(Day of Surgery) On May 27th last month, I had double jaw surgery, chin surgery, and jaw reduction surgery at WHY Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery!
As you can see from my pre-op photos, I had facial asymmetry, an underbite, and protruding lips, which caused me a lot of stress ever since I was young.
When I first went to get braces at 20, I was diagnosed as a case for double jaw surgery instead. But I was too scared of the surgery, so I spent 7 years just thinking about it. Eventually, I decided to go for surgery at WHY Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.
 
The main reasons I chose WHY Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery are:
 
There’s only one surgeon, Dr. Seokjae Lee. -These days, I’ve heard about cases of surgeries being performed by substitutes, so I wanted to go somewhere where there’s only one doctor!
Open CCTV- Dr. Lee confidently offered to show the entire surgery process on CCTV, which gave me even more trust.
The doctor’s experience- Dr. Lee used to work at a large hospital, so he has performed a lot of surgeries and has years of experience!
Braces and surgery can be done in one place There’s also an orthodontist inhouse, so you can get both double jaw surgery and braces in one place without needing to go to another clinic afterward!
 
There are countless reasons I chose WHY Oral, but these are the major ones. Also, everyone there was super kind.
I scheduled my surgery on the same day I had my consultation!
 
I immediately regretted it. It was tough.
The surgery itself was under general anesthesia, so you just wake up and it’s done. There was no pain in my jaw bones at all. But breathing was extremely difficult, I had no feeling in my face, and I felt like my tailbone and hips were going to disappear.
I had hoses hanging from my nose and throat, and a catheter, so I couldn’t move at all.
My memory of the first day? Just that I wanted to die. I even Googled how to turn back time. haha...
 
(Day 2)
I kept waking up every 20-30 minutes, but eventually, the next day did come.
In the morning, the nurse removed the catheter and drainage tubes, and I was able to move around!
I also met the doctor and got the wafer placed in my mouth. Although it was slightly better than the day before, I still regretted everything...
 
(Day 3 – Discharge)
After receiving swelling laser treatment, I was supposed to be discharged around 10 AM. But since I live in Jeju, I thought it would be too hard to go straight home after surgery, so I booked a nearby place for a week.
I asked if I could be discharged later due to the check-in time at my accommodation, and they kindly allowed me to leave at 4 PM.
But to those who live far away: no matter how far, just go straight home after surgery. When you’re in pain, nothing beats being home.
I ended up booking a flight for the next morning and flew back home, wasting the accommodation money.
 
(One Week Post-Op)
The first week is hell. My face swelled so much, I couldn’t believe it.
The pressure on my face was intense, and I was scared it might burst. I also couldn’t eat and had to survive on liquid meals like Nutrient Care and Pocari through a sauce bottle. Surprisingly, I wasn’t hungry—eating was hard, and I had no appetite at all.
Still, I forced myself to eat to help with recovery. I also walked for an hour every day without fail! Walking really helps with the de-swelling. I could feel it go down a little after walking.
 
(Two Weeks Post-Op)
After two weeks, they removed the stitches, and it became a bit more bearable.
My nose is no longer blocked, and I can remove the wafer while eating, so I can finally say goodbye to the sauce bottle! Most importantly, I didn’t need to take any more medication, which was great because swallowing pills was such a pain.
At this point, I started eating soft foods like porridge, cold noodles, ramen, and pudding. Of course, I couldn’t chew, so I cut everything up into tiny pieces with scissors and swallowed them whole! Still, it made me so happy!!! The swelling also began to subside gradually.
Now, 20 days post-op, I’m constantly hungry and really want to chew food. I’ve become a pro at swallowing food without chewing.
I can eat almost anything now, as long as I cut it up with scissors and gulp it down. Haha!
People usually lose 7-8 kg after surgery, but I didn’t lose a single kilo. I made sure to eat everything—soft tofu stew, mapa tofu, pudding, cold noodles, jajangmyeon, jjamppong—you name it.
The swelling is slowly going down, but it’s a slow process. I wake up in the morning swollen, then it goes down by the evening, only to repeat the next day.
I also do regular warm compresses, which help relieve the facial pressure. I highly recommend it!
 
I’ve also started going back to work, and despite the swelling, I keep getting compliments. People say my face looks smaller, shorter, and that my overall appearance has softened. They keep telling me the surgery went really well, which makes me feel great ><. The effects of my facial contouring surgery are definitely showing, too.
 
The initial pain of the surgery is starting to fade… I no longer regret it.
Now, I’m just waiting for the swelling to go down. If you look at my before and after photos, the difference is real.
Every time I look in the mirror, I’m amazed at my new jawline.
Thank you, Dr. Seokjae Lee, and thank you to the staff and nurses who took care of me during my hospital stay. I still haven’t started my orthodontic treatment, and there’s a long road ahead, but I’m so excited to see how much more beautiful I’ll become!
 
(2 Months Post-Op)
 
I can now go about my daily life without any issues!
The swelling has reduced a lot initially, and now it's slowly going down bit by bit. The battle with the swelling continues... haha.
As for food, I can eat pretty much anything as long as it's not too hard or tough... and that makes me so happy.
But ever since I got braces, I’ve been eating less. Braces are uncomfortable... 😢
Thanks to that, I’ve lost 9 kg! Not bad, right?!
 
I’m still a bit swollen, but everyone around me keeps saying the surgery turned out so well, and that makes me really happy! Hehe.
But if I have one regret, it's that now that my jaw has been reduced, my cheekbones stand out more...
I kind of wish I had gotten cheekbone reduction surgery too. 😭
So, for those considering contouring surgery, think about going for all three procedures, including cheekbone reduction, rather than just the two! 😅
Still, I’m very happy with the results. I feel like my makeup style and the way I dress have changed, and most importantly, my confidence has gone way up. 
Now that it’s been two months since the surgery, people who don’t know me can’t really tell that I’ve had surgery!
That’s how natural it looks!
I can’t wait for the remaining swelling to go down and to look even prettier!