Rhinoplasty: Experiences and recovery tips?
in Health ·
Since this forum was such a lifesaver for me leading up to my surgery, I really feel like I should share my own experience here too 🙂
I actually had my procedure just three weeks ago with Dr. Tony—after quite a stressful ordeal trying to track down the right specialist.
Basically, about six months ago, I broke my nose. On the surface, you couldn't tell much, but functionally speaking, things were a total disaster.
I saw a few private specialists and visited some hospitals, but in the end, I chose Dr. Tony. He insisted on waiting at least six months after the break to see how everything settled before deciding on surgery.
Even though the procedure itself was pretty intense and complicated, they performed it under local anesthesia with sedation. I was honestly terrified of that part—just the thought of being awake and having to listen to them working was nerve-wracking—but it wasn't like that at all; I was out cold the whole time! My sister told me at one point that I could move over to another bed, and once I did, I was already in the mood to chatty-chat with the other girls who had been operated on that day 🙂
I was still feeling a bit loopy from the anesthesia that day, so I felt pretty great, though the second and third days weren't exactly easy. It wasn't exactly pain, per se, just this weird discomfort from having those nasal tampons in. I guess it's just different when there’s actual hardware in your nose versus just being congested! Plus, my eyes were stinging like crazy because of my nearsightedness, but I kept pushing myself to watch TV and browse the web 🙂
Getting the tampons removed didn't hurt one bit, even though I was bracing for impact—especially since I'd seen quite a bit of blood coming from one nostril earlier. But honestly? Nothing. I didn't feel a thing; it was more like just blowing your nose... Once they were out, I could finally breathe again and actually smell things, which is such an incredible feeling.
On the seventh day, they took off the splint that was held on by medical tape. I didn't have any bruising or swelling at all, just a little yellowish tint where the splint had been pressing against my skin. That cleared up after two days. I was actually out and about the very same day they removed the splint, and nobody noticed a thing—I didn't even try to hide that little yellow spot.
I'm not entirely sure how many internal stitches there are; a few of mine seemed to fall out, so I just gently blew my nose. But maybe there are still more in there, I haven't really noticed.
As for my nose, I am beyond thrilled! It looks wonderful, and I know it’s going to settle even more beautifully.
I am absolutely delighted with the doctor, both the senior staff and the younger ones 🙂 And especially the nurses, who were so sweet and called me at home regularly just to check in and make sure everything was okay
Anyway, that's about it... I don't know what else to say... but please, feel free to ask if anyone is curious about anything! 🙂
I actually had my procedure just three weeks ago with Dr. Tony—after quite a stressful ordeal trying to track down the right specialist.
Basically, about six months ago, I broke my nose. On the surface, you couldn't tell much, but functionally speaking, things were a total disaster.
I saw a few private specialists and visited some hospitals, but in the end, I chose Dr. Tony. He insisted on waiting at least six months after the break to see how everything settled before deciding on surgery.
Even though the procedure itself was pretty intense and complicated, they performed it under local anesthesia with sedation. I was honestly terrified of that part—just the thought of being awake and having to listen to them working was nerve-wracking—but it wasn't like that at all; I was out cold the whole time! My sister told me at one point that I could move over to another bed, and once I did, I was already in the mood to chatty-chat with the other girls who had been operated on that day 🙂
I was still feeling a bit loopy from the anesthesia that day, so I felt pretty great, though the second and third days weren't exactly easy. It wasn't exactly pain, per se, just this weird discomfort from having those nasal tampons in. I guess it's just different when there’s actual hardware in your nose versus just being congested! Plus, my eyes were stinging like crazy because of my nearsightedness, but I kept pushing myself to watch TV and browse the web 🙂
Getting the tampons removed didn't hurt one bit, even though I was bracing for impact—especially since I'd seen quite a bit of blood coming from one nostril earlier. But honestly? Nothing. I didn't feel a thing; it was more like just blowing your nose... Once they were out, I could finally breathe again and actually smell things, which is such an incredible feeling.
On the seventh day, they took off the splint that was held on by medical tape. I didn't have any bruising or swelling at all, just a little yellowish tint where the splint had been pressing against my skin. That cleared up after two days. I was actually out and about the very same day they removed the splint, and nobody noticed a thing—I didn't even try to hide that little yellow spot.
I'm not entirely sure how many internal stitches there are; a few of mine seemed to fall out, so I just gently blew my nose. But maybe there are still more in there, I haven't really noticed.
As for my nose, I am beyond thrilled! It looks wonderful, and I know it’s going to settle even more beautifully.
I am absolutely delighted with the doctor, both the senior staff and the younger ones 🙂 And especially the nurses, who were so sweet and called me at home regularly just to check in and make sure everything was okay
Anyway, that's about it... I don't know what else to say... but please, feel free to ask if anyone is curious about anything! 🙂