Do you have bags under your eyes that won’t disappear despite rest, hydration, and anti-aging creams? Has your vision worsened recently due to upper eyelid skin sagging and reducing your field of view? Do you feel like you look older than you are due to drooping eyelid skin? If so, you may be considered a good candidate for eyelid surgery at Boulder Plastic Surgery in Boulder, CO.
How Long Do Results Last After Eyelid Surgery?
If you opt for lower eyelid surgery (lower blepharoplasty), you can expect your results to last for a lifetime. If you opt for upper eyelid correction, you can expect your results to last for roughly five to seven years. The results of lower blepharoplasty last a lifetime because they are mostly derived from the removal of excess subcutaneous fat. On the other hand, the results of upper blepharoplasty are primarily derived from lifting sagging tissues.
Is There Any Way I Can Make the Results of Upper Blepharoplasty Last Longer?
You can extend the longevity of your upper eyelid surgery results by prioritizing the health of your skin. Specifically, you should take steps to keep your collagen and elastin as healthy as possible. Here are some actionable steps you can take to maintain the health of your skin and the longevity of your results.
Stay Hydrated
If you’re like most Americans, you’re dehydrated more often than not. However, you need to make hydration one of your top priorities if you want your upper blepharoplasty results to last for as long as possible. Water is essential for virtually every function in your body, including collagen and elastin production. Water is also crucial for the health of your existing collagen and elastin.
Keep in mind, thirst is a lag indicator of hydration rather than a lead indicator. In other words, you have long been dehydrated if you feel thirsty. To ensure you are hydrated, make sure your urine is pale. If it is not, you need to drink more hydrating fluids (like coconut water, sparkling water, coffee, or tea) or eat more foods that are rich in water (like soup, most fruits, and many vegetables).
Stay Nourished
You can also extend the longevity of the results by making a point to stay nourished. Specifically, you should make sure you are eating plenty of protein and vitamin C. Both vitamin C and protein are required for your skin to produce collagen, and collagen is required to keep your skin young and healthy. Typically, sedentary adults need around 0.36 grams of protein per pound of body weight.
Wear Sunscreen
One of the most common causes of premature skin aging is UVC damage. To mitigate the risk of prematurely aging your skin and needing a follow-up procedure quickly, you should avoid using tanning beds. You should also wear sunscreen diligently, even if it is overcast outside or you plan on spending most of your day in your vehicle. Even if your windows and windshields are tinted, glass does not offer adequate protection from the sun’s UV rays.
When picking out your sunscreen, it is important to ensure it offers adequate protection. If you have a family history of skin cancer, you are at greater risk of UV damage and should opt for at least a sun protection factor of 55. On the other hand, if you don’t have a family history of sun damage, you may be protected with only a minimum SPF of 35. We can advise you on the best sunscreen for you during your initial consultation.
How Soon Will My Results Be Apparent?
The results of this procedure are apparent immediately, but it can take up to six weeks to see the final results of the procedure. How soon your final results become apparent depends on several factors, including how well you follow the post-operative care instructions.
How Long Will My Recovery Take?
For the most part, you should be back to your usual routine within 10 to 14 days of your procedure. However, depending on the scope of your procedure, you may feel just like your old self in under a week. Regardless, it is important that you avoid vigorous physical activity for roughly 1.5 months post-op. Here are some steps you can take to ensure the smoothest recovery possible.
Make Sun Protection a Priority
Collagen plays a major role in your skin healing itself, and UV rays damage collagen. Therefore, you should make sun protection one of your top priorities during your recovery period. In addition to wearing sunscreen diligently, you may want to use extra protection during your recovery period. For instance, you may want to wear a brimmed hat to protect against direct sunlight or wear sunglasses to protect your outer eyes from sun damage.
Rest Your Eyes
Resting your eyes as much as you can also help you recover from your procedure as quickly as possible. For example, if you want to read a book, consider listening to an audiobook. If you want to play a video game with your friends, consider working on a relaxing puzzle. It is highly advisable to minimize the amount of time you spend looking at a screen during your recovery period.
Get Plenty of Sleep
Getting plenty of sleep will also help you speed up your recovery process. While plenty of strong, healthy collagen plays a significant role in your skin healing itself, deep sleep is also very important. During your recovery period, you should sleep as much as you can and practice good sleep hygiene. It is very important that your sleep is uninterrupted because most of your body’s healing occurs during the REM (rapid eye movement) stage of sleep.
Unfortunately, every time you wake up, you start over from the first stage of sleep. As a general rule of thumb, you should try to sleep for 7.5 to nine hours uninterrupted and nap whenever you feel particularly groggy or tired. It is ideal to plan relaxing activities and not resist dozing off. Your body knows when it needs to rest. Listen to it.
Enlist Help
It is generally advisable to have someone stay with you for at least the first 24 to 72 hours post-op depending on the type of anesthesia you receive during the procedure. Typically, if you only receive sedation and local anesthesia, you should only expect to need someone to stay with you and help you for a day. On the other hand, you may need help for a few days if you receive general anesthesia. Note, some people need help throughout their entire recovery.
There is a chance that you will need someone to help you around the house for six to eight weeks if you have pets or children. It is very important that you don’t lift more than 10 pounds while you are recovering, so you won’t be able to pick up a child or heavy bag of dog food. As independent as you may usually be, you will recover faster if you have someone helping you with the cooking and cleaning so you can focus on resting.
Am I a Good Candidate for This Procedure?
If you’re an adult who is in relatively good health, there is a good chance that you will qualify for this procedure. However, you need to come in for an initial consultation to verify your candidacy. We need to ensure that you are healthy enough to receive this procedure and your cosmetic concerns can be corrected by the procedure. Sometimes, a brow lift or another cosmetic procedure is required to achieve one’s desired aesthetic.
Who Doesn’t Qualify for Blepharoplasty?
You won’t be considered a good candidate for eyelid surgery if you are in poor health. While upper blepharoplasty is usually performed under local anesthesia, lower blepharoplasty may be performed under general anesthesia. If we determine general anesthesia is right for you, we must ensure that your heart and lungs are fairly healthy. You may be disqualified if you have heart or lung problems, like heart disease or COPD.
Schedule Your Initial Consultation Today
Your eyes are the windows to your soul, and they shouldn’t be blocked by drooping upper eyelid skin. Also, dark bags under your eyes should not detract from your eyes’ natural beauty. Blepharoplasty can restore your youthful visage by enhancing your upper eyelids, lower eyelids, or both. Depending on the scope of the procedure, your results can last between five years and a lifetime. Contact us today at Boulder Plastic Surgery in Boulder, CO to learn more.