Face — Treatment

A face you recognise,
in a younger light

Beneath the skin runs a single sheet of tissue called the SMAS. The deep plane facelift lifts that sheet, not the skin above it. The result is a face that has not been pulled — it has been re-settled.

Deep plane facelift — anatomical illustration

What it is & what it isn't

A structural facelift performed beneath the SMAS layer, releasing the deep retaining ligaments of the face and repositioning the malar fat and cheek tissue as a single unit. The skin is then re-draped without tension. Three to four hours under general anaesthesia. Two nights in Antalya hospital. Ten to fourteen days in the city before flying home.


What it isn't

This is not a thread lift. It is not a HIFU device. It is not a 'liquid facelift' with fillers. Those treatments may have their place — but they cannot reset the architecture of a face. If you have been told they can, you have been sold something.

The practical detail

What you are actually committing to.

Procedure time
Typically 3 — 4 hours
Anaesthesia
General
Hospital stay
Typically two nights
Stay in Antalya
Typically 10 — 14 nights
Flying again
Usually after 14 days
Exercise
Usually after 6 weeks
Final result
Typically 6 — 9 months
Scarring
Around the ear, hidden in the hairline; mature in 12 months
Longevity
10 — 15 years, depending on lifestyle

These figures are typical ranges, for planning your trip. Your own treatment and recovery timeline is assessed and decided by Dr. Meral — at consultation, and again as your healing progresses.

How it unfolds

Consultation

Three video calls before you fly: one to listen, one to plan, one to confirm. You meet the same surgeon at each one.

The lift

Incisions follow the natural curve of the ear and hairline. The SMAS layer is released along its deep retaining ligaments and repositioned. The skin re-drapes without tension — this is why deep plane facelifts do not look 'pulled'.

Closing

Sutures are placed in the natural shadow of the ear and hairline. Drains, when used, are removed within 24 hours.

The settle

Two weeks of visible recovery in Antalya. Six weeks before you look like yourself in photographs. Six to nine months before the final result reads as 'just rested'.

Recovery

Two nights in hospital. Days three through fourteen in a private recovery suite — not a ward — in a quiet hotel near the clinic. Light walks from day three. Hair washing from day five. Sutures removed on day seven. You will look bruised for two weeks and tight for six. By month three, friends will tell you that you look well; they will not be able to say why. That is the point.

A typical course, not a promise — healing differs from person to person. Dr. Meral reviews you at each follow-up and decides when each step is right for you.

This may be for you if

  • Adults from their mid-forties to early seventies with descended midface, nasolabial deepening, or jawline laxity.
  • Patients who have already tried non-surgical options and found them insufficient.
  • Patients willing to commit to a longer recovery in exchange for a longer-lasting, more natural result.

This is not for you if

  • Patients seeking a result in time for an event less than three months away.
  • Patients hoping for a 'snatched', overly-pulled look — we will not perform that surgery.
  • Patients with significant unmanaged cardiovascular risk, until that has been addressed by their physician.

Begin

A conversation,
not a quote.

Hours
Monday — Saturday · 09:00 — 19:00 (UTC+3)

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