the works at 45

[salgal]

Hi,
I had a facelift, endoscopic browlift and temporal browlift (I think) upper and lower eyes, nose, chin implant and perioral dermabrasion, fat injection to lips.
I am just about 4 weeks and have had a tough time adjusting to my new face. Been very depressed. I also have one brow higher than the other. There is still some swelling in my scalp over the the brow that is too high. I thought it was fluid and the surgical nurse said it would have to be drained when she saw it. A few days later I saw the surgeon and he said it was just swelling and did not have to be drained. Will the brow go down when the swelling goes down?
I think I was given a temporal browlift and I did notexpect that. There are incisions on either side of my face that were never discussed. (in the temple area)

[salgal]

Also I can not close my eyes all the way. I have been given exercises to do to help but I am concerned. Again the surgical nurse said that that is just the way that the surgeon does his eyes and not to worry that the eyes will eventually close. I am very scared and don't know how to handle my doc. I was NOT supposed to have a upper bleph done. When I went in for surgery and had to sign the release for surgery the upper eyes were listed. I signed it but when the doctor came in to see me I told him that it was on the release. He said no, he was not going to do the upper eyes as we had discussed before. He said we could do it later in his office after I healed from the browlift if I needed it.
My nose looks great but there is a little bit of notching on the inside of my nostril that bugs me. I also have a bump of flesh on the inside of my nostril that you can't see but I again am concerned about.
Any advice would be appreciated. I think I may end up really happy after I get used to this new face, but if my eyes don't shut I don't know what I will do.[FONT=arial]

[sydnee]

I feel so badly for you. I am going through the consults right now to have a facelift but now I am scared after reading what happened to you. I have a little advise however. Take good pictures of your face right now and document your conversations word for word in case you need to look into this down the line. I believe you only have 1 yr from the time the work is down to litigate but it may be longer. I am not a lawsuit type of gal, but don't think the docs dont make mistakes, they do. This is your face. Good luck.

[salgal]

Thanks for your reply. I am trying to remain hopeful I did an awful lot at once. I guess you never expect things to not work out perfectly for you. I am hopefull that my eyes will shut all the way eventually. I have made some progress. But I will start documenting what has been said.
It is too bad, that it is harder to really communicate with the doctor after surgery because he most likely is guarded about telling me too much so he can protect himself. It is a strange relationship. He tells me how great I look and I don't believe him because I think he is trying to cover his butt. And he may be telling me the truth.

[sydnee]

I too had some plastic surgery several years ago that did not go exactly right. Fortunately it was not my face and I can cover the area with clothes, but my husband is not happy. At my post checkup there really was nothing he could say.( Dont let your doc tell you it's right when you know it's not.) My doc offered to fix it if I would pay for the anesthia and sign a paper saying if it didnt work he would be off the hook. He got defensive and said if I was going to sue him he would win because he did nothing wrong. (Which I did not appreciate at all because I hadnt even thought of that at the time.) Two years later I did nothing and wish I had. He was wrong and he knew it. He's written up in the Chicago magazine as one of Chicago's best. It's difficult to know who to trust. So best of luck and remember, if you know it is not right then who is he to say it is? You're the patient. Doctors are fallible. Maybe bring your husband along for your next followup. Good luck!

[mindalouise]

Please tell us who the doctor was. The only way we can know who to avoid and who to see is if we're all honest with one another. And I'm so sorry you had a bad experience-here you are, going to someone who is supposed to be Chicago's best, and you KNOW it's not right.

[salgal]

I rather not say who my doctor is at this point. I still have hope that things will work out yet. I will tell you howeer, that the doctor is not from Chicago.
I was just hoping to hear from others who had difficulty closing their eyes after surgery. I wondered how common it is and how others have dealt with it