peterpan88 Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 So as I promised, here is a detailed account of my surgery trip to Korea in March 2014. Translation Service: Before I came to Korea, I actually set up by myself appointments with Teuim, Item, OZ, and TLPS. But God forbids, the biggest mistake I made on this trip is to hire a translator. I used the services of A (wont say her full name, but many people on this board also use her). Let me tell you this: hiring a translator is the worst idea EVER! Not only do they not give a damn about you, their presence means you will pay 30-40% more for your surgery. At first, I only wanted to hire A because I need to go see EverM, for my genioplasty. And unfortunately, they do not speak any English. My first appointment is with EverM at 10AM, and after that, I already told my translator that I need to go see Item at 12PM and then Teuim at 3PM. But she kept pushing me to go see HER list of clinics. And somehow, I got the feeling that she deliberately delayed the consultation process at EverM so that to make me late for my appointments at my chosen clinics (so that I would have to go with her to HER chosen clinics). All in all, Im not trying to condemn the translation services they provide. Obviously, if you dont speak the language, and you have to consult with a clinic that only speaks Korean, then their services are a great help. But I just wish that were all they do: translate, instead of being these blood-sucking, money-greedy green monsters. If you absolutely have to hire a translator (and it doesnt matter whom you hire, they will all want to suck your wallet dry), then please stand your ground, and do not let them push you around. I made a mistake of being too friendly and too acquiescent. And that led to my not-so-productive consultations later. However, I thank God that my surgery went well, and that I ultimately made a good choice. Consultation: 1. EverM: this is the first clinic we went to. My impression of EverM is generally favorable. I met with Doctor Yoon, who is the head Doctor/Maxillofacial specialist here. He looks relatively young. However, I got a warm feeling meeting with him. Dr. Yoon was very friendly, and he took the time to explain to me what he would do, as well as answering all my questions. I did not feel rushed here, and thats a good thing. Spoiler alert: in the end, I chose this clinic. Why? Three reasons: 1) Because they specialize in jaw surgery, and I need genioplasty. (2) because I did not feel pushed around here. They didnt try to sell me more procedures than I asked for. Also, they had a standard price list (in Korean), that they showed me and I can see the prices clearly. And most importantly, (3), I feel comfortable with Doctor Yoon, his calm yet confident style, and his warm bed side manner (to be described later). During the consultation, I explained to Dr. Yoon that I wanted a more angular face, more masculine (Im a dude), and a more prominent chin. In the West, a strong chin signifies a confident and expressive male, which is very important in my career. Being an Asian male in America, there are many racial stereotypes that I have to overcome, one of which is that people tend to think of Asian men as meek, shy, and non-outspoken. Those do not translate well into career advancement. Hence, my decision to get genioplasty to make my face more masculine. I generally have a round/baby face. Thus, Doctor Yoon suggested that he would cut my jaw and lengthen it by 4 mms. He also said he would shave off the overgrown part of my mandible because I had a large mandible. I expressed my concern that cutting off my mandible would make me more feminine, which is contrary to what I want. However, he said that the opposite is true. Because my mandible is overgrown, that makes my face heavy. If just a small part of the mandible is cut off (and at the right angle), that would make my front look more defined, and it would also highlight my chin even more. I was still a bit skeptical (as I love my mandible), however, Doctor Yoon showed me the CT scan of my bone, and use a pen to draw exactly what part he would cut off. He then said he would use those bones to fill in my chin. Generally, during genioplasty, they would leave a hollow space when they lengthen your chin (and use a screw to secure it), then your bone would slowly grow to fill in the space). But in this case, because my own bone is used to fill in the space, that makes the recovery faster, and also my chin will be more resistant to external forces. He coined the phrase bone grafting for this method. It sounds good to me, so I agreed. I made sure to emphasize again to him: do not cut off too much of my mandible and keep my jaw strong. This is very important: make sure you let your Doctor know exactly what you want. Once your bone is cut off, they cannot grow back. So this is a one-time-only chance to express yourself. Do not be stingy with your words! Anyway, after meeting with Dr. Yoon, we met with the manager lady, who quoted me a total of 9m for mandible and Genioplasty. I told her we would come back later after I make my decision. About the size of this clinic: it is about mid-size, not big. But everything seems clean and modern. I want a clinic that is not too small (because the surgeries I want are pretty major, and a clinic too small will not have enough equipment and after care facilities available). I also dont want a clinic that is too big, as the Doctor will not pay enough attention to you, and there is a higher risk of switching surgeons. So EverM is the right size Im seeking. 2. By the time we finished at EverM, it was already 12:30PM. Again, delaying tactics by my translator to make me miss my own appointments and go with her. She suggested we visited Regen (on her list). So off we go. This is a VERY big clinic. They had a total of 17 floors, not counting the basements. And they offered everything, from skin, to teeth, to boob jobs. To be honest, my impression of Doctor Oh (the head Doctor) at Regen is favorable. I explained to him that I want my face to be more masculine, and more model-looking (high fashion). I showed him a photo of Gao Godfrey (the first Asian male model for Louis Vuitton), and told him I want exactly that face. Doctor Oh actually had a really good idea of how to make it happen. First, he said I need to have my cheekbones moved inward (zygoma reduction), then to have it augmented on the front (anterior malar augmentation), so that my face will be slimmer but the cheekbones will appear prominent. That is exactly what I want, and he seems to understand human aesthetics pretty well. So I was impressed by that. Then he said he would prolong my chin using genioplasty, and then also insert an implant which will be screwed onto my chin to give it the width I need. In addition, he said I need buccal fat removal to make my cheeks and jawline more defined. Last but not least, he said I needed ptosis to make my eyes more alert, and more westernized. Finally, he said I needed to have my salivatory gland cut off (under my chin), to make my jaw slimmer. He said that my salivatory gland is overgrown, and it makes my chin heavy. All in all, it would take him 4 hours (FOUR FREAKING HOURS) to complete all those procedures. He kept mentioning again and again that I am a very unorthodox case (because I want to go from Asian to Western). But that he would try his best to give me the look I want. If you feel dizzy by this point, imagine how I felt sitting in his office listening to all these procedures. In my head, I was like: am I gonna come out human? There would be 3 screws in total on my face: two on my cheekbones, and one on my chin. I would look like RoboCop. So, even though I wanted to have the perfect face, I weighed the pros and cons, and decided that it would not be worth it to go through all that ordeals. After all, whats the point of having a perfect face is my health is like ****?! So, by the time Doctor Yoon stopped talking (his English is really good, by the way), I already knew deep down that I would not want to go with Regen. I asked him one last question: of all the procedures, can he rank the importance of them in terms of effectiveness to achieve the look I want. He said all of them are important, and that I should do them all. Thats basically the last drop for me: I had the clear impression that they want to sell me as many procedures as possible to empty my wallet. This is the case with factory clinic: they always are after your money. Ethics is not the first or last thing on their mind. Your money is! Again, Im not disparaging Doctor Yoon or his skills. Im sure he is a great Doctor and he has had many successful procedures, but the way Regen operates, I just dont like it. I feel like just another cash cow for them to milk. Despite having decided not to go with them, I still sat with the Manager to figure out the cost (just for the fun of it). My translator sat with me (of course, when it comes to money). The cost in total was 31m!!! I was like: WTF! I managed to get it down to 25m (just for fun, to see how my bargaining skills are). But still, it was extravagant. No way in hell I could afford that! I would need to sell my two kidneys lol! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterpan88 Posted March 15, 2014 Author Share Posted March 15, 2014 (CONT) Anyway, I believe the extremely high costs are due to the fact that I brought a translator! In fact, one of the English consultants at Regen told me secretly that if I had come by myself, the cost would have been only 12m! Imagine that! Regen was actually on my list. I didnt make an appointment with them because they never responded to my English email. However, the English consultant there gave me her email, and said this is the new email for international patients. I will include that email at the end of this email, for those of you who want to make appointments with them. I repeat: Regens English staffs are excellent! The Doctor speaks English like a native American, and they have like 5 English consultants to cater to you. Therefore, NEVER EVER bring your own translator to this place. It will be a waste of your time and money! Also, if you go to Regen, be prepared to wait at least 2 hours. Doctor Oh is a very busy guy, and this clinic is seriously packed! One side note: my translator did give me one good tip at Regen: while Doctor Oh was feeling my face with his hands, she told me to smell his hand. If his hand smells a bit like blood, and if it has scar tissues at the tip of his fingers, then that means he is the actual operating surgeon. If however, there is no such sign, then that means hes just a marketing puppet using his fame to attract customers, and that he would not be operating on people. She told me that Doctor Lee at ID is such a thing: his hands didnt smell like blood and he has no scars! So there you go, mystery solved! Pictures at Regen:http://s3.postimg.org/lrevifc6b/image_1.jpghttp://s22.postimg.org/j9t24fxep/image_2.jpghttp://s18.postimg.org/xisosbb1l/image_3.jpg Their business card (with email address):http://s28.postimg.org/xvymvpl71/photo_2_4.jpg 3. Our next stop is D.A. This is the clinic that Doctor Lee from View helped set up. (And many of the people on this forum are thinking about going here). Let me give you some tip: Doctor Lee can understand English well (even though he cant speak it). And they recently hired an English consultant who used to study at University of Nevada in America. So you can definitely go here by yourself. DO NOT hire a translator to come to D.A. Its not necessary. I dont know how many times I have to repeat this: Dont hire a translator even if they put a gun to your head and threaten to cut off your testicles. Just DONT. My impression of D.A. is that its a relatively new clinic, but the facilities look good. However, I didnt like the look of the receptionists there. They all seem too fake-looking, if you know what I mean. If they all get surgeries by Doctor Lee, then thats some kind of sign. But I cant say yet, because I dont know where they did their surgeries. Anyway, Doctor Lee is pretty young. Hes very friendly though, and he seems confident. I had some time while waiting for him to finish his surgery before my consult, and I looked through the B&A book. The photos look great. I love the results that he created. I actually took some photos and you guys can see it here. One drawback I have for D.A. is their managing staffs (in other words, the money people). They all seem too sly, and too dishonest to me. I dont know, its just some gut feeling I have. From the English consultant girl, to the half-Chinese-half-Korean guy who claimed to be the Doctors best friend, to the manager lady dressed in suit. The way they smile, the way they put numbers on the paper, the way they whispered to each other in Korean everything seem a little fishy. Anyway, their final number to me was 33k. I was like: WHAT? Do you think Im Bill Gates?! After some bargaining, I was able to knock it down to 22k. That price includes these procedures: ptosis to make my eyes larger, genioplasty, cheek implants, buccal fat removal, eyebag removal, and loveband. Yes, those are a lot of procedures, but still, the prices shouldnt be that high. They kept insisting to me that its a good price, and that Im getting like 30% off. They said even the staffs there get 20% off. So Im getting more discount than the staffs. Yeah right, you think Im some kind of idiot, are you?! What makes me upset even more though, was that my translator didnt lift a finger to help me during the bargaining. She just sat there and smiled her pretty *** off. I swear to God, I will never ever hire a translator again. Stupid freaking evil. Finally, I said: I am a mod at a forum and that I know many friends who are coming to Korea. If you guys give me a good deal, Ill recommend people. Considering this is a pretty new clinic and all, you need customers. And I can bring that to you. What I said seems to have a great impact on them, as they immediately knocked the price down to 18k. I said: let me think about it. By the time we finished, it was 6PM. We didnt have time to go to April 31st. But by then, I was already clear in my mind that I wanted to go with EverM. Anyhow, I asked my translator to bring me to a fastfood restaurant, because were both starving. No food since 10AM this morning! We were just too busy rushing from clinic to clinic. Anybody who plans to visit more than 3 clinics per day, youre pushing it. After dinner, it was 6:30PM. We ran like crazy to the nearest ATM machine so I can withdraw money and make my deposit at EverM. That night, they took my blood and sent it over to some lab for some blood test, and also took my urine. The Doctor told me that I need to come early morning to get my chest scanned. Then my surgery will be at 12PM. I was like: ok. God, Im unusually calm, especially before one major surgery. Anyway, my surgery experience at EverM is pretty good. I will post it next. Stay tuned! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterpan88 Posted March 15, 2014 Author Share Posted March 15, 2014 IMAGES for D.A. - CLINICS, BEFORE AND AFTER...http://s28.postimg.org/yb5bazhql/image_4.jpghttp://s28.postimg.org/tzgplzatp/image_5.jpghttp://s28.postimg.org/vwdfqk1hp/image_7.jpghttp://s28.postimg.org/vsjmaaw0d/image_8.jpghttp://s28.postimg.org/gp2i3bfyl/image_9.jpghttp://s28.postimg.org/vjr3hhpjh/image_10.jpghttp://s28.postimg.org/cv91u5yml/image_11.jpghttp://s28.postimg.org/s2p1eiqh9/image_12.jpg Disclaimer: I do not endorse this clinic or any other clinic on this forum. These photos are only for information purposes and nothing more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quick2014 Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Peterpan88, Thank you so much for such a detailed info's. Totally agree with NO TRANSLATOR deal. most clinics have English translator. Am going to D.A as is. Relax,rest and speedy healing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dallas101 Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Peter, where do you stay at? Omg, when is this swelling, bruising, runny nose go away.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paxsky Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Hi Peterpan88, I think it's great that you are going for a chiseled look with strong chin and jawline, instead of the baby face trend for men that seems to be happening in Korea. Maybe it's because we grew up in the states where a strong jawline and chin are prized (even on some women), but I think strong facial bone definition on a guy is attractive... Thanks for your review on DAPRP! You just confirmed all my suspicions about this place! I always thought the after pictures looked slightly off and fake although the girls looked cute. But after hearing pres30 ( who is a girl) give a very positive picture of the girls working there, I was reconsidering. Now we have a male perspective who say that those same girls look fake! Frankly, I trust a guy's opinion about over a girl's on this because girls can get blind- sided by a feature on a girl they like etc. whereas the guy will probably look at the all the features as a whole... also, most guys don't seem to notice anything unless it's obvious, so I'm thinking the overall fake look must have been pretty obvious... thanks again, this clinic is off my list. best of luck on your recovery, and please keep us posted! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quick2014 Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Why no one has D.A email address??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterpan88 Posted March 15, 2014 Author Share Posted March 15, 2014 I stay at a student guest house. Can't afford a hotel cause I'm on a budget. It depends on what procedures you get. But most swelling will go away in 2 weeks. Good luck healing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterpan88 Posted March 15, 2014 Author Share Posted March 15, 2014 Thank you. I'm 2 weeks post-op and most of my swelling is gone. Yeah, I'm from the States so I put high value on chiseled, angular faces. I told the Doctor again and again that I want to be more masculine, not more feminine like most Korean guys. At D.A., I have to say the girls look like Barbie dolls, and not in a good way. It's like, if you put them next to some mannequins in a store, I wouldn't be able to tell which is which. The one I'm most impressed with is at Regen. The consultant I met with looks really hot. Oh and I'm gay, so if I pay attention to some girl, she must really earn it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tj_joy Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Hi peterpan88,from what you say the translator seem to be nightmare .did you happen to get your eye done as well? how you like your result at everm? thank for sharing such a good experience.now i have idea on traslator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dallas101 Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 I agree with Peter, they look like mannequins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pres30 Posted March 15, 2014 Share Posted March 15, 2014 Nice report, Yes at DA some of the gals do look fake especially with the eyes, but Dr. Lee at DA has authored International Craniofacial publications on Jaw surgeries and is a PHD so he is an expert with the jaw and chin and he is the one who actually does the jaw/chin surgeries there. I don't know much about their other surgeries and how natural or unatural they are, but the before and after photos they have available at the clinic look impressive along with the ones Dr Lee shows. EverM also had a nice portfolio of before and after photos they show at the consult. The vibe at EverM was more medical and less flashy plastic surgery. The girls that worked there may not have even had any plastic surgery. It was a more truly medical clinic environment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterpan88 Posted March 15, 2014 Author Share Posted March 15, 2014 Yes, I totally agree with you about the environment. EverM is more plain and more medical-looking. They have a lot of medical journals on the table instead of flashy B&A photo-books. It's actually one of the reasons I chose them too - I want to be safe, so the more focus they put on the medical part, the more reassured I feel. Well, I'm not saying D.A. is bad. I think Doctor Lee is very experienced (especially in jaw and chin), as you said. At D.A., It's not the Doctor I dislike. It's the staffs. They seem too money-greedy and untrustworthy to me. And yeah, what if something goes wrong, knock on wood, you wouldn't want to deal with such foxy people. At EverM, the money lady was way nicer. When I told her I'm from the States and I couldn't pay by cash, but that wire transfer would take about 2 days, she actually smiled and agreed to let me have the surgery first and then to pay later. This is where the disgusting part about translator came in: my translator, upon hearing that, actually recommends to the EverM lady that she needs to hold my passport until I pay up. Can you imagine that? I wish I had never brought that devil with me. Lolz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterpan88 Posted March 15, 2014 Author Share Posted March 15, 2014 Hey, yeah, I actually got my eyes done, but not at EverM (they don't have that). 3 days after my jaw surgery, I went on consult with Teuim and OZ for my eyes. And I ended up choosing Doctor Kwon for my ptosis. I'll write later about my experience with Teuim (now merged with A&T clinic) and OZ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phreakcodex Posted March 16, 2014 Share Posted March 16, 2014 Do you think that your jaw looks a lot different or just a little bit? Btw good luck with the recovery Wooow you did eye after that :0 , do you think it is safe ? Can we do nose too? Thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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