How long after a Facelift and upper/lower blepharoplasty can I sleep on my side?

While there are no hard and fast rules, I ask patients to avoid sleeping on their side for the first two weeks- this helps to prevent laying on the incisions and possibly irritating or disrupting the suture line. In addition, we ask that patients try to keep their head elevated for  the first two weeks after surgery to help decrease swelling. That said, we also would like to make sure patients get a good nights sleep. If these restriction are too much of a challenge to sleep, then we are fine with the patient modifying these guidelines.

You shouldn't sleep on your face for a while after surgery. After about 2-4 weeks, you can start to sleep on your side. In case of any problems, you should contact a Board Certified Surgeon.

Hello! It will help reduce swelling if you keep your head higher than the level of your heart. I recommend my patients do this for the first week, and add another week or two if they are concerned about swelling. You can try tilting a recliner back, this usually is comfortable and forces you to sleep on your back. Good luck!

I generally have my patients sleep on 2-3 pillows on their back for 2 weeks after a facelift. Each surgeon will have different thoughts so it's best to speak with your own surgeon about that. Hope that helps! 

It is important to sleep with your head elevated for a couple of weeks after surgery to reduce swelling, and for some even longer. I know this can be difficult for many patients, I recommend to my patients that they sleep in a recliner to help them be comfortable during this time. Many patients find a recliner at a garage sale and then sell it when they are done! Good luck!

Thank you for your question.  The answer will depend on the surgeon and type of facelift that was performed.  In general, I ask my patients to preferentially sleep on their back with their head elevated 20-30 degrees for 2 weeks.  This helps with swelling and avoids any possible abrasion or rubbing of the incisions.  I also ask the patients to avoid fully turning their neck for the first month so as to not put any extra tension on the deep support sutures while the soft tissues are healing in place.  I realize that not everyone will be able to comply fully with my recommendations, but this gives them a target to shoot for.  All the best!