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Going Under the Knife? Read This First!

Post-surgery women reveal the whole truth about the most popular plastic surgery procedures -- from (ow!) recovery to (omg!) results
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Forehead Lift/Brow Lift aka Browplasty
The surgery: Helps smooth horizontal expression lines on the forehead and vertical frown lines around the eyebrows.
Average cost: $7,875
Procedure time: 1-2 hours
Recovery Time: 2 weeks

The Wow: Women with deep, furrowed lines and wrinkles across their brow and forehead love the fresh, youthful appearance post-op. "The scar on my forehead is INVISIBLE. I love my new hairline. Before, I used to have high temple and now that area is covered by hair," one woman writes. "It also softened the frown lines I had on my forehead that used to make me look angry. I'm so happy and would do it all over again!"

The Ow: This procedure garnered mixed feelings from those who experienced it -- many weren't sure if it was worth the time and money. "The top of my scalp is numb, which is more annoying and weird feeling than anything," one woman writes. Others had a longer list of cons. "The pros of the forehead lift is that my eyes are much wider and that is great. The cons is that now I have these huge bags under my eyes that make me look worse than before surgery." Doctors say this swelling and bruising from a brow lift can last up to six months, but if it persists beyond that time frame, they may suggest another procedure (blepharoplasty, to be exact) to remove the secondary bags and lines around the eyes.

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Arm Lift aka Brachioplasty
The surgery: Tightens loose or sagging skin around the arms, aka "bat wings," that develop after massive weight loss or due to aging skin.
Average cost: $8,350
Procedure time: 2 hours
Recovery time: 2-3 days if you have a desk job, 10 days to resume driving/normal activity, no heavy lifting for a month, scars diminish in 6 months

The Wow: "This is a great life changing surgery when it is truly needed," one woman writes. Others title their reviews "the best decision I've ever made in a life" and "no more batwings!" This procedure has been a great self-esteem boost for women who were feeling uncomfortable in their new skin following dramatic weight loss. "I do love my new skinny girl arms!" one woman raves.

The Ow: "My hands looked like little sausages after surgery," one woman writes, summarizing the most traumatizing part of her experience. This procedure has one of the shorter recovery times, but it can get ugly. "The worst thing was that I had some sutures come out of my elbows, about a month and a half into recovery. I took two weeks off of work. For about one week I walked around like a mummy, two weeks I mostly had swelling at the end of the day, and at three weeks I could lift my arms over my head." Another woman got more bang for her buck: "My surgeon lifted the skin that would be what would bulge over the back of the bra and in doing so he went into my armpit. I will now not have to worry about shaving under the pits ever again! Bonus! But...I don't have a "traditional" arm pit now." You win some, you lose some.

BY ERICA SMITH | FEB 14, 2014 | SHARES
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