Usama Zahid May 11, 2021
Dr. Daria Hamrah is Adamant on Putting The Smiles Back on People’s Faces
Dr. Daria Hamrah is not only an incredible surgeon but also an amazing human being. He has touched the hearts of many with his excellent skills and his generous actions. It’s time we get to know him more intimately.
Dr. Hamrah is one of the top double Board Certified oral and maxillofacial / facial cosmetic surgeons in America. When he isn’t performing surgeries, Dr. Hamrah runs a skincare company called “Hamrah Aesthetics” and is the co-founder of a non-profit called “The Alegria Foundation”, which helps children with cleft lip and palate and facial deformities. Dr. Hamrah travels to Colombia yearly and donates his time performing cleft lip procedures for the children there.
1) How successful is he today?
Dr. Hamrah, no matter how successful, doesn’t measure it by what he has accomplished thus far or how many milestones he crossed or even how much money he has; to him, success is measured in being able to do what you love and to have the opportunity to follow your passion. To him, there are no winners or losers in life, just the people who can follow what they want and do so comfortably.
With all that said, Dr. Hamrah is no short of achieving success in its most conventional form. He accomplished all the goals that he set for himself and more.
His first big accomplishment was reaching his goal of getting accepted into Harvard University. This was a very important victory for him as he was defying all odds when he got accepted into Harvard, while everybody, including his professors and advisors laughed at him, he proved them all wrong. It wasn’t easy but he did it and thus it became the standard by which he judged himself and all his goals throughout his whole life.
2) What is so unique about your services and what you do in the cosmetic world?
For those who are not familiar with what “Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery” deals with, it is the science and art of surgical and non-surgical treatment/ reconstruction of the mouth (oral), jaw (maxillo) and face (facial). From tumors, corrective jaw surgery, traumatic fractures or laceration of the face and the skeleton, pathologic diseases and head and neck cancer reconstruction. Facial Cosmetic Surgery deals with the aesthetic aspect and beautification of the face.
It is a highly specialized field that deals with the most sensitive part of the body that represents you every day whether you are at home, at work or on vacation. It tells people how you feel, how old you are and whether you are healthy or ill. The reason why the face is so important to everyone is because you can never hide it, and Dr. Hamrah understands that which is why he chose this field to begin with; to change and improve lives.
The uniqueness of what he does is not just making people more beautiful and helping them with anti-aging, he gives them their self-esteem and self-confidence back. Whether it is because they don’t like their big nose, acne-scarring or the aging process makes them look older than they feel. All of that chips away at one’s self-esteem and confidence and makes them self-conscious about themselves. It occupies their mind every day to a point that they can’t function normally, become unhappy and stop socializing. It is a problem that goes back thousands of years and is embedded in our brains. Every human being wants to look the best version of themselves. You look how you feel and feel how you look; this is the motto of Dr. Hamrah’s life and he made it his mission to help people become the better version of themselves.
3) What tragedies has he encountered in his life and how did he overcome them?
It was a hard question for Dr. Hamrah to answer because no matter how tragic his circumstances became, he knew that there will always be someone who has had it worse. He believes that as there are 7.7 billion people in this world, there are billions facing tragedies that he can’t even comprehend.
To him, there were millions who were dealt with bad cards at birth and whose circumstances were not just situational; children and young adults who had facial deformities and cleft palates, missing eyes, deformed skulls and so on. Dr. Hamrah realized that a long time ago which is why he always considered his tragedies to be something that can always be overcome. This realization also led him to the career path that he is on now. He imagined what it would be like to put himself in the shoes of such children or even their parents and always considered himself to be lucky.
So about 6 years ago, he started a charity foundation called “Alegria, Foundation for Cleft Lip and Palate” with an old friend and classmate of his to help children in South America with facial deformities, which by the way had inspired him as a student to become a maxillofacial surgeon and then later a facial cosmetic surgeon. Every year that he goes on his annual mission, he sees how minor his tragedies are compared to those who are actually suffering because every time one of his children was born, he could feel the anxiety creeping up on him as he wanted them to be healthy.
So he is grateful for all that he has and doesn’t think that any tragedy could knock him down or deter him from his path.
4) What are his hopes for his practice and skincare line going forward?
Dr. Hamrah has set his priorities straight as to him, his main goal, for as long as he practices, is the happiness and contentment of his patients, everything else comes second.
He wants to be able to reach as many people as possible and inspire them to do something bigger than themselves and something for the benefit of all mankind. He would also like to be able to get as many as he can into his profession and teach them to practice ethically and not just for the financial gain.
Other than that, he has not set for himself any specific corporate goals or benchmarks to cross, he just wants to put smiles on the faces of as many people as he can.
His entire focus is simple: How can he find better, more predictable and safe ways to improve his patient’s self-esteem and self-confidence, within the context of his chosen profession; Whether it is through surgery or simply the highest-grade medical skin care, it’s something that he is obsessed about. Sometimes this may mean to have a simple and frank conversation with a patient that gives them a better perspective which can be life changing. Moreover, it will prevent them from seeking another surgeon who might not have the adequate experience to recognize that a surgery is not indicated in this specific patient, he has experienced it too many times in his profession. He also mentions it in his Washington Post article of March 2019 that talks about “body dysmorphia” and patients asking for surgeries just so they can look better on selfies, not knowing that selfies distort your facial proportions.
So to some up, his goal is to continue to educate the public using social media platforms and have a voice within the media to inspire some confidence.
5) Any quote or “words of wisdom” that you live by?
“As long as you do good to others, good things will happen to you!” Basically, he believes in Karma! “Somethings I live and breathe by and have been told by my mother since I was a kid. For a long time it sounded like a cliche when she kept saying it. Today it’s become my mantra!
The best part is, it is the easiest thing I do in life and on top of it, it brings me the greatest joy and happiness.”
One of his favorite quotes comes from former US President John F. Kennedy who said: “Don’t ask what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country!”
6) How are you making the world a better place today?
He has discussed the answer to this many times; he wants to continue to help people become better versions of themselves and gain the confidence that they might have lost over the way.
To him, it is the only way to true happiness and success. He believes that too many people in this world are focused on what they can gain or take from this world and as a result struggle and wonder why they don’t succeed or are unhappy; Why they can’t reach their goals and even if they do, soon realize it didn’t bring them true happiness and only a short-lasting joyful moment.
The reason is very simple, it is pure lack of self-awareness coupled with impatience. Everyone wants to get on the fast track to success, which for most means an arbitrary set number in their bank account, a certain size house, an expensive car or a big fat Rolex.
In his opinion, what all these people are missing is that life operates in the exact opposite way. You have to do things that make you happy and enjoy the process rather than plan your life around arbitrary set goals that were sold to you by society, a certain commercial, your parents or the “Joneses” next door. To reach your long-term goals it takes passion, compassion, patience and simply grit! Nothing comes easy, which is ok, as long as you enjoy the process.
Article by Born Realist
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