Did you know that 92% of women end up getting some form of cosmetic enhancement or surgery? For women who feel like they are losing their beauty, cosmetic procedures can do wonders for improving self-confidence. Facelifts are one of the most popular options for taking years off of one’s appearance.
However, if you have been thinking about getting a facelift, you may be wondering what the facelift recovery process might look like. How long will it take to fully recover from the surgery? How long will it be until you can finally admire your final results?
To start, it’s important to understand what a facelift involves in the first place. Since a facelift is an invasive procedure, you should remember to be patient as you go through the different stages of healing.
Understanding Your Facelift Procedure
A facelift is also known as a rhytidectomy. Its primary purpose is to make the face look younger as the result of making a few incisions and pulling the skin of the face back. For those who have sagging jowls and loose skin around the face and neck, a facelift may be an ideal option for looking younger.
Once the incisions are made in your face, your surgeon will pull back flaps of skin and attach them to a higher location on your head. This stretching will smooth out many wrinkles and loose skin. If you have a lot of excess skin after the lift, your surgeon will remove it and suture together the remaining skin.
Since the sutures are usually within the hairline, you should have no visible scarring after your facelift. Facelifts also provide very long-lived results and tend to last for around 10 years. After this amount of time, your skin may begin to sag again as the result of the natural aging process.
The First Week of Facelift Recovery
So, if you decide to go through with the facelift procedure, what should you expect directly after the surgery? As you wake up from the surgery, you will likely still be drowsy from the anaesthesia. For this reason, you will need a friend or family member to drive you home safely.
You will feel the most discomfort during the first few days and you will likely need to take some pain medication. Many people who get facelifts find that the first week of recovery is the most difficult because it is painful and requires a lot of care. Since your healing tissue will be very sensitive and vulnerable, it is important to rest and avoid any activities that may interfere with the healing process.
Even your sleeping position is important. As your skin heals, you should aim to sleep on your back and avoid sleeping on your face. Sleeping on your face could pull on the sutures and interfere with the healing process.
After a couple of days, you will need to check back in with your doctor. Your surgeon will take off your bandages and clean the incisions. He will also check for signs of infection.
If all looks well, the surgeon will apply fresh dressings to your incisions and you will be able to go home. By day three, you should no longer be feeling any drowsiness or fatigue from the anaesthesia. You will be able to move around a bit more, but rest is still very important.
You may notice that the swelling will be the worst around day four. To reduce swelling, your doctor may prescribe you some anti-inflammatories. By the end of the week, you should no longer need pain medication and you should be able to perform more activities around the house.
Week 2 Through One Month
During the second week of your recovery, you will still be dealing with a lot of swelling. Incision care will still be very important at this point to avoid infection. Bruising tends to start around the second week as well.
If you experience any tingling or numbness in your face, this is a normal result of the swelling. By the end of your second week, you should be ready to resume more active activities such as walking outside.
Depending on how well you are healing, you may be able to get your sutures removed between weeks 3 and 4. Your swelling will have faded significantly by this time and you will be able to notice the early results of your facelift. You will also be able to go outside without people noticing your swelling too much.
After one month of recovery time, you should be able to return to work and the rest of your daily activities. You should be left with very minimal swelling which no one but you should be able to notice. If you have any bruises at this point, they should be very minor and fade quickly.
You may also feel that your skin is tight, but you will adjust to this as your swelling continues to go down. By this time, you should be able to notice most of the results of your facelift. You will be able to notice the fresh new contours in your face as well as the smoothness and tightness of your complexion.
As your swelling fades completely, you will see an even more substantial improvement. By the time your swelling is completely gone, you should no longer feel any discomfort, tingling, or numbness in your face.
Everything You Need to Know About the Facelift Recovery Process
If you were worried about the facelift recovery process before, you should now know that it’s nothing to be afraid of. While recovering from a facelift can take a lot of time and patience, the results are worth it.
To learn more about facelifts, contact us here.
