From a beauty queen who was harshly criticized for her eyes until she lost confidence Lin Malin Charaon-an Miss Grand Thailand 2024 opened up on the “Woody Talk” show about living with the burden of uneven eyelid surgery for over two years. She was afraid to look in the mirror, wore heavy makeup daily, and felt that she no longer recognized her own face. Eventually, she decided to have corrective surgery and was able to regain confidence and smile fully again.
Looking back, how badly was your confidence shattered?
Lin Malin: It was really broken. I was a regular Asian girl wanting eyelid surgery to prepare for pageants, thinking it would make me look beautiful. But my two eyelids ended up uneven, forcing me to wear heavier makeup and dislike my face—whether made up or not. I felt this wasn’t my face anymore. I couldn’t express the confident, beautiful expressions I used to because my face had changed so much. I truly disliked my face and was afraid to look in the mirror. When I did, I couldn’t see a beautiful, capable person at all.
How long did you carry this emotional burden?
Lin Malin: Over two years. I told myself, “This isn’t me, this isn’t my face.” Some might think it’s exaggerated, but it was true. I wished I could skip to the moment after makeup was done, when the makeup artist corrected my eyes with eyeliner. I looked at myself every day. Many said I looked fine, but I knew my own problem. Waking up and seeing my face felt like having a big wound on the middle of my face—my eyes, which I have to use every day.
Did you cry over the criticism?
Lin Malin: Pageant fans worldwide scrutinize every detail. At first, I cried because I lived with these eyes for 1-2 years and had never experienced this kind of outside judgment before. I never realized my face wasn’t pretty or was even ugly. Many said once your eyelid surgery goes wrong, it’s irreversible. That made me afraid to get it fixed.
Lin had endotine and double eyelid surgery. At that time, as Woody saw, the intention was to make thicker eyelids for better makeup application, but they ended up uneven.
After corrective eyelid surgery, how many weeks of recovery before returning to normal life?
Lin Malin: At my first consultation, I thought the doctor couldn’t do it. The doctor just said it was possible and looked very young. Honestly, I was afraid and didn’t trust the doctor at first. The surgery took an hour and a half, and I recovered and had stitches removed in 7 days without any eyelid wound problems. After stitch removal, I could wear makeup and work immediately. There was only bruising and no swelling. When I woke up and opened my eyes, I looked beautiful. I was very happy the doctor could do it.
How did you feel looking in the mirror after the surgery?
Lin Malin: My eyelids became smaller as I wanted, and the scars looked very nice. I could wear makeup and post pictures after just 7 days. The doctor was the first to be happy. I told him, “No swelling, no bruising, please, because I need to work.” Even with some bruising, I could still cover it with makeup. I really like that my face looks younger now. Even though you can remove silicone from a nose, eyelids are your own skin, so if cut or altered, they’re hard to fix. But with a skilled doctor, it’s okay.
Do your eyes make your face look younger?
Lin Malin: First, the eyelid muscles improved. As I said, this helps me use my eyes better and see better. When the eyelid muscles weaken, I can’t handle bright light and squint. Long photo shoots were impossible. This likely made my eyes look like they weren’t functioning well.
I especially disliked being in the dark, almost unable to work. Normally, people adapt to darkness in about 7 seconds, but I couldn’t at all—it was pitch black. People around me said I looked prettier, and makeup artists said it was easier to apply makeup. I usually don’t wear light makeup like this.
What would you like to say to others who might have similar problems?
Lin Malin: As Woody said, it’s all just the surface. But that doesn’t mean there’s no solution. You have to endure and get through it. You can’t change other people’s thoughts. The way is to move past it and ignore it. Focus on improving yourself and fix what you can.
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