Rhinoplasty: Stories

I've wanted rhinoplasty ever since I was 12! I know I'm not unattractive, but I just can't seem to look past my nose!!

Don't get me wrong, there are things I like about it (i.e. the tip from the front for instance) However, it always makes me look atrocious in pictures, unless my face is at a particular angle. Sounds ridiculous but because I look so bad in pictures (unless they are super posed) I don't actually know what I look like - the person in the mirror or the photos.

Anyway, I can't wait to finally shed the insecurity that is my nose, it will be such a relief and I know I will be even happier than I am now (I'm pretty happy with everything generally).

I'm aiming to have my asymmetrical nasal bumps on either side of my nose shaved and nose shortened just slightly so it doesn't droop when I smile. I'm looking for a subtle and natural change, nothing drastic!! When the Dr. showed me my 'potential' nose from the side (via imaging) I felt so excited at the possibility!

I have gone through a roller coaster of emotions from extreme nerves to excitement and back to nerves again (I'm currently at excitement, hence the post!) and I'm still over a month away...I can't imagine how I'm going to be as I approach the date itself...

I'm finally booked for early January, I have another consultation scheduled for December the 6th, not quite sure what to expect, although I have lots of questions. I want to know more about the anesthesia used, what exactly will be done (again), recovery time, I live up 5 flights of stairs with no lift - will I be able to get up post rhinoplasty???

I've very much enjoyed reading other peoples experiences. I guess in a way it normalised rhinoplasty for me, it made it feel less extreme and more of a realistic solution. Helping make me less nervous about everything, so many other people out there have gone for it, why not me!

Not long to go now - I had my pre-op meeting last week. I have to see a GP in the next week or so and get some blood work done, I also have a number of prescriptions to pick up from the pharmacy for medications I need to take before and after the surgery.

Whilst waiting to see the doctor I was overcome by sudden nerves, I thought I might cry for a second, guess I'm just a nervous person. It doesn't surprise me really, I get nervous going to the dentist.

I didn't have long with my doctor but he was able to answer all my questions, when I was talking to the nurse he came in and asked me to see the nose of one of his other patients - she had recently had a revision done with him and it looked amazing and so, so natural. This made me feel so much better and excited!

I'm excited now, I just can't wait for the day to come so I can finally have my nose fixed!! It will make a big difference to my confidence and self perception...

Can't sleep tonight as I'm thinking about everything! I'm not nervous about what will be done to my nose - I have absolute trust in my surgeon and I know he will do a good job. I'm mostly nervous about the general anaesthesia and not waking up...what if i'm allergic to it? what if I get a blood clot? what if I can't breath? I have to push these sort of thoughts out of head! Wish I was completely ignorant of all the potential (and rare) medical risks...

This morning I went to a doctor to have my blood work done! Not only was it quick and painless (I hate needles) I also got a good dose of exactly what I needed - positivity. I've been going through a stage of questioning myself, I keep asking myself 'am I doing the right thing?' I find myself reading into little things that happen thinking 'maybe that was a sign I shouldn't do this!'. But seeing this doctor put my mind at ease right away.

He told me that my doctor does very natural noses and that I would have a beautiful result. He said that 'he doesn't do any of those over the top Hollywood noses'!

He asked who I had told and I said no one (not even my mother!) and that only my boyfriend knows! then he said 'great - you shouldn't tell your mother! - you know why?' because next time you see her, she may not even know what's different, she'll just think you look great. In fact, most people probably won't notice and that's the sign of a good rhinoplasty!

Oh I hope so much that the he is right (that's my aim!) Just speaking with the doctor has filled me with loads of excitement again. I can't wait!

It's officially 3 days before my surgery now! I had to apply Bactroban ointment to the inside of my nose this morning ( apparently this keeps the skin moisturised and elastic :-)

I've been taking 1000mg of vitamin C twice daily for the last week and a half - I guess it's intended as a booster for the immune system. Can't believe my surgery day is coming up so soon, I'm really looking forward to a) having my new nose b) getting this out of the way so that I don't need to keep obsessing about noses (which I have been since November!)

The strange thing is I'm not anxious or worried at all as I approach the date. I'm getting closer and closer to the day of the surgery and now that I'm this close, I just feel like closing my eyes and plodding on until it's done. I know there is no turning back now - If I did I know that I would regret it big time (and it would always play on my mind)

I don't hate my nose, but it is a barrier to feeling as confident as I could be, and since I can remove that barrier why not? I was bullied at school and that had an impact on my self confidence overall - I think the insecurity must reside deep inside somewhere! I definitely grew into my nose, but I'm so happy I can make this pro-active choice.

No turning back now!

It's the day before the big day!! I can't quite believe I'm doing this. I'm a strange mix of being nervous and excited, I think that by tomorrow when I'm at the door of the surgery I'm pretty sure I will be shaking with nerves!

Today the anaesthetist who will be administrating my general anaesthesia called me, he was so wonderful to talk to and was able to put me at right at ease. When I voiced my fears of being allergic to anaesthesia, he said that the has been doing this since the day I was born and has never yet seen an allergic response to anaesthesia (it is very rare). I also mentioned that I was worried about waking up during the process and he said that he will be monitoring everything the whole time ('like flying a plane'). He told me that he will start by inserting an intravenous into my arm, then when I'm asleep the doctor will numb my nose and start work on giving me a beautiful nose 'no less'.

Conversations like these temporarily diminish my nerves and make me excited again!

Later on the nurse called and gave me instructions for the big day - no makeup, no lotions/moisturiser, comfortable shoes, no vitamin C or Bactroban ointment in my nose tomorrow morning and no eating or drinking after midnight tonight (ahhh - I can't believe I'm so close!!!)

I'm off to the supermarket this evening to pick up a weeks worth of food (lots of veggies so I can blend some soups). I'm also going to review my checklist of things and make sure I have it all.

Finally on 'the nose' - I have been wondering about how my surgeon is going to give me a symmetrical nose from the front, because the bumps at the front are pretty asymmetrical! It's going to have to be some very careful filing...

Thank you everyone who has posted for all the kind words :-) It's nice to not feel alone in this process, and that there are many others on the same journey!

I guess my next post will be on the 'other side', probably looking awful and bruised - I will post pics if I'm not too awful! :-)

This morning I went to the surgeons office, I was soooo nervous! I had a bit of time with the nurse, anaesthetist and surgeon before the operation (in fact he went over his plan with me). He was doing another another rhinoplasty when I first arrived, it must be a long hard day at work (I was the last one of the day).

I was given a pink pill and white pill to take as I was so nervous, I'm assuming that this was to bring down my heart rate!!

Then I went into the room and the anaesthetist inserted the intravenous into my arm, I was squeezing the nurses arm the whole time for comfort (she was a wonderfully comforting presence) I remember saying a few things and suddenly I woke up and the nurse was looking over me saying it was all done. Straight after the surgery my nose felt very cold, they had me lying comfortable with a heated blanket but the nose still felt uncomfortable. However, just a few hours later and it is much much better! I can't believe how little pain surgery is...I'm also not too bruised at the moment either.

The doctor came in after the surgery and told me it had gone really well, he mentioned that I had a really deviated septum (much more so than originally thought I guess), but that he had fixed that now.

My boyfriend said that whilst he was in the waiting room, after my surgery had finished and that one girl had just had her cast off and was 'very happy' with the result - he didn't get a chance to see as she was speaking with the receptionist, but she was certainly a happy lady!

Anyway, glad it's all done and dusted now. Super excited to see the result - cast is off on Thursday!!!

I'm a little worried about having too much nostril on show as the surgeon lifted my columnella however, he said that it may seem like that now because of the swelling but that when this subsides it will be fine! Also, at the moment my cast from the front is not quite symmetrical however, I'm guessing that's the swelling (fingers crossed)

Oops I just pressed 'thank you' on my own post there! I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for all the well wishes!

Day 2 has started off ok, although I didn't sleep well last night (I like to sleep curled up on my side so sleeping slightly elevated on my back is quite far from my preferential position!)

I've started taking various medications prescribed by the doc. I've also changed my gauze, cleaned the entrance to my nose with qtips soaked in hydrogen peroxide and applied Bactroban ointment again with qtips (just to entrance of the nose). I have super dry lips so am constantly applying vaseline. I haven't needed to take any pain meds yet (yay!). I will post up my day 2 pic later today.

Thinking back to yesterday day and the surgery, If I could make one recommendation over what to bring with you based on my experience I would say throat lozenges! I had a pretty sore throat waking up from surgery, and it was the first thing I asked for! (unfortunately the practice didn't have any)

Right, back to icing my face and watching Homeland!

Day 3

I'm definitely feeling swollen today, my face feels very tender (icing has helped somewhat) Last night and this morning, I have been feeling pulsing/throbbing under my cast (pretty un-comfy)

This morning/last night I was starting to breath through my nose a little bit, although as my breathing came back I also sneezed (managed to sneeze through my mouth as recommended) I also accidentally breathed in a little too hard when drifting to sleep so nose now it all feels a bit sore inside my nose. In fact I've been doing my very best to have no expressions (I can't watch funny things on TV as then I laugh and it is sore), even lifting my eyebrows pulls at my nose :-(

Serious TV only!

Day 3

I'm definitely feeling swollen today, my face feels very tender (icing has helped somewhat) Last night and this morning, I have been feeling pulsing/throbbing under my cast (pretty un-comfy)

This morning/last night I was starting to breath through my nose a little bit, although as my breathing came back I also sneezed (managed to sneeze through my mouth as recommended) I also accidentally breathed in a little too hard when drifting to sleep so nose now it all feels a bit sore inside my nose. In fact I've been doing my very best to have no expressions (I can't watch funny things on TV as then I laugh and it is sore), even lifting my eyebrows pulls at my nose :-(

Serious TV only!

Day 4

The best day so far - I think I'm on the mend! The bruising has extended a little way down my cheek, it's turning yellow which I think is the stage before it goes away (since I have a yellowish skin-tone it's not too noticeable!!)

I can breath-ish through my nose, but the air feels cold (guess my nasal passages are a bit sensitive!) so am sticking to breathing through my mouth. I also finally slept brilliantly last night. On the negative side, my skin is looking so oily...I tend to have combination skin, but at the moment I am so ridiculously shiny. I'm using gentle cleansing wipes to clean my face each day, I've been reading that it's the bodies reaction to swelling on the face.

Anyhoo - I'm very excited to see my nose - 4 days to go!

The last few days have been good. I've been feeling myself again and not plodding around the house super slowly! I can move my face again without feeling sore (although, I'm careful not to as I don't want to upset my nose :s )

Tomorrow is the day I get my cast off - I'm excited and also a little nervous. I've realised that when it comes to rhinoplasty the whole experience has continually been littered with opposing feelings, namely excitement and nerves (what a combination!)

Will update tomorrow.

So I had my cast off and I LOVE my new nose already! It was pretty unpleasant/uncomfortable having the cast removed, afterwards they cleaned glue etc out my nose and now I can breath fully. It's amazing! My breathing definitely feels so much clearer than before surgery, I feel like I get more air.

It's still swollen and my nostrils look a little uneven, I'm not sure if it's swelling or because I had uneven nostrils before surgery and didn't notice, I guess I will need to wait and see. Also my right side isn't as as 'defined' as my left side so I'm hoping that's swelling (although even before surgery my right side was not as defined... so not really sure)

Irrelevant of this I love my new nose, even with the irregularities it's a million times better than my old nose so I can't complain. My surgeon is amazing - he managed to give me a straight bridge (I really did not think this was possible). I will upload pics later!

I can't wait to see how my nose develops over the coming weeks/months.

(For everyone who asked my surgeon is Dr Rizk)

Thanks for all the kind words/support. Here's a little update -

At the moment my nose appears a little 'twisted' to the right, so I'm looking much less symmetrical from the front. This is accentuated by the fact that one nostril is a little higher than the other! I've been reading everywhere (partly to reassure myself) that this is due to swelling and you have to wait. Having said this, even with this swelling (hopefully, that's what it is!) I still prefer my nose now.

I can't wait for this swelling to subside, my nose is a little different everyday at the moment. I'm taping my nose each night and removing the tape in the shower in the morning (it's the best way, as it comes right off without sticking and pulling the skin)

I'm starting to realise that the healing from rhinoplasty takes time and I'm going to have to be patient. My skin has suffered a little since the rhinoplasty, it's sort of dry and peeling under my eyes and on my nose which makes it a nightmare applying concealer (which I need big time!). My nose is also incredibly oily, but my skin care regime is slowly fixing that (I also bought a good eye cream which should help with my concealer problem)

I wish this healing period to pass so that I can start enjoying my new nose. I have a wedding to go to in a month so I hope my nose is looking better! by then.

Apologies for the poor punctuation!

My nose swelling is slowly subsiding, I notice little differences each day... It definitely looked straight again last night (phew!) I still have the 'ghost' of a bump on one side of my nose - although I've read that this is swelling from the hump removal (fingers crossed). So for now it's just the waiting game!

I'm still so happy with my new nose - it's such an improvement. My boyfriend says that he doesn't think I needed it, but he can tell it looks better now, so I think that's definitely a success!

I had a 5 month post op catch up today. The Dr said there was still swelling which would take about a year to subside, he pushed down on my nose and said he expects some of the swelling to go down another 1-2mm. Here's hoping!

I'm very happy with the results, which I think are subtle and natural. However, I'm less happy with my one side which you can see has a much larger bump than the other! (fingers crossed it's swelling and will go down). I've attached some photos I took today, holding my 'before' pics! :-)