Spending your life savings on jaw surgery

[somethingsomething]

If you are in your mid-twenties, is it worth spending your life savings to date on corrective jaw surgery? On one hand, you have many years to enjoy the (hopefully positive) outcome of your jaw surgery. On the other hand, you could invest your money, and potentially end up with hundreds of thousands dollars in a few decades. What are your thoughts on this?

[PloskoPlus]

If you are in your mid-twenties, is it worth spending your life savings to date on corrective jaw surgery? On one hand, you have many years to enjoy the (hopefully positive) outcome of your jaw surgery. On the other hand, you could invest your money, and potentially end up with hundreds of thousands dollars in a few decades. What are your thoughts on this?

Fix your face if you can ASAP.  A good face is like 10 million in the bank.  I'm probably delusional, but people have been "nicer" to me since surgery.  No, I didn't have one of those 1 in a million model-like results you see on the web, but every little bit helps.

[sean89]

Fix your face if you can ASAP.  A good face is like 10 million in the bank.  I'm probably delusional, but people have been "nicer" to me since surgery.  No, I didn't have one of those 1 in a million model-like results you see on the web, but every little bit helps.

The way people respond to me has changed as well since my surgery albeit in a more nuanced way.

I have no doubt that people perceive me to be better looking now but only when my face is motionless. When I speak and smile, however, people rapidly change their perception of me to the point where they are almost repulsed by me.

That might seem paranoid/illogical/dysmorphic, but it is the truth and I think it can be attributed to the fact that my chin was advanced too far forward in relation to my lower jaw. My chin area is beautiful to look at from profile view when my mouth is closed, but when I speak and smile, the chin is very offensive to look at. The depth of the sublabial fold becomes apparent as does the degree to which my jaw is recessed. Before my operation, I remember speaking to someone with the exact same problem and I remember thinking at the time that he had definitely had a chin advancement because of how unnatural/offensive his chin became when he spoke. This is why, post-op, I am extremely sceptical of camouflage genioplasty and think it must be done at the same time as BSSO, or before distraction of the mandible (technically, they cannot be done at the same time).

 

[Lazlo]

jesus christ where do these threads come from --we need to get friggin a moderator on this forum.

[PloskoPlus]

That might seem paranoid/illogical/dysmorphic, but it is the truth and I think it can be attributed to the fact that my chin was advanced too far forward in relation to my lower jaw. My chin area is beautiful to look at from profile view when my mouth is closed, but when I speak and smile, the chin is very offensive to look at. The depth of the sublabial fold becomes apparent as does the degree to which my jaw is recessed. Before my operation, I remember speaking to someone with the exact same problem and I remember thinking at the time that he had definitely had a chin advancement because of how unnatural/offensive his chin became when he spoke. This is why, post-op, I am extremely sceptical of camouflage genioplasty and think it must be done at the same time as BSSO, or before distraction of the mandible (technically, they cannot be done at the same time).

sean,

You had a chin wing, right?  Did the surgeon aware you of your short mandible and try to steer you towards "proper" jaw surgery?

[sean89]

sean,

You had a chin wing, right?  Did the surgeon aware you of your short mandible and try to steer you towards "proper" jaw surgery?

Yes, in my first consultation, he said that I need conventional orthognathic surgery. It would have been too difficult to organise because I went abroad for my operation and my surgeon takes ages to respond to my emails so I chose chin wing on its own instead.

[itsallgenetics]

I'm 21 and will be getting the surgery in 6 months (I'll be turning 22 at the same time). Although I might not have as much life experience, I can say with 100% certainty I am extremely excited to get this done and am giving up my life savings for it. The most important lesson I have learnt thus far is some things are priceless, and your face is one of them... You will always have the chance to make money throughout your life, but you will never have the power to turn back time and make up for lost opportunities in your youth.

[needadvancement]

I'm in my mid 20s too and I'll probably spend a good portion of my life savings for this, I'd say go for it though I don't know your situation and I'd probably look at it differently if we're talking an older age here. The way I look at is I'll have many more years to save up money after this and I need this investment for the future now.

[PloskoPlus]

Yes, in my first consultation, he said that I need conventional orthognathic surgery. It would have been too difficult to organise because I went abroad for my operation and my surgeon takes ages to respond to my emails so I chose chin wing on its own instead.

Well, at least he is not after a quick buck.  Would you consider him for your "proper" jaw surgery?  Does it also mean that you would need chin reduction as well to go with it?

[LoveofScotch]

If you are in your mid-twenties, is it worth spending your life savings to date on corrective jaw surgery? On one hand, you have many years to enjoy the (hopefully positive) outcome of your jaw surgery. On the other hand, you could invest your money, and potentially end up with hundreds of thousands dollars in a few decades. What are your thoughts on this?

If this is very important to you, yes, I would do it. But...

If this will seriously wipe you out I would only do it if you have access to money somewhere else. Your mother, a line of credit, whatever. I would also know a rough estimate of how much you would have access too, and how quickly you could get at it should you need it. If you're taking money out of an IRA (etc.) you'll want to know the tax implications, etc.

[somethingsomething]

Thanks for all the perspectives. I already had it done. I too was really looking forward to it and didn't mind parting with my life savings. My results were good for the most part--I got my bite and chin fixed, my sinus issues reduced, and my sleep apnea cured.

However, my sinuses still feel congested whenever I don't have my humidifier on full blast at night (possibly because the heat's always on nowadays). My face also looks fairly asymmetrical now, noticeably more so than before. The left side of my face has always been much smaller than my right side, but my lower jaw had been crooked and had tilted to the left, conveniently camouflaging some of the asymmetry. Now that my jaw has been properly aligned, the asymmetry is very noticeable. My face also looks like it lost some volume since I no longer have a receding chin, which now makes me look slightly older. I'm still satisfied with my results overall. I had just thought that after spending so much money and putting myself through so much suffering during the recovery process, my bite, bone structure, and breathing would be close to perfect. I now feel slightly broke whenever I see my bank account. Thank goodness I didn't have to dip into my IRA.

[Cmonster]

IF your results are as good as you expected or better it will be worth it, if not, it will be the worst decision of your life.
Cant offer more insight than that. Good luck.

[Gregor Samsa]

IF your results are as good as you expected or better it will be worth it, if not, it will be the worst decision of your life.
Cant offer more insight than that. Good luck.

Unfortunately there are no guarantees even if you go with one of the top surgeons out there. Most of us can't even sue the surgeon to get our money back if something goes wrong. I feel like we're playing russian roulette with our lives here. 

[PloskoPlus]

Please give examples, how have people treated you differently?

People are more willing to initiate conversations.  Just friendlier.  You have to remember class III means a perpetual sullen look.  A weak smile was just the icing on the cake (TBH, I think my smile is still kinda weak.  Perhaps my maxilla wasn't dropped enough, IDK.)  Maybe it's all in my head, but I've heard similar sentiments from other former class IIIs.

[DreadingSurgery]

How much did the surgery cost?