stayingyoung in TX

I had the procedure done in the Houston area in mid May. But I wanted to share some of the info of the LSL procedure with you. I am in the health care industry, but try to offer a neutral perspective. I hope this info will help you. I do think that the LSL marketing is a little misleading... I thought I would be in and out, and looking great with only mild pain. I must tell you there is pain which is managed with painkillers (usually only for 1-3 days). Everyone has a different perspective of pain so to one person the pain may be a 3 and to another it may be an 8. So the pain is relative. They give you a mild sedation before the procedure, then before they start cutting, they give you injections around your ear from your temple to behind your ear where you can feel the bone (about 2 inches behind the ear)to numb the area. These shots do hurt, but after the first one the pain tends to lessen. The most painful are the ones closer to the bone behind the ear. The procedure takes about 1 hour or so, depending if you have another procedure done (ie eyes, lipo under neck, etc.). You can hear the procedure and the cauterizing. When they are close to closing you will feel the pull and then they suture the area. I don't remember the suture part. You will leave with a wrap around your face and neck. You will probably swell for 3-7 days, and you may experience slight pain for about 14 days (but remember I said pain was relative). My left side seemed to bother me a little more, but did go away after about 2 weeks. I did make several return visits back to the office to make certain nothing was wrong. The office always got me in, and it nevered seemed to be a bother--although I mainly saw the surgical tech and not the Dr. After the swelling, the skin does relax a little, which is natural. (From what I can read from the other reviews, many did not anticipate this, and I also did not...but they did tell me it would happen after the procedure and it was even in my post op notes.--Also if they had pulled the skin really tight, I may have had my lips going from ear to ear with that stretched look--not what I wanted). My husband has commented several times that he can really tell a difference. You may feel like your ears are not attached to your head for about a month, but tht feeling will subside. If the surgeons are good (mine were) the scars around your ear and behind will be slight and over time should fade. When you go in, ask LOTS of questions so that you have a good idea of the procedure. Remember it is still a surgical procedure and you will experience some pain with it. You are the only one that can determine whether it is worth it for you. A full facelift will have pain too. I hope this forum has helped you get some real life information and will help you make informed decisions about whether this procedure is for you. I will be happy to answer any questions. Hopefully I can post some pics sometime soon.

I agree with you. I think that the ads give a certain degree of expectations and then they are not managed realistically. I am now post op from my LSL about 5 1/2 weeks. I am pleased with my results, but I noticed that there was just a slight relaxation of the skin after the swelling had gone down. However, then I realized that if there had been anymore tightening that my mouth would have looked like it was spread from ear to ear, and that is not the look I want. There were a couple of areas that I had treated with Juvederm to correct some small areas. However, I can see where your expectations might be shot down. I am 49-now 50 and wanted to look 20 something again. That wasn't going to happen. But I do feel that I look in my mid to late 30's/or eaarly 40. That good for me!

I am hoping so too! Thanks for the info.

Apparently Lifestyles lifts are performed differently from site to site. They all contain the no anesthesia, and are a less drastic procedure than a full facelift. My LSL had stitches that extend from the bottom of my ear into my temple area and then I had more stitches from behind my ear into the base of my hairline. I don't believe they all do this procedure. I also had Lipo under my chin. I got my front stitches out today. Several of the other patients there that were waiting to have their stitches removed had come to LSL via their friends who had the procedure done. Unfortunately this was not my case. I spoke to them about this very thing..people who were dissatisfied with the procedure because it had not held up. Three of the women there all had friends who were post procedure 4-5 years and still were quite happy. This is the very reason I decided to share my experience, is to see how it goes post-op,3 mos., 6mos, 1 year... and longer ... so I intend to make updates to this area. Like everything else, there are good Drs. and less desirabe Drs. and I know that this is probably true with LSL. I will keep my progress posted.