ROSEANN’S SURGERY

From the time I booked my face-lift with Didi in August, I was on Cloud Nine! I couldn’t wait to have my surgery! I told everyone I knew, and plenty I didn’t, about my plans. When people ask me if I’d do it again, I tell them “in a heartbeat!” never have I regretted the decision, never, ever, not even when I got quite sick from the antibiotics. I am so thrilled with my results!

My surgery went just fine. CIMA hospital was absolutely wonderful. When I was released from Recovery to my private hospital room, Didi was there feeding me ice chips and putting cold compresses on my eyes! There was one harmless complication though, a hematoma which took Dr. Lev two hours to aspirate. This after a five-hour surgery. Poor guy! (It looked like I was given a huge hickey by The Hulk!) Everyone wants the patient to feel pampered and so they really go out of their way. The Public Relations Department Manager of the hospital brought me a gorgeous arrangement of bird of paradise flowers. A physical therapist gave me a one hour foot massage. Dr. Greenwood, the anesthesiologist, greeted me with hugs and kisses when he came to check on me in my room. These people couldn’t do enough for me! It was an amazing experience.

When I returned to Villa Plenitude I was surprised to see Peter sitting in a chair in our room reading! We were happy to see each other but we laughed at how awful we both looked.

The following day Dr. Lev came to Villa Plenitude to check on use, once again greeting us with big hugs and smiles. He changed my “mummy wrap” which was pressing very hard on my Eve’s apple! It felt much better but still very uncomfortable. There was no pain except for a mild headache for several days, but there was discomfort in my face, jaw, neck and shoulders.

Three days after my surgery, Dr. Lev removed the sutures around my eyes, but best of all, he removed my bandages. I told him it was like removing your bra after a very long day only way better! My face was very swollen and much of it was numb. Touching my skin felt like touching an inflated balloon, taut and smooth. Imagine being able to tap your hair with your fingernail and have it make noise! My entire head felt like it had been dipped in glue and left to dry. But it was not glue. It was dried blood. And, it stunk! And, it was real scary looking! I was desperate to wash my hair but I was required to wait 24 hours.

The next morning I put a hand towel over my head because I had forgotten to pack a scarf, I went to breakfast looking like a cross between Mother Theresa and King Tut! That afternoon I was finally able to shampoo my hair. Never has washing my own hair produced such ecstasy! I sat in a plastic chair in the oversized shower and used tones of shampoo and conditioner. I was told not to expect to get everything out the first time and to be extremely careful as I still had sutures in front, behind and above my ears and in my scalp.

After several days, Dr. Lev decided to drain my hematoma. He did that three more times including the morning we left Costa Rica. It pinched a bit when he inserted the needle, but there was no pain. Everything was still numb from the surgery. It did feel good when he finished because it seemed to relieve some pressure.

The day before we left Costa Rica I had my eyebrows tattooed. Truly, the face-lift surgery did not hurt. Getting the brows tattooed hurt like hell! Unfortunately, my forehead was not numb from the surgery. They turned out very, very dark but I had been guaranteed by the many people I’d spoken with, including Dr. Lev and Didi, that after a week it would fade. But until then, I had scabs for eyebrows. That evening in our room after dinner Peter and I would try to have a conversation but he would burst out laughing. Then I’d start laughing. Whenever I went into the bathroom and caught a glimpse of myself and I’d crack up! However, having eyebrows done turned out to be the icing on the cake of my makeover. They look great!

Our last night in Costa Rica, Dr. Lev came to see me at 8:00 p.m. on his way home from the hospital. He was afraid that he would not finish his following morning’s surgery in time to see me and drain my hematoma one last time. As usual, he greeted us warmly. We took pictures and kissed and hugged goodbye. Much to our surprise, the next day before we left for the airport, Dr. Lev stopped by Villa Plenitude! He completed his morning surgery and so came by to drain my hematoma for the last time. Can you imagine treatment like that in the United States?

The bruising from the face-lift and hematoma faded quickly. The swelling and tightness continued to subside steadily over the next three months, as did the numbness. Now, ten months later there is still a bit of a tight sensation in my upper neck and a few numb areas in my face.

Truly, each day I look in the mirror and am SOOOOOOOOOOOO happy I did this! Thank you dr. Lev. Thank you Didi. Thank you Villa Plenitude.