This week, I finally decided to see a plastic surgeon for the first time.
During my job as a beauty writer and editor for mainstream magazines, I met a lot of plastic surgeon specialists and cosmetic surgeons for interviews, and I’ve concluded they are a fascinating and fun group of people.
However, during that time, I never would see one myself.
But all that changed recently – I can’t tell you why, I guess I am just feeling a bit more grown up these days.
I wanted to go and know how it actually feels to sit in front of a surgeon, bare your emotional insecurities, soul and vulnerabilities about your appearance and see what they had to say.
I chose Doctor Steven Liew, as he has a reputation for being not just a plastic surgeon, but a face and body sculpture, according to the most glamorous Eastern suburbs women I spoke to about the subject.
He actually changes faces for the better, and isn’t into a lot of invasive surgery or operations or out to make a fortune or himself on unnecessary procedures. His work is largely carried out using injectables rather than operations – both botox and fillers, but by using them very cleverly. So you are in and out quickly with little if no down time.
I must admit walking into Liew’s rooms in Darlinghurst, I almost walked out as I could smell the anaesthetic, and given I am not a medical person at all, I freaked out. But I worked through my anxieties, and within a few minutes was sitting in his office.
He’s really softly spoken, articulate, warm, and dare I say ‘normal’. The first thing he asked me was what my star sign was – it is Virgo, and then he went into a detailed explanation of my personality – all of which was 100% spot on, and he concluded it with “don’t be so hard on yourself, be kinder, be more gentle.”
I liked him instantly. He then looked at every aspect of my face, and told me things about me I didn’t even know. He knew what side of my body I slept on, that I clench my jaw, my stress levels, my habits – good and bad, and just about all my other secrets. I was surprised and felt like there was nothing I could keep from this man – in a good way. I breathed out and relaxed.
Plastic surgeons have quite a reputation amongst journalists, as they can be engaging, curious and a touch eccentric.
I remember sitting in South Kensington in London about 10 years ago with a very charismatic and interesting cosmetic surgeon who was about 40 then, on his 6th marriage ( yep, 6th) and with a whole host of children.
I ended up back at his palatial home after the interview in his rooms with his beautiful, young pregnant wife laughing and drinking into the morning hearing all of the stories about his celebrity patients in the UK and the USA, and their life together.
He was almost at the point where he could afford private jet to whiz him from The UK to the US each week. Patients flew from every part of Europe, the US, Mexico and even South America to see him. It was wild.
Whilst I can’t share any of that gossip and name names, I can tell you loads of surgeons have offered me work on my face and body over the years, including the doctor in London, but I have largely resisted, as I just prefer natural faces, until now.
There’s something about Steven’s manner that made me feel comfortable, relaxed and lie I was in the hands of someone who truly cared about me. The best thing he said was that he didn’t feel I needed surgery, and that I rally didn’t need much at all – just four “dots.”
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