My Facelift Recovery: was the glow-Up worth the blow up?
I did not float out of facelift surgery looking “refreshed.” I looked… rearranged.
Bloated. Brown from resurfacing. Tight. I was horrified, sure that I’d made a terrible decision and would have to live out my remaining years wearing a burqa.
But now that I’m three months out? I’m happy —not because I look“different,” but because I look like me again…just more rested and less like my face slid south in the night.
If you’re considering a facelift — or you’re just here for the unfiltered reality — here’s my honest experience:
Why I did it, how I chose my surgeon, what recovery really felt like, and what changed from one month to three months.
The “Age Spurt” That Started This
I’ve always been pretty confident — not in a “look at me” way, but in a “this is my face and it has lived a life” kind of way.
Then I hit what I can only describe as an age spurt. One day I looked normal-ish, and the next day I swear my face had aged ten years during a single REM cycle.
Wrinkles I could handle. Expression lines? Normal. But the combo platter of volume loss + laxity + drooping + crepey texture hit me all at once.
And here’s the part your nurse injector may not mention: you can do all the skincare, peels, serums, and red light you want… but when the issue is structural — sagging and looseness — there’s a point where surgery is the only thing that can restore your face in a way that still looks natural.
Not “filled.” Not “overdone.” Just… refreshed.
STEP ONE: CHOOSING YOUR SURGEON
Before I found Dr. Swanson, I went through a nightmare audition circuit of plastic surgery consults.
They felt less like medical appointments and more like a group dissection of my face.
“Okay, so here’s what we’d fix… and here’s what’s failing… and this part is really a problem…” (Thank you so much, I’ll go cry in my car now.)
Aftewards, they sent in the “closer,” who emphasized the discount if I booked RIGHT NOW — like I was buying a sofa on clearance, not deciding what to do with my actual face.
I’m sure some of these surgeons are talented, but the vibe was a hard no for me. I wasn’t looking for a sales pitch or a facial takedown — I wanted someone who felt skilled, honest, and human.
That’s why Dr. Swanson was such a relief. No pressure. No theatrics. NO CLOSER! Just Dr. Swanson calmly and clearly explaining my options to me. That confidence trickled down to his team, who made me feel safe and supported throughout my recovery.
Bonus fact: He has his own surgery center, which made the procedure much more affordable.
Surgery Day: The Moment (SH)it Got real
Arrived at 9 a.m., surgery at 10, released to Herb at 2.
Then I saw my face.
Burnt from the laser resurfacing, I stared at my fish lips, balloon cheeks, and the angry incisions around my ears and hairline. I knew, intellectually, they had to “get in there” somehow… but seeing it in real life was still shocking. (And here’s the wild part: in less than two weeks, those incisions were basically imperceptible.)
Add anesthesia wearing off, sleeping in a recliner, and pain meds… and let’s just say: I was feeling more BLOW UP than GLOW UP.
Recovery Timeline: Days 1–4: The Shock + Swell Era
Post-op reassurance: “This is normal.” (Bless them, because I was not convinced.)
Care routine: gentle cleansing + Aquaphor 3–4x/day + drink water (I was better at Aquaphor than hydration).
Increased swelling and tightness. Eating got hard.
Emotional highlight: “What in God’s Holy name have I done to myself?” (Apparently normal through day 7.)
Days 5–7: A Chin Appears + Hope Returns
Less swelling — I could see my chin again (a small miracle).
I went in for my one-week follow-up and got some stitches removed. I was a peeling, crusty, shedding mess. Dr. Swanson tried to reassure me, “Perfectly normal. You’re right on track.”
I wanted to cry… and hit him.
My energy started to brighten, but nights were another story — swelling seemed worse after dark, the tightness made my head pound. I remained sleeping in the recliner, hoping it would help.
Days 8-14 : The Impatience Chapter
My energy was better, but I was still mottled and swollen. My temples and eyes felt tight, and it was hard to turn my head.
As if the swelling wasn’t enough, my face was like, “Let’s add chaos!” when I began to break out with acne-like pimples. Apparently, this was part of the “purge,” as my skin turned over and healed.
Sleep was still hit-or-miss, so I started taking pre-dawn walks. They kept me moving and sane, helped me avoid the dreaded sun, and lowered the chances of exposing my seeping face to another human.
DAYS 15-21: THE PRIME TIME LIE
I was told (and reinforced by many a plastic surgery blog) that I would be ready to go out in public at three weeks with “sunscreen and a bit of light foundation.”
This is a stretch.
I couldn’t imagine showing my pickled gob to my worst enemy, much less an unsuspecting stranger.
Additionally, all progress seemed to have stalled or stopped completely.
I got bored, a little blue, and started doing that thing where you stare at your face from different angles, like a crime scene. I felt stabbing and tingling around my incisions — a good sign that the nerves were healing — but odd all the same.
When I attempted my first Zoom call, my efforts to “look normal” were a dismal failure. There’s nothing like looking at your post-surgery face on Zoom to make you question every decision you’ve ever made.
And just when I thought recovery couldn’t get any more ridiculous… I got attacked by an owl on a pre-dawn walk. An actual owl swooped at me not once, but twice. Thankfully, my ball cap protected my scalp from his sharp talons.
No more walks in the dark. It was official. I was in recovery hell.😄
DAY 30: THE ONE-MONTH CHECK UP APPOINTMENT
These one-month follow-up photos definitely show improvement, but I still feel swollen, tight, and fat-faced.
The good news is my chin and neck look less saggy, and my cheeks are sitting higher, which is exactly what I was hoping for.
Still, I kept wondering: When am I going to look like a new-and-improved version of myself… instead of a sixty-six-year-old woman who’s obviously had plastic surgery? (To be fair, I am a sixty-six-year-old woman who had plastic surgery. So there’s that.)
It got worse when I was refused a haircut. My hairdresser took one look at the back of my ears and said, “Those things scare me. Please come back after you talk to your doctor!”
Which is not what you want to hear when you’re feeling fragile and really need a haircut.
And then came my first real public outing: CVS. Very glamorous.
I was hiding in the card aisle while Herb picked up a prescription when I spotted a client. She saw me, too, so running was no longer an option. I smiled, wildly self-conscious — but she was kind and supportive. She’d known about my surgery and didn’t make it weird at all. Thank you, Joyce, for getting me through that “first.”
DAY 90: HOORAY! I MADE IT!
I won’t tell you how many hours I spent Googling “facelift + CO2 laser recovery,” desperately hoping to find a magical post that promised I’d heal faster than the predicted three to six months.
I didn’t.
And since patience isn’t exactly my spiritual gift, waiting for my face to settle was the hardest part. It probably didn’t help that I coped by watching episode after episode of Botched — the show about plastic surgery disasters. When I confessed this to Dr. Swanson’s nurse at week four, she just giggled and said, “I love that show too… but you are NOT going to look like that!”
Bless her. I needed that.
Now that I’m a little over three months out, back at work, and celebrating the holidays with friends and family, I can honestly say I’m happy with my results.
I’m also pleased that a lot of people don’t even realize I had surgery — which, as Dr. Swanson likes to remind me, is the entire point.
For the record, my procedure included a deep plane neck and facelift, CO2 laser resurfacing, and targeted fat injections — a combined trifecta that many surgeons use, including Dr. Swanson.
The biggest challenge was healing from the CO₂ laser. Having your face essentially ‘burned off’ and rebuilt is not for the faint of heart. (That sentence alone should come with a permission slip.)”
Was it worth the pain, isolation, missed wages, anxiety, and general discomfort?
I’d still say yes — but it was a bigger deal than I expected. That’s why I’m sharing the full story here, because I would have loved more real-life, not-sugarcoated information when I was trying to make this decision.
If you’re considering facial rejuvenation and want to talk to someone who will tell you the truth with love, feel free to text or email me — I’m happy to share what helped and what I wish I’d known.
And yes, I can wholeheartedly recommend Dr. Eric Swanson at Swanson Plastic Surgery in Overland Park, Kansas. You can read my review (and others) by clicking this link.
I’ll also say this: deciding to have plastic surgery is deeply personal. It’s not a moral issue, and it’s not a requirement for confidence. It’s just a choice — and everyone’s “why” is different.
Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder… and if we’re being honest, the most relentless beholder is usually the one staring back at us in the mirror.
And whatever you decide, I hope it’s a decision rooted in self-kindness — not shame. Because she’s a lot easier to look in the eye, too.