon point-blank what they would recommend you do to achieve the outcome you’re hoping for. Most of the time people enter cosmetic surgery clinics expecting to receive a single surgery, but chances are more likely that your surgeon may recommend two separate surgeries, usually for ensuring minor corrections are handled delicately. If your surgeon expects two or more surgeries are necessary, more often than not they should be able to tell you during your initial consultation.
3. Have you had much positive experience with this surgery?
Any well-versed cosmetic surgeon should have positive client testimonies as well as before and after shots, not only to back up their work but also to demonstrate to you the variety of results that these procedures can yield by using real-world examples that they can speak to. It’s incredibly important for your surgeon to be able to discuss the difficulties and intricacies that came with faces and bodies they’ve worked with in the past, especially if the corrections you’re seeking to make for yourself are equally delicate or intricate.
4. Can you explain the costs associated with this surgery?
When it comes to cosmetic surgery, the costs involved can range from covering your surgeon’s time and the clinic’s resources to covering additional hospital fees and resources used, as well as paying for any other specialists that may have been involved such as anesthesiologists. Be sure to ask your surgeon for as comprehensive an overview of the costs surrounding the procedure that they can give just so you can prepare financially if need be. You may even need to look at using manual wheelchairs in order to get around after the procedure.
5. What should my expectations be post-surgery?
A common reason for feeling negatively about the outcome of any cosmetic procedure is simply the client going into the process with startlingly high expectations as to how their face or body may look afterwards. Cosmetic surgeons like to emphasize that the real beauty of cosmetic surgery as a practice is the opportunity to accentuate a client’s best natural features, not to artificially grant them the features of any other individual. In other words, you don’t get cosmetic surgery to look more like Angelina Jolie. You get cosmetic surgery to feel like yourself. It’s important to maintain reasonable expectations throughout this process, as you don’t want to risk feeling regretful or disappointed with your surgery solely due to needlessly high expectations.
6. What is the recovery time post-surgery?
Finally, it’s good to ask your surgeon what to expect from your recovery period, from how long you expect to be away from work, to what responsibilities may come with managing your recovery at home. If you’ve undergone a facelift or rhinoplasty, chances are the small bones in your face as well as your cartilage may be quite delicate for the next few weeks at a minimum. As you’re also likely to be on pain medication, recovering from these cosmetic surgeries can feel quite labour intensive and most surgeons may recommend you have people around to help you out. Be sure to discuss the semantics of your recovery not just with your surgeon but also with your friends and family.
If you ask your surgeon all of these questions during your initial consultation, then you’re well on your way to having a positive experience with your chosen cosmetic procedure!