9 months post-op! A quick picture update!

Yesterday was 9 months post-op and I can't believe how much time has gone by since my surgery! I have been logging-in to RealSelf to respond to private messages but haven't gotten around to a public update. A few members have recently requested updated pictures, so here they are. :)

Hoping to do a longer update once my last semester of graduate school is over!

Tomorrow is two months since my surgery and I can’t believe how fast time has gone by! I have wanted to update this but between work and grad school, I’ve only come on here to respond to PM’s! Anyway, here’s the update - no surprise here... I am still in love with my new nose and happier than ever!!! I still take a bazillion profile pictures when I'm bored, and spend a little too much time in front of the three-way mirror. I still make comments almost out of nowhere like, "Look at my nose! Isn't it so CUTE?!" I still have emotional moments where I am completely in shock that this is me. Just a few days ago, I made a before/after using the worst before picture I had. When I edited it to put it side-by-side with a current picture, I cried. Anyone who has followed my story and seen my pictures can completely understand why. It's unreal.

Over the weekend, I went to the ballet and it was the first time in my life that I actually felt elegant after dressing up. When I had a big nose, I would feel ugly no matter what I wore. I used to feel like I wasn’t good enough to wear certain things and I even avoided some stores because of my low self-esteem. I no longer feel that way and it’s incredible because I’m no longer held back in any way. I can even wear my hair in a ponytail or half-up! Seriously, that’s a really big deal for someone like me.

I always knew this would be a life-changing thing for me but I never knew to what extent. It’s something that’s hard for me to put into words. I’m just so grateful every single day to have had this surgery, and to have such an amazing outcome.

I had my first follow-up visit with Dr. Guida yesterday. I’m healing well and he thinks my new nose looks GREAT. I completely, 100% agree. It looks natural and perfect, and I can’t wrap my mind around how he was able to do it! Major skills. According to Dr. Guida, the tip of my nose is really swollen at the moment. I did notice a day or two when my nose seemed a teensy bit more “puffy,” but it doesn’t bother me at all. I know it’s part of the healing process to experience some swelling and seriously, I think my nose looks fabulous as it is. It could stay exactly like this and I’d continue to live life in my current state of total happiness. My nose is beautiful.

Since the splint removal, my skin has gotten oily but flaky – especially on my nose – which I expected to happen. The thing is, I’m still a little squeamish about touching my nose in fear of something happening to it – LOL. So I have just been washing gently with a mild cleanser and using oil blotting sheets, which didn’t do all that much for the flaking. Thankfully, Dr. Guida cleaned my nose with a Q-tip yesterday and helped get rid of a lot of that. He also cleaned the inside again, which means I can breathe better! Not even one month post-op and still swollen, but I can breathe out of my right nostril way more than I ever could in the past. It’s amazing to actually be able to breathe in air. I can only imagine what breathing will be like when I’m fully healed!

Life with a cute nose has been amazing so far. I wake up every morning and the first thing I do is go look at my new nose in the mirror; it’s the perfect start to my day! My smile feels tight but it’s definitely on its way to being back to normal. The best thing about my new nose is that I’m never self-conscious anymore when I leave my house. Just the other day, I went out to lunch and realized I no longer need to feel paranoid that people are looking at my nose.

I don’t need to be fearful that a little kid will say my nose looks like a witch nose - and being an elementary substitute teacher (around kids ALL the time), that’s an especially big deal. All of that is behind me which feels incredible. I feel confident. I feel like a new person. I am only just beginning to see the ways that my new nose has changed my life for the better - but already, there’s no doubt this is the absolute best decision I have ever made for myself.

Note: In this post, I described my nose as natural, perfect, fabulous, beautiful, and cute. Who knew I would ever speak so highly of my nose?! Haha! :)

- Again, thanks to everyone that has continued to follow along and commented or PMed me. Means a lot.