Most people do not have perfectly poreless, smooth complexions. The reality is it takes some work to achieve a fresh face. Prevention is the first measure one can take to stave off aging. Simply using a good medical grade sunblock with 9.0 percent or greater of micronized zinc oxide every day will go a long way in prevention.
More secrets to maintaining a youthful, ageless look:
- 30’s –
- Daily topical medical grade Vitamin C, Vitamin E and Retinol or prescription strength Tretinoin applied to the entire face, including lower eyelids and the neck. Avoid the upper eyelids, one centimeter above the eyebrows, and the corns of the nose and mouth.
- Facial, Microdermabrasion, Enzyme or Chemical Peel monthly by a licensed aesthetician.
- Consider Botox or Dysport injections to the glabella (area between the eyebrows), crow’s feet (wrinkles at the outside corners of the eyes), and forehead.
- 40’s –
- Injectable fillers like Restylane and Juvederm for embedded wrinkles between the eyebrows, smile lines (wrinkles that extend from the nose to the corners of the mouth), marionette lines (wrinkles that extend from the corners of the mouth to the chin).
- Injectable fillers to the cheeks to maintain the gentle, smooth curves and volume of youth. You do not want to add more volume then you had when you were younger. The goal is the spackle out the hollows that form across the cheeks. These hollows create shadows where none existed in youth. The goal is NOT to create excessively large and wide cheeks.
- Lip injections to maintain youthful volume as women in their forties start to notice that their lips are becoming smaller.
- A facelift and necklift for premature signs of aging such as excessive skin, fat and wrinkles under the chin, jowls and marionette lines.
- 50’s and 60’s – In addition to all of the above, now is the time to benefit from upper and lower eyelid surgery, browlift surgery and facelift/necklift.
Improvements in surgical techniques have allowed for amazing results that are natural without the tell-tale signs of surgical intervention. For this reason, younger women are pursuing facelifts and necklifts. A decade ago, the average age for a facelift was in the sixties. Currently, the average age for a facelift is in the fifties.
The most troublesome areas that patients want improved is just below the chin and around the eyes; Sagging eyebrows, sagging upper eyelid skin, bulges and wrinkles of the lower eyelids.
The goal is to look refreshed to combat the common complaint ‘Everyone says I look tired’. Or one of my favorites, ‘I am starting to look like my mother or father!’.
Sometimes a milestone event like a child’s wedding or High School, College, or Family reunion is the reason a patient decides it’s time for a facelift. Newly single seniors who have recently divorced, and those still in the workforce competing against more youthful co-workers, view rejuvenating their appearance as a necessity to reflect their vibrance and energy.
The good news is that 80 percent of patients can have their facelift / necklift done in the office with local anesthetic. There are no IV’s or pills for sedation. It is just local anesthetic that is injected into the areas to be operated upon. There will be a pinch and a burn, and then the area will be numb for about 8 hours.
During the surgery, you can talk or listen to music. A lot of patients will fall asleep during the procedure once they are numb. Patients often think that they have to be absolutely still during the procedure. On the contrary, during the procedure we want you to move your legs around and shift every so often.
The other 20 percent of patients may prefer to have their surgery performed in an outpatient setting with general anesthesia. I tell people that they must be honest with themselves. If they are afraid of needles, or just the thought of the surgery makes them upset, then it is better for them to be asleep for the procedure. I cannot do my job and at the same time be talking someone off the ceiling.
The bottom line is to choose the surgical and nonsurgical options that will make you look the way you feel – beautiful and confident.