Minimally or Non-Invasive Alternatives to Getting a Face Lift

As we get older, the skin on our faces will begin to sag, bags may form under our eyes, and wrinkles start to pop. While some people age gracefully and beautifully, others are unhappy with the changes and choose to challenge them.

The obvious choice is to get a facelift. A facelift is a surgical option that lifts and smooths the skin on and around the face to provide a younger appearance. However, a facelift is a highly invasive option and comes with a wide range of side effects.

The younger appearance you get from a facelift should last ten years. The recovery is approximately a week but may vary. Your doctor may recommend additional procedures to get the results you want. Just as with any surgery, there is the potential for complications. While pain and discomfort are reasonable, you may also experience bleeding, bruising, infection, loss of hair near the incision site, skin necrosis, and a thickened scar.

If you do not want to risk the possibility of complications, some treatments and products can help you attain a younger look that is non-invasive or minimally invasive. The first is an under-eye treatment. There are a variety of different under-eye treatments you can choose from, but they can reduce swelling and the appearance of bags under your eyes. The treatment can also reduce under-eye dark spots and wrinkles around the eyes.

Reducing or eliminating bags, dark spots, and wrinkles will give you a significantly younger and more radiant look. The skin will be smoother and brighter. For many men and women, the area around the eyes is what bothers them the most because they feel it is what gets the most attention during conversations with other people. 

Another option is getting injectables. Injectables are minimally invasive and provide filler in specific areas of your face to make it appear fully taking away the appearance of wrinkles and saggy skin. The injectable is a gel made of Hyaluronic Acid, Calcium Hydroxylapatite, Poly-L-lactic Acid, Polymethylmethacrylate, and autologous fat injections. 

The length of time you can expect the injectable to last will vary on a wide range of factors, including where you got the injections. However, in most cases, they last from 6 to 18 months. While a cosmetic surgeon will administer the injectable, it is a non-surgical option. 

Before your treatment, you will have a consultation with your doctor to discuss your goals in getting the injections and any concerns you may have about the product, process, or side effects. You will also need to provide a full medical history. Following the injections, you can expect tenderness, swelling, and mild bruising around the injection site.

Injectables are not a cure-all for aging, which is why it is so important to have that initial consultation. Your doctor can provide you with realistic expectations of what you will look like after the swelling and bruising go away. Getting a clear idea of what you are going to look like will allow you to make an educated decision on whether or not you want to go through with the procedure.

A completely non-surgical and non-invasive option you may choose, and you can do at home, is microdermabrasion. Microdermabrasion is a process of carefully removing the top layer of skin on your face unveiling a fresh layer of skin. The process can also provide a younger and brighter appearance. While you need to be careful, the process is similar to washing your face, but it will involve an exfoliate designed to remove all of the dead skin.

Regularly moisturizing your face is also an effective way of appearing fresh and young, slowing the aging process. Like your body, your skin needs to stay hydrated, so drink plenty of water throughout the day and moisturize your skin with a high-quality lotion daily.