I am a male in my mid-40’s. About 2 years ago I had a transconjunctival blepharoplasty with CO2 laser resurfacing. After doing some research I decided that this approach would minimize the chances of lid retraction. The bleph went fine, but the laser work has been a disaster.

The cosmetic surgeon I selected has sound credentials and is also on staff at a good local hospital. When I went in to see him for the first time, I asked him if I could get away with just the bleph, but his response was that “ I wouldn’t be happy with the result.” So, I believed him and shelled out a bundle. He ended up taking a very aggressive approach with the laser. I had significant lid retraction in one eye, had a supposed infection in the same lid (I wasn’t convinced, but whatever it was, I believe was result of the heavy handed laser), permanently lost most of my lower eyelashes on both sides, wore cover up for over five months (admittedly, this isn’t unheard off, but was still a real bear), and have both dark and light pigmentation problems, the most notable of which are two big light patches under my eyes. When I approached him about the lid retraction, he attempted to minimize my concern, referring to it as “just a little asymmetry” – it was not. He eventually offered to perform a canthopexy. I brought this information to an occuplastic surgeon who recommended a cheek lift because he didn’t believe a canthopexy would hold due to the significant skin loss. So, fearing what a one-sided cheek lift would do to my face, I went back to my cosmetic surgeon for the canthopexy with muscle reinforcement. It has been about 7 months and it hasn’t held very well. Now I’m 2-for-2 in bad decisions. The area under and to the outside of my eye is hollowed, and combined with the deep laser treatment that extends well beyond the outer edge of my eye, my appearance on that side is hideous. Now I’m getting ready to see yet another surgeon, this time one who specializes in facial cosmetic surgery and reconstruction, probably at another huge expense.

I can’t begin describe how painful this process has been for me. I’m so angry with myself for being such a pushover. I often work with large groups of people, and the looks I get from folks …

So, if you are considering laser resurfacing, particularly to augment a blepharoplasty, proceed with extreme caution. I would recommend going without it and seeing how it looks first. If you proceed, insist on a lighter treatment, i.e., one pass – my surgery records indicate two passes, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was actually three. Don’t ever hesitate to ask your surgeon tough questions!! Don’t let him/her push add-on procedures on you!! Take good care of your face. Mine will never be the same.