To Take Years Off Your Face?
Carla Pisani
Patient counselor for a Palm Beach plastic surgeon
I was aging faster than I would have liked. I’m a mom and a grandmother and a happily married wife. I’m involved with charities. Whenever I saw pictures of myself, it felt like my neck was sagging and my eyes looked tired. I had sun damage from years of tanning with baby oil.
It was a huge decision on my part because my husband, my mom, my daughter and my closest friends all thought I was being ridiculous. That really pulled at me. I thought, “What happens if I wake up and look scary, or something bad happens, all because I was being overly vain? What if I look like a Barbie doll, all fake and plastic?”
Then it got deeper. I’m a very spiritual person, and I thought, “What if the universe punishes me for doing this?” I had such negativity around me. When I finally made the decision to do it, I just put it out there to have the best possible results.
The night before, you can’t sleep. You’re very fearful. Every time I fell asleep, I had dreams that I was all swollen. Before you know it, it’s 6 a.m., and you’re not having your coffee or eating anything, and you’re like, “Maybe I’ve lost my mind.”
I was told by people who had face-lifts that I’d be wrapped up like a mummy. But my doctor had me on a diet a few weeks before that eliminated a lot of foods. No aspirin. No vitamins. No alcohol. He told me that if I did this, there would be less swelling.
Three hours later after going under, I woke up totally numb. No pain. I was a bit swollen, but I didn’t look frightening. No mummified bandages. No tubes. It wasn’t anything like I thought it would be.
I kept looking in the mirror and touching my face. You can’t wait to start putting on eye makeup. The recovery, for me, was nothing. By day five, most of my sutures were out. I was back to work by day six.
The feelings afterward were joyous. I had an extra pep in my step. I felt like I was in my 30s again. For me, doing it young (Note: Pisani had the face-lift at age 43; she’s now 53) was key. People thought I had a new haircut. They were like, “Have you lost weight? Did you get a new facial?”
As silly as it might sound, people treat you differently when you look older. I really think that’s true. I’m not addicted to surgery, but I am addicted to looking the best I can. I don’t want the senior citizen discount until I’m about 80.
