Patient 5
Dear wonderful people at Bay Area Aesthetic Surgery,
It has been some eight months since my surgery, so I'm well overdue to write to express my thanks for everything you have done for me. I'm such a satisfied customer that perhaps you will indulge me as I elaborate and drop the odd anecdote to explain why I'm so pleased about every aspect of dealing with all of you at BAAS.
I'm sure that you get plenty of testimonials gushing about the specifics of feminization surgery performed (in my case: breast augmentation, tracheal shave, frontal bossing, eye reshaping, brow lift and rhinoplasty – about 7.5 hours of surgery, as I recall). So, maybe I'll just concentrate on why it is that I'm so shameless about singing your praises to all who will give me a chance. It all boils down to quality, value, ethics and thoughtfulness.
* I don't have any experience in rating the quality of aesthetic surgery, so my opinion is unlikely to carry much weight, however delighted I may be – and you can be sure I am delighted. However, a number of people I know who do know about such things are very impressed. By way of a simple example, my electrologist tells me that my breasts are quite the best feeling and most natural looking of any that she's seen, and she sees them all day. She's also impressed enough by the work done on my face (and like everything else, she sees them under magnification) that she's now recommending BAAS to her clientele.
* I'm not terribly price-sensitive, since I have a moderately well paying job, but I was struck by how reasonable the price was for such a large amount of surgery. Although it would be inappropriate for me to quote any dollar amounts, I have an interesting comparison price point. A colleague of mine recently had a nasal polyp removed and had his nasal passages opened up at the same time. He was in the OR for under an hour. My whole bill, including an overnight stay in a recovery facility was only about 25% more than his. He's relieved that he had insurance. I'm delighted that I got such a good deal, and I wasn't nickel-and-dimed to death. The price I was quoted was what I paid. Try getting a car like that!
* Because I'm moderately wealthy, I could doubtless have afforded almost any surgery that I would have wanted. What was striking to me in dealing with everyone from the surgeons themselves to all of the other wonderful staff at your office was that nobody did a cashectomy on me as I walked in the door. I gave ample opportunity for people to pile on procedures (and price), but it was clear that nobody was either trying to squeeze every last cent out of me, or pushing an agenda of remolding me into some stereotypical image of a Barbie doll. Transgendered individuals are, I suspect, particularly vulnerable to being pushed into approaches of great cost and marginal benefit. I was so glad to work with people who clearly had my best interests in mind and who worked with me to find the best way to address my issues, and who were quite prepared to say "you don't need to do that" if I mentioned a possible procedure that could have made them a pile of money.
* We are all used to the heartless way that the medical system works in the US. When calling around to look for surgeons, I was met with a surprising degree of off-handed cluelessness and thoughtlessness by surgeons of high repute. A number of them simply said "we won't work on men" (isn't a nose a nose?). Others jerked me around. From the second I walked into BAAS, I was treated like a princess. Nobody questioned my sanity, or patronized me in any way. Of course, the offices are nice and clean, and everyone has a sunny disposition, but it was in the little details that I was allowed to feel genuinely cared for. When I was waiting for my slot in the OR, one of the nurses even went out of her way to get me a copy of Vogue to read – a minor issue, but a sign of being considerate. This was by far hands down my best experience of any sort with the medical profession.
Your business is one that lives and dies by referrals and satisfied customers. I'm a profoundly satisfied customer, and delighted to drop your name to anyone. If I ever decide to have any more work done, I certainly won't even think about shopping around.
My only regret is that I didn't do it all thirty years ago. Thank you so very much for all that you've done.