How To Get A Great Face Lift Without Losing Face

The American Society For Aesthetic Plastic Surgery reported that over 94,000 people got face lifts in 2009. 89% were gals and 11% were guys. But the journey between thinking about getting a lift and can be fraught with concerns. That's because there is no way to judge how it will turn out and you can't  re-return if you don't like it. Plus the problem is compounded because women won't tell you where they had it done. You can opt for less invasive treatments like botox but they can only do so much. But if you're beginning to look like a shar-pei, then you need to see a plastic surgeon.

There are many variations of  a face lift but it is just  a resection of sagging skin and muscle from the neck to the mid face. That's one operation. A brow lift and  eye surgery are different procedures at additional cost.
A skilled doc will only do one face lift a day which takes about 5 hours. None of it is covered by insurance  and there is a two week downtime before you can return to work.  In some cases it may take 3 weeks for the swelling to go down.

Keep in mind a plastic surgeon trains as much as a heart surgeon. He or she must go through one or more years of specialized surgical training on top of the general residency requirements. Yet, anyone with an MD after their name can call themselves a cosmetic surgeon.  That's why credentials are so important. What you want is a doc that's either board certified in plastic surgery or facial plastic surgery-meaning that the doc is an ear, nose and throat surgeon with specialized cosmetic training. Its a plus if they have aesthetic surgery fellowships.
 That's why only a handful of master surgeons do the majority of lifts in either L.A. or NYC.  Usually,  a skilled doc will only do one face lift a day which takes about 5 hours. Also, make sure you ask your prospective surgeon how many face lifts he or she does a month. You want to hear at least 15 or more. Not one or two.

 Next, visit the waiting room. A busy surgeon will have a least several post-operations waiting to see him. Also, check the docs before and after photos. The reason you do this is that you want to get an sense of what the docs  idea of beauty is. That's because you can end up with a great surgeon and be disappointed if your idea of beauty is different than his or hers.

 Plus a great number of surgeons do a lift that tightens the skin only. You want a surgeon who tells you that he is doing a lift on both the skin and the underlying muscle. This takes extra skill and training. But it generally lasts longer and avoids the bad face lift look.

To find a qualified plastic surgeon you can start by going to your nearest library or bookstore and looking at Americas Top Doctors published by Castle Connolly-9th edition. Also, you can check out these links:

http://www.castleconnolly.com/doctors/results.cfm?source=nymetro&mag=28&speccode=073   or see  

http://www.phillymag.com/health/top_docs/listings/202482/results?content=Keyword&category=49&property_value=2&x=17&y=9&my_form_idx_148=148