Septoplasty/Rhinoplasty:: Thanksgiving Break 2011!!!(-: -

This site is soo helpful!!! I am getting septoplasty/rhinoplasty soon and I would love to hear any advice!!!

I think If you are insecure or unhappy/unsatified about something....fix it! and/or if you have a opportunity to fix something the sooner the better(deviated septum)....if insurance covers it.

I am in my 20's now and I actually have had plastic surgury before I had otoplasty/ear pinning done when I was 15yrs old(insurance covered it since it was considered "a deformity"--and I needed it and glad I had it done.
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Post's that people have made has helped alot hopefully my post will do the same.
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--Seems like my nose looks different in every picture/at almost every angle--
I WENT TO MY CONSULTATION YESTURDAY...... Right when I got there I filled Out papers/insurance stuff. The Staff was really nice.

Met the surgeon who had funky head gear on. Had some small talk then He asked me what I wanted to change about my nose asked if I smoked...anything and or if i snorted anything. Then he asked if I had any history of breathing problems or anything which I am prone to sinus infections and my nose always seem runny(figured its changes of weather tho). He had me tilt my head back and looked up my nose with this thing that opens you nostrils wider. And I do have a deviated septum(i always thought you had to break your nose or there are obvious symtoms). I should of known cause even at certain angles you can tell my nose is not straight. So he brought me to the mirror and he showed me with the tool.Haha pass the nose hair I could tell that one nostril is def. more closed then the other. So wierd to see. and my nose problems make sense now.

He told me about septomplasty and I did mentioned that I came there to also talk about rhinoplasty to harmonize my features more also. And we talked about both septomplasty and the cosmetic rhinoplasty. He took a bunch of pictures(which out of habit head on pictures i always tilt my head up to make it look shorter and he called me out on it, lol) then we went to a computer with the blue screen and he did a demo of what I said I wanted my nose to look like. I just wanted it to not be so prominent(masculine) since I do have a strong jaw and forhead I cant go too small. I just want it to be less prominent and pointy and too be smaller, have it not slope down and get the deviated septum fixed.

Since insurance will cover the septomplasty the actual rhinoplasty will be around $3,000. soooo(Insurance still needs to be approved).

I scheduled to get a blood work done on Monday along with a physical. I need to figure out how much i wanna take out for care credit and the exact day/time of procedure, and once that's all settled time to start getting ready!

Has anyone used Arnica? what are your opinions?

Does anybody have advice/tips on preventing swelling/bruising and any advice for pre and post operation? Thanx

DATE IS SET:::::: NOVEMBER 23!

QUESTION:::

when should you start taking arnica/bromeleian?

And what drinks/food should I take in more of and what ones should I avoid before surgery?

Getting the septorhinoplasty tomm. at 830am!!!
I'll update again in a couple days... after surgery

Day 1- Day of surgery:::

So wednesday woke up got everything ready left by 7 and was the at the hosptial at 830am. I signed in got my bracelet, peed in a cup then went to the preop section/room with a curtain and got changed into the hospital gown, socks, hat and hopped on the bed and waited a little bit. Nurse came and double checked everything asked medical questions and took my blood pressure and everything which was high since i was nervous.
She then game me a IV in my left arm which collapsed so she had to do it again in my right arm(sucked--felt like a cork was going in my vein, and my legs kept shaking). I then almost passed out so they layed me down all the way and gave me a cold towel on my forhead. Met the two anesthesiaologists and the plastic surgeon.All very nice.
They then strolled me into the operating room which is when i started double thinking everything and getting even more nervous. I moved onto the operating table they gave me medicine to calm me down and warm blankets i then took a couple deep breaths and two hours later(felt like 5mins to me) i was woken up and remember saying thank you alot and asked how i did. and then all of a sudden i was propped up in the post op rooms and i would not stop talking. they ended up giving me water and crushed ice to drink, ice in gloves for my eyes and morphine. and 45mins i was wheeled out in a wheelchair and heading home.
--Day 1 Night time
I ended up puking twice but thankfully it was liquid so it didnt do anything to my nose. Most likely it was from swallowing blood during surgery(i asked the anesthesiaologist for anti-throw up meds)
I am on antiobiotics that i take morning and night and painkillers which i only take half b/c the pain really isnt that bad. it's just really uncomfortable.I had to change my drip pad alot it kept bleeding till the next day,Gauze shoved up my nose with tape and cast isnt comfortable. My throat was super sore((make sure to get throat spray and drops)). really did not sleep that well.

Day 2(thanksgiving)

Throat is extremely sore. Feels like i have a really bad cold. sleeping better. no black eyes but my face is really swollen. i actually ate a good amount of food nothing hard. day before i was just eating crackers, jello, and bread but no chewing is easy. my top lip is still a little numb. so worst part is being stuffed up and swollen.

Day 3
Sleeping is a lot better. walking around is helping to feel less swollen in the face. worse days of having a swollen face seems like today. throat is getting better each day. my nose is not bleeding anymore but the drip pad still has clear leakage of somethingand old blood that rubs off(grossness). randomly i get little pain mostly it just makes my eyes water and sometimes i feel like i need to sneeze but dont.

Day 5

-As of right now you can def tell my nose is different. My profile is differnet. nose is less pointy and its smaller and shorter.

Got cast off today. Thank god i was about to rip it off last night so itchy and uncomfortable and hard to breath cause the gauze.

Anyways went to the surgeons he took off the tape,cast then took out the gauze which was just uncomfortable but worth it to be able to breath out my nose again. first breathing threw my nose had a mentholish/minty coldness. then he rubbed a alcohal solution over my nose which did kinda hurt but not too much. he then put tape on it(which does that help with nose swelling?)

I'm gonna take the tape off saturday in the shower and then see him on tuesday.My cheeks are still swollen so is my nose, all around my nose and my upper lip. I also have two yellow bruises under each eye.

Right now i dont even wanna look at my nose b/c i know it is very swollen and i dont want to be disapointed but my nose is gonna loook different as time progresses.

** I can't believe how not painful it was. Being so uncomfortable was the painful part!I hope i am happy with the end result ....now just need to be patient

Day 6

My nose is still taped. My swelling in my cheeks went down a good amount from yesturday. Since ive gotten the surgery I start coughing in the middle of the night(dunno if its from the tube during surgery or drainage)

Also my nose was a little runny yesturday but now it's kinda crispy hah
my doctor did not mention anything about saline spray so i think the only thing i can do is take a warm shower and have it come out on it's own.

still cant do a full smile and i def. wont be blowing my nose for awhile. Do people still tape their nose weeks after surgery? what are the benefits?

it's been a week since i got my cast off. I took the tape off 2days ago so was the first time i can REALLY see my nose. it is def. shorter and looks different and is swollen.

As for people noticing. Nobody said anything unless they already knew about it. I'd say u need a good 2 weeks to be able to go back out in public without someone noticing changes/swollenness. My taste and smell is still really weak. And my normal smile isnt back yet. My nose seems to be a lot more oilier too.

I sound very conjested still. I have been getting wierd whiffs here and there. I go back tuesday so hopefully he will clean the inside of my nose.

one thing that does concern me is that the top bridge of my nose feels harder on one side and i can feel a little bump on the bridge of my nose which i never had before. both u can feel but not see so im not too worried about it. When do people start noticng changes?
As of right now i am happy with it and i am glad i had my surgery done.

2 Weeks post op

Swelling is down ALOT. Anybody getting it done be prepared to get nasty whiffs(b/c of dried blood/mucus). u have no idea how many times i checked the bottom of my shoes bc i smelt something gross and no one else could smell it except for me and realized it was the inside of my nose, but once cleared the smell is gone.I still have scabs and dissolvable stitches in the inside of my nose.

I went to my post op appt. and everything looks good. I was a little worried at first b/c it looked like between my eyes was crooked but it was just uneven smelling.looks good now! As of right now i am VERY HAPPY I got the surgery done. I can breathe a lot better i still sleep elevated. i can already tell a dramatic change in my nose since a week ago.

Will post pics later on...........

Dec. 10th- 2.5 weeks

Still numb at tip of nose and around nose. I have feeling in my upper lip now! and i can almost smile regular. sometimes i have forgotten that i even had the surgery done. Throughout my surgery i really havn't bumped it or knocked it too bad.

I didnt tell many people but Some people havn't mentioned anything about the surgery and others have said that can see a difference while others say they can't and that i didnt need the surgery in the first place..... but did I did it for me, so i can breathe better and while there at make it alittle bit smaller. I'm happy with it:)))

I think my profile is MUCH better. worth it and happy with reSults!

Preconsultation:

-Make sure you do your research.
- You want someone who's specialty is the nose and has done numerous surgeries.
-make sure you feel comfortable with surgeon and ask questions
-look up information online before going to consultation
-make sure you can afford surgery
-pick a couple of dates that can be scheduled for surgery(u should take between 1 to 2 weeks off(if closed procedure)

Surgery date set:

- YOU WANT IMPROVEMENT NOT PERFECTION!
- Plan everything out. Make sure you have a driver. get ur bed and everything you need ready day before surgery.
you will def. need.... cough drops!!,CHAP STICK!, sore throat spray!!,crackers/bread and butter, jello and whip cream, banana bread, stool softner!!,extra pillows!,blankets, tissues, fluids, arnica tablets!, vitamin c or orange juice, ur pain meds, extra gauze, face cleaning wipes!!computer, tv, reading material, .....hmmm am i forgetting anything?!? You will be very tired and feel like you are sick until u get the gauze out. Not painful but very uncomfortable. by day 3-4 u will wanna rip that cast off ur nose..dont!

After Surgery:

-Be patient! swelling is gonna be ANNOYING and patience is key and don't expect to like it right away. swelling will make it look a little off! after two weeks u will start seeing results. and each day will get better and better. All worth it!