URGENT: Need Advice About Ball Python Swollen Face

[Malum Argenteum]

For an adult male BP, on average most (in the US*) tend to think that an enclosure that's 3' long & 18" wide is good.

An average adult male is a little more than 4 feet, I think. I am under the impression that the calculation for minimum floorspace is (length of snake) X 2 = cage perimeter. That makes a 36" x 18" a minimum footprint on the standard recommendation, not a good one. Maybe I'm misunderestimating hobby standards, though.