Rhinoplasty: Experiences and recovery tips?

restlessrider14 said:HI, can someone help me out: I had nose surgery two weeks ago and now there are three lumps at the bridge of my nose. They're slightly visible and you can feel them when you touch them... they feel hard, almost like bone, but they weren't there before. What do you think this could be? My doctor's appointment isn't for another two weeks, though he told me over the phone that everything is fine, but I don't really believe him. Has anyone else dealt with something like this?

Hey restlessrider14, honestly, what the doctor said is likely correct. Those are just some bony protrusions that I’m still dealing with myself, even though it's been over three months since my procedure. My nose still has a visible line down the middle and the tip remains swollen. It used to feel completely numb, but it's finally starting to loosen up a bit. I still find myself massaging this crazy nose for a few minutes whenever it crosses my mind... I'm not even sure if that actually helps at this stage.
Anyway, try not to stress too much about whatever you're feeling right now; any physical reaction involving the bone structure is expected. It'll settle down eventually—hopefully entirely, or at least enough that it isn't noticeable. 😁

So, I dragged myself to the hospital this morning to get checked out about this little lump under the skin right at the base of my nose... And once again, I proved to myself why I should have just gone private for my other surgery. I have never experienced such blatant rudeness in a private clinic!
I walk in, he asks what brings me in, and I tell him it’s for a follow-up—had surgery recently and just wanted to run a few things by him. His response? "Who performed your surgery?" I told him it was a private specialist, and he has the nerve to snap back that I should just go back to whoever operated on me so *they* can see what's wrong. I spent ten minutes arguing with the guy, trying to explain that it makes zero sense for me to drive all the way down to Miami just for one quick question, especially since I've been waiting a month and a half for this appointment. I was practically begging him to just take a look since I was already standing there. I just needed to know if everything with my nose is okay and what his take is on this "lump." He kept insisting there was no point in him looking because he wasn't the one who did the surgery, so he wouldn't know what was done internally and would only be guessing?!?!?!? What an absolute jerk! 🙂 He finally relented, gave my nose a half-assed glance... and said everything looks fine inside, that the mucosa is still regenerating, but as for the lump, he had absolutely no clue what it was. Honestly, I knew all of that before he even looked; I just let myself get worked up for nothing. To top it all off, I had to shell out $8.25 because I don't have supplemental insurance. Great doctor, truly. Makes me wonder how he even manages to perform decent surgeries in the first place!?!??

Well... here I am again.
Basically, after being discharged this past Friday, I started feeling terrible and ended up back in the hospital.
My blood pressure was through the roof, but of course, nobody bothered to check it again or even give me an explanation afterward.
As for the bleeding on the tampons, they just brushed it off and said it’s perfectly normal. 😕
So, yeah, I’ve been stuck here until today.
They removed the tampons today—there was a little spotting—and tomorrow I have to go back in to get my cast removed.
It feels way too soon to me, but the doctor insists it's fine.
The surgery was Wednesday, and now I'm getting the cast off tomorrow.
Do you all think that’s actually okay?
I look like Miss Piggy right now, so I am seriously praying this all settles down and I at least get a slightly narrower nose than I had before, because looking in the mirror right now is a total DISASTER!!!

I am incredibly disappointed by how slow the responses are on this forum...😢😢😢

Taylor Miller10, of course it’s going to deflate... don't kill yourself overthinking it. Honestly, it's just way too early. Your skin hasn't even had a chance to settle back into place yet... plus you're still dealing with a ton of swelling. Just chill out and give it at least a few weeks. I'm telling you, I've been there.😛

Megan Wright39 said:Taylor Miller10, of course the swelling is going to go down... don't stress yourself out over it. Honestly, it's just too soon. You're barely even at the stage where your skin has settled back into place, let alone dealt with all that subcutaneous fluid you're still holding onto. Just relax and give it at least a few weeks. I'm telling you from personal experience.😛

Thanks, Megan Wright39! I am sincerely hoping that's the case and that once my doctor removes this cast tomorrow, my nose will actually be straight.

Plus, looking at it from the inside now that I've had the surgery, there are these bumps on my left nasal passage... I can only assume it'll all resolve itself eventually.

Does anyone happen to have a sense of what the current wait times look like for rib surgeries? Furthermore, I’ve been wondering if the surgeons there are equipped to handle aesthetic nasal corrections alongside a septoplasty—specifically, if they would address removing a small bump on the bridge—all under the coverage of major medical insurance?

placidcobra842 said:Does anyone have a rough idea of the current wait times for rib surgery? Also, if they're already doing the septoplasty, will their surgeons be willing to perform aesthetic rhinoplasty (covered by insurance)? I’m specifically looking to have a bump removed.

From what I've heard, you might be waiting several months for rib procedures. When I went for my consultation and surgery at Mercy Hospital (Zajčeva), I was actually scheduled within just a month.

And yes, they will handle the cosmetic part, but you absolutely HAVE to insist on it!

placidcobra842 said:Does anyone have a rough idea of the current wait times for rib surgeries? Also—and this is crucial—are their surgeons willing to perform aesthetic nose corrections alongside the deviation repair if it's covered by Blue Cross Blue Shield? Specifically, I’m looking at getting a bump removed.

I’ve been waiting to see Dr. Sam Kim12 since four months ago earlier this year, and my actual appointment isn't until October 2012—so, to put it bluntly, a full 18 months. Regarding the cosmetic side of things, from what I understand, they do handle that; they’re going to fix mine because I have a bump from improper healing. It’s basically going to be some sort of triple nasal reconstruction plus sinus surgery, but honestly, I don't mind the wait—most of these procedures are done via laser nowadays, though the unfortunate reality is that you can't do everything with a laser.😁

I was observing people in the waiting room who were just there to get their stitches removed after a week, and frankly, nobody looked swollen at all.

By the way: at the local community hospital in the suburbs, you're looking at about a two-month wait for nasal surgery.

Man... seriously, props to everyone who actually put this post together, or even just had the guts to think about doing it 😁

.....but if you let me weigh in on the whole nose situation,
you’d all be thanking Mother Nature just for having one at all, regardless of what it looks like 😁

Sophia Harris96 said:Honestly, massive respect to everyone who started this thread or is even considering jumping in. 😁

.....and if you ask me,
you should just be grateful you have a nose at all, regardless of what it looks like. 😁

Haha, you really cracked me up, though I can't even laugh out loud right now! 🤣

I wasn't actually that unhappy with my nose initially, but the more I looked into getting surgery to fix my deviated septum, the more I started obsessing over its cosmetic flaws and looking for an aesthetic fix.
I'm hoping they actually went through with it—mostly because I want to know if it was narrowed, since nobody is giving me any straight answers....

Sophia Harris96 said:Honestly... HUGE props to anyone who put this thread together—or even just thought about doing it. 😁

.....but if you let me stick my nose in here for a second,
you’d all be thanking Mother Nature for whatever nose you were born with in the first place. 😁

And hey—if you can't actually breathe, you’d probably have a very different take on aesthetics... 😉 For me, looks aren't even the issue—I've lived with this bump on my nose for 14 years—it's the functionality that's killing me. It's abysmal. One nostril is maybe 40% open, the other is at 50%; neither side functions the way a human nose is supposed to.

I’ve been guessing at the cause since I was 20, but now, every single little virus or common cold causes massive breathing issues that just keep getting worse.

Taylor Miller10 said:Hahaha, you actually cracked me up, even though I’m too stressed to laugh! 🤣

I wasn't even that obsessed with my nose at first, but once the septoplasty started getting closer on the calendar, I suddenly couldn't stop noticing every single flaw and thinking about the cosmetic side of things.
I just hope they actually did what they were supposed to (mostly wondering if they narrowed it, since nobody is giving me any straight answers....)

I was scrolling back through the thread and realized you just had your surgery recently, right?
Good luck with the recovery! 😍

Honestly, I’m all for nose jobs (whether it's for breathing issues or just looks)...

As for my own nose... man, what can I even say..
It’s this weird mix of "strong and pointy" meets "hooked with wide nostrils."

Total nightmare fuel, honestly. 😂

Just wanted to drop in and say hi—seriously, don't feel like you have to apologize for anything.
I know how intense surgery can be... 😉 wishing everyone nothing but the best with their procedures,
maybe I'll join the club eventually (pretty sure I mentioned that here before 😁)
But I'd kill for a top-tier surgeon who also handles $0.00 + maybe some MaxTV service on the side
Does such a place even exist?
(I mean, it’s not like I haven't already dropped $13 $0.00 on braces
..so if you're gonna do a total overhaul, might as well go big 😍 ))

Hi everyone, I’m looking for some surgeon recommendations. I’m facing a second nose surgery—this time aiming for both aesthetic results and functional improvement.
It seems like there are so many people here who have gone through this, yet even after scrolling through everything at the end of the day, I still can't settle on someone who will actually do a stellar job and earn my trust for a revision surgery. Last time, I clearly made a massive mistake.
To give you some context, I had surgery at Mayo Clinic about three years ago, and to put it mildly, it was a total disaster...
The looks were one thing—that "bonus" part of the procedure most people care about—but my breathing is ten times worse now than it was before! Naturally, fixing my breathing is my top priority right now, though I wouldn't turn down fixing the aesthetic damage either. That means I need a true expert who excels at both! It's that classic dilemma: private cosmetic surgeons focus on the look, while the specialists focused on function (with very few exceptions) tend to be more like 🙂, but I need a magician! Please help... thanks in advance!!!

not sure, man, my advice is just go for it—i’m honestly stoked with how everything turned out, i sent you some pics in your inbox

stormycyclist9 said:Not sure about my take, but I’ve been using Dr. Miller's clinic and I'm stoked with the results. I sent you some pics in your DMs.

So, I've got a consultation coming up with Dr. Miller soon 🙂!

Since I just turned 18 a few months back, do my parents seriously need to tag along? Their email was super vague, saying something like: "If you haven't completed your 18th year, a parent must be present during the exam."

What does "completed your 18th year" even mean? Are they saying I have to be 19? Or what's the deal? 🤷

Had my nose job 3 weeks ago, and honestly? I am BEYOND stoked!!!
The surgery went smooth—hardly any bruising at all—and if you're on the fence, just do it.

I gotta mention though, my friend had a total nightmare with hers. She also wanted a smaller nose, but she dealt with massive bruising and issues for like 4 months straight after the procedure. It was brutal.

But me? I’m thrilled. Seeing what happened to her definitely had me stressing out big time before my own surgery.

THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU TRY TO TALK AND TYPE AT THE SAME TIME,

MY BAD ON THE TYPOS :-)

I really appreciate how quickly everyone jumped in with their responses. 😍

silverscout32 said:Hey everyone, I’m looking for some serious recommendations for surgeons because I’m facing a second nose surgery—this time covering both aesthetics and function.
Even after scrolling through all the advice here, I still feel completely paralyzed by indecision; how can one possibly choose someone who will actually nail this job while restoring my confidence for a follow-up procedure? I clearly messed up the first time...
To be blunt, I had surgery on my septum three years ago, and to call it anything less than a disaster would be an understatement.
The aesthetic part—that trendy little "add-on" during surgery—is one thing, but my breathing is ten times worse now than it was before! My primary goal right now is being able to breathe properly, though fixing the cosmetic damage wouldn't hurt either, so I really need a true master of both crafts. It’s the classic dilemma, isn't it? Private clinics seem to focus solely on looks, while the specialists focused on function 🙂 tend to overlook the beauty, but I need a magician! Please help... thanks in advance!

It always unnerves me when I read about someone having such a bad experience. I am truly sorry you're going through this. Are we talking about those high-profile doctors who specialize in septoplasties? Any specific details would be incredibly helpful.

Here I am...
The cast is finally off. I asked my surgeon how everything looks, and he just gives me the usual "it's fine" routine—says there’s still swelling, but everything is supposedly on track.
Then I ask if the nose actually looks narrower, and he just nods and tells me to come back for a follow-up in a month.
When I bring up the stitches, he brushes it off, saying they’ll just dissolve on their own.
So, I go to the mirror (which took me a minute to even find), and honestly? My nose looks absolutely disastrous. It’s swollen beyond belief and looks like it’s leaning heavily to the right.
And as for those stitches? I don't see a single one, whether inside or out.
Now I’m sitting here wondering if my doctor lied to my face or if he even performed any narrowing at all! How is that even possible?!!!!!!!
I’ve been scouring the internet, and from what I can gather, if you undergo rhinoplasty for narrowing, there are supposed to be visible external stitches.

I am beyond disappointed and just completely devastated....😢😢😢😢😢😢😢😢

Does anyone here actually know anything about this whole damn nasal narrowing process?!!!!?

That was the entire point of this surgery for me... just to get it to look a little slimmer.......