Invest in treatments at 44 or save for facelift?

[Dougt]

Just that. I’ve been doing some research into treatments as for the first time in my life starting to feel I could well do with some help. I have not looked after my skin very well and whilst I think I probably have good genes I’ve been a sun worshipper and it’s crept up on me. Mostly the lower face is ageing me I feel (jowls, nasolabial folds, neck starting to sag) but also getting some significant crows feet.

Would I be better off putting money aside each month for a facelift and potentially neck lift at 50 (or at least a chance to do it then, or wait a bit longer if I wanted) rather than spending it on fillers/botox/profilo etc? I’m not that bothered with how I look right now but feel like in 5 years I could be and the facelift might be the most cost effective option. Or, is having regular less invasive treatments starting earlier on a better bet?

I found fillers really good for jowls, I started getting them at 47 as I was looking a bit miserable which isn’t how I was feeling. I get them each year in the Jowl area, smokers lines (I’ve never smoked, it seems to be a family thing) and every other year in my cheeks as it holds up the jowls. I now look like a completely normal 55 year old who is less miserable looking than nature intended.
From the age of 50 I started botox for the 11’s and crows feet, I get it every 6 months and have deliberately kept some wrinkles.
I would only have it done with this one doctor, he often turns me away and says I don’t need it yet and to come back in a couple of months time.

Get the facelift and don’t listen to anyone that tells you not too .

@Ibizafun so sorry to hear about your experience it sounds like a nightmare!

Was your surgery done in England?

Yes London, a supposed "top surgeon".

I would say save for a facelift. Fillers and Botox can make you look weird after so long. If you go to a good surgeon who offers a deep plane facelift it doesn’t give you that surgery look. Look at Georgios Orfaniotis in London or Dominic Bray. You are looking at £17,000 for a deep plane facelift and £27,000 for face and neck. Upper eyes etc are extra. Dominic Bray more expensive around £37,000. However results are phenomenal. It’s an investment in you though.

£15k minimum

P.s I know prices in these places go up every year.

Deep plane facelift around £17k
Deep plane face and neck around £27k
Fat transfer for lost volume £4k
Upper blepharoplasty £6k
Brow lift £5k

can get quite expensive.

I would prefer to have a facelift in my 40s when it only gets worse, why wait until it’s really bad and then everyone will notice. Also I want to feel good in my 40’s 50’s never mind 60/70 I’ll be ready to be old then haha.

Only ever get a deep plane facelift though, skin only do not last and look un natural

Surgery, but only if you can afford top level. Celebs are backing off fillers and the like, too fake looking. Good surgery is much more natural looking than it used to be.

Pretty sure even Goopy Gwyneth had a facelift last year, after the ski trial. She made a big deal about going 'offline' for a month or two, presumably to avoid posting her usual regular Goop updates, then returned looking remarkably 'refreshed'.

I'm 54 and don't think I'm ready for a face lift yet. I have some less invasive procedures, RF for jowels, botox in 11s and have had threads. Alongside really diligent skin care routine, clean diet, no alcohol and excercise, it does me for now. I'm nervous of the surgery and the down time would be a nuisance, so I'll put it off until I want it enough to outweigh the disadvantages. I wouldn't have gone without the other things along the way though because I wouldn't have wanted to spend my 40s vaguely dissatisfied with my appearance.

I don’t think any surgeons do skin only now . At least they shouldn’t . Since they realised the smas technique is so natural looking . Any surgeon that does just skin, shouldn’t be a surgeon .

Excuse my innocence but could you explain what that means to me?
What is deep plane and skin only, and what is the difference?

vertical restore face lift with fat grafting and blepharoplasty. Costs a bomb but looks the best post 44/46.

Fillers and botox only look good on younger people (those who arent suffering from skin laxity).

Be very careful who you choose though and look at the ear scars on before/after pictures.

Deep plane facelifts and SMAS facelifts are two types of more invasive surgeries, but the results are far superior. I think they are similar, but there are a few differences (I believe SMAS is better for younger people, and deep plane is better for older). They both basically cut into the deeper layers of tissue and lift and reposition the whole lot, rather than old techniques which just used to cut the skin layers.

This old technique left people with weird puckering and bad results because the facia and tissue underneath the skin didn't align properly with the newly tightened skin. The newer techniques also lift more vertically, which gives a more natural result, rather than older techniques which pulled the skin sort sideways towards the ears and looked strange - like the old facelift results you used to see on celebrities in the 80's and 90's (the actress Stockard Channing is someone I think of, her face always had a weird pulled look after surgery). It looks odd and very unnatural.

The results of a Deep Plane or SMAS lift are fab if done by an experienced surgeon, but they are very costly. I have been researching it for a while, I will definitely get one in the next 10 years. Like Catblack87 says I would rather get one in my late 40's when the results are subtle, instead of waiting till I'm 60 and having a dramatic change that's very obvious.

I want to know who did Brad Pitt’s facelift. He looks bloody good.

Out of curiosity I looked on one of the surgeons websites, that a PP mentioned.
The first woman I clicked on I thought ‘holy shit, she looks amazing’ but then as you scroll down they all have the same startled uniform look & it’s not a good one.

Do you think so? I think he looks awful.

Nooo! But then I’ve always had a thing for him. He looked amazing at Wimbledon last year.

Well ,I need to see these startled faces , which surgeon ?

Face-lifts last around ten years, I'm not sure I'd want to go through the procedure again in my 60's or 70's.

I thought the same thing.

I agree with PP.
Have none of these things, just accept that we ALL age and use the money on a holiday, doing up your house, a new car, whatever brings you joy but doesn't involve unnecessary surgery or pain.

Agree.
99% of the stars who've had work would look better ageing normally.

Get advice before making any decisions and be prepared to pay for consultations/second opinions.
Br clear when making appointments this is what you want - ie not a sales pitch, as you're not booking either surgery or non-surgical any time soon.
It all depends on your face structure etc.
I'm planning to never go 'under the knife' for my face, but I love botox and laser treatments done by a dermatologist

@Tourmalines

Probably one of these two mentioned here