Lower Your Age by Lifting Your Face

by Dr. Steven Wallach

Although some people try to get rid of wrinkles, lines, and sagging skin on their face by simply using chemicals, that is not possible. While in-office chemical peels, fillers, and microdermabrasion treatments might help with the wrinkles and lines, nothing can help tighten up the skin around your face like a facelift can. In many ways, a facelift is the only treatment that can turn your face around and really tighten up the skin and its underlying soft tissues, giving you a fresh and young look.

Signs of a Job Poorly Done

A facelift is really easy to mess up, especially since the skin in the area is both so delicate and so visible. If you choose a plastic surgeon who is not up to the task, you could end up with a crooked face, a distorted ear, or an unusual and unnatural hairline. It is important to not pull or stretch the skin in an usual way, but rather to just naturally smooth and lift the deeper levels of the face. This then allows the top layer to smooth itself out.

Surgery or Not?

Because the face is so easily distorted, many people are hesitant about having a facelift surgery performed. However, there are some non-invasive variations to fill out and lift your face with needing to go under the knife. This often involves injecting something into your face. Whether that is our own fat from other parts of your body or more synthetic dermal fillers, your doctor will pick the best choice for you and help you decide where exactly to inject the fillers to best contour your face. Although it does not work as well as fillers or a facelift surgery, chemical peels, laser treatments or other skin care products can drastically help smooth out the skin once the lower levels are taken care of.

Cut and Tug

If you decide to go for the full-on facelift surgery, you will need to talk to your doctor about the incision and scarring and his method. If you just need some minor work done around your jaw and cheeks, a smaller incision will work wonderfully. If you need a full facelift and lots of neck work done, however, you will need a full cut that extends from your hairline behind your ears and into the other side of the hairline. This will obviously leave a bigger scar, but it is hopefully hidden by the hairline.