What Level of Pain is Considered Normal After a Facelift?

The #pain should be minimal and can be controlled with the prescribed medication by your surgeon. Throughout the #facelift #healing process you should be seen frequently by your doctor and one of their registered nurses to ensure you are following instructions properly and your recovery is going well. The healing process in general can take up to one month for the majority of swelling to subside, incisions to close, sutures to come out, and for bruising to completely go away. #Recovery time from a #facelift varies from person to person, but patients can generally expect to be presentable within three weeks from surgery. Patients should expect swelling, bruising, and discoloration of the skin during this phase of recovery (swelling normally goes down after 48 hours; most bruising will go away within two weeks). The marks from a facelift can easily hidden with “camouflage” make-up which you can learn how to apply.The scars from a facelift mature within six to twelve months from the surgery date. It is during this time that the rejuvenating effects of the facelift will become apparent and the real result will be seen. If you have certain concerns about the procedures and #healing process, it is recommended to call your board-certified surgeon or their medical staff and discuss those #concerns.

Facelifts a generally not considered painful due to modern surgical techniques and effective pain management. During the procedure, patients are under anesthesia, so they feel no pain. Post-operatively, any discomfort is usually manageable with prescribed pain medication and subsides within a few days. Most patients describe the sensation as more of a tightness or soreness rather than significant pain. Our priority is to ensure your comfort throughout the process.

I prescribe pain medication for all my patients, however, 90% of them only require something to help them take the edge off prior to sleep the first night. By the second day, my patients take tylenol as needed for pain. So overall, the discomfort is mild.

For the majority of patients, pain is not a significant problem in the postoperative phase.  Although I prescribe a narcotic in limited quantity for the first week, most patients use very little or none of the medication.  Narcotics cause nausea, urinary retention, and constipation which can impede your recovery.  In every situation, there are outliers, and some patients are more pain sensitive.  In the situation of a complication such as a hematoma, more pain will be experienced. 

Pain after a facelift is actually usually pretty
minimal. Your surgeon should prescribe some pain medications, but often
patients only use them for a day or two after surgery. Rather than pain,
patients most often experience discomfort from swelling, tightness, or
itchiness. This will be most pronounced in the first few days after surgery,
then should continue to subside over the next few weeks and months. Individuals
may have different pain tolerances, however, and if your pain medications don’t
help, I would advise visiting your surgeon for a follow-up visit.

Pain after surgery is normal, and it is generally well controlled by medication prescribed by your surgeon. If you are concerned about the level of pain you're experiencing, it's safer for you to see your surgeon just in case.

Minimal Pain After a Facelift

There is a degree of discomfort after all surgery. Pain medicines are to make this discomfort less but NOT to eliminated it completely - just enough to allow you to do other activities. Fortunately, he pain felt after a Facelift is typically very low. Patients should expect swelling, bruising, and  a tight feeling in the face after the procedure, but swelling normally goes down after 48 hours, most bruising goes away within two weeks, and the tightness is to be expected. Pain medicines are prescribed but usually not needed after a few days. Most of the skin is numb (no sensation at all), and when the numbness resolves months later the healing is already complete.

 

The discomfort after a face & neck lift is mostly a sensation of tightness.  Typically prescription pain medications such as Vicodin or Percocet are needed for 2-3 days.  Every person has a different pain tolerance and of course there are differences in types of face lifts as well.

The truth is that for a large percentage of people who undergo a face lift, the pain is minimal. They can usually get away with only taking an over the counter pain medication. In most cases, it is more of a little discomfort and irritation than it is painful.

 

Pain is not a major issue after soft tissue surgery like a Facelift in the vast majority of my patients.  Still, pain is very subjective.  If you feel you are more sensitive to pain or if you are on daily pain medications regularly you should definitively discuss this with your surgeon.  They will help you formulate a pain to help control any post-operative discomfort.  Good luck!