Depressed ... Regretting Surgery I look like a chimp freak now ... Underbite LF1

[Valoz]

I got Upper Jaw Sugery Lefort I 5mm advancement for Underbite and it's been about 4 weeks after the surgery and I'm wondering if a Lefort I was the right choice for me I feel like i ended up looking much less attractive and chimp like, the area under my eyes is super hollow now my nose is piggish.

I look like I have protruding mouth now, from the eyes down my whole face looks like it is protruding out abnormally. Does it look like my surgeon brought my upper jaw too forward ? Should I have got my lower jaw pushed back instead.  There was so much build up to my surgery and with my results I feel so depressed, I won't even leave my house now ... I look COMPLETELY different now.

I also do not think the remaining swelling will make much difference between my appearance now and in 6 months, is my assumption correct ?

If anyone has gone through this please help... I'm considering a reversal. 

[Rico]

I know how is to regret something or eventually being depressed due to some problems postop..I have some issues after surgery - different type,
but hard to say if you really looks bad

Perhaps your lower part of face (mouth area) could be a bit less prominated ...little set backward..but i'm not sure
for sure it does not look very bad... I have to take another look

It's only 3 weeks postop. Wait some more weeks to judge

Regardless do you have some functional issues after surgery ?

[Bobbit]

I got Upper Jaw Sugery Lefort I 5mm advancement for Underbite and it's been about 4 weeks after the surgery and I'm wondering if a Lefort I was the right choice for me I feel like i ended up looking much less attractive and chimp like, the area under my eyes is super hollow now my nose is piggish.

I look like I have protruding mouth now, from the eyes down my whole face looks like it is protruding out abnormally. Does it look like my surgeon brought my upper jaw too forward ? Should I have got my lower jaw pushed back instead.  There was so much build up to my surgery and with my results I feel so depressed, I won't even leave my house now ... I look COMPLETELY different now.

I also do not think the remaining swelling will make much difference between my appearance now and in 6 months, is my assumption correct ?

If anyone has gone through this please help... I'm considering a reversal.

Who was your surgeon ?    Where you in braces before the surgery ?

[Rico]

Your still very very swollen. Certainly your upper lip has a lot of swelling and that is giving you a bit of that chimp look you mention. It will go down but can take several months. You will be fine and looking hot!

But it is a good reminder why too much is not a good thing. Many seem to think the more forward projection of the maxilla, the better and that is not true. Too much forward projection can make one look a bit chimp like. And that is not something to strive for  .

But you will be fine, really. That upper lip has a lot of swelling and next to your mouth/nose there is still a lot of swelling too. Give it a lot more time.

OVERCORRECTION IS MUCH WORSE THAN UNDERCORRECTION OR EVEN MAIN PROBLEM. That told my surgeon.

[needadvancement]

I agree that there is still swelling around the mouth. Also did your surgeon discuss your chin? A slight advancement there with a sliding genio could have made the difference. If this is bothering you you could try photoshop to see if you think that would look better.

[Valoz]

@Rico No actually functionality wise everything is great except I get this weird clicking in the left side of my upper jaw and also vibrations when I laugh.  And I do agree overcorrection is WAY worse than my original problem... sigh I'll wait it out and see if it gets better...

@needadvancement My surgeon did discuss my chin a bit, however I think if I did a sliding genio I would look even more chimp like.  My surgeon also discussed cheek implants, maybe I shall look into that ...

I believe my problem is that I originally had a flat face already, then after the lefort I it has made my eyes and cheekbone area very hollow looking and strange.  It is like my whole face is flat then after the lefort I the 3/4 of my face is protruding. I hope this protrusion is due to swelling and not soft tissue. 

Does anyone know what kind of procedures could increase the volume around the undereye / cheekbone area ? Fillers ? Implants?
Ugh maybe get double jaw surgery to push back both upper and lower jaws ? 

[ForeverDet]

The protrusion you're seeing is definitely in partly from the swelling. You're still early in the healing process although have made great progress. Your nose unfortunately will probably stay a bit upturned as it is now, that is a unfortunate by-product of upper jaw surgery. It can be prevented or minimized with stitches by the surgeon but even then it can happen.

After a minimum of 6 months you should re-asses your face. The swelling should be mostly gone and bones partly healed. Then you can more objectively compare before/after. By 1 year your bones will have fused completely. To return your nose to it's previous form will require rhino of course and there are skilled/experienced doc who've done plenty of asian/ethnic nose jobs.

I know it's hard and may seem unbearable but hang in there. The worse thing you can do is rush into another surgery before your face has healed and everything has settled soft tissue wise. Don't cause yourself more suffering. You look absolutely normal. Yes your face different, yes it may not be as aesthetically "ideal" as before but there is not one part of your face that should stop you from leaving your home. There is a solution for your nose but you need to be cautious and wait a bit. I promise things will improve over time and you'll have thanked yourself for not doing anything drastic.

Hang in there!!!

[needadvancement]

@ Valoz, I have slightly advanced your chin and slightly reduced your upperlip tissue(I THINK it may look like that in a couple of months after it heals more)



In my opinion it looks beautiful there and not chimp-like at all and I think others would agree.


PS: In case you want the photo gone paste this link into your browser and you can delete the photo:  http://postimg.org/delete/p65rouuzy/

[kjohnt]

I believe my problem is that I originally had a flat face already...

I was thinking this before reading through the thread.  Your retruded maxilla helped camouflage the lack of cheek volume and retrusive chin, plus probably kept your nose from being upturned.  But I also think the lighting of your before/after profile shots are deceptive, because the before shot shows lighting directly on the front of your cheeks and the after shows a shadow where it's more apparent.  Also keep in mind that those poses are going to subconsciously influence everyone's perception of your attractiveness.  In the before shot it appears you have a confident, sexy attitude going on with your squinted eyes and in the second you look like a scared/unsure-of-herself puppy.  If these were both before shots (same bone structure) but with the poses unchanged, the "first girl" is more attractive. 

In any case, I think the best bang-for-your-buck improvements are in this order:
1) SG for chin
2) Nose straightening to bring less concave which would also bring the tip back down
3) Something for the cheeks

The sliding genioplasty should definitely have been performed during your lefort, and it's unfortunate that it was not.  If I was you personally, I'd like to think that I'd get my chin advanced and call it good.  The morph posted above by needadvancement is achievable with this and makes you look good.  An ante face is a good thing, despite what some folks on here will say.  After that, if you remain unsatisfied with your appearance, I'd definitely go to the nose before trying to mess with the cheeks, both because I think fixing the nose would provide more improvement and because it is an easier fix from what little I've read of both rhinoplasty and cheek augmentation.  Messing with the cheeks via fillers or implants (or even lefort whatever #) sounds like a nightmare... somewhere I wouldn't want to go personally.

Please take all of this as a nitpicky opinion of mine only.  I provided it because that's what you seek.  At the same time, I hesitated to respond because I know it takes an emotionally low state to sign onto an internet forum and discuss the features you feel are unattractive about yourself... I certainly don't want you to feel like you won't be pretty unless you fix everything I've listed.  That is simply not the case.  I'm just trying to provide a comprehensive analysis based on my perception of you from your photos.  Again, I think you'd look great with a sliding genioplasty to advance your chin to the rest of your profile as is shown in needadvancement's morph.

[kjohnt]

I forgot to say, I certainly would not do another surgery to undo the first.  You don't want an underbite for sure, and to pay for everything and go through it twice for nothing?  f**k that.

[PloskoPlus]

Can you post closeup photos of yourself smiling before and after?  Can you post a lateral ceph?  If your occlusal plane angle is high, the dominant upper lip may not go away, I'm afraid.

[PloskoPlus]

Come on. She had surgery only 3 weeks ago in that last pic. People have a swollen upper lip months after Lefort I and swelling next to the nose for months and months. She will see a lot of change still. In fact, if you look at her tissues: her complete face is swollen still. Her tissues look puffy/puffed out, not in a relaxed position. And the upper lip is a common area for patients to complain about for months after surgery.

Well, I'm in exactly the same boat as her... 15 months later.

[Rico]

if you do not have functional problems that means probably everything is OK... you need more time to see full effect
I mean it's a good indicator / prognosis

too big changes would cause Masseter muscle malposition and dysfunction ... for example I have problem with this muscle after my zygoma bone changed position

so you are lucky...and be patient

[PloskoPlus]

And you had the same amount of forward projection at 3 weeks after surgery (similarly to her)?

About as bad.

You might not want to and that's understandable but it would be helpful. Is this a common issue with Lefort I?

Chimp lip is a function of the amount of advancement and the steepness of the occlusal plane.  LF1 advancements are a bit dicier on Asians, although I don't think that was the case here.

kjohnt spotted the retrusive chin - that's probably the steep occlusal plane.  I had the same thing happen.  I went from a concave face to a convex one too because my plane was not normalised.  Yet my advancement was minimal: 5-6 mm.

[JawKid7]

I commented on your post on realself.com