FFS with FacialTeam, a few years later

113
u/myffsthrowaway
Tue Dec 21 12:49:27 2021 UTC
*
(75 comments)

I had FFS with FacialTeam a few years ago, and I've been mulling over my experience since then. I wanted to share it now that everything's fully settled. The short version is that I have mixed feelings. Sorry, no photos, but I hope it helps someone anyway.

I went with FT for three reasons: (1) I saw a lot of good results with few complaints. (2) The cost was comparable to or lower than the well known American surgeons, even including travel from the US. (3) Out of the four surgeons I had consultations with, they were the most accessible and the least pushy and arrogant.

I had no issues at all with the treatment and recovery experience -- the accommodations, hospital stay, nurse visits, and staff behavior in general were all positive. Recovery was stressful, but that's expected.

As far as procedures, I had them do my brow, nose, and jaw/chin. Here's what happened with those:

Brow

I got the usual "type 3" brow work with a coronal incision. Aesthetically, I'm pretty content with the results on the brow/forehead itself. No bumps or holes or anything like that. No sinus problems. However, there were two complications.

There is nerve damage or something on one side of my brow/forehead. If I stretch the skin in that area, or if I poke at it right where my eyebrow is, there is a twitchy, uncomfortable, somewhat painful sensation. It feels normal if I leave it alone, so it's not a huge problem just going about my day, but it's definitely bothersome when I do my eyebrow makeup, when I rest my head on my arm, etc. I'm not sure what to do about this, or if anything even can be done, but I haven't looked into it much.

The coronal incision left me with a nearly half-inch (1 cm) bald strip across the top/sides of my head about 2/3 of the way back. I have a full head of hair otherwise, so it's not super noticeable, but there's a spot right at the top that you can definitely see from certain angles. This bothers me a lot. If it was only on the side of my head it'd be kind of a cool-looking scar, but at the top it just looks... bald. It's really embarrassing.

It seems like there are two things I can do about this: micropigmentation (basically tattooing a stippled pattern to create the illusion of hair) and hair transplants. I've read that hair transplants on scar tissue are more complicated, and the transplant process itself creates more scars, so I need to look into this more.

Nose

I had a bump near the bridge of my nose that I wanted removed, and they did that for me. I have no complaints about that. It looks and feels fine.

I'd also hoped that they could make my nose a little thinner and a little less bulbous at the tip. They gave me the impression that there wasn't a lot they could do about this. I don't know if that's down to their skill/technique or if that's just a limitation of rhinoplasty in general. But they said they'd do what they could.

I think they ended up putting some kind of implant in the tip and septum. The purpose of this is apparently to provide extra structure to the tip so it doesn't droop down. However, I don't think it really made any difference. All it does is make my nose less flexible. It doesn't hurt or anything, but it almost feels like if I pushed the tip of my nose up or to the side too much it would break in half. I don't like it.

Jaw/chin

In consultations we agreed that the backs/sides of my jaw looked fine, but the area around my chin needed reduction. Mainly it was just too long. They went in through my mouth and sliced some of the bone off, less than 1 cm I think. Again, the chin itself -- the actual bone work -- looks fine. But there were two complications here as well.

There was some nerve damage around my lower lip. It was very numb for several months after surgery, and it even affected my sense of taste for a month or so. It's improved a lot since then, but I've definitely lost a little sensation. It feels slightly cold and numb all the time, kind of like I have Carmex between my gum and lip. Also, I'm not sure if it's the nerve damage or maybe the way they closed my mouth back up, but my lip seems to want to rest a little lower than it did before. I have to put some effort in so I don't look slack-jawed all the time. These are pretty minor issues, though.

More bothersome is that the work they did around the bone left me with a slightly "caved in" area between my chin and throat. It's not a problem with the bone itself, it's in the soft tissue. Maybe some of the fat cells in that spot died or something. Anyway, it creates the impression of a slight double chin, which isn't very attractive. I think I'm going to have to get a neck lift to fix this. I've always had a fairly undefined jawline, so I was already thinking about that. I just think about it more now.

Conclusion

Like I said, I have mixed feelings about all of this. It definitely didn't go as well as I hoped it would. But do I regret it? I'm not sure. Even with the complications, I think it looks better than it did. And every surgeon has issues, so it's pretty hard to say if I would have had a better outcome with someone else. However, I do wish I'd looked into other options a little harder. Maybe there was a better choice.

I'd be interested to hear if anyone else had complications with FT, or complications similar to mine in general, and what they did about them.

Edit

This got more traction than I expected, and I've been ruminating on the responses over the past few days. I'm uncomfortable with the implication in some of them that I'm trying to bring FT down a peg, or that I think they messed up. I'm not really qualified to say either way, but I have no reason to believe that. I think they're just complications that happen sometimes.

I will note that some of those complications are caused by or related to the techniques that they've chosen to use (like the coronal incision), and possibly other techniques have less risk, or if they do result in complications they're less bothersome. But I'm not sure. I'm not an expert on cosmetic surgery, and I've only had it the one time.

Just wanted to add that so my post isn't misconstrued.

Also, I'm going to check in with them again to see what we can do about all this. I'm guessing they'll just recommend some procedures and I'll have to do all the research and everything to pursue those, but maybe I'll post again here if anything interesting happens with it.

all 75 comments


25
u/SnooRevelations4661
Tue Dec 21 15:39:46 2021 UTC
(31 children)

Thank you for sharing. Considering how crazy expensive they are, it's really sad that they are still not 100% safe option. Were you able to get some money back from them because of the nerve damage? Can you claim compensation in terms of their policy and in terms of the letter of the law?

24
Tue Dec 21 19:56:24 2021 UTC
(7 children)

I think posts like this are really important to set expectations right. Anyone going to such complex surgery should understand, that complications are possible, that “100% save” is not real, no matter how much you pay. That results may be different from expected, that recovery is long and hard even for those, who are very lucky.

People post beautiful before/after photos, but all the recovery is hidden. I'm 2.5 months post FFS. It went well for the most part. But I'm still swollen, afraid that some asymmetry will stay, that jaw won't look as I want. It's hard mentally.

I also saw many other girls who were in FT with me, before me and after me. I saw complications, I had a nose infection myself, I saw girl who came for revision and girl who was offered a flight back. That's not an easy surgery with granted results. It's 8 hours complex surgery on the whole face.

You can't grant it will be safe. But you can choose a place that will take recovery seriously, that will provide help in case of complications and that will take responsibility for bad results and will be willing to fix it.

12
OP
Tue Dec 21 20:41:36 2021 UTC
(2 children)

Yeah. I want to emphasize that I don't think they botched me or anything. I'm not trying to scare people off them. There are always risks with surgeries like this. All surgeons have at least some bad reviews.

That's one reason why I waited so long to post this. How can I even say whether they did a good or bad job, when I have nothing to compare it to? Does spooking people with stories about potential complications do any good? I don't know. I don't think I'm qualified to say. I'm just putting the information out there and hoping it'll help someone make their decision.

7
Tue Dec 21 21:22:10 2021 UTC
(1 child)

As someone who is thinking about getting FFS, if I can get permission for that, this kind of information is really helpful. It helps managing expectations, determining if possible risks outweigh results and to be prepared to deal with any complications when they occur. It’s nice to look forward to positive results but also good to keep any negatives in mind. So I’m glad you shared your experience.

3
Wed Dec 22 08:30:34 2021 UTC
(0 children)

I second everything thing you said and I appreciate the OP for being so candid. There is value in what you shared. It’s a reminder that there are risks and that nothing in life with absolute guarantees.

10
Tue Dec 21 21:21:33 2021 UTC
(2 children)

The main point is, because I'm from poor country (Ukraine)and 32.000(the amount I was quoted by FT) is much more money than I ever saw or had in my life, I'm kinda can't expect something less than perfection... Maybe it's wrong, but I simply can't think other way. For example, I'm really ill right now and I'm going to have surgery in one day in a private clinic in my home country and I'm paying them less than 1000 € for that, wich is still much more money than most people in my home country can pay to a doctor. So I hope you can understand why I'm so freaking out about their prices and why I might have expectations higher than most people here. Let's call it a cultural shock.

3
Wed Dec 22 01:29:10 2021 UTC
(1 child)

Well, I’m Russian myself, luckily, moved to another country. I can understand. I'm also was shocked, also thought they are perfect and I'm paying for a granted result. Now I see it a bit differently. Results may vary, but FT is still a very good place and you granted experienced surgeons, great technology, service and aftercare, including revisions if something goes wrong. You can also have great results in much cheaper places.

My friend went to Moscow based surgeon (Slutskaya, speaking of western europe) and got results I'm envy for a fraction of what I paid. But go figure how good is this almost unknown surgeon and what happens if the surgery goes bad. That's the choices we are facing.

3
Wed Dec 22 03:34:16 2021 UTC
(0 children)

Yeah, I’m also considering her at the moment. If I would choose her, I would not need to wait years to collect money, and might do it in the end of the next year or in the beginning of 2023. But considering that I was a victim of doctors mistakes quite a few times (also it had nothing to do with plastic surgery) I’m really worried about safety. And first of all I need to recover from my illness, or it would irrelevant any way 😄

3
Tue Dec 21 21:13:53 2021 UTC
(0 children)

I had a complication and I'm almost 2 months post-op i'm still extremely swollen, like most of people at 10 days post op. And still can't notice a lot of results. It's horrible to have to wait like that.

9
Tue Dec 21 17:57:56 2021 UTC
(22 children)

Is that not discussed in the consult? This was disclosed & explained in detail to me during my DB consult. It sucks but should heal over time. But they're cutting through some nerves, so there will be signal problems. I'm not sure how they would avoid this, it's not like a malpractice thing, but they should've disclosed this.

6
Tue Dec 21 18:07:58 2021 UTC
(20 children)

Well, I had a consultation with FT half a year ago and they haven’t mentioned anything about potential complications, nor about their compensation policy.

Considering that their prices are extremely high for me and realistically I can get this amount of money only in say 5 years or more, I really want to know such details to feel safer.

5
Tue Dec 21 19:39:44 2021 UTC
(0 children)

I had surgery with them 2.5 months ago and it's something that they discuss on face to face meeting before surgery. You also sign forms that mention common cause of complications

3
Tue Dec 21 20:41:26 2021 UTC
(14 children)

DB tells you all this up front.

3
Wed Dec 22 03:09:31 2021 UTC
(13 children)

Who?

5
Wed Dec 22 03:15:54 2021 UTC
(12 children)

Deschamps-Braly, he's one of the best FFS surgeons on the planet.

6
Wed Dec 22 03:45:41 2021 UTC
(11 children)

Sounds expensive, I’m more interested in good enough surgeons on the planet 😅

-1
Wed Dec 22 03:46:56 2021 UTC
(10 children)

Yea well FT is the same price for worse quality. That's what this thread was about though.

Also you only have one face for your whole life, is it really worth less than a car?

3
Wed Dec 22 04:04:28 2021 UTC
(1 child)

I just googled him, it says something around 40.000 and if he is from US, hospital fees might be very unpredictable there, so it's a very expensive car...

And you are totally right that I have only one face and I was already attacked once and I'm still suffering from the injuries (I'm actually going to visit a doctor today and I'm hopefully having surgery tomorrow that would help me to recover from that) and it's going to be 4th surgery already so I'm extremely nervous right now and can't sleep. So wish me luck.

So my point is, if I would wait until I have the money for one of the best surgeons, I might be attacked once again while I'm still waiting and everything would be irrelevant then =( So I see ffs more like medical necessity and I probably need to settle down for a more realistic option.

3
Wed Dec 22 04:07:26 2021 UTC
(0 children)

I'm so sorry to hear about your attack. I actually am having surgery with him next month, I had to save up for 5 years because I'm a nanny, but it's 100% worth it for me, he's fixing my super giant frontal sinus. The guy who trained him basically invented the type 3 that my forehead needs. Hope your surgery turns out good <3.

Fri Dec 24 02:39:33 2021 UTC
(3 children)

[deleted]

2
Fri Dec 24 03:35:30 2021 UTC
(2 children)

Yea if FTs philosophy is charge as much as other top tier surgeons for less work and less quality. Replacing aesthetics for bedside manner is not a good trade.

child comments hidden
Mon Feb 27 12:08:44 2023 UTC
(3 children)

[deleted]

1
Mon Feb 27 12:53:28 2023 UTC
(2 children)

You are shadow banned by reddit.

child comments hidden
1
Tue Dec 21 18:40:48 2021 UTC
(2 children)

That's crazy. Yeah, DB & his team were really straight about the complications, the risk (number of times they've seen various issues), and then things that will just happen . Idk if he does his work differently than FT, but, I was basically told that temporary nerve damage will always happen *, not even as a potential complication. It was brushed off as temporary, but on the span of years, but they basically said upper lip and top of my head would for sure feel weird for a while until the nerves heal.

*= I'm not actually sure if they said it will always happen, but that was the impression I got, and DB said he just 'cuts right through [the nerves under the forehead plate]' or something to that tune. Either way, I left with the impression that III would always have this complication as a likely part of your recovery.

Very very surprised FT never said anything about it? Anyone here do FT who could opine on if this happened to them?

4
Wed Dec 22 18:48:59 2021 UTC
(0 children)

I'm booked for surgery with facial team and they sent me informed consent forms that go into details about the risks / complications of each surgery.

2
OP
Tue Dec 21 19:54:35 2021 UTC
(0 children)

I don't recall if FT ever mentioned nerve damage to me specifically in our consultations, but I certainly knew it was a possibility going in. At least, I knew the numbness was. I don't think I'd ever read about the twitchy/painful kind though.

It never occurred to me to ask for money back or whatever, like you said that's always a risk with surgery like this.

14
u/alynde
Tue Dec 21 16:50:51 2021 UTC
(18 children)

I had the exact same issue with coronal incision hair loss (went with FT). For me it got completely fixed by a revision surgery, wherein the hairless line was removed. I am now 4.5 months out of surgery, and have absolutely no bold parts on my head. So if that's an option for you, I would strongly recommend going for it instead of hair transplants.

Also, out of curiosity, was the implant in your nose something that's been discussed prior, or is it a common practise of theirs for every patient?

2
Tue Dec 21 16:58:01 2021 UTC
(3 children)

What was your revision due to btw? Purely hair loss?

2
u/alynde
Tue Dec 21 16:58:52 2021 UTC
(2 children)

Yeah purely hair loss around coronal incision.

1
Sun Feb 6 21:34:09 2022 UTC
(1 child)

Do you think they could do a free revision to my forehead? I had my FFS with them 100 days ago and they could have been more agressive... I asked them 3 times to make me a very very very very flat forehead, like before puberty, i showed them some pictures of me when i was 12.

2
u/alynde
Mon Feb 7 23:57:10 2022 UTC
(0 children)

Considering it's only been 3 months I would say it's a bit too early to even see final results, due to potential swelling. Nonetheless, I would say bring it up with the post op department; my experience is that the person handling it is really nice, and if they can help they will help you.

As for a free revision, if it's purely a cosmetic dissatisfaction, I'm inclined to say no, but I do not speak for them. Still worth asking politely though.

To give a bit more context: I very specifically asked about potential side effects during my evaluation meeting, and was told that should hair loss occur, they will help it if they can. So this was something that's been discussed for quite some time even prior to the surgery.

2
OP
Tue Dec 21 20:00:20 2021 UTC
(2 children)

I had the exact same issue with coronal incision hair loss (went with FT). For me it got completely fixed by a revision surgery, wherein the hairless line was removed. I am now 4.5 months out of surgery, and have absolutely no bold parts on my head. So if that's an option for you, I would strongly recommend going for it instead of hair transplants.

Oh, that's interesting, thank you. One of their staff did the revision, or they recommended you to someone else for it? Since I'm in the US and travelling back to Europe is extremely unlikely I'm guessing they won't have anyone for me... but the fact that it's even possible is really promising. I'll ask them about it.

Also, out of curiosity, was the implant in your nose something that's been discussed prior, or is it a common practise of theirs for every patient?

I'm not sure if it's common, but I don't think they mentioned any implants specifically. He just said he would do what he could to make the tip a little more elegant. I assumed that would involve trimming some cartilage or whatever. I probably should have pressed for more information.

3
u/alynde
Tue Dec 21 21:48:39 2021 UTC
(1 child)

Oh, that's interesting, thank you. One of their staff did the revision,
or they recommended you to someone else for it? Since I'm in the US and
travelling back to Europe is extremely unlikely I'm guessing they won't
have anyone for me... but the fact that it's even possible is really
promising. I'll ask them about it.

Yeah the original surgeon who handled the forehead reconstruction was the one who did the revision surgery for me as well. I got no complaints, he did an amazing job.

I'm not sure if it's common, but I don't think they mentioned any
implants specifically. He just said he would do what he could to make
the tip a little more elegant. I assumed that would involve trimming
some cartilage or whatever. I probably should have pressed for more
information.

Ah I see, thank you! I was just wondering, as the tip of my nose is still definitely stiff, and was wondering if that might be the case for me too. Prior to reading your about experience I always just assumed it was still swollen.

3
OP
Tue Dec 21 22:20:18 2021 UTC
(0 children)

They told me (or I read somewhere) that the tip of the nose can be stiff for a long time after rhinoplasty, so it could just be that. Honestly, I don't actually know there's anything in mine -- since the swelling can last so long, I just assumed it was that, and that it'd eventually go back down, so I never asked them about it. I only decided it's an implant/graft/whatever after all this time had passed and I started reading about how common it is in rhinoplasties (in general, not specifically with FT).

1
Tue Dec 21 17:32:11 2021 UTC
(10 children)

Could you please tell, if the revisions was covered by them or did you pay for it?

6
u/alynde
Tue Dec 21 17:38:01 2021 UTC
(9 children)

Revision fee in terms of the doctor was fully covered by FT. Hospital fees cost me approximately 1.4k euros, and accommodation for 2 weeks at a different place than the one they usually recommend cost me and my companion 1k euros.

2
Tue Dec 21 20:58:50 2021 UTC
(7 children)

Just trying to understand. Are you saying that during your two week stay, the hair loss was so bad they did a surgical revision of the coronal incision?

I don't see how making another incision would fix the problems caused by a previous one. Please help me understand.

5
u/alynde
Tue Dec 21 21:44:42 2021 UTC
*
(6 children)

So I had my initial surgery in 2020 july. I was discharged, left, and kept on recovering. In half a year I sent pictures of my coronal incision to FT, asking if this is supposed to be like this. They assessed it, and offered me a revision surgery sometime in the following months, to fix the hair loss, as it was apparent it wasn't just a simple shock loss or anything, but full on balding.

The issue got fixed by reopening the incision, removing the bald parts, and closing it again, with many more stitches this time. Also since this was a "minor" surgery, the area did not undergo that much shock, there was no need to cauterise.

These were the main reasons why I was recommended the revision, if I remember correctly, but it's been a while.

Also, I got no promises for how well it would heal, just that it would be a lot better, and even if I did decide afterwards to go with the hair transplant route, the affected area would be smaller.

In the end I healed perfectly this time, and I have no bald areas on my head.

Hope this clears things up!

5
Wed Dec 22 05:13:04 2021 UTC
(1 child)

But with removing a strip on the top of your scalp did it not stretch the skin over your forehead and lift your eyebrows significantly?

3
u/alynde
Wed Dec 22 20:28:11 2021 UTC
(0 children)

I was also concerned about that possibility during consultations, but I was reassured it wouldn't happen.

Any lifting was done from the back, and eyebrows / forehead remains untouched. I personally can't even notice if there was indeed any lifting done at the back.

1
Tue Dec 21 21:49:23 2021 UTC
(3 children)

Thank you, yes it does. :)

1
Wed Dec 22 14:15:29 2021 UTC
(2 children)

Wouldn’t a second incision just risk more hair loss?

2
u/alynde
Wed Dec 22 20:29:17 2021 UTC
(0 children)

Worst case scenario you end up with the same amount of hair loss: which in my case was a very noticable line.

Best case it disappears.

Anywhere in the middle is an improvement for hair transplants.

1
Wed Dec 22 14:24:17 2021 UTC
(0 children)

Yes, potentially. From what I'm able to read into here it's more likely to do with the scar stretching, hence the additional sutures. I can definitely see more complications as a result of it though. I.e: how much area is being removed and whether this further raises the hairline, additional shock loss, no guarantee it would fix anything.

I can't find anything documenting it.

1
Tue Dec 21 17:39:01 2021 UTC
(0 children)

Thank you 😊

8
u/rsboco
Tue Dec 21 16:31:30 2021 UTC
(3 children)

Arghh I know I need to hear this but it doesn't make it easy. I really appreciate your honest and balanced assessment.

I'm really curious as to the prevalence of nerve issues in the recovery of these procedures. Does anyone have any data or idea on what the likelihood is of having some numbness or weirdness with each of these procedures?

3
Tue Dec 21 16:34:23 2021 UTC
(1 child)

2% is what they said in my consult for nerve damage.

2
u/rsboco
Tue Dec 21 16:51:04 2021 UTC
(0 children)

This either seems extremely unlucky or the rate must be higher. You had it in more than one of the procedures!

1
Tue Dec 21 20:43:53 2021 UTC
(0 children)

I know DB has a lower rate, like under 1%.

6
u/FaitdeMoiToi
Tue Dec 21 18:14:11 2021 UTC
(5 children)

Same procedures as you, but almost no complications. Except a loss of range from a tracheal shave, pretty much eliminating my voice from passing. And the coronal incision hair never grew back, not even with PRP treatment.

I wish I would have looked elsewhere, mainly because of the conservative approach. I am super bad case and I wish they had been accordingly aggressive.

5
OP
Tue Dec 21 20:19:33 2021 UTC
(2 children)

That sucks, I'm sorry.

As far as the conservative approach, I'm still undecided on whether some surgeons are really significantly more conservative than others. Going into it, I also hoped for something more aggressive, but as I researched other people's experiences I started to get the impression that that's just how people who are unhappy with their faces tend to feel. There's only so much any surgeon can change. I don't know if that idea is more or less comforting.

3
Tue Dec 21 21:07:27 2021 UTC
(1 child)

It suppose it may very well be as you say. But even pursuing ffs, paying 35k+ for something most people don't need, risking (and suffering) complications is a sad situation, even when the results are good. When not even that helps, there is no hope anymore.

Some of the pictures here of people who had surgery with for example Deschamps-Braly make it seem like he goes deeper, perhaps not more aggressivly, but more transformative. But I suppose it could be as you say, coloured by one's own biases, that grass is always greener and that the pictures here are more often uploaded when results are good and pre-surgical conditions favorable.

3
OP
Tue Dec 21 21:32:48 2021 UTC
(0 children)

Yeah. It's definitely upsetting, it costs so much money and you only have so many chances (or just one), it's not like you can just paint over it again if they mess it up. It's just hard to say whether it could have been better or not.

2
Wed Dec 22 09:48:37 2021 UTC
(1 child)

Except a loss of range from a tracheal shave, pretty much eliminating my voice from passing.

That's my biggest fear, but they said in my consultation that their techniques do not damage vocal chords???

5
Wed Dec 22 12:00:25 2021 UTC
(0 children)

Not a huge sample size but I had significant trachea reduction with FT and my range is absolutely fine/untouched, just a few weeks later.

7
u/zante2033
Tue Dec 21 15:25:58 2021 UTC
*
(1 child)

Approaching two months into my recovery with FT but seeing some asymmetry in soft tissue areas (though it's getting better as feeling returns). Thanks for sharing your account, will review where I'm at in ten months and post an update. I've also resigned myself to getting a facelift in the future, but it's also something I expected to do before going under.

My left brow has some movement issues and a surgeon who came to see me after the op asked if I could move them both, I managed to move the left one a bit (right was fine) and he said "thank god", which made me think something happened during the procedure? It's also something someone who is meant to be highly experienced at the surgery shouldn't be saying ;] - wondered if he was a student, as FT take on trainees.

They said it was a successful surgery though. I'm really happy with the bone work (type III forehead, chin shaping, jaw reduction, orbitals etc...) it's awesome - better than I could have hoped. Had crazy swelling on my left upper forehead however so I know the recovery is going to be asymmetric/resolving at different speeds.

That and I had a lip lift which is a little uneven on one side at the moment. The incision looked a little strange, like they made a cut in error before correcting themselves, happily it's healing really well with dermatix (the aforementioned cut is invisible now). Initially they left sutures inside and I had to insist they check again, after which they took them out - just monitoring things for now. Needless to say, anything that seems off is going to make a patient neurotic! The post surgery consult with one surgeon who wasn't even the lead (I supposedly had eight working on me) was a little anemic, not much detail or acknowledgement of things. Their opening gambit was " well, at least you're alive ". I was expecting a full report of some sort, it just seemed a little disjointed and unprofessional after getting off the table. My post op coordinator has been super reassuring and very professional however, I get the impression from my aftercare document that a lot of what I'm mentioning here is very common during recovery.

It'd suck if I needed to get an endoscopic correction for the brow lift but I'm definitely going to give it a few months. Paid crazy money to have it all done properly.

I'm still very glad to have had the FFS with Facial Team done, especially during COVID when travel is a pain in the ass. Just want to get the recovery phase over with. -_-

Did you contact FT regarding your concerns, what did they say (in my experience, it's normally a coordinator rather than a surgeon who responds)?

5
OP
Tue Dec 21 20:31:28 2021 UTC
(0 children)

That's interesting. I didn't feel like they were unprofessional at any part of the process, and the surgeons never made any weird remarks to me, unlike some of the American ones I consulted with. I hope your recovery goes well.

To be honest, I haven't really talked to them since (a) I knew that it could take several months for things to settle and (b) they have no presence in the US and it's very unlikely I'll fly back over there for anything. But some of the comments here have been promising, so I think I'll do that now.

6
u/mtfanon999
Tue Dec 21 16:36:03 2021 UTC
(5 children)

Any idea how common baldness around incision site is?

4
Tue Dec 21 16:40:11 2021 UTC
(4 children)

Shock loss can happen and is common enough to warn people about but that's usually temporary. Not sure about permanent hair loss. One factor might also be traction alopecia with the chin strap you have to wear. I guess if hair gets trapped in the velcro (as you pull it) you run the risk of not feeling the stress on the roots due to nerve healing in the area etc...

2
Tue Dec 21 16:45:13 2021 UTC
(3 children)

Is it less common with a hairline incision?

2
Tue Dec 21 16:55:20 2021 UTC
(0 children)

Couldn't tell you I'm afraid. There are different reasons for making both types of incision. I had mine done via coronal in-hair as I have pretty dense follicle grouping there which was used to fill in my temples during the post-op hair transplants.

1
Tue Dec 21 17:40:33 2021 UTC
(1 child)

I would assume that with coronal incision both sides of it will develop scar tissue which used to have hair growth on it. Where a hairline incision, half of it is forehead and didn’t have hair anyways.

Also it’s easier to care for a hairline incision since it is out in the open and can breathe and have scar gel applied much easier.

I never understood why this was FT only method for incisions. It also always pulls the hairline farther back.

4
Tue Dec 21 17:52:07 2021 UTC
(0 children)

It's primarily to hide the scarring. It's also the best area to grab follicles from for the simultaneous hair transplant - which is their unique offering.

u/[deleted]
Tue Dec 21 18:56:47 2021 UTC
(2 children)

[deleted]

Tue Dec 21 20:19:46 2021 UTC
(1 child)

[deleted]

3
u/SalmacianArmy
Tue Dec 21 17:56:38 2021 UTC
(1 child)

>[nerve damage] ... I'm not sure what to do about this, or if anything even can be done, but I haven't looked into it much.

This was something that DB told me about explicitly in the consult. I haven't done the op yet but he was very straightforward that they will cut right through some nerves during III and it will have to heal over time (on the span of years). If it's not getting better then it may require some rehab or investigation. This is one of my big fears, I've had nerve issues in other spots before and it's very uncomfortable, yes. Same with the upper lip concerns but they suggested that would heal over months and not be life impacting.

>coronal incision hair loss

DB has started recommending Rogaine for this, especially for the 'shock' hair loss that can follow around the incision (so not the hair you lose immediately, but hair that may fall out in the months after). They think it works, but I'm not sure what their sample size is. But I'm going to do this + peppermint oil as aftercare just in case.

2
Tue Dec 21 21:12:18 2021 UTC
(0 children)

The thing about rogaine is that it isn't temporary, that's something you have to do for the rest of your life otherwise you'll just shed again...

3
u/[deleted]
Tue Dec 21 16:07:14 2021 UTC
(0 children)

Thanks for the honest update. I have been debating it, and this information helps a TON.

3
u/surelycertainly
Tue Dec 21 17:35:42 2021 UTC
(0 children)

Thanks for this through report, even without photos it is useful to see hear about the reality of surgery. This is big surgery it sounds like all went well generally but there were parts that weren't so easy, that's real life.

5
u/Federal-Tension
Tue Dec 21 22:06:32 2021 UTC
(0 children)

In regards to nerve damage, you're lucky you only lost a bit of sensation. My lip and chin are completely numb after Bart Van de Ven cut off my nerves and nerve canal giving me 24/7 discomfort in my jaw that if you touch it even ever so slightly, it hurts and it would feel as if your finger is inside my jaw bone itself. The nerve housing is literally exposed like an open wound. I never thought this would happen and was not disclosed to me either. But I guess only shit surgeons or interns make such a rookie yet irreparable mistake.

3
u/thewisewitch
Tue Dec 21 20:37:03 2021 UTC
(0 children)

People are always praising and advertising for FT on here. Thank you for sharing this, I hope everything improves.

2
u/sunflower297
Sun Feb 6 21:32:27 2022 UTC
*
(4 children)

I'm scared FT wasn't agressive enough on my forehead. I asked them 3 times to make my forehead very very very flat. I'm 3 months and a few days post-op.

1
Thu Jun 2 18:55:19 2022 UTC
(3 children)

being 5 months out from surgery now, are you satisfied with how flat they made your forehead?

1
Thu Jun 2 21:16:19 2022 UTC
(0 children)

I don't know I'm swelling when I'm sick

1
Thu Jun 2 21:16:53 2022 UTC
(0 children)

And it's been 7 months now, my healing is not fast and I still have a lot of soft tissues that need to read par to my sinus

1
Mon Jan 2 13:06:37 2023 UTC
(0 children)

I'm not happy they didn't set it back enough. At all. And I had two complications plus also a lot of issues with my nose.