Our eyes tell more than the spoken words of mouth. During conversations, people who are observant can pick up the unspoken words, emotions, and necessary cues merely by looking at our eyes. This helps in their reactions towards us in times of such conversations.
When your eyes begin to sag or displaced with wrinkles or more, it is inevitable to often pass the wrong signals across to others as your eyes may be communicating inaccurate cues.
The human eyes like every other part of the human body are prone to defects caused by aging. While you cannot control aging, something significant can be done about those eyes that constantly remind you of your younger days whenever you stop in front of the mirror. The way your eyes look could tell how old or young you might actually be, but with eye lift, all of that could be thrown to the wind.
Blepharoplasty is an effective way to improve how your eyelids appear. It could provide you with features to make you look much younger. It can drastically smooth both the upper and lower eyelids to provide you with a more rested and youthful appearance.
What is Eye Lift?
Eyelift otherwise called eyelid lift, eyelid surgery or blepharoplasty is a semi-invasive cosmetic surgical procedure which deals with improving the overall appearance of the eyelids. This surgical procedure addresses wrinkles, sagging skin around the eyes, smoothen wrinkles and in general correct signs of aging around both the upper and lower eyelids.
What is the purpose of Eye Lift?
As the human skin ages, it may begin to lose its elasticity and the frequent pull of gravity may cause excessive skin to accumulate around the upper and lower eyelids. The excess skin accumulated on the lower eyelid often causes the visible wrinkles there, and then excessive skin on the upper eyelid may hang over the eyelashes thereby causing temporary or permanent interference with vision.
The aim of the eye lift is to improve the appearance of the eyelids. The surgery is mainly done for cosmetic purpose however it can also be used as a means to improve the eyesight of old people who have sagging upper eyelids that may often affect their vision. That is the removal of eye bags, to smooth the skin around the eyelids and more.
Eyelift is designed to help stall, redefine the changes to the eyelid over time and help restore a natural and youthful look to the eyes.
Benefits of Eye Lift
There are many benefits which can get from getting an eyelid lift. These benefits would lift you beyond your normal look and transform you beyond your imagination. Some of the benefits would include;
- Eyelift reduces the extent of stretching out and redundant skin around the eyes
- Eyelid lift helps redistribute all unnecessary fat hanging around the eyes causing sagging eyelids
- Eyelift rejuvenates your youthful appearance.
- The eyelid lift can help make visions clear and no longer obscured
- The eyelift gives an appearance of alertness unlike the shadowy look your saggy eyes would give to you.
- Eyelid lift also saves you the trouble of having people misinterpreting what your eyes may or may not tell.
How long can it last
While upper eyelift can last from five up to seven years, lower eyelids surgery, on the other hand, may not need to be repeated in a lifetime. It is however advised that when your upper eyelid seems to be sagging again after an eyelid lift, you should consider trying a forehead lift instead of redoing the eyelid lift.
Getting a surgeon
Thorough knowledge of facial anatomy is not all it takes for handling eyelid surgery. It requires the ability to specifically adjust surgical techniques to suit the demands of the patient. A keen eye for aesthetic detail is also a necessary trait for an eyelid surgeon.
Before agreeing to let just anyone work on your eyelids, it is advisable to consult with known cosmetics surgeons. And when you choose a surgeon, do not hesitate to bring up questions on the surgeon’s training experience in facial cosmetic surgery, request for and go through before and after photos. This is all necessary because the past work of a surgeon shows his capabilities in the aesthetic field. However, do bear in mind that end results will differ based on individuality even though not to a great extent.
Candidates for Eye Lift
Any individual considering eyelift surgery should have a generally healthy life; avoid smoking; should not have any serious eye impediments or condition, and should not have a medical history that would complicate the surgery.
When you consider yourself a good candidate for fro eyelift surgery, you may also want to consider how many blepharoplasties may cost. In the UK, blepharoplasty costs around £ 2,000 to £6000. And it costs somewhat at about $ 3260.
Types of Eye Lift
There are various types of ways to classify eyelift surgeries. However, the three distinct categories are;
- Upper eyelid surgery: this category of surgery is mainly used in the improvement of sight and worn appearance of the eye from aging or genetics as the case may be. It is focused on the upper eyelid; it can provide a more open appearance of the eye and even improve the function of the eye. The incisions are placed strategically at the crease of the eyelid in this category of surgery.
- The lower eyelid surgery: this procedure is centered on the lower eyelid and eyes. It focuses mostly on the clearing of wrinkles in the skin around the lower eyelids; it also corrects the issue of baggy eyes and generally improves appearance as well. Incisions made are hidden naturally in the lines around the eye. In lower eyelid surgery, the excess fat is removed to eliminate or reduce the way the eye bags appear.
- The double eyelid surgery: double eyelid surgery involves making or creating a larger and wider looking eye.
We may also classify eyelift surgeries into these two categories:
- Functional Blepharoplasty: this is simply where the eyelift surgery is intended to remove the excess skin for the purpose of improving the patient’s vision
- Cosmetic Blepharoplasty: this kind of eye lift can be done either on the upper or the lower eyelid.
Eye Lift Procedure
Eyelift surgery is usually performed as an outpatient procedure. It commonly may last from 45 to 2 hours which depends on whether multiple procedures are being performed at the time. It requires either general or local anesthesia alongside sedative.
Eye Lift Anesthesia
Where the surgery is on the upper eyelids, the incision lines are made along the crease lines of the eyelid, fat tissues are either repositioned or completely removed alongside excess skin. Then muscles and skin are tightened and the incision closed.
For lower eyelid surgery, incisions may be made inside the lower eyelid and depending on which mode is suited for the operation; fat is distributed or removed from the bags under the eyes and excess skin removed.
The surgeon may after surgery, apply removable suture strips to the eyelids, or close the incisions with surgical tape.
Eye Lift Recovery
While most patients will feel well enough to resume their daily activities it is advised that you follow the instructions of your surgeon to the latter. It is always the best option to follow the instructions of your cosmetic surgeon after any procedure. The eyelift surgery is too delicate a procedure to ignore without proper post-surgery care and frequent re-examination. The eyelift procedure may require your surgeon to have to make relatively simple but special modifications to make certain that your newly redressed eyelids are up to par.
In the first week or two after eyelift surgery, some patients may have visible bruising and swelling around the eye area. For some others, the eyelids may even feel awkwardly tighter than usual. Patients may not be able to put on contact lenses, any eye make-up for at least one or two weeks after the surgery except as otherwise instructed by the doctor. Patients may also not be able to drive as their eyesight may not be 100% recovered yet. Dark sunglasses are recommended to protect the eyes from the sun and wind for the period of recovery.
Your eyes would get tired more often than usual during the first few weeks of recovery and it is absolutely important that they are allowed to rest as much as necessary. Avoid activities and habits that may hinder the recovery of your eyes such as sitting at a computer constantly.
It is advisable for patients to set out an entire week for recovery without strenuous activities to properly recover from the surgery. Consider resuming work only part-time for a few weeks
Commonly, patients would be given instructions by their doctors to follow post-surgery including specific medication that should be taken. Also, the date and time for a subsequent examination would be communicated to the patient.
Side Effects of Eye Lift
Blepharoplasty is not excluded from complications and adverse effects of surgeries. It is necessary that you are realistic about the possible result obtainable and the time it will require to manifest. Although some surgical benefits and results may manifest even at the early stages of recovery, it may take as long as a year to fully obtain the full benefits of an eyelift surgery.
Side effects may however include; scarring, bruising, minor swelling around the eye, temporal vision impairment, and in some cases, temporary blindness may occur but these should go back to normal within a day. Other side effects include itching in or around the eye, dryness and other minor discomforts. These minor effects can be treated with prescribed medication like eye drops.
Very rare and extreme cases may carry a risk of serious problems such as:
- Lower eyelid being pulled downwards showing the white of the eye
- Blindness
- Damage to the eye muscles
- Excessive bleeding
- Infections; or
- Severe allergic reactions (most likely to the general anesthetic)
It is important to discuss concerns about any specific symptoms or possible complications that may occur in the future and the best way to manage and treat them if they occur.
What to do when unexpected problems occur
Cosmetic surgeries are prone to unexpected turns sometimes. We are all humans and can err. Where such unexpected results occur, contact the clinic where the surgery was carried out. Notify them of any unexpected symptoms or of any pain you may be undergoing. It is crucial to get this done immediately in order for you to avoid further complications
If you are not pleased with the result of your surgery and you feel the procedure was not properly carried out, take the matter up with the surgeon who performed the operation.
Conclusion
The eyes have a tremendous impact on an individual’s overall appearance and thus should be treated with extreme care and caution. Sagging eyelids can make you look too tired all the time and it can also give you a terrible older-than-your-age feel. When you begin to notice these signs, like the sagging eyes; the sandbags or more accurately the eye bags beneath your eyes, please do not hesitate to opt for these procedures to help soften and restore your eyes and give back that glowing youthful look.
However, having realistic expectations prior to blepharoplasty will help a lot because while the procedure can, in fact, improve the appearance of a person, it does not alter your face to a large extent. So it is advised to keep your expectations minimal and realistic. When your expectations of the outcome of the eyelid lift are realistic, then you will not have to suffer disappointment in the sense that it may not come out as you daydreamed. When you cannot be realistic about what to expect from an eyelid lift, it may cause uneasiness and may even rile you up enough to pressure your surgeon into having a do-over at best or entirely new aesthetic surgery at worst.
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