By plastic surgeon Dr Dirk Kremer. 

The life that we live is being lived at an increasingly faster pace with a lot of what we do being immediate and a lot of what we want is wanted right now. We stream anything we want on demand, we have instant access to any information we want in the palm of our hand, there’s Uber ready to arrive for us within minutes, pre-ordered food or coffee waiting at a counter for us to collect at our convenience. We’ve become accustomed to getting exactly what we want as and when we want it.

With all of this in mind, it should come as no surprise that when somebody makes the decision that they want to go ahead with plastic surgery, most of the time they want it and they want it as soon as possible. The problem is you can seldom rush the right decision. There is a lot of groundwork you have to put in to ensure you undergo a safe and appropriate procedure with the right cosmetic surgeon. Putting in the time and effort to get everything right beforehand is the only way to successfully yield the final result you’re hoping for.

If your goal is to achieve a fantastic end result that you love, you have to go through the process of planning your cosmetic surgery in great detail with a surgeon you can trust. This cannot happen overnight, so you mustn’t let the excitement and euphoria of undergoing cosmetic surgery carry you too fast. In fact, with research, consultations, important decisions to be made and a potential lengthy recovery to endure, the process could take several months.

To help you plan your plastic surgery procedure you could consider following these steps outlined below. Though bear in mind each patient and their requirement is different, so any mentioned timeframe for each step could differ somewhat, but the process should ultimately remain the same.

Research board certified plastic surgeons

The importance of doing your due diligence to find a reputable board certified plastic surgeon to carry out your procedure cannot be underestimated. It could take several weeks or even months to find a surgeon that you’re comfortable with and who possess the necessary skills in relation to the procedure you’re interested in. Not all surgeons are created equal - they have different personalities, different levels of experience, different skill sets. Do you full research and have a consultation with several before taking some time to consider your conversation with each one. This will help you avoid rushing into a decision over which cosmetic surgeon you would like to go forward with, in turn potentially saving you from making a mistake.

Book in several consultations

As mentioned above, book in consultations with a number of plastic surgeons who meet your criteria. Don’t be put off by any wait time - this is in fact usually a good sign as highly skilled and reputable surgeons tend to be in high demand, so it could take several weeks before the next available consultation appointment is available. Your consultation should be very in-depth allowing you to gain a great deal of knowledge and value. It allows you to learn more about what the surgeon offers, the particular procedure you’re interested in along with any alternatives, as well as gain a better grasp of their specific expertise in the industry. Of course, it also allows you to fire away any concerns or questions you may have.

Reflection time between consultation and surgery

Due to most reputable plastic surgeons likely to be booked many weeks or even months in advance, you may find yourself with a bit of a wait for your surgery date. This could be anywhere from 4 to 10 weeks onwards, but don’t tempted into choosing a particular surgeon just because they can fit you in at a shorter notice. You should base your decision on recognising that they are the surgeon who is best qualified and the best fit to perform your specific procedures.

You will be able to use this time to reflect on your decision and hopefully you will feel more and more certain with each passing week as the surgery date draws near. If you’re a smoker, you may need to allocate some extra time as you need to stop smoking a minimum of 3-6 weeks before your surgery, but the longer the better.

There are plenty of other important things you can arrange during this waiting period, such as ensuring someone is available to take you to the clinic and drive you home afterwards, arrange a suitable amount of time off work to fully recover, arrange any necessary childcare etc.

Plastic surgery recovery period

The amount of time you’ll need to allocate for recovery will depend on the procedure you have, your personal rate of healing, and how well you follow the post-op instructions from your plastic surgeon. 

Each case is different, but as a general rule of thumb you can expect recovery time frames for some of the more popular procedures to be somewhat like the below:

Breast augmentation

5-7 days - a return to most normal living activities (desk job work, driving, dining out etc.)

4 weeks - a return to regular exercise

3 months - able to appreciate the final result

Facelift

2 weeks - a return to most normal living activities

4 weeks - a return to regular exercise

12 weeks - able to appreciate the final result

Tummy tuck

2 weeks - a return to most normal living activities

6 weeks - a return to regular exercise

3-4 months - able to appreciate the final result

Liposuction

1 week - a return to most normal living activities

4 weeks - a return to regular exercise

3-4 months - beach-ready

6-12 months - able to fully appreciate the final result

Have you been considering plastic surgery? If so, don’t hesitate to get in touch so that we can book you in for your initial consultation and discuss the range of cosmetic procedures that are offered here at Harley Street Aesthetics. Contact us by calling 0845 519 7232, e-mail info@harleystreetaesthetics.com or complete our simple online contact form.