Eyelid Surgery and Makeup: What to Know
Eye makeup may seem like a frivolous topic to some, but to women who have eyelid surgery in New York with us it’s anything but! Due to droopy upper lids, some have given up on eye makeup altogether for years before surgery. And because of bags under the eyes, many spend hundreds of dollars on creams and concealers until they realize that blepharoplasty is the right step.
A Little Patience is Needed
So, looking forward to the pleasure of enhancing the eyes with cosmetics is one of the joys of eyelid surgery. But we don’t want our New York eyelid surgery patients to rush to get out the wands, brushes and colors right away. We advise them to wait at least two weeks, sometimes a little longer, to start using cosmetics close to the eyes. Here are four good reasons:
1) The skin around your eyes is very delicate, especially eyelid skin. Before surgery, your eyes were surrounded by thin tissues that tend to tear easily. Even though you can expect your eyes to look great after blepharoplasty, the nature of the skin around them doesn’t change.
2) The act of using and removing cosmetics on your lids puts pressure on those tissues that may still be healing. When patients come in for their post-op appointments, we take a close look at how incisions are healing and advise about a timeframe for using makeup.
3) Cosmetics can cause the skin to become irritated, even without surgery. With surgery, eyelid skin tends to be even more sensitive for a time.
4) There’s a slight risk of infection. You no doubt know that bacteria are everywhere—these days it’s a hot topic. Your makeup drawer is no exception. There’s no need to throw everything out and start over unless your makeup and implements are old—after all, new jars and tubes you purchase will attract bacteria too! The right thing to do is to wait until your incisions are completely healed and bacteria that lurk in your cosmetics can’t hurt you.
Getting Started with Eye Makeup After Blepharoplasty
When we give our New York eyelid surgery patients the green light to use cosmetics, it’s usually fine that they go back to their old routines—with a couple of comments. First, if there’s any reason to worry about irritation, some may want to start by using products formulated for sensitive skin. When these can be used with no problems, then it may be time to try regular cosmetics.
In addition, we advise patients to use an extra light touch, particularly when removing makeup. It is important to take off cosmetics each evening before bed, but it should be done carefully and with gentle products.
Eye Makeup and Safety
Once you’ve invested in eyelid surgery, you may be more interested than ever in learning how to keep your eyes safe when using makeup. Some measures you can take are just good common sense, such as washing your hands before getting out the cosmetics, avoiding the use of saliva around the eyes and never sharing makeup with someone else.
Other steps you may not think about include closing containers right away after use and replacing makeup after an eye infection. These and other tips can be found here.
Eyelid Surgery in New York
Blepharoplasty is one of the most gratifying procedures we perform. When we open up the eyes and remove the sags and bags, our patients no longer feel they look tired, angry and old. Eyelid surgery delivers huge rejuvenation benefits in a procedure that causes little discomfort and has a relatively low price tag.
That doesn’t mean eyelid surgery can be done by any doctor, though, there’s a lot at stake. It is critical to choose a board certified plastic surgeon who has a great deal of experience with blepharoplasty. Contact us if you’d like to explore further!
