Dealing with swellings and hematomas after facelift

Hello:
I am seven weeks post fl/nl . I had developed large hematoma on neck which took five weeks to resolve . The problem is that neck appears to be loose and i see " banding " back again as if skin did not retract after swelling subsided. yet neck muscles feel terribly tight and uncomfortable and I am still swollen under chin area,
My surgeon says to wait it out as it " should " resolve.
I am already concerned this will require a revision . I am not happy with result. I wish everyone a healthy recovery,,,,

Nygal

I had a facelift and upper and lower bleph on Dec. 12. Due to over exertion, I bled profusely under my cheeks and had to be drained five times. I now look like the phantom of the opera with a huge lumpy, discolored area that I cover with a bandage when I go out. The doctor says it will resolve but won't even guess as to how long I'll have to look like this. And the tight, my-face-is-wrapped-in-duct-tape drives me crazy. I massage alot. Has anyone found anything that has worked for them to speed up the healing?

My sister called me today saying she had a back lower tooth pulled. She explained that the dentist was having problems and being aggressive getting the tooth out. When they were done part of the root was left in. The next day she had swelling and from what I gather a hematoma along her jaw all the way up to her temperal area so she wanted to go back to the Dentist because she thought the blood would go to her brain or heart. I said take asprin and put some ice on her jaw and wait a day or two to see if the blood would absorb in the tissue I hope I'm right............1

Hi everyone, stumbled across this page searching for reassurance for a very different case. My 4 year old is recovering from a shocking black eye and is left with a hematoma on his upper eye lid. Docs say2-3 months before it improves and I'm looking for anything you think may speed that up based on the experiences you've had!

thanks for all these posts. i seem to be par for the course here... researched the boogers out of these procedures before i had them, but i didn't really find out a lot of this nitty gritty until i had chin "hematoma" to google specifically. feels like i'm not the only one going through this, and it is just going to make things take longer to approach normal. ho hum. :-)

everyone i asked, who had this stuff done, made it sound like a piece of cake that they recovered from in a week or so. my guess is that they're so far removed from surgery and so happy with their results that they forgot a lot of the nasty details. sooo, i choose to be inspired by this.

thanks again and i just say to those who come after me... uhhh "chin up" lol

Had a lower face and necklift in Prague almost 4 weeks ago and although everything is looking good with very little to no pain at all throughout , I am, like most of you, experiencing tight neck with assorted lumps beneath it, slight double chin when I put my chin back against my neck and also a puffy side at my lower jaw right side. All this talk of hematomas is really getting me worried cos I just thought I had a bit of puffiness that is worse in the morning and better after a walk in the cold far reaches of the Highlands. Just hoping all the puffiness is not going to stretch my face so much that I look just as bad as before.

My scars are bad too on one side. Lumpy and angry looking.
Dr said to take extra Vit C before and after surgery, and now I ve just read somewhere that it makes scar overgrowth worse!!!!!

Hi everyone who has posted on this subject and I really hope some of you who posted early are still viewing this thread. I had neck and lower face lift 5 weeks ago, and mostly the swelling around my jaw and under my ears has gone down and generally I'm pleased with the outcome. BUT..there is an oblong shaped lump just under my left cheekbone about 1/4 inch x 1/8 inch which just doesn't seem to be reducing at all. My PS says its the result of a hematoma and the body will reabsorb it in time, but it feels just like a fatty pouch and is very unsightly. Any of you earlier posters got any good news to tell me and cheer me up? :-(

Regards
Lyn
UK

I had facelife april 10th and didnt really have alot of bruising until about 4 days ago and then what seemed like suddenly the right side developed a very large dark bruise? No pain really is still numb. Docs says to ice and use come cream call amica. Does this sound right to all or should I be more concerned. Thanks for all your imput and suggestions.

Hi To All That Are Going Through This Regret Period!
I had my "QuickLift" done May 7/09 in Cincinnati, Ohio where I live. They call it a "QuickLift" because of the quick recovery time as they advertise it. The promotion says that you will expect to be in good to go condition in 3 to 10 days. My procedure involved the jowls, neck, chin and a small brow lift.
At this time, it has not been quick at all for me. It is May 18 today, 11 days after my surgery, and I still don't see the results.
I had fluid accumulation under my right cheek right after the surgery, which had to be drained 3 different times. I suffered from horrible pain and headaches for 3 days after the surgery. As of today, my lower face and neck is swollen and very hard. I can't put my head back because of the tightness in my neck and chin. I have a pocket under by right jaw. I do not have a jawline at all. Like one of the posts say; I also have a Frankenstein neck. I still have bruising in my neck, but this doesn't worry me because I know this will eventually go away.
I was invited by my granddaughter to be her guest of honor at her High School Graduation June 4. At this point, I don't even know if I'll even going to make it. I also have a trip coming up June 22 to meet with my 1968 high school classmates. How am I going to look!? I am so, so frustrated!!! :'( I regret changing my sagging jowls for a Frankestein neck!!!
Does anyone have some words of encouragement or advice? Please help. Any advice, comments and/or information will be much appreciated. ;-)
Thank you very much

Hi, I had my face lift about 7 weeks ago, and for awhile I hated myself for ever having it done. I too went through a period of depression, but mt general Doctor solved that my putting me on a medication for my fibromalgia call Lyrica. After I started taking the Lyrica the depression went away and so did the nerve sensations I was feeling from the numbness. Evidently I have a hematoma uner my right jaw joint that is causing the Great auricular nerve to be pinched or at least that is what I hope. That nerve goes to the ear lobe and it is just now having some sensation. (7 weeks) but what really bugs me it that all my right ear is numb, and the only sensation is one of pain. For weeks I had to sleep with a winter bicycle on because went I rolled over on my right side I was jolted out of a deep sleep with excruciating pain. I can now sleep on my right side without pain. It was not worth it. I think the surgeon burned the three other nerves cauterizing blood vessels. I would recommend Lyric to anyone who has a face lift. It makes me a little dizzy. Does any have any idea how long hematomas exist in the body. I can't see the hematoma, only that the right side of my face is swollen.

I had a throat lift 3 weeks ago Monday and I 'm very freeked out. My skin on cheeks were pulled back when the incision around ear was made as he explained throat and face are connected so it was necessary. Now my face looks like a chipmunk's with two big circle pockets on cheeks and they are higher than normal, making me look very unnatural and cheeks displaced. I'm freeking out. The smiling, yawning and so forth are all very very tight and pulling on the skin. Can someone please assure me that this weird look i have will resolve itself?

I'm so stressed about how I look currently. Will this all drop and I look normal within 6 months like others suggest?

Thanks for any reassurance you can give me.

Hi - I discovered a good trick to use to massage hemotomas without stretching the skin: I use an 8 oz bottle of water and roll in against my cheek. It smooths the hemotomas and massages the skin without stretching it. I fill it with cold water or warm water, depending on how I'm feeling. Alternating warm and cold seems to help with the bruising. I'm 4 weeks out today from an upper and lower bleth and lift. Like you, I have hematomas on my cheeks - one very large on one side and a bunch of small lumps on the other side. Good luck. It will get better!

I was reallly glad to find this site. I had lower facelift surgery almost 2 weeks ago and I have lumps on both sides of my neck near my ears that the doctor drained a couple of days ago which seemed to "deflate" them and also bring down some swelling in my face. They have returned today and I'm waiting for the Dr. to call me back to advise what to do. My hair covers them but I'm really worried that they may be hematomas and need additional surgery.

Hi to everyone here that have posted or just reading the posts here.

I'm a male of 49, and had a mid facelift, temple lift, and lower eyelids. My biggest beef with all these doctors and all these sites regarding cosmetic surgery, is that they don't tell you the facts.

For most people, the swelling and bruising lasts more that the 2 weeks. It's BS to think you'll be back at work in 2 weeks....WRONG!!!.....don't you believe it. The doctors won't tell you this. Reason being that the cosmetic surgeons wouldn't make any money if they told you that the recovery time will be 3 months at least and up to 6 months until all the bruising and ESPECIALLY THE SWELLING to be gone. Who in their right mind would want to go through a procedure (especially your face) that would put you out of circulation for months?....not many I bet....

I hit the 2 week period after surgery looking like a freak, and I'm supposed to go back to work looking like this?.....what planet are these doctors from?......

I had major swelling, and still there 6 weeks after my procedures. Also the regret, the depression are significant and this is very common post surgery.....to everyone, THIS WILL NOT LAST!!....DON'T PANIC AND DON'T FREAK OUT!!.....I know you want to resume your life, but feel frustrated you can't....IT WILL TAKE TIME!

The doctors won't tell you the real deal regarding couperation time cause no one would get it done.....2 weeks my ass!!!......

Tips to reduce swelling.....straight after surgery ice and pressure bandages. This is to minimize the trauma. After a week or two you may feel hard areas around the face. You need to get blood flowing into these areas. Take long warm to hot showers with the water going directly onto the swollen area, and gently massage.....after a long hot shower the hard areas will loosen up....but careful that the water isn't too hot as there is a significant nerve damage after surgery.

Jay,
I'm 3 weeks post face/neck lift, under eyelids. 54 y.o. Yours is the best post I've read expressing the anger at the bs from surgeons about the recovery. I've even printed it out for myself.
Yes my partner said 10 days post op, that if they told the truth, no-one would get it done. They should at least say one month for recovery and be a bit more realistic! It's fine for movie stars, who can take months off and got back in for any follow up procedures if necessary.
I have a lot of smooth and even swelling on left cheek, little on the right, but with a dent running along the cheek bone underneath. My ps said the fat and muscle are repositioned up to the cheek bone where it belongs. I've got swelling on the right above and below the dent. Bruises under eyes and under chin on left side from blood draining downwards. It was dark blue there within a week. Eye incisions look great. Neck is smooth with little swelling.
Both surgeons I went to gave out info;-" swelling for 2-3 weeks, can go back to work in 2, with concealer on bruises. You'll want to hibernate for about 3 wks." Yeh right, as long as you're happy that everyone will know you've had something done and can handle questions and gossip. This is all so stresssful when also it looks like something has gone wrong, like me and many others I'm reading about. I want to hibernate for 3 mths!
My ps says, due to excessive swelling on one side, it'll take 3 mths. for it to go down. NOT GOOD!(probably 6 from what I've now read.) I go back to work in 4 wks. post op, and really stressed about it.
Also was told, nerve damage was 1%. I sent photos to a Thai ps and got the go ahead, plus advice, then flew to Thailand. Was told at my appointment, 4% have temporary nerve damage. That's 1 in 25! And temporary means months of partial paralysis. In the recovery room my ps said, raise your eyebrows and purse your lips to whistle..thank God I passed the nerve damage test!!!
My ps is American board certified and works in the American owned 5 star hospital Bumrungrad in Thailand. I met a lady in Australia where I live, who'd had a face lift done by him. She was 60 and looked 40, a brilliant job. She didn't mention months of swelling. I thought my research was sufficient.
I'm following instructions; Week 4- can raise pulse. Week 5-can bend over, strenuous activity, massage swollen areas. I won't start warm packs or massage till then. Even though ps said continueing to sleep elevated will be of no benefit, I will continue for weeks, as adviced by other posters with swelling problems.
My advice to people considering this op, is to use cold packs for a few days. I only did for 2. Download things to listen to on an MP3, because you can't really watch TV or read, because you've got ice packs on face, neck, upper chest and both eyes. They'll fall off if you don't lay flat. Expect to not be able to chew properly or open your mouth more than an inch for days, and have a variety of mushy food on hand. Also take as long as you can off work! I'm still in the, What have I done? stage.