From a health point of view, to aid a speedy recovery, it is advisable to eat well in the weeks leading up to your procedure. We recommend a low salt diet. You should aim to stop drinking alcohol and cease smoking at least two weeks prior.

The first night’s stay is depending on your procedure, is usually an overnight in hospital, where you will be monitored. If you live far away, we suggest you book accommodation close to the practice as you will be coming in for a series of post-surgical visits. You will be advised not to exercise post op for a few weeks, so it’s important that you have some activities to do that do not involve cardio. This might be a good time to settle in and watch all those films you’ve been meaning to see, or binge watch a tv series. Books are also a good way to pass the time.

When you come in for your first visit, usually day two post op, Siobhan our post op nurse and Dr Nettle will assess how you’re healing. Depending on the procedure you’ve had Siobhan may remove some stitches. Your next visit is around day five. This is a significant visit. You will have chin stitches out and some of the stitches around the ear removed. If you are having eyelid surgery in combination with your facelift, all the stitches around the eyes will be removed at this stage. The drains will also be removed. After Dr Nettle and Siobhan have seen you, manual lymphatic drainage will be performed at this stage by our Dermal Clinician Chrys. The lymphatic drainage procedure itself is quite relaxing. The benefits include helping to move the lymph along to improve waste removal and minimise swelling. This is a complimentary post treatment for all facelift patients. You can, of course, have more treatments if you prefer at your subsequent visits. Please see reception for pricing. The last post op appointment will be around day nine where the remained of stitches are removed.

We also recommend Broad Band Light (BBL) treatments post op to target capillaries and pigmentation. BBL is a light-based therapy that helps to target pigmentation, aids in skin rejuvenation and can also be used to help reduce capillaries. A common misconception is that when you have a facelift you will not need to look after your skin. Although a facelift will tighten the skin and improve the jawline, it doesn’t target the surface of the skin. Therefore, we recommend you do a series of BBL treatments to get the best all round result. If the texture of the skin is an issue, it is a great time to do Micro laser peel and Profractional as this requires some downtime. The Micro laser peel will help smooth the texture of the skin while the Profractional will target the deeper tissues stimulating collagen production. This is the perfect time to do these treatments as you will already be off work. Pain is also considerably reduced post-surgery due to numbness.

Of course, this is just a guide and everyone’s experience will be slightly different. The team at Silkwood pride themselves in guiding you through the pre and post op care for the duration of your time with us. Feel free to call and enquire prior to booking a treatment or procedure with us on (02) 9387 3900