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Posting the official "before & afters" taken at my Dr.'s office...
These are from a couple of months ago now, but I keep forgetting to post them. The first (2x3 pics) shows the 3/4 and profile before, the computer-edited mockup done during my consultation and then 3 months after. The second one shows my other side before & after profile, and the last one is a smiling profile picture -- I never would have let someone catch that on film before my surgery! ;) I'm sure some of you can relate...
So, these pictures are from a few months ago, and I'm still noticing tiny differences week to week these days, and that various things can cause swelling to dramatically increase from day to day (well, it's "dramatic" to me but probably not noticeable to anyone else). ;) Especially noticeable when I've been crying -- which I've been doing quite a bit of lately, unfortunately, but for reasons totally unrelated to my surgery. Anyway, I'll post some more recent pictures soon, since I definitely found it valuable to see long-term updates and how results still change subtly several months and even years after surgery.
Best wishes to all of you!
So, these pictures are from a few months ago, and I'm still noticing tiny differences week to week these days, and that various things can cause swelling to dramatically increase from day to day (well, it's "dramatic" to me but probably not noticeable to anyone else). ;) Especially noticeable when I've been crying -- which I've been doing quite a bit of lately, unfortunately, but for reasons totally unrelated to my surgery. Anyway, I'll post some more recent pictures soon, since I definitely found it valuable to see long-term updates and how results still change subtly several months and even years after surgery.
Best wishes to all of you!
Just adding a few more "before" pics for comparison.
Day of Surgery + 3 Months
Day of Surgery – August 19
The night before surgery, I wasn't allowed to eat or drink any liquids (at ALL) after midnight, so I went to bed early by midnight and woke up around 9 am for my 11:30 appointment. My biggest concern was not being able to drink coffee all morning but as it turns out, not drinking anything at all is actually much harder (in the middle of summer, no less)! My boyfriend came with me so he could be there when I came out of surgery 2 hours later (and he was—coffee in hand!). There were three or four nurses or assistants in the room and they were all very friendly. They reminded me of my aunts. The Doctor asked if I was nervous. Yes! "Well, we're not," he said. "We do this every day and I'm not worried about this at all. I think you're going to be very happy with your results when this is all over." :)
I was put under "twilight" anesthesia, which was strongly recommended for several reasons, and although I was concerned about being "awake" during the procedure, I can remember almost nothing that happened after they administered it...
But I do have one vague memory, not of pain, just of... "ick." At one point, I remember looking up and hearing the Doctor say something like, "you might feel a bit of pressure but this won't hurt," and then I either heard, felt or was somehow dimly, psychically aware of a resounding crunch. And then another.
When I "woke up" again a nurse was handing me my clothes which I somehow managed to put on mostly without getting up or out from under the blankets they'd draped over me in my hospital gown and slippers. Dressed but dazed and drifting in and out of awareness, I sat there until one of the nurses came back in with my boyfriend, who I was delighted to see, and he handed me a large iced mocha. We were ushered out and into a cab in what seemed like quite a hurry, but which was probably more like a whole team of grownups trying to corral a half-sleeping, half-drunken child who's stayed up way past their bedtime. In the cab, he looked at my profile and said, "I can tell it's going to look great even with the cast on. You're going to have a little cheerleader nose." I rolled my eyes and laughed, very carefully.
After
My recovery was pretty smooth sailing, but a few things were incredibly annoying. I had to sleep not lying down for at least three weeks, according to instructions, and that was difficult because regardless of how I fall asleep, I tend to wake up face down. This would obviously be a very bad thing both with the cast on and after it was removed, so I forced myself to sleep sitting nearly upright with two thick, new pillows and a travel pillow (one of those ring-shaped things you attach around your neck). The first night I made my boyfriend promise to check on me a few times (he stays up later anyway) to make sure it wasn't choking me to death. After the first few nights, it got easier but I was really happy when I could finally put it away and just sleep with one pillow and wake up however I wanted (about 5 weeks, just to be safe).
2-3 Days After
Day 3 is supposed to be the worst according to lots of people, for swelling and feeling like [RS bleep] (which I definitely did by the second day). I mostly spent the time watching zombie movies and trying to just sleep through it—but I kept waking up and having to eat, mostly yogurt, and walk around the floor of our apartment building for "mild exercise"). My boyfriend told me he was amazed at how quickly I was healing but I felt ridiculously puffy, stuffy and bruised—omg, the bruises. Reds, purples, pinks, yellows and greens—I haven't seen so much color on my face since this retro 80s party a few years ago... actually, not even then. It was yucky. No pain, though... just discomfort, annoyance and boredom.
The one other thing was the painkiller, Tramacet. I took it for four days starting Tuesday, the day of the surgery. On Saturday I woke up around 4 am in a complete panic, feeling like I was having a nightmare or I'd lost my grip on reality. I thought I had a fever and I remember worrying that I would feel like this forever. My boyfriend talked me down until I fell back to sleep and I was fine the next morning, but I did not take any more painkillers. Luckily, I didn't seem to need them at that point. The only thing that bothered me after that was not being able to take a bath (due to the steam) or wash my face properly because of the cast. I felt congested and itchy and I could feel all kinds of stitches and sutures poking out of my nostrils but I forced myself not to look, poke or think too much about them...
7 days after
The cast came off on the 7th day and my first thought—aside from holy crap, look at all the crazy colors of my bruises—was... huh. I hope that evens out... I didn't know what to think. But I knew whatever I looked like then would not last, so I forced myself not to think about it yet.
Two hours later, we were back home and I took a long, hot bath and very carefully washed my face with a washcloth (oh my god, washcloths rule!!), scrubbed carefully to get off all the residue from the cast and surgical tape. Afterwards, I really looked in the mirror for the first time, turned from side to side and stood in front of an angled mirror so I could see my profile and all those angles that I used to hate and avoid. There was some minor asymmetry, sure, but I'm sure I was always asymmetrical... I started to smile. Well, I thought, I certainly don't look worse than before... and there's still a ton of swelling, but even if this is exactly what I'm going to look like (sans the bruises, of course), I will be goddamned elated.
10 days later
Bruising was still a big factor at 10 days, but I put on makeup and went out to lunch with 2 friends—one who knew about the surgery and was suitably complimentary, and the other who looked at me a little funny but said nothing and, for all I know, still hasn't got a clue. There was a ton of swelling at 10 days, probably more than at any other time. At that point, I also called the doctor and asked if he thought I should extend the antibiotics for another week because my nostrils seemed really inflamed around the incisions (where I could feel the sutures sticking out a bit—and still do, actually, 2.5 months after surgery, but they no longer bother me). They will gradually dissolve on their own. After the second week of antibiotics, the inflammation and stuffiness gradually calmed down (I also started taking probiotics and lots of vitamin C to balance out the immune system—I haven't caught a cold or flu since then either, which is very lucky).
2-3 months later
It's bizarre, but I used to always think I looked better in the mirror than I did in pictures, which really means that I looked better to myself than how other people saw me. That's a little upsetting psychologically, but the point is that somehow I always managed to feel attractive, for most of my life anyway, despite that one feature I always hated. I know many people who thought so too—and of course this sounds totally disgustingly vain—but what I'm getting at is that I'm glad I was able to manufacture a kind of confidence and positive self-image all those years, in spite of whatever flaws I had... And now? I am so ridiculously happy when I look in the mirror—and in pictures. I didn't think this was possible, but I don't really feel like I have a bad side anymore... Wow. That's so weird... and awesome.
It's tempting to think, "if only I'd done this sooner," but on the other hand, I'm kind of glad because I think having a feature I had to work around did "build character" (ugh, I know!). Besides, it's not like I could afford it before anyway. ;) I think my expectations were realistic—I wanted to look better, not perfect—and I completely trusted my doctor's expertise. I didn't pay more than I could afford. I didn't think surgery would change my life (anyone who thinks that, btw, should talk to several people who've done it before even thinking about talking to a doctor). I didn't think it would help me in my career or my love life—and I think any of those "reasons" would be a red flag.
I'm really happy with how it turned out. For anyone who is considering surgery as they're reading this—if you're doing the kind of research I was doing four months ago—it's been almost 3 months since my surgery, and I can tell you without any reservation that I'm delighted with the results. If you're in Vancouver, I absolutely recommend Dr. Buonassisi.
The night before surgery, I wasn't allowed to eat or drink any liquids (at ALL) after midnight, so I went to bed early by midnight and woke up around 9 am for my 11:30 appointment. My biggest concern was not being able to drink coffee all morning but as it turns out, not drinking anything at all is actually much harder (in the middle of summer, no less)! My boyfriend came with me so he could be there when I came out of surgery 2 hours later (and he was—coffee in hand!). There were three or four nurses or assistants in the room and they were all very friendly. They reminded me of my aunts. The Doctor asked if I was nervous. Yes! "Well, we're not," he said. "We do this every day and I'm not worried about this at all. I think you're going to be very happy with your results when this is all over." :)
I was put under "twilight" anesthesia, which was strongly recommended for several reasons, and although I was concerned about being "awake" during the procedure, I can remember almost nothing that happened after they administered it...
But I do have one vague memory, not of pain, just of... "ick." At one point, I remember looking up and hearing the Doctor say something like, "you might feel a bit of pressure but this won't hurt," and then I either heard, felt or was somehow dimly, psychically aware of a resounding crunch. And then another.
When I "woke up" again a nurse was handing me my clothes which I somehow managed to put on mostly without getting up or out from under the blankets they'd draped over me in my hospital gown and slippers. Dressed but dazed and drifting in and out of awareness, I sat there until one of the nurses came back in with my boyfriend, who I was delighted to see, and he handed me a large iced mocha. We were ushered out and into a cab in what seemed like quite a hurry, but which was probably more like a whole team of grownups trying to corral a half-sleeping, half-drunken child who's stayed up way past their bedtime. In the cab, he looked at my profile and said, "I can tell it's going to look great even with the cast on. You're going to have a little cheerleader nose." I rolled my eyes and laughed, very carefully.
After
My recovery was pretty smooth sailing, but a few things were incredibly annoying. I had to sleep not lying down for at least three weeks, according to instructions, and that was difficult because regardless of how I fall asleep, I tend to wake up face down. This would obviously be a very bad thing both with the cast on and after it was removed, so I forced myself to sleep sitting nearly upright with two thick, new pillows and a travel pillow (one of those ring-shaped things you attach around your neck). The first night I made my boyfriend promise to check on me a few times (he stays up later anyway) to make sure it wasn't choking me to death. After the first few nights, it got easier but I was really happy when I could finally put it away and just sleep with one pillow and wake up however I wanted (about 5 weeks, just to be safe).
2-3 Days After
Day 3 is supposed to be the worst according to lots of people, for swelling and feeling like [RS bleep] (which I definitely did by the second day). I mostly spent the time watching zombie movies and trying to just sleep through it—but I kept waking up and having to eat, mostly yogurt, and walk around the floor of our apartment building for "mild exercise"). My boyfriend told me he was amazed at how quickly I was healing but I felt ridiculously puffy, stuffy and bruised—omg, the bruises. Reds, purples, pinks, yellows and greens—I haven't seen so much color on my face since this retro 80s party a few years ago... actually, not even then. It was yucky. No pain, though... just discomfort, annoyance and boredom.
The one other thing was the painkiller, Tramacet. I took it for four days starting Tuesday, the day of the surgery. On Saturday I woke up around 4 am in a complete panic, feeling like I was having a nightmare or I'd lost my grip on reality. I thought I had a fever and I remember worrying that I would feel like this forever. My boyfriend talked me down until I fell back to sleep and I was fine the next morning, but I did not take any more painkillers. Luckily, I didn't seem to need them at that point. The only thing that bothered me after that was not being able to take a bath (due to the steam) or wash my face properly because of the cast. I felt congested and itchy and I could feel all kinds of stitches and sutures poking out of my nostrils but I forced myself not to look, poke or think too much about them...
7 days after
The cast came off on the 7th day and my first thought—aside from holy crap, look at all the crazy colors of my bruises—was... huh. I hope that evens out... I didn't know what to think. But I knew whatever I looked like then would not last, so I forced myself not to think about it yet.
Two hours later, we were back home and I took a long, hot bath and very carefully washed my face with a washcloth (oh my god, washcloths rule!!), scrubbed carefully to get off all the residue from the cast and surgical tape. Afterwards, I really looked in the mirror for the first time, turned from side to side and stood in front of an angled mirror so I could see my profile and all those angles that I used to hate and avoid. There was some minor asymmetry, sure, but I'm sure I was always asymmetrical... I started to smile. Well, I thought, I certainly don't look worse than before... and there's still a ton of swelling, but even if this is exactly what I'm going to look like (sans the bruises, of course), I will be goddamned elated.
10 days later
Bruising was still a big factor at 10 days, but I put on makeup and went out to lunch with 2 friends—one who knew about the surgery and was suitably complimentary, and the other who looked at me a little funny but said nothing and, for all I know, still hasn't got a clue. There was a ton of swelling at 10 days, probably more than at any other time. At that point, I also called the doctor and asked if he thought I should extend the antibiotics for another week because my nostrils seemed really inflamed around the incisions (where I could feel the sutures sticking out a bit—and still do, actually, 2.5 months after surgery, but they no longer bother me). They will gradually dissolve on their own. After the second week of antibiotics, the inflammation and stuffiness gradually calmed down (I also started taking probiotics and lots of vitamin C to balance out the immune system—I haven't caught a cold or flu since then either, which is very lucky).
2-3 months later
It's bizarre, but I used to always think I looked better in the mirror than I did in pictures, which really means that I looked better to myself than how other people saw me. That's a little upsetting psychologically, but the point is that somehow I always managed to feel attractive, for most of my life anyway, despite that one feature I always hated. I know many people who thought so too—and of course this sounds totally disgustingly vain—but what I'm getting at is that I'm glad I was able to manufacture a kind of confidence and positive self-image all those years, in spite of whatever flaws I had... And now? I am so ridiculously happy when I look in the mirror—and in pictures. I didn't think this was possible, but I don't really feel like I have a bad side anymore... Wow. That's so weird... and awesome.
It's tempting to think, "if only I'd done this sooner," but on the other hand, I'm kind of glad because I think having a feature I had to work around did "build character" (ugh, I know!). Besides, it's not like I could afford it before anyway. ;) I think my expectations were realistic—I wanted to look better, not perfect—and I completely trusted my doctor's expertise. I didn't pay more than I could afford. I didn't think surgery would change my life (anyone who thinks that, btw, should talk to several people who've done it before even thinking about talking to a doctor). I didn't think it would help me in my career or my love life—and I think any of those "reasons" would be a red flag.
I'm really happy with how it turned out. For anyone who is considering surgery as they're reading this—if you're doing the kind of research I was doing four months ago—it's been almost 3 months since my surgery, and I can tell you without any reservation that I'm delighted with the results. If you're in Vancouver, I absolutely recommend Dr. Buonassisi.
Provider Review
Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon
300-1788 W. Broadway, Vancouver, British Columbia