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Recovery

The lightest recovery in facial surgery — honestly mapped

Local anaesthesia in, sutures out by day 7, socially easy in a week — with a stiff-smile chapter in the middle nobody warns you about. Here's the whole calendar.

1

Days 0–3 — the loud phase

Swelling peaks day 2–3; the lip previews higher and fuller than your final result. Eat from day one (smaller bites, nothing scorching); straws are fine — that rumour belongs to dentistry. Head slightly elevated at night.

2

Days 4–7 — sutures out, life back

Suture removal day 5–7 in clinic, before your flight. Conversation-distance comfortable for most by the end of week one; desk work resumes easily.

3

Weeks 2–3 — the stiff-smile chapter

The classic surprise: your smile feels restrained while swelling and early healing tension resolve. Temporary, known, loosens week by week. Makeup covers the line from now; kissing rejoins at ~2–3 weeks.

4

Weeks 4–8 — the settling

The lip descends from its swollen preview into the planned position; numb patches under the nose recalibrate; full exercise returns.

5

Month 3, and 12–18 — two verdicts

Lip position is judged at month 2–3; the scar's pale-line verdict belongs to 12–18 months under SPF and silicone. Photo reviews run through both.

Why it's this light

No general anaesthetic to recover from, no drains, no hospital night — the surgical footprint is a few square centimetres under local. The trip is 5–7 days mostly so we can watch the early days and remove sutures, not because you'll feel unwell.

"Is this normal?" — answered in hours

Asymmetric early swelling, a tight morning, a crust that looks dramatic — recovery's small anxieties get photo-review answers from Dr. Erdal directly, at home or here.

The one rule that owns year one

SPF 50 on the scar, every day it sees daylight. UV permanently darkens immature scars — sunscreen is the cheapest part of a beautiful result.

Planning around work, events, travel?

Send your dates — the calendar answer comes back with suture-removal and photo-milestone maths included.

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