Dr Sonita Sadio - Making the outside match the beautiful inside.

Italian actress Sophia Loren once said,; “Nothing makes a woman more beautiful than the belief that she is beautiful.” But sometimes, a woman feels she needs a little help along the way to bring out her beauty. That's where plastic surgery comes in, and Dr Sonita Sadio.

“I think if I had a conversation now with my 20-year-old self, that 20-year old would be quite surprised that I am in Aesthetic Medicine now because I would have judged it,” Dr Sonita Sadio confessed to Outlook.

Born in Jamaica, Dr Sadio left our green shores and moved to the United States of America when she was just three years old. But she always remained connected to her roots. “We left so that my father could pursue his doctoral work at Princeton Seminary. We came back to Jamaica regularly while I was growing up, and I would always feel at home here.  It was like a resonance ... like I'd never left.”

She continued, “I found the people so warm and lovely.  On drives to the country to visit my grandparents in Claremont, I would marvel at the beautiful views. It was totally enchanting to a child's imagination. And back home in the States, I always felt like I was from someplace special, where I would always be loved and welcomed.  That is one of the blessings few people discuss when talking about life as a young expat.”

Now a cosmetic surgeon making waves in the Big Apple (New York), she told Outlook that she knew she always wanted to be in the medical field, but never envisioned herself pursuing plastic surgery. She noted that she wanted to be able to help her patients on a personal level, crediting her father for that passion, as he was a minister dedicated to assisting others any way he could. She was also strongly influenced by her mother who was always sharing her love for all things scienc with her. “I know more about the intimate details of my patient's lives than I did when I was in General Surgery,” she notes of her specialist field.

She says she takes the time to get to know each patient — what they're about, whether they're having a personal crisis, or just want more out of their lives, before figuring out what they hope to achieve with any procedure.

HIGH AND LOWS

She noted that while the job has its fair share of highs, especially with satisfied patients, the lows come when dealing with the system. She describes it as sometimes dehumanising and explains that often times, this same system doesn't take into consideration the time it will take to educate patients on their available options. She has opted to bypass this by creating a whole new patient experience, which aims at putting her potential clients first.

Now she is bringing her personal touch home to share with patients in Jamaica. An emotional Dr Sadio expressed her joy and excitement at returning home to build a new practice. She told Outlook that it has been her lifelong dream to be able to be a fabric of the Jamaican society — partnering with Jamaican brands, providing employment, and of course, servicing local clients.

“I want to offer Jamaicans and expatriates living in Jamaica cutting-edge facial aesthetic strategies.  The best, the latest, the least invasive. These are protocols that I've been studying for years. I like to tell people that I am the plastic surgeon whose mission is to help clients avoid facial plastic surgery!  I use my knowledge of facial anatomy, facial ageing, and more advanced procedures to help patients develop strategies to become "ageless over time."  The idea is to do less more often, on a more regular basis to look natural and effortlessly beautiful.”

She said that there is nothing wrong with ageing. According to Dr Sadio, ageing is about gaining wisdom and becoming our best selves.  But some of the sequelae of the ageing face can make us look concerned, angry, tired, or sad, when we are not feeling those emotions on the inside. "That's what I want to solve. I feel like I'm getting better and better with each passing year.  Most people feel that way.  We all just want the outside to match that wonderful inside, “ she added.

krysta.anderson@gleanerjm.com