Bravo to the aging beauties who believe in allowing nature and the good lord to do their job.  Grey hair is lovely on certain types of women and the old-time movie stars were beautiful to us till their dying day.

All of this is good, but simply NOT for me!

I believe in running for fillers, botox, lasers, and face lifts which  are my way of aging naturally while the good lord does his job by looking over me.

Last August 2022 I decided to book a trip to Patagonia. Why? Mostly because I had never been there before. I would fly to Santiago Chile for a few days and go onward from there.

Sometime in November 2022 I looked in the mirror and saw drooping jowls and a wrinkled neck that I simply never noticed before; OMG what is happening to me?  Is it time to do something like a face lift at 87 years old?  I was hardly prepared but decided to visit two doctors; one in NYC and another in Miami but they surely did not persuade me to have my face done especially at their prices.

Carol Sue on her way to Chile

Sometime in December 2022 I decided that when I was in Santiago I would visit a plastic surgeon, as by coincidence, South America is known for plastic surgery. Actually, the South American women are more into their body shape such as breast implants, hip, thigh and waist improvement rather than their face.

I did a careful internet search of four plastic surgeons when I arrived, just to see what they had to say about me. I had the desk make appointments for me in Spanish, called an Uber for $4.00 and my first visit was to the Marriott where the doctor had offices.

He looked at me closely and said, “Yes, your lower face and neck of course and I will raise your forehead with stitches in your scalp and yes eyes too, and you will look wonderful.” “Oh,” I said, “I don’t think I need all of that.”  I really am here for my lower face. Oh, he said, “Really? “That’s fine.” I paid his fee of $175.00 which was extremely high for Chile and jumped into the nearest pool for a swim.

The next day I received his price of $29,000 which was close to the costs here in NYC, Florida and California. When I said, “Too expensive” he immediately dropped the price to $19,000. This was not a doctor for me. I surely would not move forward.

The second doctor was very nice and agreed with what I needed. However, his office was a bit shabby, and he was a little overweight with thick fingers which I took into consideration. For these reasons I had to pass up his low price of $4,900.

The third day, I visited the third doctor. He was very nice, handsome, although his office was not up to par for my taste but felt he probably would do a good job. However, his availability did not coincide with mine and he asked if I would like a recommendation for another surgeon? His price was $5100.00.

On the last day and before I left for Patagonia, I visited my fourth doctor. His office was in a lovely residential area of Santiago in a private home. The warm environment and his clientele felt positive. I climbed the steps  and there he was sitting behind his desk a young, handsome, slim, thin fingered, confident, charming doctor who was totally in agreement with what I wanted.

I was shaking with excitement and wondering is this what I am really going to do? Am I really going to go through with this?  I called back the third doctor who said, stay in touch and asked if by chance he knew Dr. Gomez? “He is the best; you are in the best of hands. He is a colleague of mine and we both studied in Brazil.”  I waited two days for his cost hoping it would meet my criteria and there it was $5700 U. S. dollars.

I was surely going to go through with this when I returned from Patagonia. How could I not? Upon returning, I checked into a private room in a hostel with a large open window. I visited DR. GONZALES GOMEZ again and received pre op orders. While he spoke English his staff did not, which I found trying with the many questions I had to ask. I put off giving a deposit until all of my questions were answered and when they were I went to the modern beautiful hospital for tests set on gorgeous grounds and was greeted by an English-speaking HOST who took me around to the different departments. This was an out-of-pocket fee of about $600.00 There was hardly a wait and it all ran beautifully. The hospital was spotless and even had an excellent roof top restaurant with delicious food.

The next day I went back to pick up my reports and delivered them to Dr. Gomez.  I began to look for an apartment where I could stock the refrigerator during recovery as I was set back by two weeks until there was availability. After careful consideration, I decided to stay in my terrific hostel in my private single room with the delightful open window and large bathroom.



On January 24, I paid everyone involved and the next day I was admitted to the amazing private hospital where the operation would take place. The care and greetings were unimaginable while I was dressed in a matching hospital robe outfit of navy blue and white, matching panties, long white stockings and a cap. Once again, I met doctor Gomez and anesthesiologist where we agreed I would have twilight sleep rather than general anesthesia.

I was wheeled into a huge operating room that looked like a movie set with staff running around getting ready for me while jazz music played. I climbed up on the table and put to asleep for a while and when I awakened, with the doctor still working on me,  I was able to talk to him feeling no pain whatsoever and  with my eyes covered.

I hardly needed the recovery room but remained for an hour before being wheeled into my private room overlooking the Andes Mountains and when I touched the buzzer a nurse came flying in.

I was taken home the next day by a daughter of the staff who spoke English. “Do you want me to stay with you?”  she asked.  “Absolutely not necessary.”  I was comfortable and always had someone to talk to during my recovery so the hostel for me was a wonderful choice. Great food was nearby, and I was able to go out to the restaurant the very next day. I recouped for two weeks and six days, the latter being unnecessary.

There were several visits to the doctor to remove stitches, receive facial massages and heat lamps until it was time, all healed, to return home. I look natural and could not have hoped for a better result.

Total cost $5900 for doctor and hospital

Hostel Aji $40.00 a night

NY and Miami doctors are now charging between $45-50,000 for what I had done.

Dr. Gonzalez Gomez http://www.gonzalogomez.cl

for more information carolsue160 @gmail.com