BETTER THAN EVER

We've followed Kay Garvey for the past 12 months as she underwent numerous cosmetic procedures. Now finished and fabulous, Garvey talks about her experience. - by Patricia Lake

Kay Garvey decided to take control of her life.

Weighing in at nearly 270 pounds, she knew she needed to get to a healthy size, especially when she found that taking a short walk was difficult. "I realized I would be in a wheelchair by the time I turned 50 if I didn't do something," Garvey says. "I knew I had a lot of potential and that for a lot of years I wasn't tapping into it."

Now 51, Garvey feels like a new woman, at least on the outside. "I'm still the same Kay - mentally, physically and socially - and I'm enjoying every second."

In the summer of 2003, Drs. Joseph Danyo and Michael Rosen proposed doing an extreme make over on a candidate of their choice and allowing us to follow the patient's progress. Danyo, a Greenville cosmetic surgeon, and Rosen, a Wilmington neuromuscular dentist, believed that Garvey would be a good candidate because of her age, realistic expectations, excellent health and positive attitude. They also felt that Garvey had the kind of features that the two could enhance. We couldn't be happier with the results. Garvey has lost a total of 125 pounds, wears a clothing size of 6 or 8, has perfect teeth and a body to match. Her scars are healing, her smile is movie-star quality and she looks at least 10 years younger.

Garvey was diagnosed with breast cancer about five years ago and had a lumpectomy, which removed the cancer completely but left her breasts asymmetrical. Danyo gave her a breast lift and performed a circumferential lift, which included her thighs, buttocks and tummy. He also performed face, eye and eyebrow lifts, and eventually, dermabrasion and CO2 laser resurfacing to minimize acne scars. Garvey returned to work within two months of the initial procedures.

Rosen intermingled his work with Danyo's throughout the year. His goal was to give Garvey a "beautiful smile that lasts a long time." Instead of repairing old dental work, he decided to start fresh. Rose plotted a course of action that would require several office visits but that would necessitate numbing Garvey's mouth only twice. He used a trancutaneous electro-nerve stimulator to relax the jaw muscles. The painless procedure allowed Rosen to create a precise bite for Garvey and to re-create her smile.

One of the reasons the doctors chose Kay Garvey for the makeover is because of her history of putting others first. Like many women, the Dover resident spent most of her life taking care of others, even to the detriment of her own health.

Though Danyo suggested rhinoplasty (nose reshaping) for Garvey, she decided to leave her nose alone. "I wanted to look in the mirror and still be able to see my family [resemblance]," she says.

"I still wanted to look like me."

Garvey stales emphatically that the entire process was overwhelmingly positive, but she says post-operative recovery from some procedures was more challenging than from others. The thigh lift and dermabrasion were the worst, she says. Danyo says the thigh lift wouldn't have been as painful if that had been the only procedure he did that day, but he decided to do several procedures at the same lime so Garvey would experience less stress and miss fewer days at work. "I did a circumferential (belt lipectomy) tummy tuck." he says, "which requires a lot of incision length and a lot of lifting." Also, he says that the internal thigh area tends to be painful during recovery because it is engaged for routine activities such as walking and sitting.

Danyo performs dermabrasion with a special sander to remove the outer layer of skin down to the level of the wrinkle or pockmark, which evens out the complexion. "Facial-resurfacing procedures are difficult for patients because there's a lot of swelling, crusting and oozing through that resurfaced skin," Danyo says. "It's very uncomfortable to have all that going on in your face, and it's difficult to get out and be in a social situation." He says Garvey's complaints are common, but that once patients recover from dermabrasion, they discover a dramatic improvement in their skin. Danyo says Garvey did very well. "She had a great altitude going in and completed the healing phase in the right manner." He says her compliance with his instructions was key to her recovery. "She didn't try to wing it on her own. She followed directions well and that always helps."

Doing all these surgeries over a year-long period was safe and appropriate, he says. "We didn't get carried away, and she recovered without too much disability. She had no complications and the scars look great. "From an emotional standpoint, she handled the surgery well. She's still the same person, just happier with the way she looks."

Garvey wore a size 3X when she started to lose weight and exercise routinely. Still, the decision to undergo surgery to further improve her appearance was difficult.

"I hate to go to the doctor and the dentist,"' she says. "I just kept visualizing the after-effects." From the outset, Garvey accepted that the process would take about a year, and that all surgeries carry risk. She also emphasizes that she did not expect the cosmetic improvements to fill a void or to replace anything.

Today, she has a new sense of confidence, helpful in her car-sales position at Kent County Motors in Dover. Danyo says Garvey is proof that a patient can safely have a dramatic series of procedures that produce dramatic results. "As long as the surgery is done carefully and the patient knows what will be involved," he says.

One of the reasons Danyo and Rosen selected Garvey for the makeover is because of her history of putting others first. Like many women, the Dover resident spent most of her life taking care of others, even to the detriment of her own health. She was raised in a traditional Catholic household in Ridley Park, Pa. Garvey had five brothers, and as the only daughter, she was expected to help her mother take care of the rest of the family.

Years later, when their mother started exhibiting signs of Alzheimer's disease, Garvey insisted on moving her into her own house and took care of her until she died six years later. Though she never married, when one of her sisters-in-law died, Garvey adopted her brother's two daughters.

At the time, she also worked nights and weekends in retail management and ran her own cleaning company. During these stressful years, she neglected personal care such as healthy eating, exercise and routine medical screenings. On her 45th birthday, she finally had a mammogram - and learned she had cancer.

"I'd always wondered what I would do if I was ever told I had cancer," Garvey says. Before the diagnosis, she imagined that she would decline treatment and just live out whatever time she had left.

But that's not what she did. Something told her that her life was worth lighting for. She relates a family joke. "I am a twin, but the doctor delivered my brother first, and didn't realize I was there, too. So when I came out, they thought it was just afterbirth. I've often said. 'I may not be magazine-cover material, but I look damned good for afterbirth.'"

She underwent a lumpectomy, which (removed the cancer completely but left me breast smaller than the other. Within two years of having the surgery, Garvey's life took several turns. First, she changed jobs, accepting a position as a receptionist with Dr. Diana Dickson-Witmer, the Wilmington surgeon who performed her breast-cancer surgery.

During this time, her mother died and a significant other passed way. Her brother and her daughters adopted nieces, who had been living with Garvey, moved to their own places. Garvey finally had some time to herself. With cheerful resolve typical of her optimistic personality, she was determined to use her free time to better herself. "I had completely let myself go," she says.

She joined Weight Watchers (for the fifth and ultimately successful time), bought a membership at a Curves fitness center and started working out four to five times a week. Proud of her weight loss, she moved to Dover to be closer to the beach.

She was ecstatic to be chosen for the makeover, even though she hates going to the doctor and the dentist. She knew that the time was right and she had faith that the surgeries would be successful. "I know how dedicated doctors are," she says. "I trusted Joe Danyo with my life."

Ever present throughout the course of the year has been a feeling of euphoria that refuses to dissipate. Because the work was done gradually, Garvey says, she doesn't really see a difference in herself. "I'm not seeing myself as others see me," she says. But she adds that the accompanying emotional lift is invaluable.

"I'd like to bottle this feeling. I'd give it to the world." Garvey says. Her message to others is: "Take control of your life and never give up hope."

She was right about the success of the surgeries and the dental work, and we think the doctors were right in choosing her.

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Finding a Doctor

Learn as much as you can about any cosmetic procedure you're considering, including where the procedure will be done, what the average recovery time is and whether you're likely to need pain medication afterward. Reputable doctors welcome questions from potential patients, so don't be afraid to ask the surgeon for his or her credentials during your initial consultation. You can also visit the Web site of one of the top professional organizations. Two of the best sites are www.abplsurg.org (American Board of Plastic Surgery) and www.abfprs.org (American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery).

To be certified by the American Board of Plastic Surgery, a surgeon must have graduated from an accredited medical school and completed at least five years of additional training as a resident surgeon. This includes a minimum three-year residency in an accredited general-surgery program and a minimum two-year residency In plastic surgery, after which the doctor must successfully complete comprehensive written and oral exams. A surgeon with a percentage (determined by the board) of cosmetic-surgery patients may also become a member of the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons. - P.L.

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