Facelift with Great Results!

I’m really thankful for the reviews and information I received from RealSelf as I was researching facelifts, so I’d like to make a contribution to help others! I’ve always told myself that I would get a facelift after I turned 50, and now that I’m in my early fifties, I’ve finally done it! It was really hard to know how to pick a good doctor, but I did very well in the end with Dr. Jill Hessler

I started the process 8-6 months in advance by looking for surgeons. I got one surgeon recommendation from a nurse who had been giving me Botox for a few years, and then I found two other plastic surgeons online. I received consultations from all three board-certified plastic surgeons, and they all seemed very well-qualified and knowledgeable. I ended up going with Dr. Hessler, whom I found online. I liked that she specialized in the face area. I felt extremely comfortable with both her and her staff. I had to pay a fee for my consultation, which I was able to apply towards services in her clinic. Using this credit, a nurse on Dr. Hessler’s staff gave me the most effective Botox injections I’ve ever received, which really helped me make my decision: A competent staff says much about the quality of a doctor. As I was making my decision, her staff was very responsive to all the questions I e-mailed.

I ended going with several procedures: CO2 laser resurfacing, lower face and neck lift, submentoplasty, lip lift and fat injections around cheeks and eyes. I had to schedule this several months in advance, but it was good to have a lot of time to prepare my schedule and myself. It’s important to study and follow those pre-op instructions carefully. I avoided all alcohol and ibuprofen weeks before surgery, but I think it helped with a quicker recovery.

The surgery took almost the entire day and I went home that night. I was never in terrible pain; instead I felt uncomfortable and took over-the-counter Tylenol for dull pain. Though Dr. Hessler gave me a prescription for other heavy-duty pain pills, I did not use them and did not think I needed it. For two weeks, I iced my neck a lot and watched much TV. I hated sleeping on my back with my head propped up, but got more or less used to it after a couple days. I had some extra swelling and redness because of my menopausal hot flashes. As normal after her surgeries, I went to see Dr. Hessler quite a few times as I was recovering, and she and her nurse Christy always spent a lot of time with me and answered all my questions. My incisions healed very quickly and I only had one small bruise on one side of my neck, which disappeared after 2.5 weeks. I had expected loads of bruising and was pleasantly surprised to be free of this! After one week, I did go out in public for little shopping errands and don’t think anyone noticed my incisions, especially with my hair down. Two weeks after surgery, I had to make an urgent trip for family matters, and had no problem flying across the country and getting around by myself.

I had the surgery about a month ago and though I’m still a little bit swollen around the temples, it’s hardly noticeable and gets better with every day. I have a few scars but they are getting very faint and are not noticeable where they are located. With all the procedures I got, I was a little worried I might end up looking like one of those “plastic surgery nightmares” you see all over the internet…but I’m so very happy with the results! I look very natural. The saggy skin on my chin, jaw and neck is gone. My top lip is fuller without filler. The dark circles and wrinkles have disappeared around my eyes. I think I look the same, but very well rested with healthier skin. The whole surgery cost quite a bit of money, took a lot of planning, and involved about two weeks of serious recovery time, but now I’m so very glad I got this done and have such good results!