When it comes to getting a facelift, timing may be everything.
Going under the knife too soon could mean having surgery before it’s necessary — but waiting too long can also backfire, according to celebrity plastic surgeon Dr. Terry Dubrow.
During an episode of Josh Peck’s podcast, “Good Guys,” the Beverly Hills-based surgeon said some women are jumping the gun and getting the procedure too soon.
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“For those people in their 30s who want some skin tightening, they need to wait, ’cause there will be the technology that will allow early facelifts without cutting,” he said.
Dubrow also mentioned Kris Jenner’s recent facelift, which may have motivated women to seek out the procedure based on her results.
“That made facelifts like, ‘Oh, Kris Jenner did it and made it public. Now it’s cool. Everybody get a facelift,’” he said.
“So then you’re seeing 38-year-old people in your office wanting a facelift, and you go, ‘OK, hold on a second. You don’t even need a facelift. You need to wait, because, you know, a facelift is incisions and scars, and elevating up the skin, numbness and all sorts of potential things that can go wrong.”
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Dubrow warned that if people have too many facelifts, “when it starts to relax, it can relax in weird ways.”
“You’ve all seen it — people who look pretty good, but there’s something about the way their skin lies on their face that looks unnatural, and it ruins the whole look,” he warned.
“If you have early laxity, don’t go in for your ‘Kris Jenner facelift.’ Still wait, because that technology is just around the corner.”
Conversely, the surgeon has warned that waiting too long — while relying on other nonsurgical fixes — can also backfire. “A lot of women are staying on the ‘nonsurgical treadmill’ for too long,” Dubrow told Fox News Digital.
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“They keep adding filler, lasers and tightening treatments, when the real problem is that the deeper tissues have dropped.”
While it is possible to get a great result with a later-in-life facelift, the doctor pointed out that as the skin becomes looser, the tissues descend further, which may require more extensive surgery.
“My feeling is that once those treatments stop producing a natural result, continuing to postpone surgery can actually make you look less natural.”
That’s not to say that nonsurgical treatments don’t have their place, he noted.
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“Fillers, lasers and tightening treatments can buy you time when they are used intelligently — but fillers cannot lift sagging tissue, and too much filler can make someone look distorted.”
Aggressive energy treatments can also create scarring under the skin and make surgery more difficult later, Dubrow cautioned — “so, ask whether a treatment is truly delaying a facelift or just delaying the decision.”
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There is no “magic age” in terms of best results with a facelift, according to Dubrow.
“For some women, it is their late 40s. For others, it is their 50s or 60s,” he said. “It comes down to genetics, skin quality and what is happening along the jawline and neck.”
Advice for facelift timing can vary depending on what type of expert you see, and every specialist tends to see the problem through the treatments they perform, the doctor noted.
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“A dermatologist may explain what can still be accomplished without surgery, and a board-certified plastic surgeon can tell you when those options have reached their limit … and when it is time to actually reposition the anatomy,” he said.
Ultimately, he suggests getting opinions from both sides.
“The right time should be based on your face, not the doctor’s menu,” Dubrow said. “Choose what makes sense for your anatomy, your goals and your tolerance for surgery.”
“The best facelift is the one nobody knows you had, but the best advice often comes from hearing more than one point of view.”