Undergoing a brow lift, also known as browplasty, is a standard procedure that older patients receive to restore a younger, fuller, and rejuvenated look. Sometimes, it may be used to correct impaired vision. Are your brows impairing your vision or making you look older than usual? In that case, you can seek a San Francisco facial plastic surgeon to reposition and raise the brow to help restore the forehead, browline, and droopy brows or the hooded appearance. Before you can receive the procedure, you also want to know the recovery tips and timelines.
Table of Contents
Recovery timeline
Most patients will ask whether or not browplasty is painful. Often, most patients experience little pain following a blow lift procedure or forehead lift. A patient is expected to recover after 10 to 14 days, but it depends on the individual’s age and health factors. You may be able to go back to work in 2 weeks following the surgery. You should fully recovery after about 6 to 8 weeks. So you can see that it takes a couple of weeks to recover and resume your normal activities.
So, what are the recovery tips to help you recover fast without any complications?
First two days
In the first few days, you want to rest to allow the treated area to recuperate. The outpatient procedure may require general anesthesia that may cause you to experience a sort of nausea. If you happen to feel so, talk to your doctor. You may need to take some medication to help. You should not be feeling pain, so if you have discomforts, OTC medications can help, such as Tylenol.
After you wake up from the surgery, you will see that you have a light dressing over the brow area. That dressing will be removed within a few days – say, one to two days. A drain tube may also be inserted that helps remove excess fluid and blood to minimize swelling. Your doctor may instruct you to keep the head elevated when you lay down. You also want to avoid strenuous activity and activities that involve lowering your head, like picking up this off the ground or bending down.
The first week
During the first week, you may wash your hair and shower. This can happen after two to three days following the surgery. When showering or washing your hair, ensure you use a gentle soap that your doctor recommends you. There may be some light bruising or residual swelling within the eye area. That bruising will subside within 7 to 10 days. You will need to go back to your surgeon towards the end of your first week after surgery to remove any sutures or stitches.
Next few weeks
In three weeks, you should have all the swelling subside. You will not be able to see any incision scars after that time. However, you still have the scars; you can disguise them with hair or use makeup to help mask them until they finally heal. At this time, you can resume your normal activities like work and exercise. You will need another few works for the surgery to settle in with the final results seen after about 6 to 8 weeks.
This is what to expect from a brow lift and so you should be able to take care of yourself till you recover. In case you notice any abnormalities, you can talk to your surgeon.