I first consulted with Mr Chris Hill back in February 2020, just before the pandemic properly hit. Everyone I spoke to, from my hairdresser, to nurses working in the field, recommended Mr Hill for rhinoplasty. Some even describing him as an artist at work in theatre! My consultation was great, straight to the point and Mr Hill showed me photos of previous patients (one of whom did a YouTube video of his surgery experience). So in terms of recommendations- Mr Hill is 100% the way to for rhinoplasty in NI.
Of course, Covid hit so my surgery date was pushed back. I then fell pregnant and had to wait until after I had my daughter. As I am not breastfeeding and in good health, I was able to have my surgery 5 months post section.
I chose to have a second consultation with Mr Hill pre surgery and this was included in the overall cost. Again, I was totally satisfied with what could be done with my nose- I had a dorsal hump, a drooping tip, asymmetry and a nose that generally projected too far out from my face/long nostrils. It’s an Arab nose and I hated it all my life! I should also note that I’d been having liquid rhinoplasties done with filler for about 3 years. Chris wanted me to wait 12 months from my last filler before having surgery and to not go for dissolution (and in the end he said there was still loads of filler in my nose during surgery which he removed). Chris put me at ease regarding the procedure and I consistently felt he was the right choice for the job.
My surgery date came round; I had to pay an additional £180 for a Covid test 2 days prior as numbers had started rising again. I also wasn’t allowed anyone with me in my private room all day. I was first on the list for surgery and had to be at the hospital at 8am. Admission was smooth and easy and the nurses are all lovely and calming. I was terrified as, despite having just had a baby via Caesarean section, I had never undergone general anaesthetic and was nervous about that. However, the anaesthetist came to speak to me beforehand and he was so relaxed and put me at ease.
The hospital is lovely and clean, the bed is comfortable, tv in your room with Netflix etc. Chris also came to speak to me and really pep talked my nerves away; I was his sixth rhinoplasty that week and he said he now mainly only does noses. This is the surgeon you want for this procedure for sure!
I was taken to theatre fairly promptly, prepped and put to sleep- all fine, such a strange experience coming round in recovery with it all done.
I must stress that at this point I had NO nasal pain. And three days post op I still do not have any pain in my nose. The first sensation I felt was my throat being sore from the tubes during surgery. I had a bit of a cough through to day 1 post because of that, but nothing major and it went away by day 2.
There was a very minor burning sensation inside my nose but nothing at all painful and I was mainly just aware of the bandages on my face. Coming round from anaesthetic is different for everyone, I didn’t really enjoy it, I felt groggy and generally exhausted. I do still feel a bit tired now on day 3 and I’d expect I probably take a while to recover from anaesthetic personally. It’s important to drink lots of water to get everything moving again and rehydrate. I was also given tea and toast which was hard to eat as my mouth started to get quite dry from breathing through it. So after arriving at 8am, theatre just after 9am, I was discharged after 5pm. As I had a long way to go home and suffer from travel sickness, I was given an anti-sickness jab which was helpful. Nausea was something I was really worried about coming off anaesthetic but it was managed really well in recovery with medications to keep me comfortable.
Day 1 and 2 have been difficult solely because of the bunged up sensation. Again, there is absolutely no pain- I was given cocodamol to take at home, but I have swapped that for paracetamol as I found I was too wiped out on the cocodamol! There’s really no pain and even the slight headache from the congestion pressure is easily managed with paracetamol. I do hear a lot of people say this whole process isn’t painful, and considering you look terrible afterwards, you really don’t feel as bad as you look! If you are considering this procedure, don’t let pain fears put you off; I had alot done to my nose that I’d expect to hurt and it doesn’t.
By far, the worst part is the stuffed up feeling. My mouth and lips are permanently dry from breathing through my mouth, sleeping can be difficult because you have to keep your head propped up. So far, I have found getting up and walking around when I feel the pressure filling up in my nose can help loosen it. I’ve been instructed only to gently sniff, never blow my nose and it’s very frustrating because that’s all I want to do! I’ve also been told to use NeilMed saline sinus rinse to gently loosen the crusted blood around my nostrils. This worked perfectly and gives a nice bit of relief from congestion, but it’s not long before the pressure builds up again! I have always had a naturally runny nose in all seasons, and I’m finding my nose is running alot now. The bleeding stops after day one, so now I’m just stuffed up and runny, but can’t blow my nose or fully breathe through it! It is massively annoying but overall such a small price to pay for a life changing procedure. It’s also a mental game; I’m the type of person that gets a bit claustrophobic with a blocked nose so that’s been a challenge for me to manage feeling very out of control of what’s going on with my face! The cast taped across my face is annoying too, my eyes have swollen bags underneath them which feel itchy where they are rubbing against the plasters. They are bruised too but not as badly as I expected they would be.
It’s morning of day 3 as I write this- still no pain, just discomfort from congestion and feel like I’ve got a gross crusty nose! Straight after surgery I could see the amazing new shape through the cast. I wanted a gentle slope and a lifted tip and I can see both look great already.
I will continue to provide updates throughout my recovery - sorry that this is so long. But it really helped me when I was researching surgeons so I’m very glad to be here now writing a review with a big cast on my face!
Updated on 2 Sep 2021:
So day 3 finished up marginally better than days 1 and 2. Slightly less congestion and I was able to sleep a full night, albeit in an awkward propped up position! Starting to feel some twinges in the bridge and around the dissolvable stitches in one of my nostrils. On the plus side, day 4 so far has been much better. I have been continuing with the saline rinses and those are great when the congestion has reached maximum level.
I’m feeling far less wiped out from anaesthetic and I think I was also just feeling the effects of all the adrenaline surrounding surgery day.
I’ve noticed that swelling under my eyes has reduced, but the bruising is still there.
I really am just taking it day by day, managing my impatience for the cast to be removed!
Updated on 3 Sep 2021:
Overnight following day 4 was the easiest so far. I didn’t get that fully congested feeling and was able to at least breathe in easily through both nostrils. Still have a bit of a stuffy feeling overall and my nose feels stiff because of the cast, but I can feel air moving through my nostrils now which is such an improvement.
The swelling under my eyes continues to reduce and bruises under my eyes are turning yellow.
I’m still very impatient for cast off day next week, but day by day things are feeling better. I had a huge nap today so still must be feeling tired from the whole thing!
Updated on 9 Sep 2021:
So after 11 long days (supposed to be 10 but couldn’t get an appointment), the cast is finally off!!
I have to say, the cast and plasters really got irritating in the last few days, pretty much from day 6 my skin started to get quite irritated around and under the plasters. Probably from not being able to wash my face properly! Not the worst problem to have all things considered but I definitely couldn’t wait just for the relief of having the cast off!
I’m over the moon with my result! The picture I have attached is from when I got home from the clinic, and in the half an hour it took my nose has swollen a bit which I was told would be normal after cast removal. I’m also still a bit bruised under the eyes and on the bridge. But when I saw it for the first time straight after the cast came off I was astounded by how sculpted it was! Honestly a work of art let alone when you think about what had to be done to it!
The nurses at the clinic may be biased, but they summed it up perfectly; Mr Hill is a genius!
Updated on 19 Sep 2021:
I have attached a few photos with a little make up on, now I’m less bruised and happy to be out in public! I think the tip is still swollen and everyday it looks different to me, but I know the final result takes time! Still love it and am so happy that the old shape is gone!
Updated on 3 Oct 2021:
Review with my surgeon coming up this week! Tip still swollen and can be more swollen at certain times such as when walking in the cold or after a spell of activity (still not back at the gym and weightlifting as per instructions)
Updated on 24 Oct 2021:
Profile looking great! Excited for all the subtle little changes that will continue to happen over the next few months!
Updated on 12 Nov 2021:
I just wanted to drop in and talk about having a cold whilst post rhinoplasty. I’ve probably had 3 colds now since having the procedure- totally unrelated to the rhinoplasty- it’s simply colds and flu season and I’ve been unlucky to catch as many as I have! I think my first cold was around 8 weeks post (I’ve had 3 in close succession thanks to my baby daughter bringing them back from nursery), so I didn’t have to deal with it whilst in the cast or anything like that, but swelling definitely increases when you have a cold. I currently have a cold and my nose feels tender to touch and swollen when I raise my eyebrows. I understand this to be normal, provided you’re out of the danger zone for post operative infections which I am. When I had my first cold, my surgeon prescribed antibiotics just to be sure that it wasn’t a delayed infection from surgery, which it wasn’t in the end. There is already increased blood flow post surgery, so I find that my nose can feel extra sensitive whilst I have a cold, I can sneeze a hundred times in a row and my soft palate/back of my nose can feel swollen and irritated. I always had a runny nose pre-surgery, but during a cold now my nose can drip endlessly, probably because of the heightened sensitivity. I have attached a photo- you probably can’t tell that it’s swollen by looking at it, but I am right in the middle of a horrible cold and have been sneezing all day long!
Updated on 19 Dec 2021:
….and after 2 weeks of the flu the tip is swollen. But still super happy with how the results are coming along! Wishing everyone a very merry Christmas
Updated on 30 Jan 2022:
I have to say, in the last couple of weeks I was worried that a bump was forming, or that the profile wasn’t quite right. Turns out some swelling was going down and things were changing day by day- and I love it something I don’t feel is talked about enough when it comes to surgery like this - your brain sometimes still ‘sees’ the old you in the mirror, or is programmed to look for the old flaw. Especially when you’ve hated something about yourself most of your life, it can be so strange to come to terms with the new face in the mirror and to really believe that it has changed
Updated on 28 Aug 2022:
One year post open rhinoplasty!
I have definitely noticed a lot of changes recently, my nose can look different (to me) most days. My surgeon had said that it can take up to 18 months to fully see the final result so still 6 months to go potentially, although I don’t think I’m too far from the end result.
The tip is still numb and hard to touch; I understand that will go away in time so it suggests that things are still settling in the tip. It is starting to take shape and have a bit of ‘lift’. The bridge I think is fully settled. Very impressive considering there was a big bump there before!
I have always had facial asymmetry, one cheekbone shorter than the other, so I do have a ‘good side’ when comparing my left and right side profile photo and that was the case pre surgery too. So it means that my nose looks different on one side profile compared to the other- again probably something that only I really notice!
Overall, I would still recommend Mr Chris Hill and going for rhinoplasty if it’s what you really want to do! I had been using a lot of filler to straighten the bump in my nose, having ‘liquid rhinoplasty’ annually. If you have a nose like the one I had, I wouldn’t recommend that you do this long term. Just go for the surgery; I think liquid rhinoplasty is best used for people with minor bumps on a small nose. I have attached a photo of my natural nose before liquid rhinoplasty side by side with a photo straight after my first liquid rhinoplasty. Other photos on my previous review updates show my before surgery photo- that is my nose after around 4 annual liquid rhinoplasties- it just got bigger!!!