Rhinoplasty: Experiences and recovery tips?

Can anyone here point me toward a doctor who actually responds to emails in a timely and professional manner? I’ve been dealing with some issues following my surgery, and I’m trying to get as many different perspectives as possible before I decide what to do next.

Thanks

rustygardener172 said:The happy ones usually don't bother posting anymore... while the unhappy ones can't let it go, which is why they seem more numerous. They're the ones writing here.
Look, I'm not trying to offend anyone, and I know there are exceptions, but I think it mostly boils down to this:
The satisfied group... Type 1—people who had a truly terrible nose, maybe huge or hooked... they just wanted the hump gone and the size reduced. For them, it’s enough. Lower expectations lead to higher satisfaction.

The satisfied group... Type 2—people who had breathing issues and decided to touch up the look at the same time, but didn't have a major hook. Their breathing is fixed, so they're happy because that was the main goal... though they might wonder if the aesthetics could have been slightly better. (I guess I fall into this category 😁 ) ...but that starts leaning into the third group, which is basically

The dissatisfied group... Type 3—these are people who primarily wanted surgery for looks, but also happen to have a deviated septum (which 80% of people do... so, you get the idea)... so they use "poor breathing" as the legitimate reason for the procedure. These folks are almost always dissatisfied because their nose will never be perfect. They just don't grasp that a "perfect" nose doesn't exist. After every surgery, they'll find something else to complain about and want to change that too. It never ends... If they could accept themselves and see beauty in imperfections, they probably wouldn't have gone under the knife in the first place.

The dissatisfied group... Type 4—this is when it doesn't matter what the nose looked like before or why they went in... these are the people who actually have a right to be upset because, unfortunately, they were a victim of a surgeon's error...

Types 2 and 3 are the most common. Type 4 is extremely rare... I'll keep my fingers crossed that you aren't in that one.
Just use some common sense. Most dissatisfaction stems from unrealistic expectations and a lack of knowledge. If you do your homework before surgery and don't expect perfection—because a perfect nose REALLY doesn't exist—you're already halfway to being satisfied.
Good luck!

So what do you say to someone like me? I was unhappy with how my nose looked (the hook) and had a massive deviation. I go in for surgery, the doctor fixes the shape but doesn't even touch the deviation, and actually makes it worse. I'm still unsatisfied, and I don't think I belong in group 3, for sure.

Adam Patel98 said:Could someone please let me know which doctors are actually responsive and professional when replying to emails? I've been dealing with some complications following my surgery, and I really want to gather as many expert opinions as possible...

Thanks

Dr. Smith..... I reached out to him with a question recently, and he actually got back to me within just a few hours!!

Adam Patel98 said:What are you gonna say when I tell you I was already miserable with how my nose looked—it had this huge hump and a massive deviation—so I go in for surgery thinking the doc will fix both, but he doesn't even touch the deviation and just makes the whole thing look way worse? I’m still totally unhappy, so I definitely don't think I fall into that "top 3" success story group.

Well, you're clearly in Group 4 if the doctor totally screwed you over... or maybe you just cared more about looking pretty than actually being able to breathe, so you went to some plastic surgeon who isn't even an ENT...
Mind if I ask how you figured out your breathing is actually worse now than before the surgery? When did you realize that?

restlessraven12 said:Hey everyone! I had septorhinoplasty about five and a half months ago, and my nose still looks swollen on the sides near the bone and at the tip. Do you think this is normal? Especially the part near the bone—it looks pretty wide and feels hard to the touch. I have a feeling they might have broken the bone during the procedure, but I’m not entirely sure since nobody really explained things to me. I had the surgery done at a hospital.

That bump on the side is probably just a callus forming... it eventually settles down...😠
Personally, I’d probably head out for a second opinion from someone else just to see what's actually going on...
Better to double-check and get some peace of mind.🙂

restlessfox3 said:It should be a callus on that side... you know, one of those things where it just eventually recedes on its own.😠
I think I’m gonna hit up a second opinion, too—besides just sticking with my own doctor. Just want to see what else is out there and get another set of eyes on this whole situation to figure out what's actually going on.
Better to double-check and just be absolutely sure. Honestly, I've learned that the hard way more times than I care to admit—usually right when I'm already running late for something important. It’s always worth the extra five minutes to make sure you aren't walking into a total disaster. Just play it safe.🙂

Honestly, I was thinking the exact same thing about switching to a different doctor... I'm seriously starting to lose my cool here. 🙂 And man, even in the photos... it just looks so weird. Seriously. 😕 Is it the same deal where you are?

restlessraven12 said:I was thinking the exact same thing about switching doctors... this whole thing is starting to get on my nerves... 🙂 plus, looking at the scans, it looks so weird 😕 is yours looking just as strange?

When I broke my bones, there was this bump on the side, and because of the swelling, that part of the bone felt way more prominent. Honestly, I was totally panicking because I had no clue what was going on—I'm touching my bone and feeling this lump, and then the doctor tells me there’s no reason to freak out, it's just callus forming and it'll eventually recede. Some people call it "bone hardening" or whatever...🙂

Look, I don't really know what you're dealing with, and I definitely don't want to overstep by acting like I have all the answers or giving you unsolicited advice...

But just for my own peace of mind, I'm going to go get a second opinion...
If it really is just callus, then yeah, I guess I just have to deal with it until it goes away...

But if someone actually screwed up my treatment, they should be held accountable...

Even though I do trust him... I mean, just so I can finally stop worrying, I'm getting another look from someone else...

restlessraven12 said:Hey everyone! I had septorhinoplasty about five and a half months ago, and my nose still looks swollen on the sides near the bone and at the tip. Is this normal? Especially the part near the bone—it looks pretty wide and feels hard to the touch. I have this feeling they actually broke my bone during the procedure, but I'm not totally sure because nobody mentioned anything to me. I had the surgery done at a hospital.

I don't really get how you can think they just went ahead and broke your bones without saying a word... I mean, you'd have medical records for that... and honestly, nobody's going to just snap your bones without you knowing about it.🤷

restlessfox3 said:I honestly don't get how you think they just snapped your bones and kept you in the dark about it. Like, come on. You would’ve been handed a full medical history by now. Nobody at a place like the Mayo Clinic is just out there breaking bones without telling you what's going on.🤷

So, the doc says he’s gonna go ahead and get that lump removed. Finally. Honestly, I've been staring at it in the mirror for weeks like it was some kind of uninvited guest crashing my party. It's weird, right? One day you're just living your life, and the next, a specialist is telling you they're slicing a little piece of you out. Still, better to deal with it now than let it sit there getting more annoying. Fingers crossed everything goes smoothly! 🙂 So, basically, they’re gonna lift the tip of my nose and do some extra work on the inside too. It sounds like it's gonna be a bit more intense and take longer than a standard fix because the bone healed all crooked after that hit I took—turns out there were more fractures in there than I thought. That's the deal, anyway. He didn't say for sure if he's gonna break it down or just reshape it, though. 🤷 And besides, Dr. Smith actually seems like he knows his stuff—or at least that was my gut feeling when I was there.

So, I was looking over my discharge papers, and apparently, they did a full-on reconstruction of my nasal septum and the nasal pyramid using an open technique. Just a little fun fact for the medical files, I guess!

We'll see. I really hope this thing just disappears into thin air... 🙂

restlessfox3 said:I honestly don't follow your logic—how on earth do you think they could just go around breaking your bones without saying a single word to you? It’s simply not how things work. You were given a full medical history—a complete record of everything that happened—and let's be real, nobody in a legitimate American hospital is going to snap a bone without your knowledge. It just doesn't happen.🤷

So, what exactly are you going to write in the report—that he fractured it and then put it back together?😕 Look, let’s be honest—these diagnoses are nothing more than pseudo-scientific nonsense—stuff like *reconstructio septi et pyramidis nasi* or whatever other Latin-sounding gibberish they throw at you to sound authoritative. It’s all just jargon designed to make a simple procedure sound like some grand architectural feat. 😉

restlessraven12 said:The doctor gave me the news—he’s going to go ahead and remove the lump. Just a little bump, really, but enough to be a nuisance. 🙂 So, here’s the deal—they’re going to lift the nasal tip and perform several other internal adjustments. It’s looking like it'll be a significantly more complex procedure and will take longer than originally anticipated because that old injury from the impact healed all wrong—leaving behind a mess of internal fractures that need fixing. That's the situation, anyway. He didn't explicitly say whether they’d be breaking things down or just reshaping them, but there's no doubt it's going to be an intensive job. 🤷 And besides—Dr. Smith clearly knows what he’s doing—or at least that was my impression from our initial consultation.

My discharge papers state that I underwent an open septoplasty and rhinoplasty—basically, they reconstructed my nasal septum and the entire nasal pyramid using the open technique.

We’ll just have to wait and see—and frankly, I’m holding out hope that this whole mess finally burns itself out. 🙂

If we’re talking about a Reconstructio septi et pyramidis—that whole structural overhaul—then I’ve been right there in the trenches myself. I had a partial resection of the middle concha performed, though they used a closed technique on my end; basically, they made the incision right on the septum of my left nasal passage. Just a heads-up: you should probably brace yourself for some swelling—it can linger for up to a year. In my case, there is definitely some swelling, though it isn't egregious. Honestly, if you didn't already know me, you wouldn't even notice it—mostly because I’ve always had a pretty rugged, prominent nose to begin with.😁

Sam Kim12 said:I mean, what are they even gonna write in the report? Like, "we smashed it and put it back together"?😕 Lol, it's always those fancy terms, you know? Like, "Reconstructio septi et pyramidis nasi" or whatever medical jargon they throw at you. 😉

Look, I get that they won't explicitly spell it out like that in my paperwork 😂, but I honestly thought they'd actually explain the specifics during the follow-up. Guess not... My report just says "Reconstructio septi et pyramidis nasi functionalis - open approach"

I actually had something super similar done—that whole "Reconstructio septi et pyramidis nasi" thing—but mine was a partial resection of the middle concha using a closed technique, basically just an incision inside my left nostril. Just a heads up: expect some swelling to stick around for up to a year. My nose is definitely swollen, though it’s not crazy intense; most people who don't know me wouldn't even notice because I've always had a pretty prominent nose anyway. 😁

Man, I'm just praying for the day when this all settles down so I don't look like I've got a literal golf ball perched on the tip of my nose. 😂 Since my nose is naturally pretty narrow, the whole thing feels super weird right now being so swollen and wide on the sides.

restlessraven12 said:I suppose there will come a day when the swelling finally subsides, so I won't look like I have a little ball sitting on the tip of my nose😂 I actually have quite a narrow nose, so it feels very strange to me now that everything is so inflamed and wide on the sides

Here is someone who had the open technique used... restlessraven12, I was wondering how long it took for your bruising and swelling to clear up, considering they went with the open method?? thanks🙂

Sarah Cox66 said:So here we have someone who went with the open technique... restlessraven12, I’m curious, how long did it actually take for the bruising and swelling to die down since they used the open method?? thanks🙂

Like I mentioned before, my nose still looks pretty swollen and the tip feels totally numb... honestly, I didn't even get any bruising, which actually surprised my doctor. 😁 But man, my eyes were watering like crazy and stinging like hell—it was so annoying 😠 and my eyes stayed pretty red for a while, though nothing extreme. At one check-up before the surgery, the doc told me bruises usually clear up in about two weeks. But hey, everyone's different, so I'd say maybe give it 2 or 3 weeks for everything to settle. 😉

restlessraven12 said:Like I mentioned before, my nose still feels pretty swollen and the tip is totally numb... honestly, I didn't even have any bruising, which actually surprised my doctor. 😁 But my eyes were watering like crazy and they were so itchy, it was driving me nuts 😠 and they stayed red for quite a while, though nothing too dramatic. During one of my pre-op checkups, he told me the bruising usually clears up in about two weeks. Of course, everyone heals differently, so I suspect it might take closer to two or three weeks for me... 😉

Ah, I really hope that’s the case for me too... if only! I was wondering how long the actual surgery took for you, and if there's much pain afterward? I'm asking because most people I see here had the closed method, whereas you went with the open approach...🙂🙂

restlessraven12 said:...

The discharge papers say they performed an open Reconstructio on my nasal septum and the nasal pyramid.

We’ll just have to wait and see if the bump actually disappears... 🙂

The nasal pyramid is basically the bone structure... which means someone definitely broke your face at some point...

Sarah Cox66 said:Man, I really hope it works out that way for me too... if only! Honestly, I’ve been dying to know—how long did they actually have you under for the surgery? And more importantly, does it absolutely wreck you afterward? I'm asking because most people I talk to around here seem to get it done via laparoscopy, but since you went through the full open procedure, I figured I should check in.🙂🙂

It lasted about two and a half hours. Honestly, it hurt a little bit, but nothing I couldn't handle. You just gotta power through, right? Once the pain started kicking in, they gave me a Tylenol and everything was totally fine after that. 😉
Honestly, for me, nothing topped that absolute nightmare of waking up from anesthesia while they were still pulling the tampon out. It was pure chaos. But hey, if you’ve got questions, just shoot. I'm an open book. 😉

rustygardener172 said:The nasal pyramid is bone structure... which basically means you definitely broke them...

Yeah, yeah, I get it—the nasal pyramid is bone. Total genius. But look, I read somewhere that some people swear by massage therapy for it. Now I’m just sitting here wondering if that actually helps with the actual bone realignment or if it’s just one of those things meant to help with the swelling... 🤷

restlessraven12 said:Yeah, I get that it's basically just bone structure issues... I read somewhere that some people recommend massage, but honestly, I have no clue if that actually helps with the actual bone misalignment or if it’s just good for swelling.. 🤷

That's strictly for the swelling. When it comes to the bones themselves, you've just gotta have patience. Those alignment issues don't really settle down for anywhere from six months to a full year.

Hey everyone. I need some input.
So, I’m coming from a small town in the Midwest and I need surgery for a deviated septum and my nasal pyramid. Someone recommended Professor Baker over at the Mayo Clinic (in Washington, D.C., right?) who only sees patients on Tuesdays. I called the Mayo Clinic and they told me I can just show up with my referral on Tuesday without an appointment. Is that actually how it works? Because usually, you have to book weeks in advance just to see a basic ENT, let alone something like this. I'm wondering about the actual process. If I head to D.C. for the initial consultation with the professor, what happens next? Roughly how long is the wait until the actual surgery, and how does the whole thing play out? Thanks in advance. 😁

I was dealing with bruising for at least a month after my surgery. They told me it was due to low hemoglobin and poor circulation. When people ask when the best time of year is for the procedure 🙂, mine was in December, so the lack of sunlight (or so my doctor 😁 claims) definitely slowed down my recovery 🙂