I Had a Facelift and my Smile Seems Asymmetrical; is This Temporary or a Mistake?

The asymmetry was likely present preop, and will be obvious on your before photos; pts tend to scrutinize their faces after surgery and 'find' differences post op. that being said , you are only a month so you still have swelling and healing that is occurring, by 2-3 months everything will settle down better and any obvious asymmetry that was not present preop should resolve.

Hello, and sorry to hear about the issue you are experiencing. It is possible you may be experiencing some temporary nerve damage. The side effects of temporary nerve damage may include the following:

1) Numbness of the face
2) Difficulty making certain facial expressions
3) Ear numbness
4) Drooping of facial features (mouth or cheek)


In general, most temporary nerve damage that occurs from a facelift will be resolve in anywhere from 6 months to a year. It may take longer for a complete recovery, but it depends on the patient and the circumstances of the issue. I would recommend communicating any concerns to your surgeon, as they know the extent of your procedure and exactly what was performed. I hope this helps, and I wish you the best of luck.

Minor trauma to a motor nerve during the facelift might generate temporary asymmetric movement. This should be very uncommon but will resolve. Make certain however that the asymmetry was not present prior to the operation.

Some asymmetry with facial animation for the first few weeks following a facelift is generally not cause for concern.  There may be a small amount of traction on branches of the facial nerve while the tissues heal. This is expected to resolve over several weeks.

Your facelift was only one month ago so your tissues are still recovering.  Depending on what type of facelift you had there are several reasons for the asymmetry, from swelling, sutures and scarring.  The vast majority of these problems are temporary and the next few months should see your smile return to normal.  Be sure to follow up closely with your plastic surgeron so this can be followed.