14 days post op and feelings of major depression...

[Kyngofpop]

I've been a silent member for a while in major anticipation of the surgery since my insurance approval nearly 2 years ago. While the stories of success are amazing and I commend the many of you for your courage to go through with this major surgery, things haven't been the same for me...emotionally.

I had a BSSO and LeFort1. During talks of the surgery my dr suggested a chin implant of which I kinda shrugged off at the time because I had a VERY strong and handsome chin and chin profile. After those talks, it went out the window, never to be thought of again because I'd personally thought that my chiseled line would remain. Well 14 days after with lots of the swelling gone away I can see that my face is not gonna be framed the way it was initially with the desirable slight chin protuberance that many men desire ;( It's looking like it's going to be more of an sloping and weak chin(if that makes any sense).

With all the swelling coupled with having to do all of this alone, and THEN with the swelling going down a bit I'm in freak out mode each time I pass a mirror. I've resorted to almost burka like coverings when I go out in public smh. I have to return to work on the 19th and can't quit crying every time I have to change my elastics and look in the mirror all I can think is "what the FU* have I done to my face" Even though the doctors did a good job of getting things where they were supposed to be I'm just in breakdown mode.

Am I alone in this type of thinking soon after such a major surgery? I would post before and after pictures but am so afraid of judgement that I'm freaking out even at the thought even though I know this is a "safe place". I felt I wasn't terribly bad looking before the surgery, but now I feel purely ugly. And to top it off the doc made my nose less large than it was but now my nostrils look sorta piggy to me...ugh.

[tdawg7669]

Hey you can pm me pics if you arent comfortable posting them(obviously I will keep it 100% confidential), and I will tell you what I think. It is 100% normal to feel this way though.

1) You still have a lot of swelling at only 14 days post op
2) The face that you knew for 20+ years has changed in a significant way. Even if most other people who look at you will say its mostly positive changes, it will still be a shock to you, especially when you still have swelling.

[snapdresser]

It sounds like you had your mandible moved back with the BSSO, right? From what I've observed on this forum, people who have that particular movement have a very hard time adjusting to it mentally. Everyone who gets a LeFort and/or BSSO thinks they look "weird" afterwards, but those people who have their mandible moved back always seem to think they're less attractive afterwards. Somehow they got it in their heads that a very large chin is more attractive. I think you need some more objective opinions to help set your mind at ease (or to confirm your fears and maybe help you move towards getting a revision or chin implant, as the case may be). Maybe you have some friends you can talk to about it? I can only imagine the difficulty getting through the mental aspects of this surgery all by yourself, and your reaching out on this forum is a good first step! The really great news is that you don't seem to have any significant physical side-effects from the surgery that could be very difficult to fix, i.e. failed union, significant permanent numbness, etc. so if you do decide to get a chin implant, it will be relatively cheap and easy. Relax, it's not the end of the world If it's all in your head, getting some nice, honest, objective feedback will do you a world of good. If your chin is really moved back too far, then a chin implant should do the trick pretty easily

For reference: For "ideal aesthetics", if you make a vertical line directly down from your brow, your chin should project exactly to that line (for a guy) or at most 1-2 mm past it. For women it's a couple mm behind that line. I'm assuming you're a guy because your s/n is "Kyngofpop" but maybe you're just an MJ fan

[senecastudent]

Check out Nathanael Eisenman on YouTube and look at his videos. He had much the same issue: in the weeks post surgery, he was disappointed with his chin and jaw because he felt that his relatively strong jaw had been reduced too much and looked awful, almost like he had an overbite. At 9-16 days, he was considering a chin implant to regain that strong chin/jaw. You can see his progression of healing and how he ended up; perhaps this will reassure you.

[littlebird]

Hi Kyng, just wanted to add some words of support. When I was 2 weeks post-op I felt the same exact way. Having to look at myself in the mirror was torture, I thought I looked hideous, and I was severely depressed. Your feelings are totally normal, and as others have said, at 2 weeks you still have a ton of swelling. I'm now almost 6 weeks post-op and look very different from what I looked like at 2 weeks. Hang in there, it WILL get better, all of the swelling in your cheeks is probably making your chin look weaker than it really is.