Tired, sad appearing eyes are a feature that will concern most people at one time or another in their life. Genetics and stress play a huge role as to when it will surface. Unfortunately, several studies have revealed that tired, sad appearing eyes can have an unintentional, negative impact in social and employment situations. As a result, surgical eyelid rejuvenation, termed blepharoplasty (bleph-a-row-plas-tea) has become a very common procedure.
This young lady sought a consultation because family members and friends would often ask her if she was tired or sad. Sure there were times when she was but the majority of the time she was quite fine. Ultimately, she had become sick and tired of being asked if she was tired or sad.
Typically the lower eyelid area has, by far, the greatest impact on the appearance of the eye. As in this patient, the prominent eyelid bags made her eyes look tired and sad. Eyelid bags are simply fatty tissue. Moreover, an eyelid bag is similar to a hernia, much like a hernia in the abdomen or groin area. As you may recall a hernia is a pooching of something that should not be pooching, and require surgery. Consequently, eyelid bags cannot be definitively corrected with creams, lasers, or other treatments, just as you can’t or wouldn’t fix a hernia in the lower abdomen with these treatments; hernias as with eyelid bags require surgery.
This patient underwent lower eyelid blepharoplasty using the fat repositioning technique and had simultaneous fat augmentation of her cheeks and tear trough. Learn more about this technique here. The results reveal an appearance that looks refreshed and rested. Also, notice how her eye shape is not altered. The technique is well tolerated, with most activities resumed in 5 to 7 days.