Truman Customer Story Column
A review that honestly said it hurt
I welcome an honest review more than one that contains only good things.
His was that kind. He wrote plainly that it hurt more than he had expected after surgery and that he had to spend a while lying down. And after that sentence came another: that he is no longer afraid of wearing short sleeves in summer.
The pain is a fact, and so is the satisfaction. Today I want to pass both along exactly as they are.
He had even looked up the word necrosis
What worried him most before surgery were complications such as areolar necrosis. The more cases he read about, the bigger the worry grew.
In the end, he came through recovery without anything of the kind. That should not, however, be taken to mean "such complications do not happen." Every surgery carries the possibility of complications, and the course varies from person to person. What we can do is perform surgery in a way that lowers that possibility, and follow up closely so that any problem is identified quickly. Anything that concerns you is best asked about in advance, in the consultation.
About the clinic, he said it felt like a private space. A layout where you are unlikely to run into other patients matters more than you might think to men coming in for this operation.
I will not hide the fact that it hurt more than he expected
He was honest about the pain after surgery. It hurt more than he had expected, and he had to stay lying down for a while.
He is right. Some men come in thinking of gynecomastia surgery as a minor procedure, but it is unmistakably an operation involving excision. The degree of pain varies widely: some men get through it with almost no discomfort, and some, like him, have several fairly painful days.
So we do not tell anyone there will be no pain. Instead, we manage pain with prescribed medication and advise patients to plan the first few days as rest, without pushing themselves. Pain you have prepared for, knowing it may come, weighs differently from pain that takes you by surprise.
On no longer fearing the short-sleeve season
The sentence he left after coming through recovery was this.
"I'm no longer afraid to wear short sleeves in summer."
Anyone who knows what summer is like for men with gynecomastia will know the weight of that one line. He also wrote that the complex has been resolved and that he is satisfied.
He left one tip as well.
"That said, I'd recommend doing it in winter."
After surgery a compression garment has to be worn for a while, and in hot weather that is quite a nuisance. Having surgery in winter and meeting summer with a new body was, in his own experience, the easier order. This too was his experience, and whether and when to have surgery is something to decide after confirming your own condition through an examination. What matters more than the season is your condition and your readiness.
Just as he left an honest review, I will answer with honest explanations.
- Dr. Kim Sang-kyu, TRUEMAN Incheon -
