Creating The Elusive ?lunchtime Facelift?

The "lunchtime facelift" has been the holy grail in plastic surgery for quite a while. The idea of providing facial rejuvenation with no downtime appeals to both plastic surgeons and patients. Get your treatment, look improved and freshened, and immediately go back to work, out on the town or, for some of our entertainment patients here in Beverly Hills, head over to the red carpet at an awards show. Who wouldn't want to get their facial rejuvenation and then have no recovery?

Essentially all of the so called "no downtime facelifts" or "lunchtime facelifts" simply did not live up to their billing. As a plastic surgeon, I know that surgery involves recovery. It is just the way the body responds to a surgical procedure. Traditionally, if the body did not react to the procedure, nothing much was really done and few changes were visible when all was said and done.

But now we have many nonsurgical techniques that can create instant facial freshening -- removing or smoothing wrinkles, plumping lips -- with no recovery. Botox, Restylane, Juvederm, Radiesse, Sculptra and other new products provide facial rejuvenation and do not create scars or undue swelling. They can help achieve that elusive goal of improvements without downtime. This is perhaps the biggest revolution in plastic surgery in thirty years.

These products work very differently. When we do Beverly Hills Botox we are using the medicine to paralyze some of the tiny muscles in the face. The twitching of these muscles creates a skin wrinkle on the skin that lies above it. If the muscles lay quietly, they do not tense and cause a wrinkle in the skin above. Botox is extremely safe, its results are predictable, and it can create fantastic improvements in facial appearance. My sister recently had it for the first time, and it dramatically improved and freshened the look of her face ? just like I have seen it do for countless other of my patients.

The we use Beverly Hills skin fillers skin fillers such as Restylane and Juvederm we work to provide bulk under the skin to fill in wrinkles from below. They are very effective for both small lines and larger ones, such as the nasolabial folds which run from the sides of the nose toward the outside edges of the side of the mouth and the so-called marionette lines that go along the side of the chin.

Each person's face is different, so each person will do best with a different noninvasive treatment and nonsurgical skin rejuvenation. But the various procedures do provide fast changes with little or no recovery. Where in the past the ?weekend facelift? was illusory, it is now possible to create dramatic changes without downtime.

Lloyd M. Krieger, MD is founder of Rodeo Drive Plastic Surgery in Beverly Hills, California. Information is available on Beverly Hills Botox and Beverly Hills skin fillers.

The Short-Scar Face Lift

When going under the knife for anti-aging facial surgery, there are two separate issues to consider ? skin quality and excess skin quantity.

While the quality of the skin can be assisted to some extent (reports vary as to how much) with non-invasive treatments such as skin products, laser and botox, excesses of loose skin coupled with gravitational aging conditions such as sagging jowls do require surgery.

Instead of going for ?the works? as in a full face lift, many patients today are opting for short scar options (known as ?ponytail friendly? as the scarring is not obvious even when the patient wears their hair pulled back afterwards).

A well-known New York plastic surgeon says in regard to the mini-face lift procedure, "Aside from the shorter scar, there's no wind-tunnel look because we work on the deeper layers and reposition the fat and muscles, so the result is more natural."

Another less-invasive option is the ?mid-face lift?. However it is not recommended because it is often done through lower-eyelid incisions and can cause a noticeable, unwanted change in eye shape.

So what is the short-scar face lift?

The surgeon makes incisions at the hairline and around the ears and vertically lifts the fat, muscles and skin. The result is elevation of the skin and support of both skin and underlying tissue and muscles, especially in the mid face and jowls areas.

The procedure is usually done under local anaesthetic and is not longer than 90 minutes. You can expect some discomfort for the first day, which can be alleviated with painkillers.

Apart from a little bruising and swelling, the procedure has many advantages over the full face lift.

If you are considering facial cosmetic enhancement discuss this method with your surgeon as a possible solution to your needs. Also do thorough research beforehand.

Nicolet is a well know author which writes for a top plastic surgery South Africa website. Visit her site to get plastic surgery Cape Town advice.

Do It Yourself Non-Surgical Facelift

I?m the first to investigate a new anti-aging product or procedure, and have been for the last twenty years. Sometimes I?ve even gone so far as to indulge myself with the promise of eternal youth. So either the earth?s gravitational pull is getting stronger or raising children has finally taken its toll. Here I am, middle aged and wondering what?s the next thing to ?go south.?

I?m an esthetician with all the tools of the trade. I have all the gizmos and gadgets that when used regularly will minimize the effects of aging. So why don?t I use them on myself? Because it seems that there is never enough time.

With all the new technology such as lasers, thermage, microcurrent and magic lotions and potions, there is always a cost. It might be the price, the risks or the inconvenience. What if there was something you could do in the privacy of your own home for as little as 10 minutes a day. I know, I?m beginning to sound like an informercial but the claims are that there really are things you can do that can help get that youthful jawline and line free forehead back. Would you be willing to give 10 minutes a day for a few weeks to try it and see for yourself?

Facial exercises have been around for ages. Now it makes sense that toned muscles are firm muscles and that goes for the face as well as the body. As we age the underlying muscles of the face become flaccid and are less able to support the skin that is attached to them. While there is a lot that can be done to tighten and firm the skin, it is the underlying muscles, that when toned and tightened, make the biggest difference.

My first experience with facial exercise was with Greer Childers in her exercise program, ?Body Flex.? She based her technique of the premise that oxygenation of the tissue keeps it young and vibrant. She had me doing the ?Lion? and the ?Ugly Face? (appropriately named) where I would get into position and pull these horrible grotesque faces and hope to high heaven no one walked in on me. She promised me that while everyone else was trying to ?smooth the wrinkles out of their face we will have the last laugh because we will already be there.?

Then came Ellae Elinwood with her book, ?Timeless Face.? This is a book I got not only for myself, but for my clients to prolong the effects of their facial treatment. Ellae has twenty three facial exercises that you do in front of the mirror....alone... or with a group of five year olds for entertainment.

Another favorite is ?Facelift at you Fingertips,? by Pierre Jean Cousin. I really like this book and incorporate a lot of the techniques in my facials. This book focuses primarily on acupressure points, massage and aromatherapy. By stimulating acupressure points in the face by massage or gentle tapping, you increase the flow of energy, increase circulation and improve muscle tone.

Now I don?t know about the facial gadgets you put in your mouth to help exercise and tone the muscles. Besides the sanitation issue, I question the effectiveness. The only thing I will put repeatedly in my mouth is my tooth brush.

One company sells a workout ball and a towel to heat and warm up the face before exercise. I guess this is so you don?t pull an orbicular oris muscle during your workout.

The most important exercise you can do to improve the face is to smile. Have you ever noticed how people who smile more tend to have a definite jaw line. If jowls are your problem try looking in the mirror and then smile and watch how the jowls disappear. Smiling can relieve stress and tension and help you feel better. Your smile will have an affect on others when they see you smiling. You can even use surgical tape while you sleep to keep that smile in place.

Incorporate these facial exercises into your daily exercise routine and you can be firm and toned head to toe.

Janice Bird is an author, an empowerment coach and a master esthetician. You can subscribe to her newsletter, Breakthrough Beauty Secrets, by going to http://breakthroughbeautysecrets.com/. Find out more about Janice, her articles and products at http://janicebird.com/

Types of Cosmetic Surgery The Facelift

Cosmetic surgery is an amazing way of improving one?s appearance with methods of modern medicine. It functions as an art as well as a science, since the aim is not only to help someone be healthy, but also look better. Cosmetic surgery includes face lifts and other improvements in facial appearance, and corrections of the contours of the breast and stomach for men as well as women.

Probably the most popular cosmetic surgery operation is the Facelift. The purpose of a facelift is to tighten the skin and remove excess fight, reforming the skin normally on older people, at least over 40 years old. It can be an in hospital procedure with general anesthesia, even though some surgeon due it as an outpatient procedure with local anesthesia. The results usually last for 5 to 10 years.

Facelifts can be over the entire face, or only over the neck, the brow, or the lower face. Other alternative procedures to improve facial appearance include a chemical peel, and facial resurfacing techniques, also laser facial resurfacing. In a chemical peel, a chemical agent is used to remove the upper layer of skin. A better, new layer of skin grows back over the next 2 or 3 weeks.

If your facelift surgery involves using a general anesthetic, you will have to fast and not drink from the night before. The surgeon makes a cut around the hairline on the forehead and carefully separates the skin from underlying fat and muscle. He removes excess fat, tightens loose muscles and then pulls up the skin to a tighter tension. This usually takes three to four hours.

In a new variant of the procedure, called endoscopic surgery, the surgeon makes a few tiny holes to pull the skin up and insert tiny surgical tools. Through a camera and controls, the surgeon is able to see inside the operating area on a TV monitor, and use the surgical tools to do the work. After the operation, the face is wrapped for one or two days, and stitches are removed after one week to ten days. In another procedure, called MACS- Minimal Access Cranial Suspension, also shorter cuts are made, and an effort is made to due the facelift with a minimal amount of scarring.

After the surgery there is some pain, and you usually have to stay in the hospital for a day or two. There is some pain after a facelift, but this can be controlled by normal over the counter pain relievers.

Joseph Hanoah has been writing on the internet for many years now. Joseph currently works day and night on his website encinitas cosmetic surgery. For more information on this topic please visit his website today.