Hey everyone! Just wanted to share my recent experience dealing with post-op pain.
Last year, I had surgery with Dr. Smith at his clinic in Boston. It was a nose job, mostly for aesthetic reasons. Those first seven days after the procedure were honestly traumatic. I went under in September, spent exactly one night under the care of the surgeon and his nurses, and then got discharged with those generic recovery instructions they give every single patient. For a few days, I was just checking in with his colleagues over the phone, did a couple of follow-up appointments, and that was it. As far as the immediate recovery goes, everything seemed fine. But on the seventh day, when the bandages finally came off, I realized the results were pretty much negligible. The deal was that the surgery would have a functional component because Dr. Smith claimed I had significant septal damage and bulky conchae. Basically, I wanted to fix how my nose looked, but the doctor insisted the priority had to be fixing the function, claiming it was more important to address the structural issues. Well, that’s when the real nightmare started, starting with the anesthesia. Even that first injection felt like a warning sign that this was going to hurt. I didn't wake up until five or six hours later, and the actual procedure took about four hours. Waking up to the real world was brutal; since it was such a marathon procedure, my body was so cold I was shaking like a leaf. My memory of that moment is blurry, but I know I had to panic and alert the staff about how I was feeling. When I finally fully woke up, I was wrapped in layers of warm blankets and hospital bedding—basically as much as you can pile on a patient to make a room feel cozy at night. To cut a long story short... my first impression of my nose was pure disappointment. It looks practically the same, especially now that it's been a full year since the surgery. The internal structure is basically gutted; parts of the cartilage were removed, but in spots that do absolutely nothing for the external look. Not to mention my sense of smell is totally messed up, and there's this constant, unpleasant sensation. The tip of my nose isn't even close to what I expected—if anything, it looks wider than before. The only thing they actually fixed was the bony bridge, which was remodeled. The cartilage around the incision sites is all uneven, especially during weather shifts. The pain isn't even about intensity; it's just this constant, nagging discomfort. Every time the weather changes, I react like a barometer. The internal shape is so altered that mucus gets trapped in places it definitely shouldn't be.
My nose feels completely different depending on whether it's day or night. At night, the swelling around the cartilage where the doctor made his cuts is driving me crazy. It almost feels like it's growing.
They promised me everything would settle down after about twelve months, but I've hit month thirteen and the flaws are becoming even more obvious every day.
They hinted that sometimes, if a procedure isn't fully successful, you have to go back in for a second round. But there is no way I'm going back for revision surgery. Especially since they already cleaned me out financially. Like, a massive amount of money.
Anyone else dealt with this kind of mess?
