Plastic Surgery - Does it Hurt?

One fear about getting cosmetic work done is the pain

By: Gerit Quealy on Life Goes Strong Dec 9, 2011


Aside from 'does it work?' many people want to know how much pain they'll feel in many of the newer, less invasive cosmetic procedures?

One of the questions I'm most often asked about cosmetic procedures and plastic surgery is, "How much does it hurt?"

The other one is, "Does it really work?" although the latter is more often about creams, serums and potions. Which is why I try to sample things before I tell you about them, if I can, so you don't waste your time or your money.

But I learned something new the other day from dermatologist and dermatological surgeon Dr. Michael Gold, in what must be a Nashville treasure – his Gold Skin Care Center.

The Center handles everything from moles and Moh's Surgery, to wrinkle reduction and hair removal, to spa services like wraps, waxing, and facials. Basically, any concern you about your exterior can be addressed; you can even sign up to be a research guinea pig to significantly reduce the cost of some treatments.

We were there to learn about eMatrix and ReFirme (more on those in later posts), because frankly, the future of "plastic surgery" it seems to me, is in these sublative treatments, which require very little downtime or invasive techniques.

But the issue of pain did come up. Obviously the less it hurts, the more attractive it is. I was discussing with Dr. Gold my experience with Ultherapy, which I said didn't hurt at all.

He looked surprised. "Well, you're in the 1%," he said (no, not that 1%). "Ulthera goes very deep. We've seen patients leave crying." It was my turn to be shocked. I barely felt anything. When I sampled it a second time, on my forehead, it did hurt a little since it was closer to the bone, which I expected. But the numbing shots were far more painful, so I decided to forgo them and was fine.

Whereas, going guinea pig for an eMatrix sample, I did feel some burning as the heat gun (laser) was applied to my skin, despite sitting under a thick layer of numbing cream, like frosting on a cupcake, for about 20 minutes prior.

However, my colleagues barely felt anything! How is this possible? They were both of Asian heritage, so I wondered if that had something to do with it. I asked Dr. Gold. The answer was simple and should have been a no-brainer: Everybody's different.

What's your pain threshold?
Still, it seems an extreme variant. When I was in the spa getting my Ice Mask (a wonderful product I've recommended before), I talked to aesthetician Blair Scott about it.

    My tolerance is so high, I don't even require numbing,"

she said of having Juvederm injected in her lips. This was shocking because the lip area is perhaps the most sensitive on the face. "I've always known I can handle things," Blair said, "I'm about 'get it fixed, get it fast,'" she laughed. "If it will shave off 30 minutes with no numbing, I'll got for it."

But there is one thing that fells even the intrepid Blair – tattoo removal. By all accounts, it's incredibly painful. So you really need to seriously think about getting one, especially at midlife.

Pain varies
I was still thinking about it when I got back home, surprised that there's no way to really research this, to find some sort of standardized way of gauging who might feel what.  That's when my friend Ann-Marie showed me pictures of her legs after her initial foray into laser hair removal. Horrible red splotches that looked painful — and they were, both during and after the treatment.

The aesthetician ended up switching to a different laser, and her brother, who's a doctor, told her to take an allergy pill (he felt it was an allergic reaction), and she's been happy as a clam ever since.

Know thyself
In the end, the best gauge as to how much pain you'll feel is you. You've been around long enough to some idea of your tolerance levels by now. I actually think mine is rather low, which is why Ultherapy was surprising. But Dr. Gold suggested that it can vary for different areas. Ultherapy hits the deepest levels of skin, whereas eMatrix is more the middle layers. So my pain sensors are more acute closer to the surface, which may be why I can handle back pain or a headache, but extreme heat for instance drives me crazy.

As a research facility, Dr. Gold also implements a 1 to 10 scale for patients to rate during-and-after-procedure discomfort levels to get a better idea on a per-procedure basis what pain people might be able to anticipate.

The best advice, as in so many things, is know thyself.