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The Future Of Beauty: “New techniques allow for a greater number of candidates to enter the plastic surgery realm” With Dr. Farrokh Shafaie

There are numerous inventions and discoveries today that are able to help people appear younger and healthier. These vary from machines that help tighten the skin, injections that reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, injections such as PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) that promote hair growth, and stem cells that help joint pain. In addition to these procedures, the onset of so many new techniques allow for a greater number of candidates to enter the plastic surgery realm and use a method that works best for them.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Dr. Farrokh Shafaie, MD, a board certified plastic surgeon. Practicing in Summit, New Jersey and New York City, Dr. Shafaie combines his extensive plastic surgery training with a holistic approach to give you the best results for you. As a pioneer in utilizing holistic medicine in his work, Dr. Shafaie has been featured in Good Morning America, Vogue, W Magazine and New York Post.

Thank you for joining us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

My father’s family has a long history of physicians. In addition to confidently knowing I wanted to be a physician, it also seemed as though it was a bit of a tradition in our family. When I was 12 years old, my mother had a nose job that I was incredibly impressed by. At such a young age, I was able to observe my mother’s physical and emotional transformation, which inspired me to ultimately help others.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

When I started my practice in 1984, I was not expecting to see any celebrities for at least a few years. In 1989, a very well-known Brazilian popstar entered my office. It was shocking to have such a celebrated and renowned individual personally seek me out, especially during a time where her country had many experienced plastic surgeons. Ultimately, she explained she saw one of her friends that I had operated on, and she loved the results, which is why she visited me personally.

Are you able to identify a “tipping point” in your career when you started to see success? Did you start doing anything different? Are there takeaways or lessons that others can learn from that?

I began my career working in a variety of emergency situations. I spent about 10 years practicing all types of surgeries such as reconstructive, cosmetic, and microsurgeries. After this time is when I realized my true passion was to focus on cosmetic surgery within plastic surgery.

Specifically; however, I recall a “tipping point” in my career that involved foreign patients. Patients from France, Italy, Canada, and Germany were calling the office to schedule appointments. Prior to this, I was aware of my demand nationally; however, receiving calls from individuals regarding my personalized facelift technique (Shafaie’s-Lift) was an eye-opener.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person to whom you are grateful who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

In 1976, I received a letter of deportation from the US Immigration Office to leave the country in ten days. Luckily, I met a lady by the name of Renee on the beach in Cohasset Massachusetts. She was able to secure me a job that allowed me to legally stay in the country long enough to renew my visa. If it wasn’t for her, I question where my life would be today. She allowed me to further my education and create a life for myself in the United States.

Ok super. Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. The beauty industry today has access to technology that was inconceivable only a short time ago. Can you tell us about the “cutting edge” (pardon the pun) technologies that you are working with or introducing? How do you think that will help people?

There are numerous inventions and discoveries today that are able to help people appear younger and healthier. These vary from machines that help tighten the skin, injections that reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, injections such as PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) that promote hair growth, and stem cells that help joint pain. In addition to these procedures, the onset of so many new techniques allow for a greater number of candidates to enter the plastic surgery realm and use a method that works best for them.

Keeping “Black Mirror” and the “Law of Unintended Consequences” in mind, can you see any potential drawbacks about this technology that people should think more deeply about?

I believe there are always potential drawbacks and consequences with the onset of new technologies. However, if you ensure that you go about these techniques under the care of a board-certified Plastic Surgeon who knows how to facilitate and negate potential consequences, there should not be any overt drawbacks in the near future.

Can you share 3 things that most excite you about the “beauty-tech” industry?

  1. The constant pursuit of perfection in the field of cosmetic surgery
  2. The improvements that are being made both with the technology and practices we have been accustomed to for many years.
  3. The research that will result from this, that will in turn promote healthier living and younger looking appearances.

Can you share 3 things that most concern you about the industry? If you had the ability to implement 3 ways to reform or improve the industry, what would you suggest?

Concerns

  1. False claims regarding cosmetic products in order to wrongfully convince consumers
  2. Non-authentic results of cosmetic procedures used as advertising
  3. A lack of honesty and transparency between patient and physician

Improvements

  1. More stringent FDA regulations regarding products sold on the market
  2. A way to assess whether advertisements are true results of the product, or if they have been embellished for consumers
  3. Normalize the stigma around plastic surgery in order to allow a more honest conversation between patient and physician.

You are an expert about beauty. Can you share 5 ideas that anyone can use “to feel beautiful”? (Please share a story or example for each.)

  1. Love yourself for who you are, not what you see on social media
  2. Flowers are beautiful, but no 2 flowers look the same. Each have their own beauty, similar to us as individuals.
  3. Do not expect anything in return
  4. If you do something good, do it from the goodness of your heart, not for the result
  5. Ex. Helping others is for you, not for other people to know.
  6. Try to eat healthy
  7. Read ingredients! If you can’t pronounce it, you probably shouldn’t eat it.
  8. Ex. If reading the ingredients is not your cup of tea, I personally try and purchase foods with an ingredient list no longer than 2–3 lines.
  9. Create a routine exercise
  10. The routine is the main aspect to focus on here. Creating a schedule allows for a sense of control, which ultimately helps our overall mental health.
  11. Every morning, look at yourself in the mirror, and no matter how you look, smile and tell yourself “I love you. Today will be a great day for ME”.
  12. This might sound cheesy, but verbalizing positive feedback manifests in your everyday life.
  13. Ex. When I began doing this, I didn’t believe myself. But once it became somewhat of a routine, it was something I looked forward to in order to start my day on a positive note.
  14. Although these suggestions are not necessarily physical, I have always incorporated a holistic approach to my practice. I believe focusing internally is the first step toward feeling beautiful externally.

You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂

As the Persian Prophets suggest: Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

In moments of unhappiness, loss, and defeat, you recognize how fragile life truly is. We never know what the next moment will hold. The death of both JFK Jr. and Kobe Bryant had emotional and lasting impacts on me. Two men who seemed so full of life and invincible, taken away. I find it necessary to step back and observe the true beauty and blessings in life. Enjoy the moment, do not envy anybody’s happiness or success, and always think about what you can do to light up your internal spirit and flame.

How can our readers follow you online?

Website: www.medfem.com

Instagram: @drshafaiemd

Facebook: Dr Farrokh Shafaie

Office #: 908–522–1777 (NJ) or 212–772–1010 (NYC)

The Future Of Beauty: “New techniques allow for a greater number of candidates to enter the plastic was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.