Truman Customer Story Column
"It Was More Private Than I Expected, Which Was Good"
Ask how the first visit felt and you might expect talk of facilities or kindness, but a different answer comes up surprisingly often. This person's was one: that it was more private than expected.
People coming in for a gynecomastia consultation worry first about who they might run into in the waiting room. Their name being called at reception, the consulting-room door standing open, someone sitting in the next seat. Things that look unrelated to the care itself can be the reason someone turns back at the door.
What Worried Them Was ComplicationsWhat this person worried about most while considering surgery was complications afterward. It is also the question we receive most in consultations.
After the surgery, they wrote thanks that it had been wrapped up well. But that is their impression of their own course, and gynecomastia surgery, like any surgery, proceeds carrying possibilities such as bleeding, swelling, and asymmetry. So in consultation, instead of saying no problem will occur, I first explain what problems can occur and how we respond. I believe making the content of a worry precise helps more, in the end, than trying to remove it.
Why We Say in Advance That It May HurtAsked what moment stayed with them from the surgery, this person wrote about being told beforehand that the injections on both sides of the chest might hurt. And that after that, their memory did not continue.
Our gynecomastia surgery is performed under sedation. The injection at the start of anesthesia comes before you fall asleep, so we mention it in advance. Pain experienced without warning and pain experienced after warning feel different even when the stimulus is the same. Not startling you is, I think, part of the anesthesia process.
Short Sleeves and ExerciseFor what they wanted to do after surgery, they chose wearing short sleeves and exercising.
It is best to return to exercise in stages, keeping to the timing. When you can start again changes with the degree of recovery, so rather than judging on your own, checking as you go is safer. There is almost nothing to gain by rushing it.
To Those Facing the Same ConcernThis person left a short note to the effect of not putting it off. It must come from the time they spent carrying it alone. But it is their experience, and whether surgery is needed and when is best is something to judge after confirming your condition through an examination.
They did not write anything for what they would like from us. It may be that there was nothing, or that it was not the place to write it, so I will ask directly at the next visit.
