Am I a Good Candidate for a Facelift? Signs You’re Ready (or Not)
You notice your jawline softening in photos, or you have been adding more filler each year to keep up with the same changes. At some point, you start to wonder whether you are a good candidate for a facelift. Whether you are considering a facelift in Cincinnati or at our Springboro office, your birth year has little to do with the answer.
Triple board-certified cosmetic surgeon Dr. Mark Mandell-Brown does not use age to decide who is a good candidate. He weighs whether the improvement is worth the cost and the surgery, and he helps each patient make that call before committing to anything.
Age Is Not the Deciding Factor
Dr. Mandell-Brown has performed facelifts on patients from their 40s to their 80s. A 45-year-old with early jowls and good skin can be a better facelift candidate than a 65-year-old whose main concern is fine lines. Candidacy depends on your anatomy, your health, and your goals.
Anatomy covers how much loose skin you have, where it sits, and how the deeper tissue under the skin has descended. Health determines whether surgery and recovery are safe for you. Goals tell Dr. Mandell-Brown whether a facelift can deliver the kind of change you want, or whether a smaller step would serve you better.
Your birthday doesn’t decide whether you’re a facelift candidate. Your anatomy, your health, and what you want to change do.
Why Dr. Mandell-Brown Sometimes Recommends Against a Facelift
He tells many patients in consultation that they do not need a facelift yet. If the gain would be small compared to the cost, the recovery, and the risks that come with any surgery, he says so and recommends a different path.
His candor is part of the Natural Look™ philosophy that guides his practice: help patients look better, but not different. Surgery done too early, or aimed at the wrong concern, can leave a patient disappointed with the result. When the timing and the reasons are right, a Natural Look™ facelift leaves you looking rested and rejuvenated, never overdone.
Signs You May Be Ready for a Facelift
Common signs you need a facelift include the changes below. We confirm each one during an in-person exam.
Jowls and a Softening Jawline
Jowls form when skin and the tissue beneath it descend below the jawline. Once the edge of the jaw loses its definition, fillers and skin treatments can only do so much. A facelift repositions that tissue and restores a cleaner jawline.
Loose Skin and Bands in the Neck
Vertical bands and loose skin under the chin are hard to correct with non-surgical treatment alone. In his signature facelift, Dr. Mandell-Brown tightens the underlying muscle and uses liposuction to remove extra fat under the chin and along the jowls.
Deepening Folds Around the Nose and Mouth
The folds that run from the nose to the corners of the mouth deepen as the cheeks descend. Filler can soften these folds for a time, but a facelift or Mid Facelift lifts the descended cheek tissue.
Non-Surgical Treatments No Longer Give You the Results You Want
If each round of filler buys you less time, or you need more product every year to hold the same look, the underlying laxity may have moved past what injectables can correct. Diminishing returns from filler are a common sign that it may be time to talk about surgery.
Good Health and Realistic Expectations
Good facelift candidates are healthy nonsmokers without medical conditions that impair healing. They want to look refreshed and still like themselves.
Signs You May Not Be Ready Yet
A facelift may not be your best next step if any of the following applies to you:
- Your skin laxity is mild and could improve with non-surgical treatment.
- Your main concerns are skin texture, fine lines, sun damage, or lost volume rather than sagging.
- You are hoping to look like a different person, which conflicts with the Natural Look™ approach.
- Your weight has not stabilized yet.
- You smoke, or you have health conditions that raise your surgical risk and need to be managed first.
None of these rules you out for good. They mean a different treatment, or a little more time, may serve you better right now.
Seeing Your Results Before You Decide
We use computer imaging during facelift consultations to show the potential improvement surgery could make. You see a realistic preview of your own face, side by side with how you look today.
Computer imaging puts the decision in your hands. If the preview shows a change you would value, you can move forward knowing what to expect. If the difference looks too small to justify surgery, you have your answer, and no one has to talk you into or out of anything.
How Facelifts and Non-Surgical Treatments Work Together
Dr. Mandell-Brown compares facial rejuvenation to a cake: The facelift is the cake itself, the foundation. Fillers and BOTOX® Cosmetic are the icing.
Some patients require both to meet their goals. A facelift lifts and repositions the deeper structures, and injectables then refine volume and expression lines that surgery does not target. A strong foundation can reduce how much icing you need. In Dr. Mandell-Brown’s experience, patients who have been adding more filler each year to make up for sagging can need less once the foundation is lifted.
Non-Surgical Options When a Facelift Is Not the Right Fit Yet
If your consultation shows that surgery is not the right step yet, we offer several non-surgical treatments that can refresh your appearance with little downtime:
- Dermal fillers. Restylane® and Radiesse® restore volume to the cheeks and soften folds, while Sculptra® Aesthetic stimulates your own collagen gradually over a series of treatments.
- RF microneedling. Secret™ RF combines microneedling with radiofrequency energy to improve skin texture, fine lines, and mild laxity on the face and neck.
- truSculpt®. Dr. Mandell-Brown uses a separate truSculpt® handpiece on the face, in addition to truSculpt® for the body.
- Renuvion. Minimally invasive skin tightening for patients who want tightening without a facelift.
- BOTOX® Cosmetic. BOTOX® Cosmetic relaxes the muscles that create forehead lines, frown lines, and crow’s feet.
For a closer look at these options, see 5 Non-Surgical Treatments to Go From Looking Tired to Feeling Refreshed.
If You Are Ready: Facelift Options with Dr. Mandell-Brown
When a facelift is the right choice, Dr. Mandell-Brown tailors the technique to your anatomy. Options include the Quick Facelift for early laxity, the Mid Facelift for the cheeks, and his signature Natural Look™ facelift for moderate neck banding and cheek jowling, with incisions customized to your hairline. For more pronounced jowling, midface sagging, or neck laxity, he may recommend the Deep Plane Facelift, but only after evaluating your bone structure, skin quality, and the degree of aging change.
Each technique differs in anesthesia, surgical time, and recovery. You can compare your options on our facelift surgery page.
“Dr. Mandell-Brown did a fantastic job! I am so glad I chose him as a surgeon. He and his staff were wonderful and made me feel so comfortable. They gave me the confidence I’ve always wanted!”
Facelift Candidacy FAQ
The best way to know whether you are ready is a consultation that includes computer imaging, so you can see the potential change for yourself. Dr. Mandell-Brown, a 17-time Cincinnati Magazine Top Doctor, will examine your anatomy, listen to your goals, and give you an honest recommendation, whether that is a Natural Look™ facelift, a non-surgical treatment, or simply waiting.
Schedule a consultation with Dr. Mandell-Brown at Mandell-Brown Plastic Surgery Center: (513) 984-4700 (Cincinnati) or (937) 260-4405 (Springboro).
Mandell-Brown Plastic Surgery Center serves patients throughout Cincinnati, Ohio, Springboro, Ohio, Dayton, Ohio, and the greater Tri-State area.
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