LeAnn Hawks, a 45-year-old resident of Arizona, is giving TikTok users an unvarnished look at the realities of facelift recovery. Determined not to sugarcoat the process, Hawks documented her experience after undergoing a series of cosmetic procedures in July, including a deep plane face and neck lift, tail brow lift, upper and lower blepharoplasty, and facial fat transfer. The six-and-a-half-hour surgery took place in Tijuana, Mexico, and was performed by Dr. Israel Espino.
About a month post-surgery, Hawks shared a hospital selfie that stunned viewers. Her image revealed swollen, bruised eyes, graying skin, and extensive stitches along her neck and jaw—showing the intense aftermath of cosmetic surgery.
“I don’t even know if I’ll get to show this picture,” Hawks said in the clip before revealing her post-op appearance. Commenters expressed shock, with one noting, “No, because I would’ve thought my face died and was gonna fall off,” and another admitting, “The gasp I gasped.”
Hawks admitted she was equally surprised by her own appearance, attributing it to the lack of transparent facelift content online. “I’d see a little bit of stuff, but nothing like what I saw in the mirror,” she told PEOPLE. “‘What the hell have I done?’ is really what I was thinking after the surgery. I was like, ‘This is my face. This ain’t a tummy tuck that I cover up.’”
Despite the initial shock, Hawks said her motivation to share her journey stemmed from a desire to normalize the raw, difficult side of facelift recovery. “I knew I wanted to put it out there because I don’t want people to be going, ‘Oh my God, this is not normal.’ It really is normal,” she explained.
The first week of recovery was particularly challenging, and Hawks recalls moments of panic over her appearance. Yet, noticeable results began to emerge around the ninth day. “I was like, ‘Okay, she’s in there,’” she said.
Hawks pursued the procedures after noticing sagging skin following weight loss, which made her feel older than her age. She also cited years of sun exposure without protection as a contributing factor. “I was on the beach four days a week in the sun,” she said of her previous job as a travel nurse in Hawaii. “I just never used sunscreen a day in my life.”
Now, her healing journey is progressing, and Hawks continues to update her followers on TikTok. “I’m still numb around the edges of my face and a little bit in my scalp on one side,” she said. “The swelling’s pretty much gone. I don’t wear the wrap anymore or do any of that stuff. I’m just heavy-duty on the skincare and the sunscreen. I’ve got to protect my investment.”
