Getting rid of excess fat has a variety of positive effects on one’s health.
People often remark that they feel better both physically and mentally, in addition to having more self-confidence in their own skin.
Unfortunately, one of the unintended but unavoidable consequences of losing large amounts of weight is that it leaves one with loose skin on their face and bodies—in whatever areas the weight was lost from.
The face is a fairly common area of the body impacted by loose skin, but the upper arms, abdomen, and thighs are the most common places where it can be found.
Thankfully, a facelift can be done to remove excess skin and fatty tissue in order to improve one’s overall facial features if weight reduction has left loose, draping, or sagging skin.
If you are reading this, you are likely expecting that after your weight loss is complete, you will have loose skin.
The good news is that if you want to address the problem, facelift surgery will help you. A neck lift may also be needed, and the two are different procedures: Their rates are set and paid separately, but are often reduced in cost if done together, and they target different areas of the body: the face, and the neck.
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How losing weight changes the face
Many patients are taken aback when they learn that losing weight may actually make their skin seem many years older than it truly is.
This is because the skin begins to sag, which gives the appearance that the skin is more mature than it actually is, and it begins to wrinkle more readily, since it no longer holds the same volume of tissue that it once did.
The underlying cause of many unfavorable changes to the face, such as jowling, drooping cheeks, loose skin on the neck and beneath the chin, and deep nasolabial creases, is considered to be facial fat loss, which is a normal part of aging.
That weight loss and the sagging or lax skin that it causes affects almost everyone. In patients who were once heavier than they are now, the effects are exaggerated and more obvious.
Even those of us who have maintained the same weight throughout our adult days may eventually start to display some of these characteristics.
Massive weight loss generally causes men and women to face these problems earlier in life, more dramatically, and at a quicker pace. Some patients say they look haggard or sunken owing to facial fat loss, while others have substantial skin and soft tissue accumulated around the neck and chin.
Facelift surgery is the solution to sagging skin
After losing weight, those who are troubled by facial aging symptoms may require cosmetic surgery to properly address their issues. Face creams and other cosmetics don’t really do much to deal with extra skin.
The skin is very, very unlikely to shrink back or lift on its own since, in the majority of instances, the collagen levels aren’t capable of fully revitalizing the skin.
That being said, the industry-leading treatment known as the facelift can help you reverse all of those effects and give you a brighter and more youthful look.
The benefits of a facelift after weight loss
The gold standard method to address the majority of the aforementioned problems is facelift surgery. A facelift removes extra skin, tightens facial muscles, and raises facial features so that patients may completely appreciate the results of their weight loss efforts.
People may say goodbye to overt indications of aging and say welcome to a more young and refreshed look by getting a facelift. The outcomes of a complete facelift are long-lasting since it treats the skin as well as the underlying muscles and tissues.
Ideal candidates for a facelift
If you have lost a significant amount of weight and are thinking about getting a facelift, there are a few things you should bear in mind first.
The ideal candidate for a facelift is a person who is not dramatically off from their ideal body weight and who is in good physical shape.
It is not necessary to be at your “ideal body weight” before getting a facelift, but if you weigh somewhere in the vicinity of your ideal weight, you will likely have better results.
Put another way, obese patients may wish to lose some body weight before getting a facelift or any other cosmetic surgery, some of which their body weight will prevent them from qualifying for.
It may be dangerous for patients whose BMI is too high to undergo any cosmetic surgery, not to mention that significant changes in one’s weight after the surgery will affect its results.
Recovery period after a facelift procedure
Whether you choose to get a facelift to rejuvenate your skin or as a result of weight loss, the healing process is essentially the same. Patients must take time out of work and closely adhere to post-surgery instructions.
Staying away from strenuous activity and exercise for at least a month will help you obtain the results that are more in line with what you desire while also allowing your body to recuperate more effectively.
The good news is that skin tightening results may be seen practically immediately. Results for facial rejuvenation will keep improving as side effects like edema and inflammation go away.
That being said, every patient is different. Plastic surgeons and med spas also provide a range of noninvasive face and neck options to target that pesky excess skin after weight loss—however, many of these are only effective if the amount of skin and fat to be addressed is minimal.
If you take good care of your results, you may not only anticipate youthful results but outcomes that will last for decades.
Photo by Magda Ehlers
