Absolutely Wonderfully Natural Facelift - Love It and Only 3 Weeks out - Santa Barbara, CA

I have had the most wonderful facelift experience with the world renowned, Dr. Gregory S. Keller.

I scheduled my surgery, which I had not even thought of doing, for just 3 days after my initial consult. My consultation was for a much wanted necklift. I have severe sun damage on my neck from years of working in the sun. The skin was sagging and driving me crazy - I felt that it was the most age revealing skin on my whole body. As I was consulting with the doctor, it became apparent that as he stated "I wanted to look years younger." OK, I finally relegated, yes, this is true! What's wrong with that and why age gracefully when you can fight it with good surgery? . . . well, this is my world-view anyway.

Due to an impending business trip and the upcoming holidays, I decided quickly that I just needed to go for it! .

How did I manage this incredible feat and what did I do to facilitate a great result with the quickest healing rate?

First, I had a full facelift with cheeklift, necklift, blepharoplasty, mullerectomy, and hair transplant. UPon arrival at the doctors, there was much to do including bloodwork, ekg, eye exam etc. So off I went on a fantastic journey. I consulted with the physicians assistant numerous times to clarify the scary potential complications and I wanted to know all the worst-case scenarios. I kept focusing on the potential for necrotic tissue - eweee. Many photos were taken and releases signed.

My surgery was scheduled for Saturday morning. When I arrived, the doctor went over each detail one last time. What was I looking for? What did I not like? What was I hoping to improve? and then he marked me up with purple pen - that was good look. Since I was having some hair transplanted, I also consulted with the surgical nurse to make sure SHE knew where those lil transplants were going. Off to sleep I went and 8 hours later I woke up.

The first two days I stayed with an overnight nurse - she was fantastic and referred by the the doctor's office. Then, I stayed at a hotel located near the doctors office for 8 days before I ventured home so that I could rest and heal up without worry or distractions. I did not tell a soul that I was doing this - it was all for me. I took my dog for some creature comfort at night. I had mild pain which was easily managed for 4 days. To help with healing, hyperbaric oxygen treatments were recommended every day. The healing improved by 50% day over day. The oxygen treatments also helped the bruising to dissipate remarkably fast. There were two stubborn bruises that required some helpful IPL treatments (2 I believe).

I went home on day 8 with no pain. When I arrived home, my husband had no idea what I had done. Although I did have some minor bruising on the neck and under the chin, they were easily hidden by a mock turtleneck shirt.

I left on my business trip 6 days later with NO visible bruising whatsoever. Olay makes a nice powder cover-up for minor blemishes. When I arrived at my destination, none of my friends could figure out what I had done. Most of the comments were: "your hair is so much longer" or "your skin looks great." I was carded 3 times (seriously? I'm 48!). I am very happy with the results and feel that I look natural and not pulled. It's better to do a little here and a little there over time than to do one major overhaul when it may or may not help later on.

Please feel free to ask me any questions or advice - I will share my experience as completely and honestly as I can.