It always seems so sudden. One day, you look in the mirror or at your Zoom screen and suddenly notice how saggy your face looks, from flattened cheeks to a jowly jawline. You might even have a little turkey wattle under your chin. It can be a shock!
A facelift is often the best answer to erase these frustrating signs of aging. For our facelift patients in San Diego, the procedure smooths wrinkled cheek skin, restores upper neck contours, and redefines the jawline. There are many types of facelift procedures, though, so which one can give you your younger face back?
Who Is the Best Facelift Surgeon?
Before you can even think about which kind of facelift is right for you, you need to choose a top-notch and experienced board-certified plastic surgeon for your facelift. After all, you don’t want to put your face in just anyone’s hands. A board-certified plastic surgeon is highly trained and qualified in all aspects of plastic surgery, so you can rest assured that your safety and results are protected. See our blog on how to select your plastic surgeon.
What Is the Best Facelift Technique?
In choosing a facelift technique, your surgeon needs to analyze your face to discuss which procedure may give you the most youthful, natural result.
If you’re considering a facelift, our team of surgeons at LJC performs a number of types of facelift surgeries. Your recommended procedure depends upon:
- Your aging anatomy
- Your goals for rejuvenation
- The extent of your tissue and skin laxity
A digital imaging tool can be used to help you better visualize your potential results. The best results are obtained if a patient has clear, realistic expectations of the surgical outcome. Pre-operative planning is a collaborative exercise between the doctor and patient.
What Are the Facial Signs of Aging & How Do They Match to a Technique?
To get a realistic idea of which facial procedure may help you, match your concerns with the appropriate procedure:
Considerable Loss of Elasticity & Muscle Tone
Hanging jowls, lax loose skin, cheek wrinkles, and slack muscles indicate you’d be best served with a full facelift. Deep tissue support is necessary. Recovery time from a facelift usually runs about three weeks, although many people return to work after two weeks. Scars are hidden in your hairline and in the contours of your ears. A full facelift is often performed in conjunction with a neck lift. You can learn more about what a full facelift achieves and see plenty of before-and-after pictures in our related blog post.
Droopy Cheeks, Puffiness & Excess Skin
A mid-facelift tackles the middle portion of your face where you might have the appearance of puffiness or droopiness in your cheeks, or excess skin between your nose and mouth. It also serves to reduce puffiness under your eyes. A mid-facelift is ideal if you desire a more proportionate face. Like a full facelift, scars are hidden out of sight. Most of the swelling and bruising from a mid-facelift is normally gone within about two weeks. Often, injectable fillers supplant the need for this procedure.
Slight Wrinkles, Creases & a Tired Appearance
If you think you look tired and you’re beginning to develop face and neck wrinkles, jowls, or slight creases around your nose and mouth, you may be an excellent candidate for a mini-facelift. This approach generally involves less work on the neck and the muscles. Like the other procedures, scars are hidden and you’ll end up with a more youthful appearance. Unlike a full facelift, however, you can expect most of the bruising to be gone in as little as a week.
Mild Loss of Muscle Tone & Aging Contours
The MACS approach, short for minimal access cranial suspension, is a variant of the mini facelift that is appropriate if you have mild to moderate loss of muscle tone and your neck contours show signs of aging. The MACS procedure is less invasive than the other facelift approaches and relies on internal sutures to hold up sagging tissue. The scar is shorter, and the recovery time is about 10 to 20 days.
Want to see how facelift procedures set the clock back? Browse our facelift before-and-after pictures.
Your complimentary consultation is a great time to discuss these issues with our team and get excited about your new look! Call us at (858) 452-1981 or use our online form to request a consultation to learn more about your customizable facelift.