Working in the stock-exchange department of a bank was more than just a job for me. It was really my whole world. As for many things in my life, I also had to fight for a long time to get this job. So I was happy and filled with a great sense of self-esteem because I had managed, on my own merit, to gain access to a world which fifteen years ago had been exclusively reserved for men. But the many hours of overtime and the hectic pace of daily life in the stock exchange department had - after a few years - also taken a lot out of me with the result that at age 45 I noticed a slightly tired expression and severe features in my face, which made me feel uneasy.
The fact that I used to pay attention in my life to my health and diet, as well as doing a sufficient amount of sport, contributed a lot to preserving my well-formed, slim body. I did not adopt this philosophy of life by chance, as my parents were very sporting and health-conscious. In my youth I practised ski racing together with my elder brother and took part in many international competitions. At the age of fifteen I gave up top-class sport and then worked as a ski instructor. When at the age of thirty I met the man who was to become my partner - a former professional cyclist, but who at the time was the director and sporting manager of his own successful team of professional cyclists - I began to take an interest in cycle racing. I used to accompany him regularly in my leisure time to the national and international cycle races and also began to cycle myself. As a keen sports cyclist I myself used to ride four to five thousand kilometres a year on my racing bike – and still do so today although I'm now sixty years old. I was a confidante to the young, highly-trained athletes, listening to their worries and problems, encouraging them to produce their maximum performance and comforting them.
My face had clearly grown older with the years. When I was 48 I decided to have a facelift. In keeping with my temperament, I wanted to have the operation done immediately. I had known Dr. Urs Burki for a long time. He had already proven his great ability in the field of aesthetic surgery on some of my girlfriends. So I had great confidence in him. The result of the operation exceeded all my expectations! Only a few days after the intervention I already looked as I had at the age of thirty-five. I would never have thought such a thing was possible. My facial features had not been changed at all by the operation; I had been rejuvenated, but only in an extremely harmonious and natural way. When I look today at photos that were taken in the years prior to my operation, I can hardly imagine I had such a tired facial expression at that time. It's surprising how quickly one gets accustomed to one's new face.
It did not matter to me that my partner was not very supportive of my decision to have a facelift. The fact is that he was so enthusiastic about my very successful rejuvenation that he decided to have a minor nose correction performed on himself. Are we women not often the secret pioneers for decisions that men believe they are taking on their own?
Eliane Guichard, Beaucaire, France