Could my stitches have been pulled & do I have a failed lift? (Photo)

Thank you for sharing your experience — it sounds like you were very in tune with your healing process and picked up on changes early, which is important.
Hearing a "squeaking" sound during lymphatic massage and developing a fluid pocket (seroma) shortly afterward could indicate that some mechanical stress was placed on the healing tissues. It’s difficult to say definitively whether internal stitches were pulled or disrupted, but depending on how far along you were in healing at the time, it's possible that the tension or pressure from massage could have affected the deeper layers—especially if the sutures were still holding tissue in place during a critical healing window.
Now, over a year later, if you're seeing a return of laxity or fullness in the lower face, there are a few possibilities:
The internal support (whether via sutures or scar tissue formation) may have weakened or failed to fully anchor the tissue.
The perioral mounds your surgeon mentioned are natural fat pads or soft tissue that can become more visible again over time—especially if there's laxity or if the initial lift wasn't strong enough to fully address them long-term.
Some individuals experience partial relapse after facelift or DPL-type procedures, particularly if the tissues were heavy, thick, or there was early disruption in healing (like your seroma episode).
At this stage, your options might include:
Non-surgical tightening treatments (radiofrequency, ultrasound-based lifting) for mild laxity.
Filler or fat grafting to camouflage areas of sagging or volume loss.
If the issue is significant, a revision procedure may be considered to readdress deeper tissue support.
If the area that bothers you is exactly where the seroma and the squeaking occurred, and the contour has visibly changed, it’s reasonable to ask your surgeon for imaging (like ultrasound) or a detailed exam to assess for any subtle separation or scar irregularity.