What Medications Would Work Best for Anxiety (Before & After Facelift Surgery)?

Dear seekingsurgeon,


We routinely prescribe anti-anxiety medication before and after facelift surgery

We all have our preferences and your surgeon will have his/hers


Best regards,

Nima Shemirani

Many patients get anxious before and after surgery, particularly facial surgery. Each surgeon has their own preferred medications regarding anti-anxiety medications. Some are longer acting and other shorter acting. There are also some medications that can be helpful for sleep rather than anxiety specifically. These are not something that I prescribe to every patient, but will prescribe them to patients if needed in the preoperative or postoperative setting.
All the best,

It’s not
unusual for patients to experience anxiety prior to facelift surgery. This
anxiety can adversely impact the quality of the surgical experience. A variety
of drugs are currently available to alleviate this problem. These include Valium,
Xanax and Ativan to name a few.Although anxiety is common prior to
surgery, it’s not commonly seen after surgery. When patients are anxious prior
to surgery, it’s appropriate to treat the condition, but not until patients
have signed their operative permits. If you’re anxious prior to surgery,
it’s important to discuss the issue with your plastic surgeon, your surgeon
should be able to provide medications that will alleviate your anxiety.

   Xanax, Valium, Ativan, and Klonopin can all be used with about a dozen others.  If the patient is planning on using it to sleep at night or after surgery for any length of time, Klonopin has a longer halflife and less potential for abuse.  Sometimes Ambien is good for sleep if there is not an anxiety component.

At the pre-op appointment, I typically give my patients a prescription for some Xanax to take before surgery and make sure they are relaxed. Xanax and Valium are both benzodiazepene drugs. Xanax is a bit shorter acting, less of a dosage is necessary to get the same effect, and is generally a better anti-anxiety than Valium. Overall, you will get a similar effect from both, but I would recommend speaking with your surgeon to see what would be the best option for you given your individual circumstances. Have you done better with either medication in the past? That can also be an indication of which one to choose. I wish you the best of luck with your surgery, I'm sure you will be very happy with the outcome! Thank you and I hope this helps answer your questions.

As suggested by my colleagues your surgeon would be the one prescribing these medications and your question is best posed to them. However, in my own practice, I find that a dose of Valium the night before and the morning of surgery tends to help reduce the normal amount of pre-surgery anxiety and allows one to get a good night's sleep. Xanax would also be helpful. It has a faster onset but shorter duration of action. I hope this information is helpful.Stephen Weber MD, FACS

While there are several different medications that can help alleviate anxiety before surgery, I would strongly recommend that you ask this question of your surgeon.  Taking these medicines before your surgery can influence the effect that anesthesia has on you during the procedure and it's important for your doctor to know which medicines you are taking.  Your particular surgeon may also have reasons for not wanting you to take any anti-anxiety medication beforehand, or if not, may have reasons for preferring a particular medication for you.  

 Anxiety prior to surgery is very normal; its complete elimination is usually not possible.I ask my patients  to try to be as calm as possible prior to surgery;  this “calmness"  tends to translate to a smoother postoperative course. You may be able to alleviate some  pre operative anxiety with music, exercise, meditation, a glass of wine (if ok with your surgeon), sexual activity (be careful...), and positive/objective focus on the long term outcome/benefits etc. prior to your procedure. Generally, patients find that they did “get worked up for nothing” after their  recovery  is completed. I hope this helps.  Good luck!

Both Valium and Xanax can work well treating anxiety- your surgeon will likely have his or her own regimen to recommend for you- don't be shy about asking for some help with this, but be sure to discuss with the anesthesia provider any anxiety drugs that you have been taking.

Patients normally have some degree of anxiety prior to cosmetic surgery, which is completely normal and expected. The day prior to surgery, some patients request medication such as Ativan or Xanax to help relax. After surgery, anxiety is typically no longer a concern. Each plastic surgeon will have his/her method to help alleviate pre-surgical anxiety. Speak with your surgeon to help determine appropriate options for you. Best of luck.

 

Dr. Chaboki