And in the process we have spoken to over two dozen plastic surgeons.
But the doctors can really only tell part of the story.
The term facelift doesnt mean what you think it does.
This surgery will not in fact bring your entire face northward.
(Lowerfaceandnecklift doesnt have quite the same ring to it, though.)
I got the surgery at 64, mostly because of my neck.
Facelifts are rarely solo acts.
Theyre almost always combined with at least one other procedure.
Or a facelift plus an eyelid lift (aka a blepharoplasty).
Or a facelift plus a brow lift plus a chemical peel.
You get the idea.
In fact, it wasnt unusual for a patient to have as many as four procedures at once.
It was the best decision ever, says Deborah E., 60.
The nice thing about it was that it eliminated thehollowness undermy eyes altogether…
I was like, Hey, where did thosedark circlesgo?
You might not go under general anesthesia.
Dr. Karam performs his facelifts under local anesthesia with IV sedation.
Chris L., 54, also described being awake during her facelift.
Her doctor used local anesthetic along with oral sedation (Diazepam and hydrocodone).
They also let me have laughing gas to get nice and relaxed.
(Nitrous oxide gas was administered only during initial injections of the local anesthetic.)
If I winced, he would stop immediately and go, Did you feel that?
And Id say, Well, yes, sir.
We askedDavid Shafer, MD, a board-certified plastic surgeon in New York City, how common this is.
For the right patients, it is possible to offer local anesthetic or laughing gas.
However, this is the exception and not the rule, heexplained.
We asked Chris L.s surgeonJ.
There are many reports of this in the medical literature.
Patients report less nausea and a quicker recovery with less anesthesia.
We do not hesitate to do the procedures in an outpatient operating room with more sedation or general anesthesia.
The recovery period is not exactly a blip.
Kristy D., 52, says she was actively recovering for at least a month.
If you dont have six weeks of PTOand really, who does?
Those first three weeks, he adds, are when patients may feel quite self-conscious about appearing in public.
Still, it takes many months for the incisions and the tissues to fully heal.
You might not want to look in the mirror for a while following a facelift.
I looked like I had been in a street brawl.
I was leaving the house at around two weeks withsunglasseson.
I looked crazy afterwards with the swelling and bruising.
You are not going to look great two weeks out of surgery.
About a week later, it looked like I got hit with a baseball bat.
And then, 10 days later, I looked younger, she says.
(Kron is a former Allure editor, who went on to have two more surgeries.)
Parts of your face could be numb for monthsmaybe even half a year.
This is a lesser-knownbut very commonside effect of facelifts.
Its not painful, per se, but it can feel oddand it can linger.
The numbness is something I had to get used to for quite a few months, Marybeth M. says.
Then, suddenly, I felt some tingling and I had my sensation back.
Six months later, the feeling is still coming back and I have been told its a process.
Its a slightly different kind of numbness, with tightness to it.
Its not a pain, though.
Neda Karam says that for six weeks after surgery her face felt like a rock.
It didnt look swollen, but it felt swollen.
I didnt really like touching it, to put sunscreen on for example.
It just didnt feel like normal skin.
While the nerves are recovering, your skin can feel tingly and numbbut that wont happen to yourentireface.
For some people, feeling comes back quickly.
For some, it takes a while.
Its usually like a pins and needles feeling, its not totally numb.
Dr. Karam says that numbness usually settles down by month three or four.
You may feel depressed or anxious at some point after your facelift.
Around day three after surgery, I got a bit overwhelmed.
You start to question, Why did I do this?
says Maria C. But that feeling passed and I started to see the positive changes in my face.
These surgeries take around five to ten hoursand thats a long operation, with anesthesia.
Recovery takes a long time.
It takes months to recuperate and for swelling to go away, and people get frustrated.
Its important to talk with your doctor about what a facelift realistically canand cantdo.
As Kron says, A facelift wont transform you into any of theiconsyou admire.
It wont change your personality.
It wont restore your youth.
8. you could expect to wear a compression garment at the beginning of your recovery.
I was wrapped up like a mummy after, says Christine K., age 54.
The garmentwhich prevents swellingmight feel as unpleasant as it sounds.
If youre not already an accomplished binge-watcher, youll have to learn.
(May we recommendLove Is Blind.)
Resting was the hardest part.
I had to stopexercisingfor almost three months, which is a big part of my daily routine.
I like to be active.
But it is important to your healing, and youve just invested so much [in this procedure].
After two weeks, she was walking and lifting light weights at home.
On week three, she was back to group classes, though modifying her weights.
If they feel better mentally when they work out, then I’m going to be much more lenient.
You will experience painbut it might not be as bad as you think.
It was really painful for the first couple of days.
But that level of discomfort passes relatively quickly.
Neda Karam says she only took Tylenol, from day one.
There were exceptions, though: Christine K was in for a few long nights right after her surgery.
I was vomiting for three days.
I spent the first few nights sitting upright in a recliner chair because of the drainage.
I used Tylenol around the clock for the pain.
During the second week, things got progressively better.
The scars really shouldnt be a deal breaker.
Adds Marybeth M., the only telltale sign is scarring behind the ears and back hairline for me.
Nobody really notices it.
Generally, facelift incisionsand their scarsare at the earlobe, behind the ear, and into the hairline.
And advancements in facelifts have allowed plastic surgeons to make them shorter than ever before.
You just might get some time back in your beauty routine.
My skin looks so good at 62 years old that Im not wearingfoundationanymore.
I put on a littleeye shadowand lip gloss and thats it.
After her facelift, I getBotoxevery six months or so.
I dont feel the need to get filler like before.
Now, even when Im exhausted, I look in the mirror, and I look refreshed.
A facelift is a major surgery.
It will cost you time, and a lot of money.
You will be swollen and bruised, and at points you may well regret the whole thing.
There will be some surprises.
Actually, in most cases, pleased would be a pretty serious understatement.
As Chris L. put it, I would do it again tomorrow.
Id do it again today!
