Cosmetic Surgery on NHS

brook2jack

I would just be a bit careful at the moment about going ahead with treatment.
Many people who are depressed fixate about an aspect of their appearance that they think is responsible for all their troubles. They get it fixed and can still be depressed afterwards because the cause of their anxieties/ depression hasn't really been addressed. This is why some people have multiple surgeries because once their initial problem is fixed then they find something else that they think is the root cause of their problems.

To face surgery you need to be physically and mentally fit, this is why a psychologist interviews you before most major proceedures. See your gp and tell them how you feel so you can get healthy before embarking on surgery.

brook2jack

Most patients who are referred for orthognathic surgery see a psychologist first before starting any type of treatment. It's because the treatment takes a long time and it's to make sure someone is prepared for it and has realistic expectations over what surgery can achieve both interns of physical and mental health.

Sometimes people feel that everything that is wrong with their life will be sorted once they have the cosmetic /weightloss/ etc surgery and often it is important to treat the mental aspects as well as the physical.

It is important you are healthy when you start treatment so at the same time as having your referrals also seek treatment about your depression as treatment for both is equally important.

brook2jack

You really need to be seeing the surgeon for a full assessment of your problems. Facial proportions are quite complex , as is the relationship between top jaw,bottom jaw nose and chin.

BitterAndTwisted

brook2jack wrote: »

Most patients who are referred for orthognathic surgery see a psychologist first before starting any type of treatment. It's because the treatment takes a long time and it's to make sure someone is prepared for it and has realistic expectations over what surgery can achieve both interns of physical and mental health.

Sometimes people feel that everything that is wrong with their life will be sorted once they have the cosmetic /weightloss/ etc surgery and often it is important to treat the mental aspects as well as the physical.

It is important you are healthy when you start treatment so at the same time as having your referrals also seek treatment about your depression as treatment for both is equally important.

I wouldn't be surprised if many candidate for plastic/reconstructive surgery weren't referred to a psychologist before being seen by the consultant surgeon. I know I was for rhinoplasty. It wasn't unhelpful in and of itself but my tactic was to try and impress on the psych how much I wanted and needed the surgery in order to return me to something that resembled normal after a terrible misfortune left me horribly disfigured and not necessarily to the same way as I looked before it happened. I was fully prepared to be totally realistic about what could be achieved. All I really wanted was to be able to pass people on the street and for them not to notice me. I got my surgery but it took three separate procedures. And two decades of my youth to get there.

OP: my advice to you would be to try and concentrate on three things:

One: that you absolutely need to convince the consultant that you are an appropriate candidate for the surgery. DO NOT believe that just by looking at you it will be self-evident. That was the first mistake I made. Also, that your need for surgery is urgent or you could risk being put on the "routine" waiting-list and languish there until Doomsday. That was the second mistake I made and only discovered I was on the routine list after having been on it for a decade.

Two: That the consultant you are referred to carries out similar procedures on other patients regularly. You do not need someone who has only done one or two in the last ten years or anything like that.

Three: That the hospital and the surgeon you are referred to has the shortest possible waiting-list. They can vary hugely as I discovered myself.

Two and Three could be mutually exclusive but your GP could help you with that research when you ask.

Good luck!