Tag Archives: cosmetic surgery

F is for Facelifts – For u or Forget about it?

Posted on February 27, 2012 | Leave a comment

Natural Beauty or Nature's Freak

You can’t talk about facelifts and plastic surgery these days without talking about Joan Rivers.  The woman has had something like 740 cosmetic procedures done to just about every part of her body, including her vagina (maybe?).  Maybe you’re forty or maybe you’re fifty, but are you ready to face a facelift like Joan?

COST OF FACE LIFTS*
Cost Range: $7,000-$13,000

Average Total Cost: $9,500
Surgeons fee: $6,000
Anesthesiologist: $1,200
Facility fee: $1,700
Hospital fee: $600

We all want to continue to look beautiful no matter how old we are, but is surgery really the answer?  Look at how much it costs?  You could eat a lot of healthy food for a long time for that amount of money.

How safe is it?  Ask a lot of questions.  Do a lot of research.  Don’t just inquire about the surgeon; find out all you can about the anesthesiologist –the person who’s really got your life in their hands.  The surgeon can be a great mechanic and artist, but it’s the person with the needle and the drugs who is really important.  Then there’s the recovery period when you can’t move or eat or do anything for yourself because you’re in pain and discomfort and you need someone to take care of all your personal needs – all of them!

Why do you want this?  You need to really go deep into your inner feelings – do you think it will change your life?  Do you think you will find love, abundance, purpose and meaning?  Do you think it will improve your self-esteem and pick you up out of the depths of depression?  Do you believe you will, at 65 or 75, wake up looking like Angelina Jolie?

If you have explored all of your reasons and it comes out YES!, then do it.  But if you think that lifting your face will lift you from old to young, or ugly to gorgeous, then maybe you should think again.  Or consider fillers.  Or eat healthy foods and drink lots of water and stay out the fun.

Facelifts for Natural Beauty?  I’d say For some, For sure, For others, Forget about it!

 

 

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Posted in Anti-aging, Celebrity Natural Beauty, Famous Women, natural beauty

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T is for Tummy Tucks and Tushy Lifts –

Posted on December 28, 2011 | 1 Comment

tummy tucks - natural beauty??????

Are you kidding me?  Is this what we are wanting to do to our bodies today?  And what would this person have looked like if she had stood up straight and had a bra on in the first photo?

I’m not saying that plastic surgery is unsafe – well, maybe I am.  But what about losing weight, drinking water, exercising and maintaining your natural health so that you don’t have to get cut and slashed to maintain your natural beauty?  Isn’t that what you and I are all about?

This is the 21st Century and plastic surgery has come a long way since the early days.   However there are risks inherent in every surgical procedure, in every procedure where anesthesia is utilized, and every time a human being has a knife inserted into them.  Just ask rap star Kanye West whose mother died during a cosmetic surgery procedure.

According to a recent show done on the BBC, “A tummy-tuck is one of the surgical procedures which has higher complication rates because mobility is restricted after surgery. ”

That being said, eye lifts and liposuction might be okay if you do your research carefully and thoroughly.  Here is some advice that is worth following:

  • First, make sure that you are in excellent physical health, especially if you will be having same-day surgery with no aftercare.
  • Second, listen carefully to the advice of the surgeon and if you are told you’re not a good candidate, don’t go out and find another surgeon who will do it anyway.  Be sensible with your own natural health.
  • Third, always choose a board-certified plastic surgeon.

See previous posts – F is for Facelift Alternatives – Fageddaboudit!

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Posted in Healthy Senior Women, natural beauty, Natural Health

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F is for Fillers For your Face

Posted on September 21, 2011 | 8 Comments

Facial Fillers

Even the most naturally beautiful women look in the mirror and think that they should do something about the little wrinkles and lines that appear as we get older.  It’s a tough decision when you’re concerned about improving your natural health while increasing your natural beauty.  There’s been a lot of talk about Botox and for me I’d have to say no to it – it’s botulism, ladies and gentlemen, and that is poison!  New Botox varieties like Xeomin and PurTox are being introduced and approved by the FDA every day, as plastic and cosmetic surgery are on the rise as we are constantly being told that we are not pretty enough, or young enough, or smooth and wrinkle-free enough! Do you really want to be voluntarily injecting your eye area with a lethal poison???

There are other choices today and injectable fillers other than Botox can be used to change your appearance in a less harmful way.  These fillers are used to soften the appearance of wrinkles, add dimension and fullness to thin lips,  and lessen the appearance of scars.

Today’s cosmetic surgeons are using the patient’s own fat to puff up other places such as the cheeks.  Sculptra is a new and popular filler that is being used on the temples and near the cheekbones.  Many fillers are made from  hyaluronic acid, a substance found in the tissues of the body. Restylane is one of the hyaluronic fillers which temporarily smooth wrinkles by adding volume under the skin, and can last for approximately six months.  Juvaderm is another hyaluronic acid filler used to increase the volume of lips and aid in the reduction of folds and wrinkles and removal of scars.  Radiesse, a  new filler, is said to stimulate collagen growth for about a year or two.

Costs and pain are factors that need to be considered.  The fillers don’t come cheaply and each shot will set you back about $500 – $800 a pop.  And it hurts!  The filler itself may not hurt, but they do use needles – so prepare yourself for pain!

You decide – natural health and beauty, or enhanced expensive and painful stuff shot into your face with a needle?

 

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Posted in Anti-aging, natural beauty, Natural Health

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F is for Facelift Alternative – Fraxel Laser Treatments

Posted on March 31, 2011 | 3 Comments

Fraxel instead of Facelift

Okay, I have to admit it – I’ve had this procedure.  It was gifted to me a few years ago and I thought I’d give it a try.  If you look at my pictures, you’ll see that I look very young for my age (I’m 62!).  And so 5 years ago, I was over 55, but looking young.  I stress the young-looking part because Fraxel is touted to give you young-looking skin.  It did – but I also already had it to begin with!

The process utilizes a laser to minimize the appearance of scars, lines and wrinkles, as well as improve the overall texture and surface of the skin.  My experience was very typical – The procedure uses 5 different lasers and takes 3 treatments – so 15 laser treatments all together.  The first treatment was okay – 5 different tingly sensations, hot and cold, relaxing – no problem.  My recovery was instantaneous – no big difference.  Then, two weeks later, I had the second series  — I remember the first 3 lasers as being rather soothing and nice.  Then came number 4 – boy, oh boy – did that hurt!  I won’t kid you – it wasn’t a tingly prickly feeling – it really hurt.  Laser number 5 cooled off the sensation a little.  The recovery was not as nice, but I didn’t peel — I just got red in the face – all over the face — for a few days.  A few weeks later, I was kind of scared to go back, cause it really was painful – but Treatment #3 was a piece of cake.  None of the 5 laser applications hurt, I didn’t get red, it was all good.  And not much down time either – I was up and about by the end of the day.

Did I notice results?  As I said, I already had young-looking skin.  So my skin looked young!  Not much more than it had before – maybe a little shinier, a little brighter.

Would I recommend Fraxel Laser Treatments?  The gift that I was given was valued at $2,700.  The results were probably worth $270.  Not a great return on your investment I would say.

However, I do believe that had I had skin issues like acne or dry, dull skin – the results might have been dramatic, the price might have been worth it, and I might have recommended it over other treatments.  Naturally beautiful healthy senior women – do your research, make your own decisions!

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Posted in Anti-aging, Healthy Senior Women, natural beauty

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F is for Facelift Alternatives – Fill ‘Er Up with Fillers

Posted on March 30, 2011 | 3 Comments

Fillers can add Fullness

Injectable fillers are the latest rage.  Injectables are hailed as an anti-aging miracle.  Injectables are used to plump thin lips, enhance shallow contours, soften wrinkles and creases on the face, and reduce the appearance of scars.

Most injectable fillers are made of hyaluronic acid.  Hyaluronic acid is a component of synovial fluid, and is found in the vitreous humor of the eye, the synovia of joints, and in subcutaneous tissue where it functions is as a cementing agent.  It’s been found recently that injections of hyaluronic acid under the skin will plump up the skin, making it appear younger and fresher.

Hyaluronic acid, which occurs in the cells of the skin,  has been used in many different forms in spas for quite a while.  Restylane is a trade name for one of the hyaluronic fillers which temporarily smooths wrinkles by adding volume under the skin, with effects typically lasting for six months.  Juvaderm also is an injectable hyaluronic acid filler which is used for lip augmentation, reduction of folds and wrinkles and removal of scars.  Radiesse, one of the newest fillers, has been shown to stimulate collagen growth and last up to two years, and reviews seem to be mixed as to its effectiveness.

We have already talked briefly about Botox.  Botox is not the same as the hyaluronic acid fillers, but Botox injections are also very popular. Botox works by weakening the facial muscles that form wrinkles.  Botox is a neurotoxin, in other words, it’s a poison that can cause nervous system damage, botulism, respiratory difficulty, pain and irritation at the injection site, nausea, and flu-like symptoms.

Costs are always a factor to be considered and each syringe of dermal filler can cost between $500 – 800.  Longevity of results is another factor and vary from 6 months to 2 years with some of the newer injectables.  And then there’s the pain factor.  There is pain, whether from the local anesthetic used when it will be very painful, or that slight “pinch” you feel when the product is injected under your skin with a needle – ouch!   You naturally beautiful women decide – natural beauty or enhanced beauty!

See Previous Post:  F is for Facelift - Yes, No, Natural Alternatives

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