The facelift is moving into new territory.<\/p>\n
A quick search on socials and my feed is inundated with posts from people in their late 20s, 30s, discussing different types of facelift – the mini, the ponytail, the deep plane.<\/p>\n
Gone are the days when facelifts were reserved for the ageing wealthy – now an increasing number of younger people are opting to go under the knife.<\/p>\n
Some happily share pictures of their face before, after and the very bruised bit in between – their often very painful recovery.<\/p>\n
It’s no longer a procedure that’s spoken about in secret, celebrities like Kris Jenner, Catt Sadler and Marc Jacobs have spoken openly about their treatment. Many more are rumoured to have had one.<\/p>\n
The facelift is often seen as the last resort, the most major of cosmetic surgeries.<\/p>\n
Are people becoming so insecure in an often fake online world that they will pay thousands of pounds for the operation?<\/p>\n
Or have we had so many non-surgical treatments, such as Botox and fillers, that having our skin peeled from our cheekbones and our facial tissues and fat rearranged feels like a logical – and longer lasting – next step?<\/p>\n
For Emily, who had a facelift at 28, it was about getting a \u00ab\u00a0snatched look\u00a0\u00bb – a sculpted, sharp jaw, high cheekbones and fox eyes. She says having surgery in Turkey was \u00ab\u00a0life-changing\u00a0\u00bb and she does not regret it.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0In total I had six surgeries rolled into one,\u00a0\u00bb she explains. \u00ab\u00a0Among them I had a mid- face lift, a lip lift and a rhinoplasty [nose job].\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n
Describing the process, the businesswoman from Toronto, Canada, says the surgeon played her favourite song as she went under general anaesthetic and then: \u00ab\u00a0I fell asleep and I woke up, threw up, and I had a new face and a new nose.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n
The recovery process was long – the pain and bruising began to subside over the first few weeks, but it took six months for Emily to regain feeling in parts of her cheeks.<\/p>\n
Would she do it again? She hesitates.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0Since my surgery, I’ve changed my life. I’m healthier, I drink a lot less, I look after my skin, I sleep. I think if I knew what I know now I might not have gone through with it.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0My mum didn’t even know until I told her a couple of days after surgery.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n
But then she stops and reflects.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0But I just wanted to be the best version of myself,\u00a0\u00bb Emily says, \u00ab\u00a0and now I think I am.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n
Figures from the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) show an 8% increase in facelifts over the past 12 months in the UK – they don’t break down the figures by age, but many members report that the demographic is shifting.<\/p>\n
This is reflected in other parts of the world, with the American Society of Plastic Surgeons seeing a rise in Gen X (ages 45 to 60) opting for a facelift.<\/p>\n
Nora Nugent, president of BAAPS, believes there are a host of reasons for the change – including the rise of weight-loss medications.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0Losing weight so quickly on these drugs can leave a lot of excess skin. A facelift can help with that,\u00a0\u00bb she says. \u00ab\u00a0Techniques have developed massively – a facelift no longer means risking that ‘wind tunnel’ [an overly stretched face as a result of the skin being pulled back] effect on the face we saw many years ago.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n
However, a facelift is still a significant operation that should only be undertaken by a specialist, registered plastic surgeon in a registered facility with proper equipment, she says.<\/p>\n
At his clinic in Bristol, consultant plastic surgeon Simon Lee has carried out hundreds of facelifts – and shows me a video of one.<\/p>\n
For the duration of the procedure the client is wide awake, having had low levels of local anaesthetic injected into the skin and the deeper tissue beneath.<\/p>\n
He makes a series of small incisions in her face, before going under the skin, the fat and the superficial fascia (SMAS) – the part of the face which controls our expressions – then reaching the deep plane where he repositions tissue and muscles to reshape the face.<\/p>\n
As he finishes, the client, who has been under the knife for four hours, smiles in relief.<\/p>\n
One of the reasons it’s become more appealing, Mr Lee says, is the ease with which face and neck lifts can now be carried out. Once reserved for a hospital theatre and requiring a general anaesthetic, he now carries the face and neck lift without sedation in his clinic.<\/p>\n
It’s an \u00ab\u00a0exciting time\u00a0\u00bb in the industry, he says, with developments happening at speed. While the classic facelift – which focuses on the lower jaw and neck is still popular, there are newer treatments which target the upper two thirds of the face – where he says, the ageing process begins and is noticeable at a younger age.<\/p>\n
The surgeon caveats this saying a facelift is suitable for those over 40, but it would be very unusual to carry out such a complex procedure on someone in their 20s and 30s.<\/p>\n
There are risks and complications involved in these kind of procedures, such as developing a hematoma – a collection of blood under the skin which, if not treated, could lead to necrosis (death of surrounding tissues), infections, nerve injury and alopecia.<\/p>\n
A facelift costs, on average, \u00a315,000-\u00a345,000 in the UK, but there are clinics offering these procedures for as little as \u00a35,000.<\/p>\n
Experts say it is important to do your research and choose a plastic surgeon who specialises in facelifts.<\/p>\n
Julia Gilando, 34, decided she needed a facelift to fix asymmetry in her face after having issues with the jaw alignment earlier in her life.<\/p>\n
Although many of her friends said they couldn’t see a problem with her face, she felt it, \u00ab\u00a0trusted her gut\u00a0\u00bb, and flew to Turkey for her procedure, which cost $8,000 (\u00a36,000).<\/p>\n
Despite warnings about the risks associated with having cosmetic surgery in Turkey it has become increasingly popular to do so, mainly due to lower prices.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0At first I thought this whole idea was crazy, but I did my research and I decided to go for it,\u00a0\u00bb Ms Gilando, a healthcare professional, says. \u00ab\u00a0I was scared, I was in a foreign country, I was alone, and I didn’t speak the language.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0After my surgery I spent two days in hospital and then had to fend for myself. I was so swollen I couldn’t see.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0There were some dark times, it was a whole mental rollercoaster of emotions, you go through these highs and lows.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n
There are concerns from researchers about whether such cosmetic surgery procedures give the self-esteem and confidence the industry advertises.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0I think there’s an unprecedented pressure,\u00a0\u00bb Dr Kirsty Garbett, a body image expert from the Centre of Appearance Research at the University of West England, explains. \u00ab\u00a0Especially when it comes to the face – we see ourselves on video calls, social media platforms, we compare ourselves to others so easily.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n
And she says, what we see isn’t necessarily a true reflection of reality.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0AI, filters – all play a part in creating a fake online world. And, at the same time, we are seeing a rise in the normalisation of cosmetic procedures.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n
Celebrities being more outspoken about having these operations is, in some ways, a good thing, she says, but it also normalises them – making them appear \u00ab\u00a0just a part of life and that is really worrying\u00a0\u00bb.<\/p>\n
Caroline Stanbury, TV presenter and one of the Real Housewives of Dubai, had a facelift two years ago aged 47, despite everyone telling her not to do it because she was too young.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0It was the best thing I have ever had done,\u00a0\u00bb Caroline says. \u00ab\u00a0Why do I want to wait until I am in my 60s, desperate and need it? I want to look and feel amazing now.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n
Having spent 20 years getting regular Botox and fillers, she felt like she was \u00ab\u00a0beginning to look weird\u00a0\u00bb. She paid $45,000 (\u00a334,000) for a deep plane facelift in the US.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0I still look like me, and this procedure has given me another 20 years of feeling great,\u00a0\u00bb she says.<\/p>\n
Alexis Verpaele, a plastic surgeon based in Belgium, with clients from all over the world including the UK, says he’s worried about the increasing number of younger people coming for the treatment.<\/p>\n
He often talks to these clients at length about ways certain looks can be achieved without something as major as surgery.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0If they have a facelift in their 20s, and we know it can last 10, 15 years say.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0So by the time they are 60, they might have had three facelifts,\u00a0\u00bb De Verpaele says.<\/p>\n
\u00ab\u00a0That’s a lot of trauma for one face to endure – and that’s the best case scenario without any complications.\u00a0\u00bb<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The facelift is moving into new territory. A quick search on socials and my feed is inundated with posts from people in their late 20s, 30s, discussing different types of facelift – the mini, the ponytail, the deep plane. Gone are the days when facelifts were reserved for the ageing wealthy – now an increasing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-9287","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-uncategorized"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/placedesnations.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9287","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/placedesnations.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/placedesnations.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/placedesnations.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9287"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/placedesnations.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9287\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/placedesnations.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/placedesnations.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/placedesnations.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}