Your facial features—particularly your eyes—say a lot about your age and the state of your overall physical wellbeing. Some people even believe that the eyes are the windows to the soul. Unfortunately, over time those windows can become weathered, making it look like you’re not taking the best care of yourself or like you’re not getting enough sleep. If you have droopy eyelids, then blepharoplasty (also known as eyelid lift surgery) might be a feasible option for you. Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about the blepharoplasty recovery timeline, as well as some useful pre- and post-operation tips you should follow to maximize your results.
Why Do Our Eyelids Sag as We Age?
Eyelid sagging is a perfectly normal part of the aging process. However, some people are more prone to experiencing droopy eyelids much sooner in life for a number of reasons. In some cases, people are genetically predisposed to having droopy eyelids that can hinder their vision. Certain lifestyle choices and conditions like smoking or insomnia can also impact the droopiness of your eyelids. Your skin slowly loses its natural elasticity and produces less and less collagen as you get older, which means it’s incapable of supporting the weight of your eyeballs and bone density. All of that coupled with the pull of gravity overtime causes noticeable changes in the look, feel, and quality of your skin. This leads to puffiness under the eyes as well as wrinkles, fine lines, and wrinkles.
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Do You Qualify for Eyelid Lift Surgery?
Whether or not you’re a good candidate for blepharoplasty depends on a number of factors. First, you should ask yourself what you’re hoping to achieve with this procedure and find out whether or not your expectations are realistic. If you’re seeking out blepharoplasty with the hopes of transforming your appearance to look like someone else or to get rid of fine lines and wrinkles, then this procedure probably isn’t right for you. But if saggy eyelids are negatively impacting your vision or your self-esteem and you need to have them corrected, then you might be a good candidate for blepharoplasty. The first step is to consult with a qualified facial plastic surgeon like Dr. Gantous at Toronto Facial Plastic Surgery so they can examine your facial features and determine whether this procedure is right for you.
How to Prepare for Eyelid Lift Surgery
There are a few important steps you need to take in order to properly prepare for your eyelid lift surgery.
Quit Smoking
You should quit smoking on a temporary or permanent basis prior to undergoing blepharoplasty because smoking has been known to hinder proper blood flow throughout the body and can infect the bloodstream with carcinogens and other toxins. Healthy oxygenated blood is needed to facilitate fast and complete healing of incisions. If incisions take too long to heal properly, then the chances of infection become a lot higher.
Perform All Major Household Chores and Errands Beforehand
Immediately following your procedure, you’re going to need approximately one to two weeks to rest and recuperate. That means you should try to get all of your major household chores and errands done well in advance to ensure you have enough food, clean clothing, and a clean house while you rest.
Arrange for a Ride Home
Since most surgeons use a local or general anesthetic for blepharoplasty depending on your specific needs, that means you’re going to need someone to give you a ride home after your surgery. Under no circumstances should you operate a vehicle or heavy machinery after the procedure. If you can’t arrange for a friend or relative to give you a ride, then the next best option is to hire a ride sharing program. To avoid any issues, it’s advised that you make these arrangements at least a week before your surgery.
Refrain from Using Certain Pain Relievers
Most over-the-counter pain relievers contain anti-inflammatory medicinal ingredients that can increase bleeding and have adverse interactions with anesthesia and other medications that may be administered by your facial plastic surgeon. To completely prevent this from happening and help speed up your eyelid lift recovery process, avoid taking the following drugs before the procedure:
- Aspirin
- Ibuprofen
- Motrin
- Naproxen
- Aleve
Your facial plastic surgeon will also give you a complete list of over-the-counter medications to avoid during your consultation.
What Questions Should You Ask Your Facial Plastic Surgeon?
During your consultation, you’ll be given ample opportunity to ask your facial plastic surgeon about the procedure. Here is a list of questions they should be able to answer for you:
- What certifications do you have to perform this surgery?
- How many years of experience do you have working as a facial plastic surgeon?
- How many times have you performed blepharoplasty procedures?
- What’s the success rate of this procedure?
- Are you able to perform the procedure in a hospital?
- How long is the recovery period and what can I expect during that time?
- Can I view before and after photos of your past patients?
- Will my insurance cover the cost of the procedure or, at the very least, the cost of the anesthesia?
What Are the Risks of Blepharoplasty?
Overall, blepharoplasty is a very safe procedure as long as you follow all of the pre- and post-operative care instructions provided by your facial plastic surgeon. If they’re board-certified and have many years of experience, then you should have nothing to worry about. With that said, though, there are some potential, albeit very rare, risks that may occur as with any other procedure of this nature. Here is a list of some of the potential risks:
- Dry eyes
- Bleeding
- Some degree of vision loss
- Abnormal eyelid colouring
- Abnormal eyelid shape
- Inability to completely close your eyes
- Infection
- A lid lash line that’s lower than it should be
For some excellent blepharoplasty recovery tips, feel free to schedule a consultation at Toronto Facial Plastic Surgery. With well over 20 years of experience working as a facial plastic surgeon, Dr. Gantous has performed numerous eyelid lift surgeries and he’s one of the most sought after surgeons in his field.