<p>$1500 is a ballpark guess but it really can vary a lot from practice to practice. Lower lids are usually less than uppers. Consultations are usually free. And, I suspect DC is a competitive marketplace for these services.</p>
<p>Thank you. I guess I should make a consultation appt. My daughter has an upcoming appt and the consultation is $150 for a mole removal that needs a plastic surgeon. I’m guessing I won’t get a free consultation.</p>
<p>My consult with the doctor was $20. My insurance copay. The total cost for the doctor and surgery is $2700. II have vision issues that makes the surgery necessary. I am blind in one eye so the other eye must be able to work at full speed. So the insurance company will pay for a portion… </p>
<p>I have a friend at work with the same droopy eyes as me… she keeps putting off the consult. I want her to go first, to see how she turns out. (Don’t want the crazy eyed look.) </p>
<p>^^^^^
Agreed, I have seen that “wide eyed” stretched look on more than one acquaintance. Picking the right surgeon is extremely important. I think you only risk that with the brow lift though. You are really not raising anything when they just cut out the excess skin. </p>
<p>A few years back I had it done, and am so glad to be rid of those bags! Insurance paid, as my vision was sufficiently obstructed. With the first check no, but I returned 18 months later when I realized that my eyes were an itchy mess in the summer due to drooping and sweating. Office staff rather indicated that complaining about the problem might help with insurance approval. After the surgery, I realized that my peripheral vision was much improved, and for the first time in my life, I have eyelids. The brow lift was recommended, but for $3000 more, I elected to not do it. And there is sufficient improvement for my spartan tastes. I’m no beauty queen at this point, or any other, actually. This was in a major teaching hospital, same day surgery unit. </p>
<p>This procedure is a piece of cake. I agree you won’t get wide-eyed. The worst I have seen is a bit of a hollow look when they take out too much under-eye fat. But, it’s better than bags.</p>
<p>I am a little confused…greatlakesmom wrote:</p>
<p>"A few years back I had it done, and am so glad to be rid of those bags! Insurance paid, as my vision was sufficiently obstructed. "</p>
<p>Aren’t bags under the eyes (I have them) but it’s the droopy eyelids that I thought obstructed vision. I think about both procedures periodically but, at this point, am just uniformed so am reading this thread with interest. When/why would an insurance company ever pay for under eye bags? I would have thought that was always cosmetic. I do understand that severely droopy eyelids can obstruct vision.</p>
<p>No expert, but I think it’s highly unlikely insurance would pay for lower lids. Even uppers require a lot of obstruction before it’s not cosmetic.</p>
<p>I think insurance would pay for a lower lid that was actually turned out. Ectropion: causes chronic conjunctivitis.</p>
<p>Unfortunately ectropion repair doesn’t usually involve repairing the bags under the eyes. For anyone wondering if they would qualify for blepharoplasty, most insurance companies have a list of criteria on their websites.</p>
<p>I was talking about the literal bags that were my eyelids, not the other ones, below the eyes. Sorry. Semantics. </p>
<p>Thanks for clarifying, Great Lakes Mom.</p>
<p>Hi All,
I am an oculoplastic surgeon who does lots of blepharoplasty (upper or lower lids), browlifts, botox, etc. in the Los Angeles area.
If you are going to get eyelid surgery, I would recommend that you get it from physicians in the following order of preference:
- Oculoplastic Surgeon (Oculoplastic fellowship, ophthalmology residency)
- Facial Plastic Surgeon (Facial plastic fellowship, ENT residency)
- Ophthalmologist (ophthalmology residency)
- Plastic surgeon (Plastic surgery fellowship, General Surgery residency)
If you live in a large city, all 4 will be available. If you live in a less populated area, then you may only have a plastic surgeon available.</p>
<p>Insurance will cover the upper eyelids if the droopiness blocks your pupil when your eyebrows are relaxed.</p>
<p>Surgery can be done in
- Hospital
- Outpatient surgery center
- Office
This usually depends on surgeon preference or habit or “privileges” of location, patient’s insurance, or cost to patient. The surgery doesn’t hurt.</p>
<p>Recovery:
- Upper bleph doesn’t really hurt. Usually need 1 pain pill or no pain pills after surgery
- Incision is made in the lid crease, so that you don’t see the scar
- Bruised and swollen for up to 2 weeks
- Blurred vision for up to 2 weeks.</p>
<p>As some said upthread, the whole thing is relatively easy.</p>
<p>The “scared” look usually comes from an aggressive brow lift and not a bleph. It’s important to find a physician who will adjust their technique to personally tailor to your own needs, wants, anatomy, gender, and ethnicity.
Some people with “full” eyelids their whole life and then come out with very hollowed out eyes might not like the fact that they don’t “look like themself” anymore. Whereas some people with “full” eyelids their whole life might have wanted an area to place their makeup on their whole life and want the change. Each patient is different.</p>
<p>Also, you want it to look natural enough so that friends and family say, “Wow, you look great! did you go on vacation?” rather than say, “Wow, you look great! Where did you get your surgery?”</p>
<p>Feel free to PM me with questions…</p>
<p>YoHo, to be honest I have friends who have done the bleph and even years later to me the scar is detectable. Maybe not when they are looking straight at you, but if they look down or close their eyes. Do you think a gentle brow lift does a decent job of raising skin around the upper eyes and eyebrow?</p>
<p>YoHo - you shouldn’t have posted about PM you. Your PM box is going to be full now. :)</p>
<p>“Insurance will cover the upper eyelids if the droopiness blocks your pupil when your eyebrows are relaxed.”</p>
<p>Wow! That is a whole lot of droopiness.</p>
<p>@harvestmoon1
As for scars, the time that scars are most noticeable is when a surgeon does deep supratarsal fixation during the surgery or during the closure. Some surgeons do this to make the lid crease look very deep. Others do this in order to make an Asian blepharoplasty (double eyelid surgery) keep the double lid rather than reverting back to a single lid. The other time (and most of the time) that you will see a scar on the eyelids is (frankly) if the surgeon is not very good. So do not go to the surgeons that your friends went to. Bleh.</p>
<p>As for a gentle brow lift (no deer in the headlights look), the best way for you to evaluate for yourself if you could do a brow lift instead of a upper bleph is to wrap your hair in a towel, turban style, and flip it back, like you have just washed your hair. This will elevate your brows a gentle amount. Take a look at your upper lids. If you like the look of your lids with your brows at that height, then yes, a brow lift may be all you need to smooth out the redundant skin of your upper lids instead of a bleph. In the office, I measure the height of pupil to the top of the brow along with looking at the general anatomy and aesthetics of the person to determine if their brows are low, and then manually elevate the brows and take photos to determine if they would look better with a browlift, bleph, or both.</p>
<p>Too funny YoHo. When I wrap my hair in a towel that is exactly the way I want to look. I always say to myself that I will take a selfie in the" towel wrap" and bring it to any potential surgeon I would use. Thanks for all the advice. It is very helpful.</p>
<p>YoHo: does your recommendation for the type of specialist apply to lower eyelid surgery too?</p>