Your age does not have to show on your face. Wrinkles, sagging skin, and other annoyances naturally appear as people grow older. Fortunately, there are ways to reverse these visible signs of aging. At our Chicago plastic surgery office, we offer a variety of different procedures to help you turn back the clock, including facelift surgery. With facelift surgery, a more youthful appearance is restored to your face by removing excess fat and tightening muscles and skin. This results in a much smoother face that is free of wrinkles and sagging jowls. To learn more about facelfit in Chicago, IL, contact our office to schedule a consultation with Dr. Irvin Wiesman to discuss your goals and find out if a facelift is right for you.
Depending on the specifics of your surgery, you’ll either be given general anesthesia or IV sedation and a local anesthetic to numb your skin. For a traditional facelift, incisions are made starting near your temples and circling around the front of each ear. Then, the skin is raised so we can tighten the muscle and tissue underneath. Your own body fat is often used to help restore volume and a youthful look to avoid the need for unnecessarily pulling the skin too tight, which can create an unnatural appearance. Your skin is then placed back over your face, and the incision is sutured. Typically, it takes between two and three weeks to make a full recovery.
Dr. Wiesman uses the SMAS facelift technique for the most natural looking results. It involves placing concealed incisions above the hairline at the temples. Not only does this make any scarring virtually unnoticeable, but it always raises the skin and is a less invasive alternative to the deep-plane facelift technique.
To determine if you’re a good candidate for a facelift, you’ll need to schedule a consultation with Dr. Wiesman. During this appointment, he’ll speak with you about any goals you have, go over your medical history, and make sure that you’re in good physical and emotional health. We’ll go over the entire treatment plan in detail with you and address any questions or concerns that you have. Then, you’ll be able to make an informed decision on whether you’d like to move forward with the procedure.
After surgery, your face will be bandaged. Typically, bandages are removed one to two days after surgery, while the sutures are removed in five to 10 days. Pain medication may be prescribed, and some swelling and bruising should be expected. A cold compress can help to relieve these symptoms. Your face may feel stiff at first, and there may be some skin numbness that can last for several months after surgery. Most of our facelift patients return to normal activities two to three weeks after surgery, looking and feeling younger and more attractive.
Are you ready to turn back the clock on your appearance? Dr. Wiesman and our team are waiting to help you understand your options. If you are considering getting a facelift in Chicago, it is important that you know what to expect on the road ahead. To help you expand your knowledge, we have compiled a list of answers to some frequently asked questions about this procedure. If you don’t see the information you are most interested in, please give us a call so we can personally assist you.
How long your results last will depend on a few factors, including the specific type of facelift you undergo and your body’s natural rate of aging. The surgery does not actually stop the aging process, so you will notice the gradual return of sagging skin and other imperfections. However, you will likely always look better than if you had never undergone the surgery. To maintain their appearance, some patients choose to have a second facelift 7 – 10 years (or longer) after their initial one. In any case, the results of a facelift tend to last much longer than injectables like BOTOX® and fillers.
You may want to consider getting a facelift if:
No medical procedure is completely risk-free. With facelifts, severe complications are quite rate, especially if you partner with an experienced practitioner like Dr. Wiesman. However, there is always the small chance that that something unfortunate could happen. For example, some patients react poorly to anesthesia. Bleeding, facial nerve injury, fluid accumulation, skin irregularities, and prolonged swelling are also possible (but certainly not probable). Before your surgery, our team will help you weigh both the risks and potential rewards of undergoing facelift surgery.
Our team will provide detailed pre-op instructions to help you prepare for your procedure. Some things we generally recommend include:
