Here is a self-massage and diaphragmatic breathing video for the first few weeks after surgery. Yes, you can help with lymphatic drainage without direct massage to the face.
Check your surgeons postop protocol - often they recommend limiting sodium and continuing to eliminate supplements from your diet.
Check protein drinks - sometimes a drink that takes 4 minutes to consume has 180-300 mg of sodium.
Check those drinks-with-benefits too! These fruity drinks may have added adaptogens and supplement ingredients.
My vote for your first outing after facelift/necklift (besides surgeons office) is Trader Joe’s.
Cashiers are friendly and will chat with you about your plans for the rest of the day and a food item you are purchasing. It’s a nice way to interact with a stranger in a social situation, especially when you are feeling self conscious about swelling/bruising.
Pick up kiwis and berries!
I had facelift necklift rhinoplasty chin implant brow lift and fat transfer. I feel like the rhinoplasty and chin implant did much of the heavy lifting in changing my face.
What was the biggest change in your facial rejuvenation surgery?
For most of my massage clients, it’s the necklift. When they show me before/afters it’s amazing! Upper bleph can also be very effective, but it takes time to heal. The eyelids are still swollen for months.
If you guessed Baby Boomers, you're right. I think many people are getting their first facelift in early 50's, but I do see clients getting their second facelift or a facelift after a major life change.
There were 94k facelifts performed in the USA 2024 and facelift was highlighted as a “trend to watch” in the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) report. The report states that “in 2024, patients in the Baby Boomer age range made up more than half (59%) of all facelift patients, with 67,559 performed”
I am doing some research and came across ISAPS statistics:
ISAPS estimates that over 737K facelifts were performed by plastic surgeons in 2024, a 90% increase over 2020 figures.
Facelift is the 9th most popular plastic surgery procedure in their list, and eyelid surgery, rhinoplasty, fat grafting to the face and perioral surgery (around the mouth) are also in the top 10, with brow lift and neck lift coming in at 13 and 14.
Fat grafting to the face has increased by over 19% from 2023 to 2024 and brow lifts increased by over 27% in the same time span.
https://www.isaps.org/media/30xldsyf/isaps-global-survey-2024.pdf
How long did symptoms of dry eye last after upper eye lift? Surgeons are recommending eye drops and I recommend sleep mask at night. Two clients today said that eyes get dry when they are working on their laptop.
I wonder if it’s worse in SoCal right now because of the wind.
I was so optimistic about how I could use my downtime after my facelift to finally watch the Greek mythology series saved on my Netflix/prime.
I ended up not being able to concentrate on TV and feeling sleepy/napping so rewatching old favorites was a better option. My husband was binge watching a series in the first two weeks and I just kind of dozed off on the couch next to him.
What did everyone else watch to pass the time in the first weeks after surgery?
Is the possibility of having a ‘quicker’ recovery a factor in which facelift surgeon you choose? If one surgeon said you could return to work in three weeks and another said two weeks, would it matter?
Facelifts make everything worse before they make it better.
Do you let having a bad hair day affect your schedule? If you are bloated, do you skip time spent with friends? How deeply do you feel the judgement of others about your appearance?
Does insecurity around the way your face looks now stop you from enjoying yourself at social events or in public? How much does your appearance matter to you at your workplace?
Before my surgery my eyelids were heavy and I had a crooked nose and jowls and extra skin on my neck, but I never let it stop me from spending time in public places. But the people who DO let their appearance stop them NEED to know that facelifts make it worse before they make it better. And it will be worse for at least a month.
I had a facelift and necklift 5 years ago. The tightness reduced after massages and time but it didn’t fully resolve until several months later.
For the first YEAR I still felt tight the next day after eating salty foods pizza/beer/sushi. Probably due to swelling.
How long did it take for your necklift and what foods increased the sensation of tightness?
It’s my birthday and I got a message from an acquaintance saying ‘29??’
It’s a common joke for an older person to be complimented by someone because they ‘still look 29.’
I laughed and replied - nope I had a facelift, I’m proud to say I’m 52.
I wonder if this 29 joke will become less popular as people really do take advantage of facelifts/laser/botox to actually look healthier at every age.
If you want to eat more healthy food to reduce swelling and help wound healing, my advice is to start months BEFORE surgery to give your gut time to adjust. Super healthy foods like broccoli and leafy greens can sometimes take some getting used to. If you want to take protein powder, turn that jar around and look at sodium content. You may be surprised!
I was talking to a lymphatic massage client today and we got on the topic of surgery recovery.
In my experience, generally more physically fit clients recover faster BUT it takes more frequent reminders to keep them from doing too much too soon. They get antsy and want to deep clean the house or go to the gym too soon.
Lazy clients aren’t as robustly healthy as the athletes, but you generally don’t have to constantly remind them to stay on the couch.
So that’s one good side effect of being lazy and having a facelift!
Had my facelift/necklift 5 years ago.
I had someone with medical background stay overnight at the hotel after surgery. They took vitals, knew what complications looked like and had surgeon on speed dial. I’m glad I didn’t make my husband responsible for me, especially after I vomited up my protein shake.
Nurse on surgeons staff told my husband ‘you’ll get your wife back in 11 days.’ This really helped me because I -didn’t- feel like myself that first week. I’m happy go lucky usually but I felt so glum and nothing was funny. I just reminded myself my personality was gone for the first 11 days.
If you are worried about getting a blood clot after facelift, go to CapriniRiskScore.org and find out your risk. Share your Caprini score with your surgeon before surgery.