The results of a blepharoplasty can be dramatic – in some cases, a slight change in eye shape is observed. When the eyelid has been weighed down with excess or wrinkled skin, the eyes can appear more closed or squinted, often causing you to look tired, angry, or upset.
Your eyelid may be swollen and bruised for 1 to 3 weeks after surgery. The appearance of your eye may continue to get better for 1 to 3 months. Most people feel ready to go out in public and back to work in about 10 to 14 days. This may depend on your job and how you feel about people knowing about your surgery.
Be Prepared for Swelling
Swelling is to be expected after your surgery. It might be very dramatic, particularly at first, and your eyes might look worse before they look better.
The example below shows how the patient with deep-set eyes can end up with a “small eye” appearance (in the right eye) when the eyelid anchor point is inappropriately set too high. This patient also had the anchor point too far forward — the eyelid did not touch the eyelid at the outside corner.
Because blepharoplasty typically involves trimming excess eyelid skin, removing bulging undereye fat, and tightening the skin of the eyelids, most patients will experience at least some degree of change to the eye's shape.
Your eyes may appear bigger, brighter, or more awake after your upper, lower, or double blepharoplasty. Many people find that blepharoplasty works well to erase visible signs of aging and increase youthful radiance.
Your eyelids will probably look puffy after surgery. The incisions will probably look red, too. The swelling and bruising involved with blepharoplasty recovery tend to resemble a black eye. That is all normal.
Most people's biggest fear from surgery is having two eyes that don't match. This is a mistake that can occur from blepharoplasty. It can occur due to the natural changes in the way each eye heals following surgery. Everyone has a degree of facial asymmetry.
Does blepharoplasty make eyes smaller? Upper eyelid blepharoplasty tends to make the eyes look bigger and not smaller. This is because the overhang of skin from the droopy eyelids the makes the eyelids look smaller is reduced or removed entirely.
Finally, a rare cause of eyelid closure problems after blepharoplasty is nerve damage. There are nerves that travel in the corners of the eye that supply the muscles that control eyelid closure. If those nerves are damaged the eyelid closure muscles don't work well and the eyelids have trouble closing.
Double vision. Puffy, numb eyelids. Swelling and bruising similar to having black eyes. Pain or discomfort.
It cannot make your eyes bigger than they naturally are, but by removing excess skin and fat, it can make them appear larger. It will rejuvenate your eyes and give you the youthful look you've been dreaming of.
Once the puffiness under the eyes is reduced, it often never returns. It is important to remember, however, that every patient is different. Should someone develop recurrent puffiness under the eyes after several years, a revision blepharoplasty can help to restore their original results.
Post-upper blepharoplasty syndrome is characterized by upper eyelid ptosis, lash ptosis, high or indistinct upper eyelid crease, hollow upper eyelid sulcus (absent upper eyelid fold), and a compensatory eyebrow elevation. We call this configuration a “synform” upper eyelid fold.
It is strongly advised that patients wait at least six months before undergoing a revision blepharoplasty procedure. This will allow sufficient time for the area to heal correctly and for patients to assess results before considering whether another procedure is necessary.
One to Two Months
The majority of the healing will likely be finished by the two-month mark, but many people recover faster than this. Swelling and redness will be almost completely gone. At this point, you should be able to see the difference in your eyes – and the positive changes in your overall facial appearance.
A blepharoplasty can improve the appearance of the eyes, but it does not reposition the eyebrows. Alternatively, a brow lift surgery lifts the eyebrows and improves the appearance of the upper eyelids without removing any skin and fat from the eyelids.
Yes, hooded eyelids—when excess skin sags and folds down from below the brow bone—can be corrected with a surgical procedure known as a blepharoplasty. The procedure removes excess skin and fat and tightens the muscles and tissue of the eyelid.
Look Younger with a Blepharoplasty
In some cases, it can even make you look older than you are. By improving the appearance of droopy or sagging skin, your eyes will look younger.
If you are unhappy with the results of your eyelid surgery, you may be a good candidate for a revision procedure. Blepharoplasty revision surgery aims to correct the identified issues so that your eyelids look natural, are comfortable, and leave you feeling happy about the way that you look.
If insufficient fat was removed, usually from the outer part of the lower lid, that can be fixed with a revisional procedure. -Deep indentation at the lid cheek junction. Some people have a deep indentation where the lid meets the cheek.
Blepharoplasty recovery takes approximately 6 to 8 weeks although it can take longer for the scars to fade with anywhere between 6 to 12 months being usual.
Lower eyelids that become pulled down after cosmetic lower blepharoplasty is called lower eyelid retraction. More specifically, it is referred to as post-blepharoplasty lower eyelid retraction. This is a devastating complication emotionally, psychologically, and functionally (as it can lead to true eye problems).
Gentle massage on the eyelid after blepharoplasty will help to reduce scarring. This massage can begin about 7 – 14 days after the surgery. Apply a lotion to the fingers and using just the soft tips of the fingers massage both the scar itself and the surrounding tissues.
It's amazing how much of a difference the skin around your eyes makes when it comes to how old you appear. Droopy, sagging, or puffy upper eyelids make you seem years older than your actual age.