I am 55 years old and I have been going to Portland Plastic Surgery Group for several years for botox. I had Juviderm once, but every time I looked in the mirror, I noticed new signs of aging. My Marionette lines were getting deeper, and I was developing a turkey neck. I resorted to multiple colorful scarves until my kids started teasing me, so I decided to have a facelift. I met with three plastic surgeons in the Portland area, and I consulted with them regarding this facelift. After educating myself, I opted to go with Dr. Shannon O’ Brien. First of all, she has superb bedside manners and she is a perfectionist. Dr. O’ Brien listened to my complains and formulated a plan with me. I was very excited to have the procedure done, which included a face/neck lift and fat grafts. I had the procedure in mid-september of 2018 at the ambulatory surgical unit. I was under general anesthesia and Dr. O’ Brien worked for six hours straight. She came out to talk to my husband (who is also a physician) about the procedure and post-op care. My husband came to pick me up at the post-surgical unit and could not stop praising her suturing finesse and perfect lines that were almost not visible.The next day, my drains were taken off (which were almost empty) and my recovery started. My family took care of me for three weeks. I wish my friends and acquaintances knew about this: they kept praising my hairdresser. I felt bad to give him all the credit when Dr. Shannon O’ Brien did all the work. Now, I look and feel a decade younger. I have more confidence, and now, I can take off my scarves. After three months, my scars were almost gone, and you wouldn’t have noticed this unless you knew the surgery was done and you were specifically looking for signs. Now, I am six months out, and feel great and just met Dr. O’ Brien today for a post-op visit. Surgical recovery takes one year, but I’m almost recovered. A big thanks to Dr. Shannon O’ Brien and her team who made this life-changing experience for me. There are many pros in choosing her and her team:
1. Fantastic surgeon with a wide experience in her field.
2. The surgery was performed with a fantastic team at the Northwest Ambulatory Surgery Center.
3. General Anesthesia was very important as I did not want to have this under conscious sedation given the extent and duration of this surgery.
4. General Anesthesia was done under a certified anesthesiologist who was fantastic.
5. Dr. O’ Brien has a team that covers for her if needed after surgery if she is not around. The others who I met were solo practitioners.
6. Dr. O’ Brien is not only a fantastic surgeon, but she is also a very nice person, and it always a pleasure meeting with her. She is a fine artist.

Submitted March 13, 2019