Elena* (who prefers not to share her age) is a woman living in southwest Florida. Two years after getting a facelift and being dissatisfied with the results, she decided to go to another plastic surgeon for a revision—and she couldn’t be happier with her decision. This is her story, as told to Emily Orofino and edited for length and clarity.
At the start of my facelift journey, I was very, very depressed. I had gone through a traumatic period and gained about 100 pounds. I knew I had to do something to be more comfortable, to get back to where my physical and mental well-being were more centered. I took up cycling and lost 120 pounds, but living in Florida, I spend a lot of time outside, and I’m one of those stupid people who don’t use sunscreen enough. That, and the weight loss, had really affected my skin. So when I saw a photograph of myself, I looked at it and went, “Oh my God, that’s me? I look so old.” A facelift became part of this journey to be more comfortable with myself. I started doing my research, which led me to a doctor in Beverly Hills, California, who did the initial facelift.
The experience and the result weren’t what I’d hoped for. It seemed like that particular doctor was upselling all the time, trying to get more and more done. There were things I had mentioned to him that I wanted that involved more than just a facelift—I got a lip lift too—but there were also things that I said I didn’t want. But he didn’t listen—he oversold and underdelivered. He was a very well-respected and -reviewed doctor; maybe I was just one of the few who hadn’t had a good result. I was taught that if you don’t have something nice to say, it’s probably better not to say anything, so my experience is water under the bridge at this point. But I looked at that first photo again and thought, “My results could be better—I need to start shopping and get this corrected.” I decided to look for a new surgeon.
I waited two years for everything to settle down before my next surgery, doing more research in the meantime. I kept coming up with two or three doctors’ names, including [board-certified facial plastic surgeon] Dr. Ben Talei, and kept looking at his reviews and before-and-afters. I was really impressed with the quality of his work, so I booked a video consultation.
During my appointment, he actually listened to what I had to say rather than saying, “Oh, you need this. You need that.” Our conversation was more like, “This is what I would suggest doing—how do you feel about that? Do you have other considerations?” I’m not a high-value individual. I’m nobody special. I’m just a retired pilot. But I was always treated with respect. He was a classy man who was generous with his time and honest in his responses. After talking with him, I knew he would be my plastic surgeon. Some people seeking a revision might have reservations, thinking that if it went bad before, what if it does again? But I wasn’t nervous— I was fully confident when I flew to Dr. Talei for my second facelift surgery.
As you age, fat becomes gravitationally challenged, shall we say. Like many other parts of our body, it drifts downward. Dr. Talei corrected that without making large incisions and repositioned it all back where it was supposed to be. I had sutures along the hairline and forehead that were invisible from the start and behind the ears that were invisible after a couple of months. I only had a little bruising, which was fully gone in two to three weeks. The anesthetic was intravenous as opposed to full-on intubation; it left me with a somewhat dopey grogginess, but I got up and walked to the cab easily under my own power. Pain was pretty much a nonissue, and the only real bother was the drains, which came out shortly afterward. I’m fortunate to have healed quickly, and I was on an airplane home nine days after surgery, with no odd glances from other passengers.
By then, I was already extremely happy, so I wrote this letter to him. There was so much positive feedback from people; they were so kind that I almost had tears in my eyes. And in my personal life, nobody noticed a change to my appearance. They said I looked really well rested and asked if I go to the spa often.
It wasn’t until I went out to L.A. again, about six months later, that I realized the significance of the changes. I stopped by Dr. Talei’s office, and he asked to take photos of me, now that I’d fully healed. This facelift was so different from the first. It was like it rolled back the clock so many years, which was very, very satisfying. I recognized myself fully in the mirror.I’d happened upon a time in my life where I had a perceived need. Yes, cosmetic surgery is a vanity. But I refuse to go into old age without kicking and screaming the whole way. Truthfully, I usually lie about my age, but when I do tell people my age, they say, “there’s no way you’re that old!” My facelift made such a big change. Dr. Talei is someone I wish I’d met a bit earlier—so my surgery would not have had to be a revision from the other surgeon—but I’m so glad I found him. I consider him a friend.
