From one stitch lifts, to non-invasive skin tightening, to weekend facelifts: we as consumers are barraged by messages of hope to solve our aging face issues. But do any of these facelift alternatives really work? Are they worth it? Like the 1925 movie’s title, What Price Beauty, implies, how far will we go to get what we want?
It’s probably safe to say that many patients’ ideal route to a more youthful face involves getting a natural result with minimal cost, pain, scars, downtime, risk, just to name a few. We love to think that the ad that says “Look Ten Years Younger in 10 Hours” is telling the truth. We want these things and have eternal HOPE that they exist (kind of like a magic diet pill).
Medical device companies, the media, and the occasional impostor physician all play on the fears of the consumer by offering shortcuts to the perfect result, touting the latest gimmick as effective and the solution to all that ills you. Perhaps even more frightening are the new overseas medical retreats cropping up, where patients are lured to have major surgery in faraway places at dirt cheap rates.
Starting to sound familiar?
Should we be trading off dollars for safety and/or results? You don’t have to trade off one for the other; however, most of us know deep down that “you get what you pay for”.
Getting a natural result that LASTS really does take expertise by an experienced plastic surgeon, and involves some expense and downtime. But if you ask facelift patients who have undergone the procedure what they think, many will tell you that they are happy they made the investment up front to obtain a longer lasting, and more predictable result. They would tell you that there is peace of mind that comes with knowing your physician has done this technique hundreds (if not thousands) of times before. Paying a bit more to know youare in a safe environment, surrounded by qualified caretakers both before and after the procedure, is worth it. This patient quote that tells it all, “My facelift was the BEST money I ever spent”.
RealSelf has a great little index called “Was it Worth It?” where patients rate each procedure with a thumbs up or thumbs down. The percentage of people who say it was worth it is posted and the procedures are ranked accordingly from best to worst. It is interesting to note that facelift gets a score of 83% (high enough to be in the top 15 of 120 procedures listed) while thethread lift gets a satisfaction rating of 22% (in the bottom 5). *
Link: http://www.realself.com/was-it-worth-it
*Footnote: Statistics quoted from the “Was it Worth It?” page on RealSelf.com were noted on 10/18/10 and may change in the future.