Hi everyone! My name is Diana Fontanez. I am a 37 year old transgender living full time as a woman since the age of 15.
I want to do FFS but there are so many options. So many surgeons!
To of my list is Dr. O and Dr. Spiegel.
I know I need chin, nose and brow work done.
Who do you girls recommend?
Money is not an issue as I have built a successful coaching and mentorship business for the hispanic business market (but i do not want to base my decision on this. I just want an excellent surgeon).
Here is a recent picture of me (on the right):
(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcoachesyconsultores.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2013%2F10%2F969938_302331653237150_411805507_n.jpg&hash=eb98ffc0b980742d1ac6fd1f8a2a1635b26af89b)
Another one:
(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcoachesyconsultores.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2013%2F10%2F554648_561687337235786_435377455_n.jpg&hash=31e9aa2422dc70b85c2fded3818caf03a4592fd0)
And another one (i am the girl with the hair pulled back):
(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcoachesyconsultores.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2013%2F10%2F1379517_10153279095625648_1558996368_n.jpg&hash=4dcc4e7efe514d3692390c984f1b133216701dbe)
Another one (face photoshoped lol):
(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fcoachesyconsultores.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2013%2F10%2F1234308_323685827768399_1074905977_n.jpg&hash=40b5dec6bd56e4c22fc787b92e57e7d692e86389)
Here is a video of me of my recent live seminar I did in Madrid, Spain to a full room of business owners (so you can see me in "real" life):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eMJ_OcGRwc (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0eMJ_OcGRwc)
An another video of me much closer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2PoLCADKFk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2PoLCADKFk)
Thank you! Please guide me.
Diana
Hi Sweetts,
Really great to see you doing so well and I hope it continues for you.
Having done quite a lot of research for my own FFS and having stayed very much on board regarding this subject since then (two years since my upper face FFS), I would very strongly suggest looking further than the two surgeons you mention.
Dr O. because he charges completely over the top and in most people's opinion, no matter how good he was in the past, he should now gracefully retire. Dr Speigel because he also charges over the top and is maybe a bit too conservative for what you need to make FFS worthwhile, notably quite agressive chin surgery.
I suggest you at least consult with Dr DiMaggio in Buenos Aires and if you are willing to look further afield, the surgeon who did my FFS, Dr Van de Ven in Belgium, is probably the most agressive you will find, notably regarding chin surgery which many surgeons are very wary of.
Hope that helps and wishing you all the best.
Donna
What about getting your voice done?
Dear sweet,
Judging from your pictures you do need some aggressive bone work but since you already look very feminine i think FFS would do wonders for you!Personally i still think Dr O i still the best for aggresive bone work and Dr Suporn would be good second followed by Dr Dimaggio but he seems to be a bit on the conservative side, so i guess it kinda depends on how aggressive of a change you want.Also i would like to point out to you for your jaw an chin work there is the option of south korea where i will be going they seem to even more aggressive then Dr O and if you look at the websites the change is quit amazing, there are several clinics there(google id clinic or bk clinic they are the 2 biggest).Then you could do seperate surgery with one of the other doctos for you upper face.But you have to see of that work for you of course.
Greetings Sam
Quote from: Kiwi4Eva on October 31, 2013, 02:20:14 PM
What about getting your voice done?
I wish mine was on par with hers!
You don't appear to need aggressive FFS. I think that makes Dr. Zukowski in Chicago IL a good option for you.
I think advancing your hairline in the corners would look great...
Hi girls! So many options sounds scary. Why are some surgeons wary of chin work?
In my day to day life i pass most of the time unless i open my mouth lol or people stare. I dont think i want something aggresive. Just want my face to look more feminine.
There are so many surgeons. How do i choose?
With the voice i am ok.
Quote from: sweetts2828 on October 31, 2013, 06:55:06 PM
With the voice i am ok.
But are you aware of the brilliant results? I watched your video and thought your voice could benefit from the surgery. But let me say this...what an amazing women you must be to be able to stand up amongst all those people like you do.
Go gettem! I think your something special!
I can imagine the results but i will like to start with ffs first and take it from there. I still think i will go with Dr Spiegel and do surgery in January; enough time for my live seminar in Mexico in April.
Thanks Kiwi4eva :)
It takes a lot of courage!
I went from homeless, prostitute, drug addict and sexual abuse to the place i am today: empowering others to live an abundant life!
I congratulate you, Diana. Buena suerte :) ¡Que lo pases bien, en México!
Thanks Jamie!
Kiwi4eva, i dont have the option of responding to PM. I see them but dont see the reply button.
Diana, when you get to 15 posts, additional aspects of the site will open to you, including access to the personal messaging utility.
It is a security measure. About that time, the CAPTCHA will be turned off as well.
Quote from: sweetts2828 on October 31, 2013, 10:05:44 PM
Kiwi4eva, i dont have the option of responding to PM. I see them but dont see the reply button.
Oh, how dopey of me LOL. Can anyone else help? I wondered how you go about posting images/video here? I haven't a clue sorry.
Quote from: Kiwi4Eva on October 31, 2013, 10:23:41 PM
Oh, how dopey of me LOL. Can anyone else help? I wondered how you go about posting images/video here? I haven't a clue sorry.
The image posting format is shown in the policy statement on the Announcements page:
https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,59974.0.html
For video, like a YouTube, you need only post the URL
Thank You! :)
At your service, Madam :)
:laugh:
Madam :laugh:
I nearly got the sack for calling a customer Madam once. Worked as a cashier for a major Insurance Company in Sydney. Was called in to the Manager as the old-bat had complained...we were trained to call them by their name (on the policy they were paying)
Madam has never meant the same thing since... :laugh:
Quote from: sweetts2828 on October 31, 2013, 06:53:18 PM
Hi girls! So many options sounds scary. Why are some surgeons wary of chin work?
In my day to day life i pass most of the time unless i open my mouth lol or people stare. I dont think i want something aggresive. Just want my face to look more feminine.
There are so many surgeons. How do i choose?
Hi Sweetts,
In terms of potential for permanent nerve damage, chin surgery is by far the riskiest FFS procedure and there is almost always at least some temporary loss of sensation. I had a sliding genioplasty done 15 months ago with removal of a 0.8cm slice of bone and a small setback. The esthetic result is quite remarkable adding more roundness to my face and giving me a chin which is now very feminine. Between that and other work done on my forehead and nose, I also have a profile which is unmistakably feminine.
However it took me 6 months to get any sensation back in my chin and even now, it is not complete, maybe 70% normal.
Having consulted with both Spiegel and Di Maggio before going with Bart Van de Ven, he was the only one of the three to propose doing anything as ambitious as that and I think he did quite a fantastic job, especially now that I have the impact of a facelift on top of the excellent bone work done last year.
Regarding your own chin, from the images you provided, I'm inclined to believe you may be rather disappointed by anything other than a fairly aggressive intervention ie. a simple recontouring will not take you very far. I therefore suggest you investigate this point thoroughly before making a decision to fork out a rather large check (over 40k with Spiegel) for "standard" forehead, nose and chin/jaw procedures, go through the trauma of the surgery and end out with something less than what you hoped for.
Warm regards
Donna
Hi Donna!
What stops me is the word aggressive. Sounds more painful. Is it?
Diana
Quote from: sweetts2828 on November 01, 2013, 08:18:31 AM
Hi Donna!
What stops me is the word aggressive. Sounds more painful. Is it?
Diana
Hi Diana,
In this context "aggressive" means prepared to go beyond relatively superficial change. For example, using a genioplasty to remove almost 1cm of height from a chin which was previously 7.5cm high (middle of lips to end of chin) is agressive. Shaving a couple of millimeters off the bottom of bottom of the chin is not.
Barring rare accidents, there is very real little pain involved in FFS, just a lot of discomfort due to post surgical swelling which can be very impressive. I, for example, tend to swell like a pumpkin but most of that disappears within a couple of weeks .
Hope that helps.
Donna
I am ready for this surgery and at the same time, its crazy that i am going to do something like this with the possible risks! Its not like i get hit by a car and die. Its that i am putting myself at risk with this surgery. What if i am one of the few rare cases where something goes wrong?
I am happy and i am scared.
It's perfectly normal to be scared and apprehensive before surgery, but you need to look at the positives. There are many...
Yes, something could go wrong, but it's unlikely it will.
The best thing you can do is take care of yourself (your health) prior to, and after surgery.
You can be hit by a car crossing the road, die suddenly from all manner of things.
But to expect something will go wrong, when you are going to be in the hands of skilled professionals, is not logical.
Be kind to yourself and enjoy the changes you are about to embark on.
P.S. I have had 10 hours of FFS and I came through it. Some things you will notice straight away, others will take time, quite a long time, as much as a year.
Hugs :)
Kiwi, did you feel any pain? I had breast augmentation but didnt feel pain post op, just discomfort.
No, not pain. Of course while I was in the hospital I must have as I had a morphine pump, and used it. But after I became "aware" no...
Just discomfort. And it takes a while to get around the deep bruising.
But I'll tell you something that was lovely...seeing the difference straight away. The change in the shape of my forehead was immediate. Curvy.
You'll be OK!
When are you going to have surgery (do you know how much you're having done) and where?
I am planning to have surgery in January. If not, June the latest. I have to coordinate everything around business travel.
How long does it takes to be "presentable" to the public? Do you think 30 days is ok?
My avatar is 2 months post op from my FFS.
I was still quite swollen here, but looked "softer" than before.
I guess it depends on what you had done and by whom, their methods. I had no black eyes, no external bruising, it was all internal (deep tissue) Sleeping was probably the most difficult thing...I mean finding a comfortable position for my face and not wanting to hurt the area's that were sore.
With make-up I am sure you could manage. I am now approaching 8 months and can touch all regions of my face but at 4 months someone came up to me and grabbed my face (didn't realize what I had done) and it hurt like hell.
Quote from: sweetts2828 on November 03, 2013, 03:04:33 AM
I am planning to have surgery in January. If not, June the latest. I have to coordinate everything around business travel.
How long does it takes to be "presentable" to the public? Do you think 30 days is ok?
Diana,
The answer to your question depends very much on what you have done and how you, as a person react.That being said, even supposing you do "the works" ie. forehead, nose, chin/jaw...you should be presentable after 30 days. You will almost certainly still bit a bit puffy though and don't expect to see final results for 4 to 6 months.
Hugs.
Donna
QuoteHi Donna!
What stops me is the word aggressive. Sounds more painful. Is it?
Diana
Hi sweetts2828,
Aggressive surgery might be more painful than superficial surgery during the first few days, but it is by far less "painful" than having to live with a result that is not satisfactory from a surgeon who didn't go as deep with the change as he should.
From my own research I've learned that aggressiveness only makes a difference in the pain level at the jaw and chin areas. Forehead seems to be always more or less painless no matter how aggressive or invasive the bone work on it was.
I would recommend you to contact all the main FFS doctors, ask them all your questions and make your decision based on your own conclusions. Recommendations on what doctor to choose from forum members are very valuable, but sometimes can be confusing and contradictory, sometimes they might reflect preferences that aren't the same as ours.
I would only do the front head.
Nose and chin are ok. Not specially masculine.
Diana,
Hi! I'm Diana too :)
I love Spiegel's work, and so he was my first choice. I had a consult with him and felt that he was definitely the surgeon for me as I liked his energy, too.
I know a few girls who've been to him, but they were mostly in their early 20's and quite pretty already. This is something I've heard again and again, that Spiegel is adept at perfecting those faces which are already within andro/fem range.
This is not to suggest you are not young and beautiful already! I think you are very pretty, and I love your look. In my opinion you're already totally passable and look cis female.
I think you could benefit from some forehead and chin/jaw work and maybe a lip lift just for fun? :)
Anyway, I had my forehead reconstruction, scalp advancement, hairline recontouring, and brow lift with dr.spiegel yesterday morning! I'm writing this from my hospital bed :)
It was a total success and I have only seen the ridge area but it is incredible how he managed to reshape my face with this procedure.
I like Spiegel because he is committed to removing masculine qualities and maintaining a natural authentic look. I'm sure many surgeons do that, but something about him appeals to me in particular.
Spiegel has even great in person and made me feel cared for and well understood. He really is compassionate.
Anyway I hope my experience is helpful! I'm also sober! So we have a bit in common :)
You're a beautiful woman and I don't think you need "aggressive" work. You're well within female range. Just my opinion.
Feel free to PM me :)
Di
Also! My recovery has already been remarkable. Here is a photo immediately pre and post OP. you can't see the results so much but you can see them some. Especially that orbital change!
Before
http://i.imgur.com/Wr2s7Q5.jpg
After
http://i.imgur.com/v9DB2lg.jpg