SHARES
“People would ask me if I’m unhappy because I look tired and worn. I have drooping mouth corners, creases and sagging loose skin around my jaws. What concerns me the most is when I look into the mirror, the appearance on the outside just didn’t match how I feel inside!” sighed Sally, 56, who is an active hiker and office. “Should I consider a facelift?” she wondered.
What is facelift?
Facelift is a cosmetic surgery that helps reshape and lift the facial tissues to attain a more youthful look. As we age, the facial tissue loses its volume and elasticity. This gives rise to sagging loose facial skin that droops and creases. The face can appear more squarish around the jawline, and the corners of the mouth droop. A facelift procedure will do just the opposite by tightening the facial skin to reduce creases as well as lifting the facial skin in a natural way in opposite direction to the sag.
What to expect for a facelift procedure?
Your cosmetic surgeon will sit down and spend time with you to explore your concerns. There is no one standard facelift technique for every patient. Your doctor will hear you out and offer options and even combination of techniques for best refined outcome. At the end of the discussion, you should find yourself well-informed of the options available and risks involved. Most importantly, all things considered, arrive at a realistic and reasonable expectation from the facelift surgery. In the final analysis, a facelift improves your look almost immediately but will not stop the overall aging process.
During the procedure:
Usually, the facelift procedure will involve a small cut behind or in front of your ears. The facial tissues are then pulled gently in an upward and backward direction. This tightens the skin and deep facial tissues. In addition, your doctor may made a small incision under your chin to gently tighten the skin and tissues in the neck (neck lift), forehead lift, brow lift, and fat injection to increase the volume of your face. All these can be done within 2-4 hours and you can go back home on the same day.
After the procedure:
You will experience pain, swelling, bruising and numbness over your face. Your doctor will provide you with painkiller and compression bandages to be wrapped over your head. The compression can be uncomfortable but it is important to reduce facial swelling and allow for skin contraction for a great outcome. Your swelling and bruising will be the worst in the first three days and slowly improves over 2-4 weeks.
You would expect a more youthful appearance from facelift:
- Smoother facial skin contour and less creases
- Tighter skin with less sagging over cheek and jawline
- Lifted corners of mouth
Photo by Melek Kayser on Flickr
What not to expect for a facelift surgery?
1. Your facelift will not last forever
Aging is a natural process and is inevitable. However, most people experience lasting effect of 5 years and above.
2. You still have to care for your facial skin to retain youthful look
Facelift does provide an almost immediate result. However, good skin care is required to maintain healthy and young skin appearance. Skin hygiene, sunlight protection, pollutants avoidance, avoiding cigarette smoking, healthy lifestyle, good mood and less mental stress are all examples of good skin care.
Is facelift dangerous?
This is a relatively safe surgical procedure. There is only a small risk for bleeding, infection and scarring. Rare complications include heart and lung problem due to use of anaesthesia, damages to facial nerves, permanent skin numbness, hair loss at incision site, overstretching and unevenness between both sides of the face.
Photo by Restore SD Plastic Surgery on Flickr
Conclusion
Smile! Aging is a natural process. One touch of nature makes everything beautiful. You can be bright and graceful during your golden years. Consult your cosmetic surgery doctor today for a brighter smile tomorrow!
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References:
- Christian Nordqvist. Facelift: what you need to know [Healthline]. Healthline Media UK Ltd. 2019. [Available from: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/244066.php; last updated on 2017 Mar 31; assessed on 2019 May 24]
- Jorge I de la T. Facelift anatomy [Medscape]. WebMD LLC. 2019. [Available from: h https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1294682-overview; last updated on 2013 Oct 30; accessed on 2019 May 24]
by Chang Xian
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