I then met with the Plastic Surgeon. He explained that he would be performing a procedure that cannot have guaranteed results with any certainty because he has to rely on the healing capacity of my skin to behave, as it should, and how closely I follow the recovery procedures. He said that the best procedure where he could guarantee results would be a complete face lift, as he controls how tight the skin will be with his sutures, and that the full face lift would be the "homerun" of procedures to accomplish my goals. He felt I was on the borderline of needing facial liposuction or the full facelift. There was however a significant increase in cost as it was a much more invasive procedure, much more work is involved, and the cost would be approximately $10,000 in lieu of the $3,000 for the liposuction.
For a moment I felt that I was in a used car dealers showroom and was being given the old bait and switch routine, but as he continued to talk I saw that he was really trying to be honest about his evaluation of his ability to meet my goals and the expected results. He said that it would look better, but he couldn't say how much better, that maybe he'd hit a double or a triple with lipo. I explained that I understood this, and that I want to go ahead with the liposuction as originally planned, and that I could go for the full face lift later on after a reevaluation of my goals and at that time will get the brow lifts, hair advancement, lip implants, and rhinoplasty. I told him that I was going through transition, that I was wanting him to feminize my face whenever there was a choice about what direction to go,to take the road that will lead most toward feminizing my appearance. I had to sign consent forms for both he and the anesthesiologist.
Whew! After reading those papers I became concerned for the first time during the entire process. But I had come this far; there wasn't any way I was going to turn back now. The clinical director suggested that I take a room at the hotel across the street,since I didn't bring anyone with me to help monitor my medications after surgery, and that they would be able to walk across the street to check on me, and then be close enough to run over if any difficulty arose during the recovery. I liked that suggestion, that way I could have outpatient surgery in a hospital type environment, but at substantially lower than hospital rates, as I don't have any medical insurance coverage for any of my transition.
Reporting at 7:00 A.M. Thursday,I was led to the prep area. Happily, I had removed my toenail polish before arriving, because I would have felt embarrassed walking around in public with my pretty toes showing, (which sounds like I need a little counseling to resolve that issue) as I got to remove my clothes and put on that humbling tie in the back with your bottom hanging out gown we all get to wear in the hospital. After hellos from the doctor, nurses, and anesthesiologist, I was led down the hall to the OR. There must have been 6 people in there and they strapped 8 monitoring thingies all around my body, and that was 7:45. I heard the anesthesiologist say this may hurt a little, and then it was 9:00. I was in a dark recovery room, and then I was in my hotel room at 10:00.
I awoke with a neck bra in place, that I learned I must keep on for 3 days straight, and then for 12 hours a day for 3 weeks after that. Imagine that, now I get to wear a bra because of the doctor's orders. Sounds like one of my dreams come true. I have no memory of anything occurring during the entire operation. The nurse drove me to the hotel I was staying in, and told me to keep ahead of my medication, which included an antibiotic to fight the infection, and hydrocodone for pain. I took her advice for the first 12 hours, but after that I felt that I didn't need the pain medication.
The doc came across the street to visit at the end of the day, and told me that he worked aggressively on my face, and he felt very pleased with the results. He made three small incisions where he inserts the canella, or the liposuction wand, one under each ear and one under my chin, and through these openings he was able to reach all of the areas that needed to be addressed. He said he took out 100 cc of liquid from my face, which is about half a coke can of fat, if you can imagine that amount held in suspension in your face. He said to be conscientious about wearing the bra, as it will facilitate the reattachment of the skin to the tissue that he had separated during the liposuction. He also told me that when and if I wanted to carry on further with the facial feminization, he would be happy to work with me, which I read as a very good sign. He has been working with several other sisters in this area, and that will give me someone to contact about his methods.
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