What To Expect From Cosmetic Surgery
If you are considering undergoing cosmetic surgery, then it is in your best interest to know as much about it as you can before you go under the knife.
Ideally, your surgeon should inform you of what to expect from your surgery, but in case you haven’t seen your surgeon yet, or are just thinking about having cosmetic surgery done, then this article should give you a rough idea as to the sorts of things that one should expect when having cosmetic surgery.
Please remember though, that there are specific risks associated with different kinds of surgical procedures, and that these risks can vary depending on your current state of health and your unique circumstances.
All cosmetic surgeons should therefore make you aware of such risks and what to expect in general from your procedure when you meet with them during your consultation period.
Be very wary of cosmetic surgeons who do not talk about the risks and downsides to having plastic surgery, as this is a common tactic used by less reputable surgeons in order to try and hard sell you into having a particular procedure done with them.
A good cosmetic surgeon will tell you both the good and the bad, and then let you make up your mind without trying to pressure you into making a decision.
So use this article to educate yourself about the main sorts of things you can expect to happen when having plastic surgery, but be sure to use the time you have with your surgeon to fill you in on the specific details that are relevant to you and the work that you would like to have done.
Risks Of Cosmetic Surgery
As with any surgery, cosmetic surgery carries a certain amount of risk with it. Despite tremendous advances in surgical techniques, no surgery is 100% safe, and you should be aware of these risks before you decide to go ahead with your surgery.
Different procedures carry different amounts of risk, although generally speaking, the more complicated the surgery is the greater the risk.
For example, complicated procedures such as abdominoplasty and thigh lift surgery can pose quite a serious risk in terms of post operative infections.
Other surgeries, such as a face lift or breast augmentation, can lead to temporary or permanent loss of sensitivity in parts of the face or breast.
These are examples of some medical risks, but you should remember that you also face a risk of not getting the result you had hoped for or getting a result that you do not like. In such cases, you may then require a revision surgery in order to correct what you feel was a bad result.
The level of risk that you face is also related to the skill of the surgeon performing the procedure. If your plastic surgeon has carried out your procedure lots of times before, then the risk of something going wrong is relatively low.
But if the surgeon has never done the procedure before, then the risk of something going wrong increases dramatically.
So it is in your best interest to ensure that the surgeon who operates on you is fully qualified and possess the skills and experience needed to do the job.
Common Risks
Below are some of the most common risks that can occur when having cosmetic surgery:
• Obstruction of breathing
• Blood clots
• Death
• Heart attack
• Nerve damage
• Stroke
• Temporary paralysis
• Brain damage
• Infections
• Skin death
• Asymmetry
• Seroma
For most people, the risk of suffering from complications during cosmetic surgery is relatively low.
If however, you are a drug user, are very overweight, a smoker or have any existing illness or disease, your risk of suffering from a complication will increase.
A good cosmetic surgeon will refuse to operate on someone who they feel is at risk medically. Less reputable surgeons however, will be happy to operate on anyone as they are more interested in making money than for your personal safety.
Obviously, you want to stay away from such surgeons as going with them could prove to be very risky.
Pain From Plastic Surgery
Pain is an inevitable part of plastic surgery. Pain can occur before the surgery in the form of psychological pain such as anxiety, during the surgery in the form of physical pain and after the surgery in the form of healing.
How much pain you experience will vary depending on several factors:
1 – Type Of Surgical Procedure
Some cosmetic surgeries are more painful than others, although in general, minor surgeries are less painful than lengthy complicated surgeries.
Examples of minor surgeries with a quick recovery time and relatively little pain are: liposuction, a minor facelift, Botox, laser skin resurfacing, chemical peels, eyelid surgery and microdermabrasion.
Examples of major surgeries with a prolonged recovery period and higher levels of pain are: rhinoplasty, breast augmentation, breast reduction, thigh and buttock lift surgery, a full facelift and abdominoplasty.
2 – Your Pain Threshold
Your pain threshold determines how much pain you can cope with. Some people have a very high threshold, and so are able to cope with quite a lot of physical pain. Other people however, have very low thresholds and are unable to cope with even small amounts of minor pain.
Obviously, nobody likes to feel pain, but the better you are able to cope with it the easier you will find your cosmetic surgery recovery period.
The good news however, is that you will be given pain killer medication to help you ease your pain during your recovery period. This means that even if you do have a low pain threshold, you shouldn’t experience too much discomfort.
It would be a mistake however, to think that such medication will make your recovery a pain free process. This is simply not the case as you will experience some degree of pain even with your medication.
This can occur for many different reasons, although the most common reason for feeling pain when on medication is because the effects of that medication are wearing off.
Usually this will occur first thing in the morning when you wake up, or sometimes during the night causing you to wake up from your sleep in pain.
Most of the serve pain you experience though, will only occur in the days immediately following your surgery. So by the time you reach day 3-4 you should be in a lot less discomfort.
3 – Gender
Men are considered to have a lower pain threshold and less patience for the recovery process than women.
Recovering From Cosmetic Surgery
For some people, all they think about is having their operation done and give little or no thought to the time they will need to recover.
No matter what cosmetic surgery procedure that you have done, you will need to set aside some time from your normal routine in order to recover from your operation.
Some procedures, such as liposuction, may have a short recovery time, whilst other procedures, such as abdominoplasty, will have a long recovery time. But regardless of the length, all plastic surgery procedures will need some amount of recovery time.
Recovery time is important because if you become too active too soon after your cosmetic surgery, then complications may occur and you might not get the best results possible.
Rhinoplasty for example, takes many months to fully recover from as the bones in the nose need time to strengthen and harden in their new position.
If you don’t give yourself enough recovery time and the nose were to receive a hard knock, its shape could be altered from how it was set by the surgeon and your nose could end up looking unnatural.
Another example of why taking the time to recover is very important can be seen with thigh lift surgery. If the wounds resulting from that procedure are not tended to and kept clean every day, an infection could break out and cause very serious post surgical complications. This can even occur when taking antibiotics.
So in order to get the best results from your surgery and minimise your risk of something going wrong, you should plan adequate time to recover in addition to the time you set aside for the surgery itself.
Type Of Recovery
Recovery time can be divided into two periods. There is the period immediately following your procedure where your body is at its most sensitive, and then there is the period in the weeks and months after the procedure where you adjust to your new body.
Immediately following your cosmetic surgery you should take the recommended amount of time for your procedure to recover by resting at home. This period is also likely to be the one in which you experience the most amount of pain and discomfort.
In the weeks and months following your procedure, you should return to your normal routine gradually and avoid doing anything which could adversely affect your results such as playing sports where you risk being knocked or hit.
Finally, if you feel as though you will need help during your recovery, try to arrange for a friend or family member to come visit you at home or even look after you for a few days.
Having someone around should make things a lot easier for you especially during the first phase of your recovery when you are likely to need the most amount of help.
Additional Costs
Whilst you may know the exact cost of your operation, it is always worth planning for additional and unexpected plastic surgery costs.
For example, one plastic surgery cost many people overlook is transportation and accommodation costs.
You will need money to travel to see your surgeon during your consultation phase, and then money to travel to the hospital or facility where you will have your surgery, money for pre and post surgery accommodation and then money to return home once the surgery has been completed.
If your procedure involves a lengthy recovery time, then the time you take off work will mean lost income which you will also have to take into consideration.
Generally, it is recommended that you set aside around 1/3 to 1/4 of what your cosmetic surgery costs for additional expenses.
Although you don’t have to use all the money you set aside for yourself, knowing that it is there for you if you need it will make your cosmetic surgery experience run a lot more smoothly and help to take away unnecessary extra worry.
Reactions To How You Look
Although most people are happy with the results of their cosmetic surgery, some people are not and you have to accept the possibility that this could happen to you.
Your body will be physically different from how it used to be, and seeing a new you after looking at an old you for so long can take some time getting used to. If your surgeon did a good job, then this shouldn’t take you very long.
In addition to how you react to yourself, other people may react differently to you also. This is most likely to occur if your body has undergone a dramatic change, such as a woman who receives breast implants.
If you are not used to dealing with the extra attention you get as a result of your surgery, it can be a little overwhelming at first and even make you feel uncomfortable.
However, providing you feel good about yourself, you should quickly get used to the extra attention you receive.
There is also the possibility that you receive no extra attention as a result of your surgery, despite the fact that you expected people to notice the new you and comment on how great you look.
A good cosmetic surgeon will make any changes to your body look natural, so unless you are undergoing a major transformation, most people won’t even notice anything different about you.
At times like this you may wonder why you even had cosmetic surgery in the first place, but then you remember how good you feel as a result of your surgery and that makes it all worth while.
So overall, be prepared to receive extra attention, but at the same time don’t be disappointed if you feel as though nobody notices anything different about you.
What really counts is how you feel about yourself, because that shows up in your personality as part of the new you.
