Tightness in neck & ears after facelift 6 months ago - is this normal?

Based on your description alone, I cannot say. It can be normal recovery. You are 6 months after your surgery and are still in the recovery phase of your surgery. The tightness may be related to residual swelling or scar tissue from your surgery. You could also have infection because your skin is red and hot. There is a small chance that the nerves supplying your saliva gland are causing the skin to become red and sweaty. I would recommend seeing your plastic surgeon and discussing your concerns with them to ensure you are healing appropriately.

Thank you for your question. Facelift recovery is ongoing and very individual, and you are still recovering from a multi-step surgical approach. The tightness and discomfort you’re experiencing should continue to gradually decrease over the course of several months. I recommend that you schedule an in-person consultation with an experienced, board-certified facial plastic surgeon who can oversee your recovery process and suggest options for maximizing your comfort level.

You are lucky you have tightness and not looseness after your facelift! At this point the small sensory nerves on the periphery of your face are still regenerating. Some surgeons think vitamin B6 supplements (not megadosing) helps facilitate nerve recovery. Also massage of the scars and the skin may be beneficial, You may want to seek out a massage therapist trained in lymphatic massage or seek out Aspen ultrasound treatments. There is a syndrome where the skin over your parotid gland gets innervated by nerves from the gland so that when you get hungry and your mouth waters, the skin sweats. It's called gustatory sweating (Frey's syndrome). So if you are noticing the tacky feeling and redness when your mouth is also watering you will want to return to your surgeon for advice and treatment. Hope that's not the case, good luck. Jeffrey DeWeese, MD, FACS