7 Important Questions To Ask Your Facelift Surgeon
Before a facelift surgery is administered, a facelift consultation has to take place. During a consultation, you will have a chance to sit down with your surgeon and ask questions and address any concerns you may have.
Having a list of questions can help you get the most out of your facelift consultation. It helps to have a list written down and at the ready, so that you don’t miss any details. If you’re stumped about what to ask, here are a few of the most important questions to bring up during your consultation.
What Are Your Qualifications?
You don’t just want any surgeon to perform your facelift; you want the best possible surgeon to perform your facelift. Don’t just take that your doctor is qualified at face value. Dig deeper and ask why he/she is qualified to perform the surgery.
You want to find a surgeon who has over two decades of surgical training and is the most-sought-after cosmetic surgeons. Here are a few things you need to look for in a facial plastic surgeon:
- Board certification (that means she has years of training and experience, specifically in facial plastic surgery, beyond medical school).
- Years of experience and training. You don’t want to be the surgeon’s first or fifth facelift patient.
- Continuing education. Today’s facelift procedures are vastly different from the procedures of yesteryear. You want a surgeon who’s up-to-date on the latest techniques.
- Hospital privileges. That means that you can be whisked off to the nearest hospital if there’s a problem and that a hospital thinks your surgeon has training and experience enough to practice there.
Am I a Suitable Candidate for a Facelift?
Not everyone is a suitable candidate for a facelift. You might be too young and not have enough skin laxity or sagging to really benefit from the procedure. You might have too many health problems to safely undergo surgery.
A good surgeon will evaluate your health, your skin and the signs of ageing you have and let you know honestly if a facelift is the best choice for you.
What Happens During a Facelift?
Unless you’re into medicine, you probably don’t need all of the gory details about the surgery. However, you will want to know the basics, such as where your incisions will be and how big they will be. It helps to know if the incisions will be visible afterwards or if you’ll have major scarring.
It also helps to have a basic understanding of what the surgery does. Usually, a facelift involves tightening the underlying tissue, to create a more lifted appearance. The surgeon might tighten the skin, but that’s not the only thing that happens during surgery.
How Much Time Will I Need to Heal?
A facelift is a commitment, and it helps to know how much of your life you’ll need to dedicate to healing and recovery. You’ll want to know how many days or weeks you’ll need to request off from work and how the recovery will affect your life otherwise.
How Long Will It Take Before I See Results?
It’s a good idea to prepare to look worse before you look better after a facelift. Ask your surgeon how long it usually takes before final results are visible and what you can expect to see as you heal. For example, swelling and bruising are common. It helps to know how much of that to expect and how long to expect it to last.
Where Do You Perform the Facelift?
A facelift shouldn’t be done as an in-office procedure. Ideally, it should be performed in either an accredited surgical centre or a hospital. Be sure to ask where your surgeon performs the procedure and ask if that location is accredited.
What Type of Anaesthesia Do You Use?
You probably want a bit more than a local anaesthetic during a facelift. But you might not need to be fully under. Ask your surgeon which type of anaesthesia she uses and how she decides which type is best for which patient.
