In Guadalajara, Mexico, a woman named Michelle Wood started chronicling her facelift experience a few weeks ago. On TikTok, her videos have been getting popular; her debut video has received well over 21 million views. “I am down here to feel and look more refreshed,” she states, as per Buzzfeed.
“I’m fifty, almost fifty-one. To improve my profile, I chose to have a tiny chin implant in addition to a full facelift, forehead lift, upper bleph, lower bleph, and lip lift. My uneven brows will be addressed by the forehead lift.”
Michelle continues by describing Dr. Maribel Belmontes Castillo as her surgeon. “The Guadalajara folks are incredibly amiable. And I want to share my journey with you, showing you the good, the bad, and the ugly. Based on reviews, I selected this surgeon. She takes a fairly conservative stance. I didn’t want to appear twenty. All I want is to appear as if I’ve been sleeping for thirty years.
Even though she claimed to have “turned a corner” and was feeling better, she acknowledged on day three that she felt like a Bratz doll. Michelle found it hard to cope on the fifth day. The hardest thing, in her opinion, that no one ever mentions is how difficult it is to do nothing except sit motionless. It really is, she says. “I believe that as adults, we are constantly moving, but it is really difficult to sit still and not move for ten days,” she said.
This Woman’s $15k Facelift In Mexico Would Have Cost At Least $50k In The US, And People Are Absolutely Speechless At The Results https://t.co/wGDu3jCWkn
— BuzzFeed (@BuzzFeed) July 31, 2025
Michelle reported feeling pretty good overall on day 15, despite the fact that she was still in Guadalajara and still a little puffy and exhausted. When Michelle returned to the United States a few weeks later, her videos continued to receive hundreds of thousands of views, and many were truly amazed by the outcomes.
By day 24, when Michelle broke down the cost, most of the edema had subsided. All six treatments add up to almost $14,000, plus an extra $1,000 for the recovery home, which included 24/7 nursing care, food, and transportation to and from appointments. Although Michelle didn’t say how long she was in the rehabilitation home, it seemed like she was there for two or three weeks based on the dates on her videos.
Michelle saved tens of thousands of dollars by comparing these prices to those in the United States. Although the cost of a complete facelift varies by location, it usually costs between $7,000 and $20,000, with Beverly Hills or “celebrity-level” cases costing an astounding $500K+. A forehead lift typically costs between $3,900 and $7,600 nationwide, but in Los Angeles, the price can reach $9,000 or more.
Michelle also mentioned that she had a positive experience with skin removal surgery in Mexico, so she felt at ease having the procedures done abroad. She added that she looked through evaluations from other people and conducted her research before finding Dr. Maribel Belmontes Castillo.
