Is There a "Gold Standard" in How to Do a Facelift and What Questions Should I Ask on Consults?

Certainly there should be a gold standard for a facelift,but sadly some doctors are just wanting your $$$$,s and they promise the earth,but in reality many do not lift the muscle,they just lift the skin,and that is why people are returning in droves after maybe only two years or less. We can listen to all the promises,but we have no idea what goes on when we are under anesthetic . It does seem that there are many unethical doctors operating now,especially in 3rd World countries and Eastern Europe who are making a fortune by prying on the vulnerable.....how do i know this ! i know because i am one !

Hi, I would ask the surgeon if you could speak with any of his/her former patients who have undergone the procedure. Most importantly ask him or her how many facelifts he/she has performed and look at the before and after photos that are available. Ask if the surgeon is board certified. The four aforementioned questions are critical. Ask about the surgery, how long will you be under anesthesia, where will the incisions be, are the sutures (internal)absorb-able or nonabsorbable? Ask if the surgery is at the deep plane level. Next, try to get a realistic understanding of the post op period. If you work, I'd set aside at least 3 weeks to heal. I can tell you that even at 3 months post op I would wake up in the morning with mild facial swelling. It would go away before noon. I had numbness in isolated areas for a few months too. The area behind my ears, of course, show signs of having a facelift (incisional scars) even at 7 months post op--so pony tails are not realistic for awhile. I can wear a ponytail now, but have to make sure its not high and tight but lower and loose. Prior to undergoing the surgery I understood the surgery, but for some reason I didnt really think about the pain. The ps gave me pain medicine postoperatively that I used for approx 7-10 days mostly to sleep at night. you will have pain. You will need to ice your face, well the sides of your head mostly, for several days postop as well. Facelifts do hurt, you'll probably eat really soft foods for a couple weeks. It is realistically all about personal motivation toward gaining the end result and the ability to subscribe to the concept of delayed gratification that makes a facelift realistic& gratifying for a patient. I felt normal by 2-3 months, but as I described, I did have facial swelling in the morning. This was gone in about 5 months. I am in my forties and sometimes wonder if I just heal faster or something based on some posts I see here at real self. I dont regret my surgery at all. In fact, if I woke up with my former face, I'd cry. I can tell you that I followed my doctor's postop instructions to the T. I have a very supportive family that took care of me, buying groceries, etc for the first month. For the first 4 weeks I felt like I lived to heal, at 2 months I felt near normal, and at 3 felt great (except for the a.m. swelling). let me know if I can help you any further. Good Luck

Hi, I wish I had probed more about the actual procedure that will be performed. Some surgeons actually have videos where they describe in detail what they do - mine didn't and I had only the most general idea of what he did. I've had a very rough recovery and I've often wished I knew more about the actual procedure. Ask what precautions he/she will take to avoid injury to the Greater Auricular Nerve. I found out too late that this nerve is very often injured in facelifts and, if it is, numbness may be permanent. Make sure you ask them to define what "recovery" means to them. I interviewed many surgeons and they all told me the same thing: recovery from a mini-lift is two weeks and a full facelift, 6 weeks. I realized afterwards that they were referring to appearance, not the way you feel. It takes minimum 6-12 months to feel anything approaching normal. I'm 5 months post-mini lift and no where near normal yet. If I had known how long & miserable recovery can be, I never would have gone down this long, frustrating road. Even though I look pretty good, I regret this decision every day. If I were advising my best friend I would tell her not to do it; it's simply not worth the constant discomfort and mental anxiety. Anyhow this is just my two cents worth. Good luck in whatever you decide.