nosey77 Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 I've just had Rhinoplasty in Seoul and have this forum to thank for giving me the information necessary to go about this. Plastic surgery seems like a scary process especially when you're traveling to a foreign country in which you may not speak the language. Here are some tips I'd like to pass as my thanks to this forum for providing me enough info to start my search. _______________________________________________________________________RESEARCH 1) Take the information on this forum for what it is, anyone can sign up and post here and unless they are willing to post their actual pictures you really don't know if the posts are legit or someone trying to advertise for their clinic. It could also be people who are purposely trying to discredit competitors, someone who had surgery who is upset bc of unrealistic expectations, etc etc. There are over 300, cosmetic surgery clinics in Korea, and there's a lot of competition. When I first start reading many of the posts and messages I became paranoid upon reading various things, in the end take the information for what it is, to get a general sense or feel of the different clinics. Online Consults via email 2) Write down a list of clinics you may want an email consult with, (really you should send your pictures to as many as possible, it doesnt hurt to see their recomendations) Take pictures of your nose from different angles (copy the angles they use on the various clinics websites for example) and start emailing them to the clinics so you can get a response back. Most of the major plastic surgery clinics have a dedicated section where you can upload your pictures on their site but for me since time was an issue I simply went to each of their websites, clicked on the english translation site and then found their general email, then I made email and attached all the pics of me and told the I was looking for a rhinoplasty consult and sent that same email out to over 15 clinics. Most of them responded, some within the same day and some up to a week later. The responses ranged from very detailed (the doctor himself responding with a price quote and plan,) to the very general, (a consultant making general observations and simply telling me to come in for a face to face consult. What you will realize when you get these responses is the various differences in what each clinic recommends and the overall pricing structure. Depending on what your price range is and what results you're looking for you'll be able to narrow your list down so when you arrive in Seoul you can consult with your top choices. Please realize that many of the larger clinics simply dont have time for the doctor to field all the emails they receive with pictures to access, and that doesn't mean that they won't do as good or the best job for you. Also, what ever price quote they give you is only an estimate, they need to see you in person since everyone looks different from their 2D image and the price they quote you may just be a range, the ability to negotiate can also bring the final price down obviously. Booking your flight Ok great so now you have narrowed it down to a few clnics you'd like to do consults with, what next? I'd say to book your trip (if you're only coming for rhinoplasty) for 14 days min. That gives you 1-3 days to do consults and have surgery, which is usually one follow up the day after surgery and another 7 days after. Obviously if you plan it right you could stay for only 10 days but that's really pushing it in terms of their surgery scheduling and if you decide on clinic quickly after consults.Booking consult times Next, through email, book your consult times and if you're doing multiple consults in the same day give yourself 3 hours in between consults. Check the addresses and make sure they are in the same area (as the PS clinics of Gangnam are all mostly in the same condensed area) So a good expectation is to be able to fit in 3 consults a day, so if you wanted to consult with 6 places for example, give yourself 2 days to do that etc.Travel lodging So at this point since you've booked your airfare its time to look for where you'll be staying. I would suggest staying near where your clinic is, most of the PS clinics are in Gangnam and I decided to stay at an airbnb in Gangnam as well which was a great move. The reason being, 1) There are many other people walking around Gangnam with surgical masks on post surgery so you don't feel as self conscious as you would usually be, people here are used of seeing that, nobody bothered to stare at me as I walked around to and from. 2) It's very close to the clinic for my consults/surgery/follow ups for me it was a 5-7$ cab ride each time 3) Tons of places to eat so it was easy to recover here Now obviously the further away you stay from the clinic it will simply take you longer to get there, I didnt want to spend more on cabs to and from nor did I want to take the subway with my swollen face/surgical mask etc. But obviously many times cheaper places to stay may be further away from Gangnam. Once you have booked your round trip airline ticket, set up some consults and found a place to stay, you need to prepare for your trip. Preparing for your trip, things to buy Go to a vitamin shoppe or GNC and buy Bromelain and Arnica MontanaBromelain (Take before surgery for 3 days) Bromelain is an anti-inflammatory enzyme that has been shown to reduce swelling, bruising, healing time and pain. If taken before your cometic procedure it may reduce the average number of days needed to complete disappearance of pain and inflammation. Bromelain is very low in toxic side effects and very safe. The dosage range is 1500 mg or 2000-3000 MCU's daily, divided and taken 3 times daily. Start Bromelain before your procedure.Arnica Montana Arnica may be helpful for controlling soreness and bruising after your procedure especially in the early stages of healing. Arnica is not toxic and very safe, it's recommended to begin the supplement one day after your procedure. The dosage range is 30x formula or higher, taken 3x daily. Other things to consider 1 Sineech- reduce bruising and swelling 2 Vitamin K creme- reduce bruising 3 Kelo-Cote Scar healing and reduction gel 4 Vitamin C 5 Protein powder/bars quick meals 6 Ac adapter converter (if you bring your laptop they have the european 2 hole so you need this to plug in your electronics) Part 2 continued below... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nosey77 Posted January 29, 2014 Author Share Posted January 29, 2014 PART 2 Continued Final things before your flight Ok so now you're all ready to fly to seoul for your PS, final things to do Write down the clinic as well as the address of where you're staying in korean so you can show the cabbies. If you can't find it on their website ask through email for them to send you the address in korean so you an write it down. When you arrive, are you going to buy a temporary sim card so you can use your smartphone (if unlocked) or rent a phone? Both options exist at ICN airport. Decide if you're going to take the limo bus/subway or cab to get to your lodging. Ok so now you're hopefully settled in and ready to go on your consults.Consultations Things to remember Bring out the email correspondence that you have as a reminder and visual proof in regards to what price range they stated, many times these clnics are so busy and see so many people that they may not remember. This will help you negotiate since they won't be able to go that much higher than what they quoted you via email etc. Bring pictures of the nose you're hoping to achieve. Ask ?s (make sure you have a list of ?s to ask If you hired a translator remember that this usually will raise the price since they get a commission, and thus the overall price of the surgery is raised to compensate them. I only consulted with clinics that already had an english consultant on staff. Some of the smaller clinics might not have one though and in that case you will need to hire a translator. So after all this hopefully you will have decided on a clinic and booked a time. It's not unheard of to be able to book and have surgery the same day or the next depending on their schedule. Surgery day- Make sure you followed all of their guidelines (no aspirin since it can thin the blood, fasting before surgery, etc) Dont go out drinking the night before obviously or anything foolish. -Wear comfortable clothes you can slip out of, most clinics will have you change into scrubs anyhow and will also have your wash your face before. -Relax- you're probably nervous esp if this is your first surgery or primary rhinoplasty (as it was for me) but its time to go through with it. Once you're knocked out you will wake up and shortly afterward you'll be ready to leave. - At this point you've hopefully stocked up with enough botted water, etc, so if you're not feeling active as you recover you will have everything you need. Most places have a follow up one day after, and the first few days after surgery your face is going to be very swollen, follow your clinics after care instructions with the medications and laying upright and don't be freaked out by your face since your nose as well as the area around it will obviously be bruised and not looking it's best to say the least haha. - Try to walk around so that blood clots dont form its no big deal to walk around with a surgical mask here you'll see many other people in the same boat if you stay in Gangnam. - For the first few days after surgery try to stay away from eating salty or spicy foods and if possible eat a very clean or even liquid diet if you can, this will ensure your body is as comfortable as it can be without the added energy towards digestion etc. Well that's it for now, I'm 3 days post op on my rhinoplasty and I just wanted to write this long post to help anyone out there considering PS in Korea. I started reading these forums and was frankly overwhelmed at first so much info and I started with almost zero knowledge but eventually I was able to narrow everything down to get this done, you can too. Good luck to all and if you have any ?s feel free to ask. Without this forun I would have been clueless as although there are several personal blogs out there many of them are people who were sponsored by the clinic themselves, etc. Although they might be some misinformation here (impossible for it to be 100% transparent and honest) for the most part the people on here are just trying to get information and/or help. PS is nothing to do in haste, and in the end it's a risk and all you can really do is to be informed to hopefully make the right decision for you. Good luck and hope this helps someone out there that's considering this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boy-buong-binh Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 Thank you so much. It's useful for everyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pichu Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 Thank you love it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dd122 Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 Thank you so much for your very detailed information. May I ask which clinic did you choose to do the surgery? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naturetea Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 Awesome! Many Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nosey77 Posted February 5, 2014 Author Share Posted February 5, 2014 I went with ITEM clinic because the the doctor who was to do my primary rhinoplasty (Dr. Kim Jin-Sung) replied to my email and when I met him he seemed very honest and serious, just felt comfortable overall with the consult (they have their own english consultant) and I never felt rushed and didn't feel as much as a hard sales vibe as I did with other clinics. I also liked their before and after pictures on their website and the fact that they weren't a huge factory clinic etc, the doctor took his time to explain everything (he spoke good english) and it just felt like the right fit. I did a lot of online research and found a few personal recs but in the end it was the consult that sold me on going with them. Also, the airbnb which I booked is herehttps://www.airbnb.com/rooms/2132359?checkin=01%2F27%2F2014&checkout=01%2F30%2F2014 43.00 a night (after air bnb fees about 50) but it was a short 5-6$ cab ride to and from the cluster of PS clinics in Gangnam and the owner was really nice and helpful. I'd def recommend this place if you're looking to save some money and be close to your clinic, it's in a great location (quiet but lots of restaurants and stores nearby) and you can enter and leave easily back and forth without having to really see other people if you're in hiding haha. And like I mentioned the owner was extremely nice and helpful, the place had free wifi, good heated floors, enough space and again, very close to the PS clinics that are clustered in gangnam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nosey77 Posted February 11, 2014 Author Share Posted February 11, 2014 bump Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rene_sakurai Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 hi nosey, would you mind sharing your b&a pics? thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsking Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 Hi Nosey What a wonderful piece of info you just provided to us all! God bless your heart. I've saved your post locally that I'll use as my to do list when I go later in the year. I am sure there will be many people like who will benefit from your advice/info. Good luck on a speedy and smooth recovery. Would love to see your results if you decide to share later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsking Posted February 23, 2014 Share Posted February 23, 2014 Nosey, Would you mind sharing how you handled the payment? I assume you are from the States also since you mentioned the GNC Did you have to pay with Korean currency or US$? Is credit payment easier to take care then cash? No worried if you can't disclose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nosey77 Posted February 24, 2014 Author Share Posted February 24, 2014 I paid in cash, yeah scary to bring 4k in usd to korea in an envelope but you get a discount when paying in cash, the english speaking consultant took me to a bank next door to exchange to korean won which must be done at some point but they can help you with that if you decide to get surgery with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevenseas Posted March 9, 2014 Share Posted March 9, 2014 Hi Nosey77, Thanks for sharing this informative post. I am sure this will be useful one day for someone who plans to undergo PS in Korea. about bromelain and arnica that you mentioned, is it really safe to take them together with the drugs that the clinic gives? or are these recommended by them? did you consult with the doctor regarding taking these drugs together with the drugs that they give? About the blood clot. why do you suggest to walk around while bleeding? i mean, is it better to walk around to prevent the blood clot? or just let the blood clot to form so that the healing is better? (i am sorry, i have no idea about this one, what i imagine was that after the surgery, you just stay on bed for days. hahaha) Thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nosey77 Posted March 9, 2014 Author Share Posted March 9, 2014 Bromelin and arnica montana are over the counter supplement type things you can buy at any gnc, vitamin shoppe, etc totally safe and aid you in preventing swelling. I had 4 consults in the U.S. before deciding to go to seoul korea and each of the consults in the US suggested those 2, I think they're pretty safe. You can wiki both if you are curious but bromelin is from pinneaples for example. Walking around after the surgery just gets your blood flowing and sitting or laying around still all day will make blot clotting more likely. No strenuous exercise of course but I was advised to walk around outside a lot after surgery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sevenseas Posted March 12, 2014 Share Posted March 12, 2014 From your last post, it seems like you are a US citizen. Are you an Asian or Caucasian though? That means that, you did take arnica and bromelain together with the clinic provided drugs after your surgery, right? Hmm, i guess, that should be safe then Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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