Body Parts - General Discussion

[GaT]

Anaplastologist Allison Vest creates amazing, lifelike prosthetics for patients who have missing or deformed body parts. Taking on unique and extreme cases, Allison melds medicine and artistry to help her patients both functionally and psychologically.

[GaT]

Anybody watching this? It's pretty fascinating how realistic she makes everything. When they showed the first patient, I actually started crying I found it so upsetting. And now I'm paranoid about nose bleeds.

[JeanJean]

18 minutes ago, GaT said:

Anybody watching this? It's pretty fascinating how realistic she makes everything. When they showed the first patient, I actually started crying I found it so upsetting. And now I'm paranoid about nose bleeds.

I cried when they got their new body parts. She does amazing work.

[DNR]

Seeing the gentleman with his nose completely gone from skin cancer reminded me to be vigilant with sunscreen on my fair skinned face 👃 

** that said , i wasn’t a big fan of the nose he ended up with but happy for him 

[GaT]

8 minutes ago, DNR said:

Seeing the gentleman with his nose completely gone from skin cancer reminded me to be vigilant with sunscreen on my fair skinned face 👃 

** that said , i wasn’t a big fan of the nose he ended up with but happy for him 

Was it skin cancer? I thought he had a growth in his nose & that's why he was getting the nose bleeds.

[AZChristian]

I wonder why the girl with the deformed ear didn't choose to have some of what was still there removed before getting the prosthetic.  It almost looked like she had two ear lobes when the prosthetic was in place.

I was underwhelmed by the nipple prosthetics.  Some of us have inverted nipples, and don't think pointy nipples with no bra are a necessity of life.  Nipple tattoos have been available for years.

Even so, it's wonderful that there are people who can help those who need these types of prosthetics.  

[auntjess]

7 hours ago, GaT said:

Was it skin cancer? I thought he had a growth in his nose & that's why he was getting the nose bleeds.

No, it was cancer.
I had the feeling that the mother of the ear daughter, made her feel bad about it, from childhood.

[GaT]

31 minutes ago, auntjess said:

No, it was cancer.

Yes, I agree it was cancer, but I don't think the cancer was on the outside of his nose, I think he had a cancerous growth inside his nose, that's why he had the nose bleeds & trouble breathing.

[jcbrown]

I wanted to hear more about how the prosthetics are applied and taken off, how often you have to remove them, how you learn to blend the makeup in to make them look natural (I thought that was a particular problem with the nose), and how you take care of them. Also would not mind a bit more technical detail about how they are made. But yeah, pretty interesting premise for a show. And I agree, having nipple headlights poking out all the time would not be for me but I was happy for her because she was so happy.

[sempervivum]

I agree that it would be very interesting to see more of the makeup/blending process. Also, they don't need to bother with any more nipple projects if they can't bring themselves to actually show the finished ones installed. Seriously, we can ogle them when they're lying on the work counter, but not when they're on her chest? Silly. Also, I understand the young woman wanted as much 'realness' as possible, but her rebuilt breasts were such a mess, it didn't seem like fake nipples would make much of a difference. (I missed the beginning, but assume she had cancer?)

21 hours ago, AZChristian said:

I wonder why the girl with the deformed ear didn't choose to have some of what was still there removed before getting the prosthetic.  It almost looked like she had two ear lobes when the prosthetic was in place.

The fake ear was also significantly lower than the 'good' one, and the lobe peeking out sort of brought attention to the discrepancy. I wonder if she had hearing in the deformed ear, and they didn't want to risk removing any structures out of caution?

Very interested in next episode with the complete eye replacement.

[Maisiesmom]

I enjoyed this show very much. Allison really knows her stuff. I thought the nose guy came out very well-it might not have been perfect but looked so much better. The ear girl was deaf in the bad ear and looked to have a lot of scarring behind and below where the "natural" ear would have been. I thought it was cool Allison put earrings on the new ear-the girl seemed very happy. I agree with Sempervivum about the nipple gal-it would be better if we could see how they looked on her reconstructed breasts.  I remember in mortuary school we had to reconstruct body parts  also (they were done in clay). We had to do an ear, a nose, lips, and a whole head. It was part of the Restorative Arts course. I wasn't very good at it and threw my head away right after it was graded. Some of my classmates also had to do a hand. All of it was a lot of work. She seems to have a natural talent for her skills. Maybe in future shows they will explain the finer details like blending the cosmetics and how the adhesives work. I am curious about the eye also.

[GaT]

3 hours ago, jcbrown said:

I wanted to hear more about how the prosthetics are applied and taken off, how often you have to remove them, how you learn to blend the makeup in to make them look natural (I thought that was a particular problem with the nose), and how you take care of them. Also would not mind a bit more technical detail about how they are made. 

Me too. When she started on the nose makeup, I thought it was something permanent on the nose that she did to get the skin tone correct, but then realized it was just makeup, so yeah, I would like to know how the person actually deals with the prosthetic in their real life. 

2 hours ago, sempervivum said:

I understand the young woman wanted as much 'realness' as possible, but her rebuilt breasts were such a mess, it didn't seem like fake nipples would make much of a difference. (I missed the beginning, but assume she had cancer?)

Yes, she had breast cancer, & she was really young. I wouldn't want "headlights on" nipples all the time, but they were her boobs, so if they made her happy, that's great. I wonder if they get an extra part in case something happens to the first one? She could get a set of nipples that were flat, & one set that poked out. But when they showed her at the end, you could clearly see that her breasts weren't even. Whoever did her reconstruction did a bad job.

[Kristi800]

On 4/7/2022 at 3:49 PM, DNR said:

** that said , i wasn’t a big fan of the nose he ended up with but happy for him 

Yeah, it was uneven, but maybe that makes it more real looking. But had the same reaction. 

I feel like some of these people need to go on Botched to get the underlying issue fixed like the ear lobe shortened. Whoever did the surgery on her really did a bad job. What the heck! Drs. Nassif & Dubrow could really help with the underlying surgeries to make the baseline better. 

The woman on tonight's show with the ear replacement did a better job on this woman's ear than the young girl's. 

Is Allison's office in her home or just an office that's in a home? 

Can I say that I LOVE Victoria? I don't think I'd be so happy in general and it's only been a few years. She's so Strong! I feel like they're a little bulky around the wrists. Will she be able to put them on herself, though? But overall they look really good.

Edited April 14, 2022 by Kristi800
General addition.

[sempervivum]

13 hours ago, Kristi800 said:

Is Allison's office in her home or just an office that's in a home

Well, there's a big freestanding sign outside with the name of the clinic- 'Something Prosthetics', so it must be in an office building of some sort. But yeah, the inside shots make it look like a house that's been converted to a studio. 

I missed the first half of this; what caused Victoria's terrible damage? The new hands would probably look very convincing with a longer-sleeved top, and it was pretty great that she could use the hands for eating, holding her adorable son's hand, etc. I would have liked to see how she got them off in order to clean her arms, and then on again. They looked tight, I assume she only wears them in public.

Again, didn't see the back story, and couldn't figure out why the eyebrow guy had decided to have a shiny metal tooth and weird metal? eye. I guess the eyebrow did provide a bit of normalcy, but I wonder why he didn't just go with an eyepatch. 

[mmecorday]

Quote

I missed the first half of this; what caused Victoria's terrible damage?

She had pneumonia and because it was left untreated for too long, it went into sepsis, which led to the amputation of both her hands and her legs below the knee.

The reconstructed hands looked like they would be uncomfortable after a while. I found it amazing how much she could do without hands. And she's a runner too!

 

[chenoa333]

I'm very intrigued with this show. It's educational and heart warming. 

But as we all know, TLC can take some shows to a low level very quickly.

[Kristi800]

Quote

The reconstructed hands looked like they would be uncomfortable after a while. I found it amazing how much she could do without hands. And she's a runner too!

And push-ups!!! 

[GaT]

I'm glad he's happy with it, but that eyebrow prosthetic did not look good to me. It had way too much hair on it, & didn't seem to be in a spot that made sense.

[crazycatlady58]

57 minutes ago, GaT said:

I'm glad he's happy with it, but that eyebrow prosthetic did not look good to me. It had way too much hair on it, & didn't seem to be in a spot that made sense.

I thought the same thing but his other eyebrow seemed off also.  She said there was a problem matching the skin color  maybe she put it more to the side because there was more of the skin graft there. 

[readheaded]

21 hours ago, GaT said:

I'm glad he's happy with it, but that eyebrow prosthetic did not look good to me. It had way too much hair on it, & didn't seem to be in a spot that made sense.

I agree. I also found him attention-seeking and didn't care for him too much.

[AZChristian]

I think it might have looked better if he had the eyebrow tattooed or microbladed.  It looked like the prosthetic eyebrow started too far away from his nose, and if he found a good tattoo artist, they could have made it match the other better.  And he wouldn't have to glue it on.  The tattoo would have to be freshened up once in a while, but if the end result is better . . . 

Unfortunately, TLC doesn't seem to have a show where you can have your eyebrows tattooed for free.

[bilgistic]

This show is so intriguing.

The older woman's (third) prosthetic ear was incredibly realistic looking. Her laughing and being like ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ about her dog chewing up/eating her first and second ears was kind of enraging. I guess since she kept paying for them, she can do whatever, but it's still shitty to not care more for such specialized artistry.

I didn't understand the nipples at all. At. All. As the owner of a natural set, it wouldn't bother me one bit if I woke up with no nipples (and surrounding areolas) tomorrow. It's literally just skin. (Granted, I'm childfree, but no one's feeding a baby with prosthetics, either.) If my breasts were gone, yeah, that'd be difficult, but I don't understand nipple obsession.

Oh, how I cried, though, for the woman who got new hands. Both she and her son were so happy. What an incredible story and family.

[cynicat]

On 4/14/2022 at 5:59 PM, crazycatlady58 said:

I thought the same thing but his other eyebrow seemed off also.  She said there was a problem matching the skin color  maybe she put it more to the side because there was more of the skin graft there. 

It did seem too far to the right.  I think it's because of what you pointed out @crazycatlady58.  If she moved it closer to his nose, she would have needed 2 colors of skin and maybe that's not possible. 

If he was an attention whore then IMO good for him!  To have that much self-confidence after such a disfiguring injury is awe inspiring.  

[Maisiesmom]

Amputee lady was truly a badass! What a strong and brave woman! So happy for her and her new hands. Eyebrow guy came out ok I guess- the new brow did seem to be too far away from the midline of his nose. I think he could have really rocked an eyepatch instead of that silver prothesis. Ear lady-what the hell? Put your ear away so the doggos can't get to it, for Pete's sake. I can't imagine the replacements are inexpensive. Really liking the show so far.

[readheaded]

On 4/16/2022 at 6:01 AM, cynicat said:

It did seem too far to the right.  I think it's because of what you pointed out @crazycatlady58.  If she moved it closer to his nose, she would have needed 2 colors of skin and maybe that's not possible. 

If he was an attention whore then IMO good for him!  To have that much self-confidence after such a disfiguring injury is awe inspiring.  

I think he was attention-seeking before he was injured. I struggle calling it an accident. 

Edited April 18, 2022 by readheaded

[mmecorday]

Quote

Eyebrow guy came out ok I guess- the new brow did seem to be too far away from the midline of his nose. I think he could have really rocked an eyepatch instead of that silver prothesis.

The silver prosthesis made him look like a cyborg. I'm not a physician, but that skin graft looked botched to me. The skin on the thigh is so different from the skin on the face. It's a pity that the skin couldn't be grafted from his scalp.

[SunnyBeBe]

I was astounded by the lady who couldn’t stop her dogs from chewing on her ear prosthetic.  I suppose it’s her money, but it seemed disrespectful to the creator and those people who need them and can’t afford it.  Her cavalier attitude about being more careful was a turn off for me.  
 

I can’t think of anything much worse than losing all your limbs at once.  It seems so overwhelming.  I hope there are better days ahead for that lady and her family.   
 

 

[GaT]

I wish we had more of the story of the little boy whose ears got torn off by a foster puppy. How did that happen? Why was the puppy so aggressive? Did the kid do something to hurt it first & that's why it attacked? Inquiring minds want to know.

The guy's new eye prosthetic looked so much better, what an improvement. I wonder why his eyelid didn't blink though?

[Maisiesmom]

That poor boy-his new ears came out well! I hope he is getting therapy-poor little guy was so scared and nervous all the time. Probably suffering from PTSD. Eye guy's new eye looked great! At least he won't have to pack his eye socket with cotton anymore. I think he doesn't blink because maybe the nerves there are damaged or maybe the muscles have atrophied. It's truly a miracle what Allison can do for these folks.

[sempervivum]

That eye was the best thing she's done, imo- I was amazed to see that she was able to make an eyelid, which really made all the difference. That guy was only 61? (got the original eye in 1979, when he was 18, so born 1961, right?) He looked 80+ to me.

Toe girl was a shrug for me. I guess if you were young and wore a lot of sandals it would be important, but again- I wonder how these things stand up to regular washing and reglue-ing, especially if you're walking around in open shoes? Her mother also looked like some ancient crone, but she surely couldn't have been more than mid 50's (daughter was 16). Beautiful hair, though.

That poor earless kid still has pretty serious damage to the left eye and mouth area. Hope the friend with the pittie had insurance. 

[bilgistic]

I thought orthotics would've been a better choice for the young Georgia mom if she's pronating her feet. I feel very sad for her having been 14 and pregnant and having given birth at 15.

The eye was incredible.

[MagicEyes]

This show just melted my cold, cold heart. Easton has ears! He’s so happy, and his mom is crying happy tears! 🙂 I have so many questions about these prosthetics—how much do they cost, how long do they last, and are they covered by insurance? 

[SunnyBeBe]

20 hours ago, GaT said:

I wish we had more of the story of the little boy whose ears got torn off by a foster puppy. How did that happen? Why was the puppy so aggressive? Did the kid do something to hurt it first & that's why it attacked? Inquiring minds want to know.

The guy's new eye prosthetic looked so much better, what an improvement. I wonder why his eyelid didn't blink though?

I thought it was his dog and if it was a puppy, it was a strong 80 pound one.  I’ve seen some serious damage done by dog attacks.  My brother was bitten by a dog as a child, doing nothing to the dog, though it was a small dog and he wasn’t seriously injured.  A young neighbor girl was scalped by her large dog when I was a child. She was disfigured for life.   There are stories in the news of dog attacks that kill or mutilate everyday.  Often, it’s unprovoked and by dogs that were previously thought to be peaceful.  It’s why I am so adamant in support of not having a dog with strong jaw power in a home with children under age 18.  It’s risky.  
 

I thought the fake eyelid didn’t move because it wasn’t attached to any nerves.  How did he say he lost his eye?  

[GaT]

52 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I thought it was his dog and if it was a puppy, it was a strong 80 pound one.

I thought the mother said that a friend asked them to foster a puppy.

[SunnyBeBe]

41 minutes ago, GaT said:

I thought the mother said that a friend asked them to foster a puppy.

That’s wild. I must have missed that part, but judging from the bloody and disfigured face shown of him in the hospital, it had to be a significant attack.  I can’t see a small puppy doing that.  That’s why I said that dogs with extreme jaw power are very risky. Certain breeds have that.  

[GaT]

8 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

 I can’t see a small puppy doing that. 

Maybe they call all dogs puppies? Or the friend lied? Or, I misheard? 😅

[SunnyBeBe]

7 hours ago, GaT said:

Maybe they call all dogs puppies? Or the friend lied? Or, I misheard? 😅

Or downplaying it?  I would imagine the parents feel responsible for what happened.  

[AZChristian]

It was an 18-month-old pit bull that she was "fostering."  

The mother said she "felt like she failed him."  I'd think that fostering a dog with the reputation of the breed is just something that's not smart when you have young children.  Not only did he lose both ears, it looks like the bites came awfully close to his left eye.

I also wonder why she didn't encourage him to let his hair grow longer.  He has a haircut that will draw attention to his head . . . which draws peoples' eyes to that part of his body, rather than trying to camouflage the injury.

[connieinnc]

A six month old puppy can be pretty large, for a big breed.

[RoxiP]

Eyelid guy had cancer of the muscles around his eye and at that time the only treatment was complete removal of all the affected area, I guess including the eye but that seems so extreme - but perhaps that was the best they knew at that time.

I will be having a double mastectomy in  few months and even at 63 I already know I want reconstruction.  I know they won't look like my original breasts and to be honest up until I started having to flash a litany of surgeons and oncologists nobody had seen my breasts in 25 years outside of my daughter, but I still want breasts.  And when the time comes I will also get realistic tattoos of nipples.  If the girl wanted headlights then she is right to do whatever she can to make herself feel as normal as possible (and I guess so she can show her daughter that having nipples is normal).  

I too would like to see a little more about the process.  I actually thought nose guy's nose was pretty good (but I'll bet they all get a lecture about not being out in the sun because tanning would definitely point out the discrepancy).  I'm sure they come with lessons on gluing down edges and perhaps even cosmetics to even them out.

Young girl with ear - I guess she just was happy to have two ears.  It was obvious that her hair grew where her ear would have been so that would have had to been addressed in order to match the ears perfectly.  Her original ear (the deaf one) was a little forward and a lot lower than her "normal" ear - that was way beyond Allison's area of expertise.  Even mismatched the two normal ears looked a lot better than what the 18 surgeries had accomplished.  Perhaps she had a problem where her body rejected the efforts of the surgeons?

 

[Back Atcha]

14 hours ago, AZChristian said:

Not only did he lose both ears, it looks like the bites came awfully close to his left eye.

And he seems to have nerve damage on both sides of his face.  A tiny lack of control of eye muscles ... and a lopsided grin--which is appealing at this young age.   IF something can be done...maybe it eventually will be.  I hope their homeowner's insurance covered those horrible medical bills.

14 hours ago, AZChristian said:

I also wonder why she didn't encourage him to let his hair grow longer.  He has a haircut that will draw attention to his head . . . which draws peoples' eyes to that part of his body, rather than trying to camouflage the injury.

At first I wondered the same...but I'd bet he has always been wearing it longer.  When his mother told him he would NEED a very short haircut  to have the prosthetics procedure(s), perhaps that "fancy" buzz was a way to talk him into the short look--one time.

[Back Atcha]

On 4/21/2022 at 9:57 PM, SunnyBeBe said:

On 4/21/2022 at 9:12 PM, GaT said:

I thought the mother said that a friend asked them to foster a puppy.

That’s wild. I must have missed that part, but judging from the bloody and disfigured face shown of him in the hospital, it had to be a significant attack.  I can’t see a small puppy doing that.  That’s why I said that dogs with extreme jaw power are very risky. Certain breeds have that.  

The mother DID say "puppy," but she also said 17 months old.  It's a pit bull...with a lot of power at only SIX months old--a powerhouse at 17mos.   A terrible tragedy for the family and the little boy.  More bad press for the breed.  Horrible for everyone.

[chenoa333]

On 4/21/2022 at 7:56 PM, MagicEyes said:

This show just melted my cold, cold heart. Easton has ears! He’s so happy, and his mom is crying happy tears! 🙂 I have so many questions about these prosthetics—how much do they cost, how long do they last, and are they covered by insurance? 

Yes. I wonder too, if some of these procedures are considered "cosmetic" by insurance companies and therefore they won't pay for it. It shouldn't be that way but insurance company owners are greedy, heartless bastards.