Christmastime Chin Implant and Lipo

I have never been a thin girl, but I've always felt my face looked "fatter" than my body. It's very round in shape and I tend toward a double chin at any weight. Within the last year or so, I'd started to notice that even plus-size models have sharp jawlines and no double chins. I considered Kybella, but was concerned the results weren't worth the cost. So I'd decided on lipo. I was doing homework and noticing that it was often paired with an implant, so I went for a consult. I loved their before and after imaging, so I scheduled my procedure during the holidays for downtime. I am 30 years old and about a US size 12.

I tend toward nausea so they hooked me up with meds for that for surgery and later for the hydrocodone. They had me on an abundant regimen of arnica and bromelain with quercetin in the days leading up to surgery. I was also told to stop taking any stimulants and ibuprofen. Tried to limit my salt intake and bought yogurt to balance bacteria with the upcoming antibiotics.

The surgery was easy and was mid-morning. They gave me halcyon and let me rest and before I could find something to watch on Netflix, I was out. Believe I was sedated with fentanyl. During the surgery, I came to a little bit, enough to kind of groan. I saw two figures, couldn't make out their faces. One of them upped some meds and I was back out.

I was told to stay off my cell phone and I know why...I don't remember anything else for about 4 hours, and I had in fact texted a picture of my wrapped head to one person I hadn't meant to. Oh well!

When I fell asleep for the night, the nausea came on. After vomiting, I gave up the hydrocodone. It was a good choice - Tylenol was plenty. I was advised against ibuprofen.

The next morning, they took the bandages off. I was told I would temporarily get a glimpse at my future self before entering bruise and swell hell.

These photos are of the first 6 days. I would say my peak bruising and swelling was at day 5. I only left the house briefly and wore a scarf. My neck was tender and some numbness led me to slur some words. My the end of the first week, I was really starting to freak out. I was lumpy, I was hoping that wasn't permanent, and very "jowl-y." My face had taken on a bad square appearance that made me wonder whether the medium-sized implant was a size too large.

I realize now I have so few before photos for comparison because I hated my double chin so much, I would only keep or tag photos that were taken at the very best angles.

So I returned to work on day 7 with a scarf. I was still swollen enough that I was afraid my coworkers who did not know about the surgery would notice. I was also tired. I ended up leaving at lunchtime but have been back full-time since day 8. I wore my chin strap compression thing as many hours as I could stand it, but not in public.

I was getting so concerned about the lumpiness (especially around the incision) that I was excited for my very first follow-up appointment on day 10. They took the stitches out and my numbness was helpful. I was disappointed that my surgeon was in and out of the room so quickly that I didn't get any of the reassurance I was seeking. I'm sure it's because it's healing well and my fears are unfounded, but that would have been nice to hear. He said I should come back weekly for HIVAMAT electrostatic treatments to reduce the swelling and lumpiness. They did one treatment that same day (which was a lot like 20 mins of having a vibrator rubbed over the area) and it felt really good. By the next day, I noticed more improvement. I had stopped slurring my words.

I received the second treatment today, day 15. I was told I can stop wearing the chin strap garment altogether now, but I still enjoy the compression overnight and notice it temporarily smooths out lumps for the next day, so I'm continuing. I have almost all the control back over my bottom lip but still some numbness and tightness.