"People keep asking me if I am tired when I'm not."
Signs of aging around the eyes - drooping heavy eyelids and lower eyelid bags - can make us look tired and older than we feel. Typically women will notice that they always look tired, even in the mornings.
Eyelid surgery corrects heavy, dropping upper eyelids, and bagginess of the lower lids. Many people choose to have eyelid surgery, or blepharoplasty, so that their eyes look more bright and alive. The tired look is gone. We look as good as we feel.
With aging, the brow droops causing excess skin to fold onto your upper eyelids. In these cases, a brow lift can be done in conjunction with eyelid surgery, resulting in a smooth, youthful-looking upper eye area. In removing tired looking eyes, your face looks younger and more in keeping with how you feel.
The procedure
Eyelid surgery is done as an outpatient at a surgicenter. On the upper eyelid, an incision is made in the natural crease of the upper lid, so the scar is invisible. The excess skin and fat are carefully trimmed. The goal is to create a crisp upper eyelid fold without hanging skin.
In the lower eyelid, the incision is hidden on the inside of the eyelid or just below the lash line. All the incisions are essentially invisible. The excess fat and skin are carefully removed to correct the puffiness. The skin is smoothly redraped to remove the wrinkles. Commonly fat is skillfully injected along the lower eyelid to remove the unsightly rings. Fat injected in this area can make a remarkable, permanent improvement of the lower eyelid.
The recovery from upper eyelid surgery is quick. There can be minor bruising and swelling, but the acute recovery is complete by 5-7 days. The sutures are removed on day 5.
Recovery from lower eyelid surgery is a bit longer and may be more visible. Bruising can occur which will gradually resolve . Over 4-6 weeks, the bruising and swelling gradually resolve as the healing progresses. During the first 2 weeks after surgery, it is best to not exercise of get your heartrate or blood pressure up. It is also best to keep your head up and to avoid gardening or other activities where your head is lowered.