Any surgery can be traumatic to your mental health, but none more so than surgery which was not strictly necessary for your health. Very often we have seen the same stages of mental state after surgery. There seems to be a very definite pattern of adjustment after surgery. The initial post-operative excitement and euphoria descends into concern and sometimes even depression. This is followed by acceptance and contentment. I have outlined the phases below. It is curious that even patients who have experienced this once, and therefore know what to expect, will experience the same type of staged healing on subsequent operations of this type.

Euphoria: Immediately after surgery you may experience elation and euphoria. The surgery is behind you; you made it! There is a normal period of excitement even joy which lasts for the first few days after surgery.

Reality sets in: As healing progresses, your joy will be less overwhelming. You may be swollen and bruised. You may start taking a more critical look at yourself. You may start to be pre-occupied by some detail of your healing that you had not expected.

Forgetting what you used to look like: You may also get so used to the improvement obtained from surgery, that soon you'll look only at some details instead of the big picture. For example, women whose faces looked incredibly wrinkled before surgery may be preoccupied by a single remaining wrinkle on the lip. One of the reasons that photographs are taken is to help to remind all of us what changes have already been accomplished.

Sadness: Some patients will experience sadness, even depression in this period. This may last for a week or so, but usually less. All types of self doubts occur during this period. This is normal.

Back to your routine: By the end of the second week after surgery, things have settled down and your operative site is well on its way to healing, although there will still be some swelling and rarely, some residual bruising. You are usually feeling better by now and have started to do some of your usual routine. Some mild forms of exercise are encouraged during this period. In fact, Dr. Callegari believes that this set of reactions is brought about by period of inactivity, especially in people that are "type A" go-getters. (Exercise is usually not recommended in the early postop period because it may make swelling worse and may precipitate bleeding.)

This type of reaction is most common in facial rejuvenation surgery, but it is sometimes seen in other types of surgery.