The Fable
Ancient Greece’s Aesop is known for his fables, stories that carry a moral that his readers were expected to understand and apply to their lives. One of these tales describes a father who wishes to pray for the success of his daughters. He visits the first daughter, whose husband is a tanner. She asks him to pray for good weather and sunshine to allow the hides to dry and cure well. He visits his other daughter, whose farmer husband wishes for the exact opposite– cool weather and rain to allow the crops to grow well in those days before controlled irrigation. The father is left stumped as far as how to pray– does he ask for sunshine or rain?
The moral of the story is that not everyone is looking for the same outcome from a situation, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach to people. This is a lesson that most plastic surgeons know well. Whether this moral is applied to their practice, is a different story. Habits are easy to form and hard to change, and surgeons are only human. With that in mind, here are some helpful tips for predicting what results you may get from surgery, and how to determine if a particular surgeon is more likely to deliver what you are looking for.
Surgery is Not Fast Food
Understanding the nuances of why surgical results may differ between patients (and surgeons) requires understanding that surgery is not like a fast food franchise. That is, visiting a Wendy’s® in Bozeman and one in Tampa, Florida, we expect our square hamburger to be about the same size, cook, and seasoning. We tend to think the same way about surgery– a breast augmentation in Mexico should have the same appearance, scars, and recovery as surgery in California, New York, or Montana. Or surgery with an oral surgeon or otolaryngologist will be the same as a board-certified plastic surgeon.
People aren’t hamburgers, though, and this applies to both patients and surgeons. Every patient is different, and body type, skin quality, nutrition, and goals vary from person to person. A 300cc implant on one body type makes one breast size– on another patient, a very different one. To some, this will be a large breast size, to another, just right, and to someone else, small.
Surgeons aren’t made the same, either. Training length, intensity, and experience vary between surgical residencies. Personality, drive, commitment, and compassion differ among individuals. Quality isn’t automatic and it’s not genetic, it’s the product of hard work and dedication.
How to Choose
Therefore, a choice must be made. If you are interested in having surgery, you must select a surgeon. But how? Well, there are several ways to make your decision. Word-of-mouth is a good way to find a surgeon. However, to be sure that the surgeon meshes with your goals and personality, a consultation is a must.
Perhaps the best method of figuring out how you will look is to evaluate the before-and-after photos from each surgeon. However, to really understand what these photos mean, there are some considerations of which to be aware.
Discerning the Difference
The Summary
Figure out what you want, and figure out (to the best of your ability) what your surgeon can deliver. At Gallatin Plastic Surgery, Dr. Jarred McDaniel, a board-certified plastic surgeon, strives to be openly and honestly demonstrate realistic results to patients with straightforward communication. Please contact us today for a consultation to see what our practice can do for you.