I was on the waitlist for 2 years to see Dr. Richard Warren, and it was well worth the wait. He had been recommended by a few friends for Rhinoplasty and I am had an entirely positive experience. He was patient and listed to my desires in my consultation and made me feel incredibly confident in his work. He gave me a more attractive nose and addressed my deviated septum. I like how I look more and I can finally breathe well! Win/win! The procedure was painless, my recovery was issue free and easy. I had a little pain when I got home the next day and feel normal for the rest of the week. I will go back to him for my future treatments. His high quality reputation is well earned.
Dr. Warren is a remarkable talent. I went in to have my aging face looked at and after a 45 minute consultation he showed me on some pictures how he analyzed my face and told me what he'd suggest. He definitely saw some things I had never noticed (like an elongated upper lip). I decided to have my eyes and facelift done at the same time. The actual surgery wasn't that big a deal to go through (I was asleep) and the after care was excellent. I had the chance to talk to another person in his waiting room - a younger woman who had her nose done and she told me it actually changed her life. I wouldn't say that about my facelift, but the result is exactly what I wanted. I look refreshed and less tired, but it doesn't look like I actually had any surgery. As far as I'm concerned, this was money well spent. I hope this doctor never retires because I'm already planning to go back for a tune-up in 10 years when I turn 65.
Dr. Warren is a world class surgeon who I was recommended to by doctors in Toronto and San Francisco. It took over a year to see him, but after that, I was able to have facelift surgery within about 2 months. I couldn't be happier with the result of my surgery which was my face, neck and some fat grafting for volume. I look better and younger, but nobody can figure out why. I'm now about 6 months out and my scars are almost invisible. My face is still a little numb, but getting better.
I have nothing but good things to say about Dr. Warren. About 6 years ago he did breast surgery for me. I had breast fed 2 children and my upper breast area had become flat and the lower part was saggy. He put breast implants in and lifted the saggy part. The implants have been great but some of the sagginess returned. I went back this year to get the skin re-tightened and also got my eyelids done at the same time. He did a special procedure where the bulgy fat in my lower eyelids got transferred into the trough that was causing the dark circles below my eyes. As far as I am concerned, the result has been spectacular. Dr. Warren has always been very professional with me and always took time to explain what he could do and what couldn't be done. He travels a lot and gives a lot of lectures to other plastic surgeons so his waiting list is long. He also wrote a textbook that he showed me - very impressive.
He was kind, professional & very knowledgable. Love my new breasts! Went from a barely there A to a 32DD. They look real & I had no pain afterwards (got them over the muscle). His staff were fantastic. He is worth the wait.
I never write reviews but I'm just so happy with my results I decided I would write one and spread the word. Dr Warren you are amazing I am 10 day post op and I'm super happy with my results so far. There is still some swelling on my tip and upper bridge but so far so good I love my side profile and my eyes are amazing. Dr Warren and his team is the best they made me feel so comfortable and I know there's been reviews of the front desk receptionist I didn't have a bad experience with her but could be way better. Overall I love everything and highly recommend Dr Warren!! Thank you Dr Warren and your team!
Let me start by saying Dr. Warren is an excellent surgeon and, over the years, has done six operations on me including a bleph, lip lift (twice as the first one wasn't enough), and an incredible revision rhinoplasty. The issue I have is that almost five years ago, I had a "mini facelift" to reduce the deep nasolabial clefts that I have had since birth. It worked very well. Unfortunately, in the past six months, something caused the left side of my face to drop, including the jowl on that side. At the same time, a neck cord became obvious leading to that jowl, under my chin. I went to see him, in a very dark room, and he brushed me off by telling me to come back when it is worse (!) My profession puts me in the public eye and this just isn't acceptable. He said my skin was not loose enough. I was very upset at the lack of concern and respect. I ended up seeing two other surgeons, who said they had no idea what this was about as I clearly had loose enough skin. The Dr. at the laser/skin clinic that I frequent actually suggested it would be best to get a lower face/neck lift as my skin was too loose for fillers to work. I chose not to go with the two doctors she recommended as some ratings for them suggested they might not be as capable as Dr. Warren. I realize I am burning a bridge here but the only other highly reputable surgeon I spoke with asked for pics and then said he didn't want to touch another surgeon's work on principle (so why did he ask to see pics I wonder?) how long am I supposed to wait in order to "look worse"? If you are looking for someone to do a fabulous job on your face, Dr. Warren's your man. If you don't want to be blown off and your concerns minimized after parting with $30,000 or so over the years, please be careful. I am heartbroken and have no clue where to turn.
Like everyone else on here I had wanted to have rhinoplasty for a very long time and spent many years thinking and obsessing over it. My goals and to-do lists for years and years always included to "get a nose job". When I was in my preteens I remember feeling like my nose was too big for my face but whoever I told this to including my parents would say don't worry you'll grow into it. In my teens and adulthood my nose seemed to get even bigger and the rest of face never caught up. Not only that but it seemed like my nose started leaning to the right and I self-diagnosed a deviated septum even before the doctor confirmed it for me. I don't recall ever being hit in the face that severely but my surgeon said that as a child because we're still growing any bit of trauma can make it grow unevenly. He even suggested it could've been caused by the smushing of my face at birth! Because of this crookedness I've always favoured my right side in photos and when talking to people. I would never look at a camera straight on because the crookedness is the most pronounced at that angle. My left side has also always been my worse side because of the way it stretches to the right making it look longer and bigger. I have learned my angles over the years and got really good at it so that in most photos my nose looks fine; but nonetheless I want to look good in person and in photos and at every angle and not be self conscious about this anymore. One year ago January I contacted my surgeon to book a consultation and was put on a year plus waiting list. I have 2 friends who went to see Dr Warren and their results are amazing so even though I spent a couple of years researching doctors I kept coming back to him. I got the call for the consultation exactly one year later and was booked in to see Dr warren the following week. The consultation was great and I was happy that dr warren was seeing exactly what I saw and didnt like. He said he was impressed by how I seemed like an intelligent person with realistic expectations and not asking him to transplant someone else's nose onto my face (a lot of people expect this apparently). I mentioned that I had a very important event in a few months and they were able to get me in sooner due to a cancellation. 2 weeks later I checked in at 915 for surgery. I was seen by a couple of nurses and anesthesiologist and Dr Warren came in to draw on my nose and take photos. I remember the operating room was very warm and I climbed up and pretty soon was out. I remember waking up with strips of moist gauze covering my eyes my throat feeling extremely sore and dry and my legs and body shaking. I told the nurse I can't stop shaking but she reassured me that it was normal and would stop soon. I didn't really feel any pain just overall soreness and dizziness. I spent some more time in recovery until the nurse felt I was ready to be picked up and called my fiance. They did mention that what was supposed to be a 2 hour surgery went for 4 because dr warren wanted it to be perfect. I was home by about 4:30 and spent the rest of the night lying on the couch eating soup and drifting in and out of sleep. Updated on 23 Feb 2016: Updated on 23 Feb 2016: Updated on 23 Feb 2016: Today is the 6th day after my surgery day and I feel pretty good. Sleeping is still not great considering that I still haven't been able to breathe from my nose even though I got the splints out yesterday. My fiance said I was snoring last night! My sinuses are very congested but I'm too afraid to clean it out on the inside. I sneezed this morning and immediately felt the pressure on my cast so I think I'll definitely not try to blow my nose or anything. Still get headaches and dizzy spells but I switched to regular tylonal at about day 4 and it has been helping. Lots of water and eating good helps as well. I noticed that I feel the worst right when I wake up but start to get better as I get some food in. My stitches weren't ready to be taken out yesterday so I have to wait until tomorrow, although they do feel itchy and not painful. Cast off is on Friday and I can't wait, it's definitely getting tiring to wear this thing! Updated on 26 Feb 2016: I got my cast off this morning! First impression: I kind of feel like shrek or avatar as I've read on here lol but i know it is just the swelling. I had mixed feelings when I first saw myself in the mirror and my fiance and mom didnt really react at the first look so i feel super self-conscious BUT I do really like my new profile and I can see a really cute nose poking through all the swelling. I just dont see "me" and thats a bit scary! I hope the tip gets more defined because I feel like its all one big blob right now. To me it definitely looks 'operated' on. I'm pretty sure my nostrils should even out a bit more and not look so "stapled". I couldn't wait to get home and put on some makeup and that made me feel 10 times better. The skin is weird and flaky and peeling like everyone said but I gently exfoliated and put on a ton of foundation. It still feels fresh (9 days post op today) and im congested. i continue to mouth breathe a lot of the time. I go back for another follow up next Tuesday I'm assuming Dr Warren will see if I have to tape because the nurse said it doesnt look I need it. I have not seen him since my surgery but I hope I do so I can ask about the tip. Overall I think its a big improvement from what it was and I hope everything settles by Tuesday when I go back to work! Updated on 27 Feb 2016: Just some photos - 10 days post op, cast off day 2 Updated on 2 Mar 2016: Today is 2 weeks post op and I am back to normal life. I went back to work yesterday and it was better than I thought. Most people said they didnt notice much of a difference which Im glad because I wasnt looking for a HUGE change, just an improvement. The people I didnt tell didnt say anything at all. I also think that the swelling is making it look a bit weird but whoever I told that to said that I don't look weird at all, so who knows. One thing for sure thats bugging me a lot is my smile, hopefully it wont be too much longer before it comes back. I think Im in the awkward stage where my nose looks a bit odd to me and doesnt quite feel like "my" face or nose, but I've read thats all pretty normal and pretty soon it'll feel more like "mine". Overall Im happy with the shape but a couple of days ago I noticed that my tip, columella and nostrils are slightly leaning back to the right same as the deviation preop. Its not huge but I can definitely see the angle trying to come back. Ive read a lot about septo-rhinolasty for congenital crooked noses and its very common for the cartilage to try and bounce back to its previous shape because it has kind of a memory. I told the Dr and he said to gently push it to the opposite side for 1 minutes 3 x a day. I hope it works!! If it stays like this I will be happy because its still a huge improvement but if it gets any worse I'll have to look at other options. Probably not a revision but maybe theres a way to push it back straight, maybe fillers or something. Its still really early so Im not going to jump the gun and worry about it - it could just be uneven swelling after all! i have noticed that it changes every day and the swelling is up or down depending on how active Ive been. I walked quite a bit today and noticed the swelling inside increase quite a bit. The Dr also told me to start taping to keep the tip from coming down but Im hoping it comes down just a tiny bit more because I feel like I have michael jackson nostrils (i really dont but it just feels like that cuz Im not used to having my tip so high lol). Im still looking forward to the changes and seeing the final result! Updated on 9 Mar 2016: I saw my surgeon yesterday and he said everything looks good except for the slight asymmetry of the septum trying to bend back. He said that once he opened up my nose he saw that my septum was more severely crooked than he initially thought and he had to remove the very bent part up near the back. He also said that at this point we really have no idea how it will settle but if anything goes wrong it is fixable. I am happy with the way it is now so I'm doing the pushing exercises to hopefully keep it this way! He also mentioned that my nose will get smaller and more defined which I was happy to hear from him. Honestly, I haven't been obsessing as much as I thought I would over my nose at this point; I think because I've spent years on this website reading reviews so I know there is no point on focusing on it right now because its too soon and a lot can change in the coming months. I take a couple of progress pics a day and that's about it. I did catch my reflection at a store the other day and thought wow what a difference! :):) Overall I'm still very pleased, and I have to mention that my interactions with Dr Warren and his coordinator Tracy have been amazing. The follow up and after care has been exceptional, I feel at ease and like I'm in good hands. Updated on 18 Mar 2016: I'm 1 month post op today and I just wanted to share some pics. The swelling has come down quite a bit, especially from profile view. I have been taping and doing the compression exercises everyday. It's even getting a bit sore on my right side where I have been pressing lol I noticed my right nostril is still a vertical oval as opposed to the left which has come down to a horizontal oval shape. This might even be the reason that it looks more crooked than it really is. My doctor said this is normal at this stage and we just have to give it more time. My breathing is good but still gets congested here and there but saline spray really helps. Overall still happy :) Updated on 19 Jun 2016: It's been 4 months post op and my nose has been the farthest from my mind these days, which probably means everything is going well! It's not perfect, it's still a bit crooked but I'm happy with it. I had my 3 months post op last month and the doctor seems to be pleased with my results so far. He said it will still get a little bit smaller as I near the one year mark. The only thing I'm worried about is a dent on my bridge but We have to wait and see if it will disappear once the skin shrink wraps a bit more. You can only see it in a flash photo like the one I posted, otherwise it's not noticeable. I still breath really loud and I clean my nostrils with a q-tip every day cuz when it gets stuffy I have trouble breathing but I've stopped taping. My tip went down a bit but nothing crazy. I have noticed it's getting a bit more defined but I have pretty thin skin so the swelling was not as obvious from the start. I'm going to see my doctor again at 6 months but I'll try and post an update before then!! Updated on 25 Oct 2016: I'm now 8 months post op and although I still think my doctor did an amazing job, some parts of my nose just don't seem to be healing properly. On the left side there is a bump that has formed which is exacerbated by an indent directly below. Almost seems like a separation is forming between the bridge and the tip. The right side is nothing like this and completely smooth. Also my right nostrils never settled and is a bit high and a different shape than my left. Other than that I'm super happy with my nose and when I compare my pre-op to now I'm still so amazed. I have an appointment in December and hopefully will have some answers on what can be done with the issues I have. If it means another full on surgery I really have to think about it but if it will be a minor surgery I will do it for sure. Updated on 25 Oct 2016: Pics Updated on 17 Mar 2017: I saw my doctor in December and showed him my concerns and I'm so glad that he saw what I saw and suggested a minor revision. At first he suggested we use filler for the dent but it wouldn't be permanent (1 year) but then when he inspected my nostril he said that would definitely require a cartilage graft so we could do both in one appointment and use a fat transfer from my stomach for the dent. A tiny piece of cartilage would be removed from my septum and placed at the edge of my nostril to round it out. On Feb. 14 I had my second surgery under general anesthesia and was told it would only be a minor 30 minute procedure. When I woke up I think it was a little longer than that, maybe 1 hour, but it was still short nonetheless. I also had to wait a while to start the surgery as the doctor finished an earlier facelift that was taking forever... I waited about 3-4 hours already prepped for surgery! Apparently the morning face lift took longer than expected and that knocked everyone else down by a few hours. Mine was the last one of the day and we finished around 7:00 pm. This time around I felt waaaay more loopy after waking up but the discomfort was almost non-existent compared to my initial surgery. My husband said I was pretty funny but I don't remember anything I said. I didn't feel any pain whatsoever and I was eating normally by that evening - not a liquid diet like before! I didn't even need any painkillers. The hoarseness in my throat from the breathing tube went away after a few hours. I still had to wear tape and a bandage for 4 days but it wasn't a cast like last time. I also had a bandage on my belly button where they removed the fat. That area was probably worse than my face; it was swollen and bruised and sore for a couple of weeks. It also got really stiff and hard at the removal site for a couple of weeks which they said was normal; I can't imagine getting lipo on a big area if it gets sore and rock-hard like that!! I was out and about by the next day, shopping and walking the dog. I did get a lot of stares but I didn't mind. I got the tape off on Friday and my nose got puffy again like last time. I also had slight bruising on the bridge and redness on the nostril but nothing a little makeup couldn't cover. When I returned to work on Monday nobody even noticed a thing. Now I'm about 4 weeks post and my belly button is fully healed; I only see a tiny scar if I look really close. My nose is still swollen mainly at the tip but I can see the smooth line now on both sides of my bridge and my nostril finally looks normal which I'm really happy about. I still have to wait for the swelling to come down to get back to the refinement I saw at my 1 year mark before my second surgery, but so far, so good! I'm finally done with my nose and I couldn't be happier! :)
Oct. 7, 2012 - It's been almost two months since I scheduled a consultation with Dr. Richard J. Warren in Vancouver, BC for a rhinoplasty. His waitlists are apparently 1 year+ just to get a consultation because he's the best in Vancouver - possibly even Canada. Or so I've heard from online reviews. He doesn't advertise, he relies solely on promotion via word of mouth. A bit about why I'm choosing to go ahead with this: I'm 22 years old (will probably be 23 by the time the surgery happens) and nearly completed my university degree. I've recently come into some inheritance money, so I can afford the surgery. I'm mature enough to know that this is what I want, and have undergone years of teasing to confirm this. I've told myself that I won't become addicted to plastic surgery and get many subsequent surgeries to correct any and all imperfections. I can get a push up bra to correct sagging boobs, I can wear lipsticks to plump up my lips, I can work out and eat right to prevent having to get liposuction. But I can't cover or self-correct my nose. My boyfriend of 4 years loves me the way I am and will probably be very angry when he finds out that I went ahead and scheduled this consultation. I'm terrified to tell him. Once, I made a joke to him saying that I'm getting to get liposuction. He told me that if I were being serious, that would be a really stupid decision. I think we can all agree that a rhinoplasty is even more serious than lipo. I'm not sure how to make him see that I'm doing this for me. Not to silence my critics, not to become a cardboard cutout of a Hollywood starlet, but for ME so that I can finally look in the mirror and like myself from all angles. Some people might wonder why I'm bothering to do this since I already have a very serious relationship and have no need to impress other men. If you're doing something strictly to appeal to the opposite [or same] sex then you're in it for the wrong reasons. You need to do what you can to make yourself feel beautiful and hopefully confidence will come with that beauty. I was teased and bullied throughout school and still, to this day, I get comments on my nose at times. Part of it is probably that I'm half Italian. Every one in my family has a large nose. Whenever people try to guess my ethnicity, they can always see the Italian in me. If they don't guess it right away, I will tell them what I am and they'll say "oh, yeah, I can see that." As much as I'd like to think it's because Italian women are often considered as being exotic and beautiful, my insecurities keep telling me it's because I have a large nose. I need this surgery to gain confidence and to be able to face the mirror without cringing. I will be looking for a full time job when I graduate within a year, so this is the perfect time for me to make this transition. I will hopefully have my surgery after I graduate and before my new job begins. I'm tired of facing people straight-on when I talk to them, even if they're sitting beside me. I'm tired of asking my friends to delete photos that they post of me because I hate how my nose looks. I'm tired of being scared whenever someone brings out a camera and having to decide which way to turn my face so that I can minimize how large my nose is. If anyone could share any advice, reviews about Dr. Richard Warren, or just offer general support it would be much appreciated! Updated on 30 Oct 2012: I'm thinking of also booking a consultation with Dr. Andrew Denton here in Vancouver. A girl I talked to recently about her nose job recommended him. I'm a little worried because his rating on RateMDs is 3.9/5, whereas Dr. Warren is 4.8/5. I guess it would be good to have a second opinion though, and I'm getting impatient with Dr. Warrren's one year wait list. What do you all think? Updated on 21 Nov 2012: Just had my consultation with Dr. J. A. Barlett in Richmond yesterday. I got a really nice first impression from him. He didn't rush me at all and didn't try to sell me on anything I was uncomfortable with. He actually thought I had a "nice nose" and it didn't need as much work done on it as I thought. I told him that I wanted it deprojected (brought in closer to my face) and the bulbous cartilage on the tip to be narrowed. He agreed about the tip needing to be narrowed, but said that it doesn't project as far out from my face and I think it does, and it had a nice obtuse angle. That made should have made me feel better but it also kind of made me feel crazy. Like, maybe there wasn't anything wrong with my nose this whole time. But that can't be, because I've had an issue with it since I was a child and the fact that so many people who don't even know each other have said mean things about it reaffirms that yes, it's larger than a normal person's. He said that if I deproject my nose I will also have to shave off a tiny bump that I have at the top of the bridge of my nose. I guess this will prevent it from looking "hooked" when I deproject it. So basically, if I do all 3 of these things it will cost me $9000 + tax. And he said that I might benefit in the future from bringing my nostrils in closer because they should align with the corners of my eyes, and mine go out slightly more. If I add this to my procedure, it will bring the total to 10,500 + tax. A lot to think about. I could either go the cheaper route and do what he thinks is the only necessary change - removing cartilage from the tip to make it less bulbous and wide. Or I could splurge and get the whole thing done. I'm less concerned about the money factor with going with the 3-in-1 deal than I am about the greater chances of something look wrong if I get that much done to it. But then again, I don't want to just get the one procedure done, the narrowing of the tip, and then realize after that the change wasn't great enough and go through this all over again. Not sure which I'm going to choose. Still on the waitlist for my consultation with Dr. Warren and still haven't told my parents yet. Maybe my mom can help me out with this. Updated on 2 Dec 2012: So I finally told my mom about my plans a few days ago because her support is important to me. She was surprisingly okay with it - she's just relieved that I didn't say I want a tattoo! She said she's sad that I feel this way because she thinks I'm gorgeous but she understands where I'm coming from. She remembers how upset I used to get as a kid when people made fun of me for how I looked. She believes that anything you can do to restore your confidence is worth doing. I'm happy that she understands and was surprised to learn that she considered the same thing when she was younger. However, she was painfully shy and too afraid to get the procedure done, even when it would have been very easy to ask her doctor to do it when she had to get her nose reset after breaking it a couple times. Our plan is to not tell my father because he will definitely be opposed to it. He even hates it when we dye our hair. Since it's not going to be that huge of a change (I'm probably only going to get it narrowed, as per Dr. Bartlett's suggestion) and it takes almost a year for the gradual changes to develop, he honestly probably won't even notice. For the days that I'm in the hospital and recovering we'll just say that I'm staying at either my boyfriend's or best friend's house. When I return home, I'll be looking as good as new. My boyfriend was surprised to hear of how supportive my mom was of me getting this done. I think he was encouraging me to tell her about it secretly because he thought she would be opposed and could talk me out of it. But nope, that didn't happen, so I hope that he will soon see the light too. Updated on 23 Dec 2012: It's a Christmas miracle! My boyfriend finally gave his consent to me getting this surgery. This came after I showed him a website that had the top 10 best celebrity nose jobs (can be found here http://www.totallytop10.com/entertainment/top-10-examples-of-great-nose-surgery-nose-jobs ) and explained that they all looked better after and the difference was very subtle in some cases; I also mentioned that every single one of the ones in the top 10 worst list completely overdid their faces and clearly don't know when to stop. That won't be me. He said he doesn't need any further convincing and he finally approves of me getting this done. Yay! Now my dad is going to be the toughest one to convince.. . Still haven't decided whether I should tell him or not. Updated on 17 Oct 2013: Finally! After over a year of waiting, I got a call from Dr. Warren's office saying that they have an opening for a consultation with me. I had a choice, either the following Tuesday (which was like Sept. 24 or something like that) and the next slot wasn't until Nov. 8. I had no choice but to take the Nov 8 appointment, as I had to take my mom to chemo on the Tuesday. I still really want to get the procedure done, but pretty much my only two concerns are (and note that they actually dont really have anything to do with the procedure itself, lol): 1 - Needles!! I had to have surgery on my toe recently and I almost fainted/threw up from the freezing injections. Not looking forward to getting an IV, or whatever it is they'll be doing, can any other needle-phobes share with me how painless/scary this part was for them? 2 - Figuring out where to hide myself for a few days while I recover enough that I can take off the bandage and cover any bruising with makeup. I still live with my parents and my mom and I decided it's best if my dad doesn't find out about this, so I'm going to have to work around that Updated on 14 Nov 2013: So I had my consultation with Dr. Warren last week and I was very impressed with him, and all of his staff members I spoke to for that matter. He was friendly, knowledgeable, and very honest. He told me that I'm a good candidate for the surgery and that I had a very artistic eye, as I was able to point out everything I thought was wrong with my nose (tip too bulgy, upturn is fine, projects too much, small bump on the bridge). He thought it would be feasible to correct all of these issues - and for a much lower price than what was offered to me when I saw Dr. Bartlett. Whereas Dr. Bartlett didn't even think that I needed it to be deprojected, which I thought was a little crazy, Dr. Warren agreed that it projects too much AND he also discovered that I have a deviated septum. So that'll need to be fixed while he's in there, too. After my consultation, I thought about it for a couple more days, then finally went ahead and booked my surgery for February 4th :) I've worked out how to hide my bruised face and nose cast from my dad - my best friend is letting me stay with her and her husband until the cast comes off, during which time my dad will just be told that my boyfriend and I will be housesitting for them, getting a taste of what the married life will be like, lol. Then once the cast comes off 10 days later (in time for Valentines!) I'll cover any remaining bruising with makeup. Feeling pretty excited now that everything is in order, it's just a matter of waiting. I'll probably see Dr. Warren for one more consultation before the pre-op appointment 2 weeks before the surgery. I still have some more questions (maybe some of you can help me with these): - Will there be a line inbetween my eyes at the top of my nose? - Will it grow with age? - When can I wear makeup? - When can I wear glasses? Updated on 7 Jan 2014: 4 weeks from today it'll be the big day! I'm excited, and I still have a few more questions that I'll have to ask Dr. Warren in my second consultation with him. Not really sure why I haven't been contacted to put a deposit down or anything yet, since it's less than a month away, but I guess that'll be happening soon. I attached another photo here, I'll probably be bringing it with me when I see Dr. Warren again because it clearly shows pretty much all the things I hate about my nose. Updated on 12 Jan 2014: So my mom had a change of heart and decided she doesn't want to keep this secret from my dad anymore. Understandably so, she's covered for me before on small things like when I put streaks in my hair (he's so against body modification of any kind, whether it's tattoos, dying hair, or cosmetic surgery), but this is a big deal, it's surgery and something could go wrong and she can't in good conscience keep that from him. My surgery is only 3 weeks away so we don't have much time to come up with a convincing story. I think we're going go with a half truth, though. We're going to tell him that I went to a doctor and all my sinus infections, nosebleeds as a child, and headaches have been attributed to a deviated septum that needs to be fixed (this is partially true, as Dr. Warren discovered that I have a pretty badly deviated septum.. I don't know how I've gone 23 years without any other doctors discovering this, especially given all the sinus infections I used to get). I thought I was so clever, I had it all planned out. I was going to stay with my best friend and her husband for the 10 days while I had my cast on and we were going to tell my dad that my boyfriend and I were staying at her house to house-sit for them while they were away, to test if we can handle living together eventually. It was a highly plausible story, because the topic of moving in with my boyfriend of 5.5 years has come up a lot with my parents recently. Besides my mom changing her mind about keeping the truth from him, there was one other flaw in the plan - my mom has cancer, but her oncologist is giving her a break from chemo so she can travel with my dad, something they've been wanting to do for a long time. They were thinking of going away early February, so they're away for Valentines day. My surgery is February 4. This still could have worked perfectly, as long as my mom arranged it so that they leave any day after Feb 4, so she can still be home to pick me up from surgery while my dad is at work. However, we realized that if they go away on vacation, I'll have to come back home and continue my recovery here so that I can look after my dog. That would have worked, I would have just gone back home after they'd already gone to the airport, but we realized it would be strange if I didn't come home just before they left so that I could at least say goodbye to them, especially if I had already been away from home for like a week prior to that. Sigh. I don't want to put my mom in an awkward position or ask her to lie for me if she's not comfortable with it anymore. There's still some flaws with our half truth story, though. For example, my dad is going to ask who my surgeon is (if it was strictly a medical procedure with no cosmetic alterations, why would I be going to a plastic surgeon?), and since I'm no longer a student and therefore no longer covered under his medical insurance, he will likely offer to pay for it. My mom had to repair a broken nose and deviated septum when I was a kid, so the procedure is nothing new to him. We need to think our story through some more. As much as it sucks to only be telling a half truth, we know that the truth would break his heart. Like I said, he's super weird when it comes to body modification and I feel like he would never be able to look at me the same. It's kinda hypocritical of him because whenever he sees women on tv that he calls beautiful or hot, my mom and me always say "yeah, cuz look at all the plastic surgery she's had!" Sigh. Men. They want us to look good but they don't want to know what goes in to making us look perfect. Anyway, I've attached 2 photos of the nose I want to have! I'm going to bring them in when I see Dr. Warren on Wednesday. I'll post another update then. Updated on 12 Jan 2014: Just updating my post with a couple pre-op photos Updated on 14 Jan 2014: I'm having my second consultation with my surgeon tomorrow. I have a few more questions and i figure the more he sees me and talks about what my expectations are, the better the chance that he'll be able to give me the exact results that i want. Anyone have any questions that they asked their surgeons, or that they wished they had, that I should be asking tomorrow? thanks! Updated on 17 Jan 2014: I had my second consultation with Dr. Warren two days ago and he answered pretty much all the remaining questions I had. We also further reinforced what we had discussed in the first consultation and discussed what was realistically possible with my nose. He wants to give me a nose that's "cuter" and that won't detract from my other facial features. I showed him pictures where my nose looks especially bad, in case he couldn't see the real issues in person, and explained what I hated about it. He said he will definitely fix my "ball tip" and deproject it because it does stick out too far. And he'll shave my little hump that I have mostly on the left side of my bridge. AND fix my deviated septum. I said "you could do all that in one appointment!?" and he assured me that most of his surgeries are AT LEAST that complicated, since 50% of the rhinoplasties that he performs are revisions of other surgeons' mistakes. Also, 1/3 of the rhinoplasties that he does involve repairing septums. He's going to try to give me a nose that's as close to the photos that I brought in as possible, however he pointed out that it will look slightly different on me than on them because I have a bit of an overbite, so my chin slides back a bit, and my forehead also slopes back when you look at it from profile view (I never knew that). The women in the photos I brought had chins and foreheads that were perfectly aligned, thus making their noses appear smaller. Just goes to show what a good eye he has. He asked me whom I've told about this and when I said we're not going to tell my dad the whole truth, just that I'm fixing a deviated septum, he thought that was a very good idea. In his opinion, my dad won't even notice the difference in shape, and if he does, the fact that I'll be happier and more confident should matter more. Later that evening, my mom and I told my dad that I have to have surgery to fix my deviated septum. He seemed sad and worried about it because my mom had to have the same thing done a few years ago and he remembers that it was hell for her because she ended up getting a cold while she was still healing, causing an infection and the surgeon to had to re-break it. We assured him that I'm in good hands with the surgeon I chose (didn't give a name), he's the best at what he does, and they will be giving me antibiotics to prevent any sort of infection like what my mom had. Overall, I'm very excited about this. I know that I'm in good hands with Dr. Warren, I 100% trust him. Whenever I think of events coming up, like the Canucks game I'll be going to with my mom in March, or a concert we're going to in April, the first thing I think of is "I'll have my new nose by then" :) Of course it'll take a year to reach its full potential, but the worst will be over and I'll be on my way to looking my best Updated on 21 Jan 2014: Hi everyone, I just got back from my pre-op appointment with my surgeon's clinic manager & patient coordinator. Thankfully, since I'm young & healthy no lab tests were needed! just paperwork. She gave me a time for my surgery - 11:45am. Yikes, I almost wanted it to be earlier in the morning because I have to stop eating at midnight and can't have any fluids up to 3 hours before the surgery. I'm gonna be hungry! Did anyone have an appetite later on the day they had surgery? I probably wont, but it's not good to go a day without eating :/ . The good thing about it being later in the day is I will be the last surgery of the day, so he has all the time he needs to make sure everything goes perfectly and can manage anything that may arise without stressing about meeting his next patient. I don't usually need them, but she wrote me a prescription for T3s to fill before my surgery so I don't have to do that after. I forgot to ask her for one, but I was hoping to get a list of products I should buy from the drug store that will aid in my healing. Anyone have any advice in that department? I've heard a lot of you posting on here that something called arnica gel helps. Is there anything else I should be getting? In 2 weeks I'll be at home resting after my surgery!! Updated on 23 Jan 2014: I've got a question for you realselfers who have gone under general anesthesia before - what was it like? I've never had to be knocked out for a surgery before (though I have passed out from pain/fear of needles, but that's a different story) and I'm not sure what to expect. I've seen some people on here say that you're talking to the anesthesiologist, you drift into sleep, and it feels like you only slept for 1 second but really it was 4 hours. Is that true, is it not like regular sleep where you can tell you've been sleeping for a long time? Gah so nervous. I really hope I don't say anything stupid or embarrassing to any of the staff, but I'm the type of person who probably would LOL. Has that ever happened to anyone? I posted a few more "before" photos too. I like how I look with my glasses on better because they hide my bump and make my nose appear smaller, lol Updated on 28 Jan 2014: This time next week I'll be in surgery! :) Hopefully I won't say anything too crazy when I come out of it. Yesterday I went to the dentist because I was experiencing a lot of pain in my cheekbone and teeth whenever I chewed on my right side. He took x-rays and poked around in my mouth and determined that the pain was due to my sinuses. I told him that I'm getting my deviated septum repaired next week and he said that'll definitely help my sinus issues (I left out the cosmetic part of the surgery). When I told this to my boyfriend, he agreed that it's good that I'm having my septum fixed, but he's still not on board with the cosmetic aspect of my surgery, either. Sigh. Oh well, can't win them all. My dad is starting to ask my mom questions too. He can't believe that I didn't say anything to him about this a year and a half ago when I requested a consultation with Dr Warren, especially since it must be so bad that I feel like this is the only option (he knows how terrified I am of needles, he shares the same phobia). Excited for next week. I ask my patient coordinator what I should be buying from the drugstore and she said dry mouth spray was a good idea, as well as cold compresses and polysporin (I already have those at home). However, many of you have been recommending arnica gel, and she said that she does not advise it, as apparently there's no scientific evidence to prove that it helps. But she said it can't hurt Here's another photo that I hate my nose in. I look through these whenever have some doubts about my decision Updated on 30 Jan 2014: Hey everyone, I have kind of a dumb question for those of you who have gone through this before. On the instruction list my surgeon sent me home with after my consultation, it says to remove all jewelry before surgery. How strict are they about this? The reason I ask is I have a cartilage piercing on my right ear that I got when I was 16 (so 8 years ago) and I've never ever removed it before. This is partially due to it just not coming out whenever I try, and also my strange fear of taking it out. I work as a movie extra and whenever the makeup department asks me to remove it, for example if the movie is set in medieval times, I tell them I can't and they settle for covering it with a bandaid. If I wear my hair down on my surgery day, will they notice/care? Just curious as to why theyre so serious about jewelry and nail polish being removed Updated on 31 Jan 2014: Hi realselfers, another random question for you before I go to bed. How were you able to shower with the cast on your nose? Is it allowed to get wet? It's not like you can put a plastic bag over your head to protect it, lol Updated on 2 Feb 2014: Eeeek, this time 2 days from now I'll be in the recovery room! Seriously hoping I won't say anything embarrassing when I wake up, lol. Took a few "before" photos, ugh, I'll be so glad when I won't have to hate all these angles anymore! Updated on 3 Feb 2014: This time tomorrow it'll be all over and I'll probably be on my way home with my mom in rush hour traffic. I've gathered a bunch of things that I'll be needing during my recovery (see photo): - neck pillow - arnica gel-cream - sinus pack - dry shampoo - biotene moisturizing mouth spray - sour candies (to get the saliva going) - endless supply of lip balm - cotton swabs - vitamin C chewable tablets - stanhexidine antibacterial face wash (to be used the night before and morning of surgery) - prescription acetaminophen/codeine painkillers This list doesn't include pineapple and jello and other soft foods that I'll have to eat. If I missed anything please let me know! Updated on 4 Feb 2014: So it's 3am the morning of my surgery and I'm still wide awake. I'm trying to notthink about it too much or psych myself out . I know this is for the best and that this is what I've wanted for 13 years, since I was 11. I've had some people say they wish I wouldn't go through with this and that they wish their post op was my pre op look. While Iappreciate the compliment, I am doing this for myself and I've thought long and hard about it. Trust me, I have a phobia of needles, I wouldn't be going thru with it if I wasn't serious and hadn't considered all angles. I know that my nose isn't the worst one I've ever seen, but that shouldn't stop me from wanting to improve myself. Sigh. Anyways I should try to sleep, wish me luck! Updated on 4 Feb 2014: Updated on 4 Feb 2014: Hey everyone the surgery was a success! I can't really post a full update right now, I'll do that later tonight when I get my laptop and when I'm feeling less woozy. Right now I have a burning question that I'm hoping some of you can answer!!! Dr Warren said he was gonna enlarge my nostrils cuz they were small to begin with and it'll help my breathing, it won't be noticeable externally though. When I changed my drip pad I noticed that one nostril is sitting higher than the other!!! Is this seriously just swelling or a mistake?? I'm freaking out right now. Like, the base of one nostril is higher than the other, so for example if you put a ruler beneath my nose it would slant downwards. Is this permanent??? Thanks Updated on 5 Feb 2014: So I had my surgery and it was a success! :) It took longer than expected, my arrival time was 11:45 am. im glad that my mom had questions she wanted to ask the various nurses and doctors who met with me while I waited because I didn't get in til 1:50pm! apparently they did a face lift in the morning that took a long time. Anyways I had nothing to fear - the anesthetist was FANTASTIC. He knew I was afraid of needles and said that we were going to concur that fear today. he distracted me the whole time as I looked away, not knowing when he was going to put it in. I didn't even know that he had numbed the area yet when I felt a slight poke in my arm and that was it. I 100% expected more pokes to come after and to feel it running through my veins like some of you described but nope!! he said "and that was the last needle im going to give you" and I turned my head to look at him really fast and said "WHAT!??!" hahah. I couldn't believe how painlessi it was. Then Dr Warren came in and explained to his team what the procedure was, and while he was doing that the anesthetist put an oxygen mask over my face and asked me to take 4 deep breaths. The last thing I remember was taking 1 deep breath, telling him that my 3 "S" fears are spiders, snakes, and stairs, taking another deep breath and feeling my face go tingly and burning, thinking about telling him that this is the first time I've ever felt high because I've never done drugs and then WHAM I was out. I swear I was dreaming when I was out and it actually felt like I had been sleeping for a while, not 1 second like almost every one says. They were calling my name and waking me up and I don't remember much except asking if I was beautiful, looking at the clock on the wall ahead and seeing the time 5:10, and announcing to the anesthetist that I could read the clock lol. it didn't take me long to realize that I had the WORST cramps I've ever had in my life. my period was late, it was supposed to come 5 days ago, and it decided to come during my surgery. lovely. good thing I was wearing a pad just in case but still it was the most horrendous pain. at least it distracted me from my nose. the worst parts about waking up were the insane cramps that they had to give me painkillers into my IV ASAP for, and having difficulty swallowing because mucous and blood were flowing down my throat and getting stuck at the back of it. I had to keep coughing it up and using this suction tube thing to stick down my throat and suck it out. it was gross cuz the tube was clear so I could see all the blood in it. my mom was worried that she hadn't heard from them yet, cuz we were concerned in the beginning about the fact that i'm allergic to every antibiotic I ever had (some have hospitalized and nearly killed me) and we didn't know which ones i'm ok with. they give me some in my IV, clindamycin? and I thankfully didn't have any adverse reactions to it. One embarrassing thing that happened was I had to as the nurse to check and see if I had gotten my period and if that was what was causing the cramps. so weird, I know, but she was good about it. I also had to pull down my panties and they lifted me into this pee pot so I could pee cuz I really felt like I had to from the liquid from the IV, but nothing came out. holding a cold ginger ale to my abdomen to relieve my cramps (didn't help that much), they wheel chaired me down to my mom's Jeep and thankfully because it took so long the worst of rush hour traffic was over. I live in Surrey, which is about 30km from Vancouver, so it wasn't too far of a drive. I'm not feeling too bad, but as you can see, I have serious black eyes forming. Dr Warren told me that nothing bad happened, that's not why it took so long, he just wanted to make sure that everything was perfect before he finished. He said that he was able to give me the nose that he sketched for me and that we discussed, so I'm happy about that. He also said that my tip is going to have major swelling, more than most peoples (not sure why), and my nose will look like a fat potato for 2-3 weeks, and it will take the full year for final results to show, I guess that's ok, a gradual progression will be less obvious to those who don't know. PS. sorry for any typos, I can't wear my glasses or lift my laptop closer to my face cuz it\s heavy, so I\m looking at this from quite far away (im near sighted) Updated on 5 Feb 2014: I'm not feeling any real pain, my nose is still frozen. My eyes are getting blacker and puffier. My nose is still bleeding, I've had to change my drip pad about 5 to 6 times so far. Doing this and going to the bathroom are pretty much the only times I get up and I can't stand up for more than 5 minutes without feeling nauseous and dizzy. this happens especially after I change my drip pad probably cuz looking at my stitches grosses me out and when I first tape it around my nose it kinda has a dull numbish pain on my tip. I hate that feeling. I don't have any packing in my nose, as my surgeon said that this is an unnecessary practice that up-to-date surgeons don't use any more. My dog is sad and confused as to why he can't sleep up on my bed like normal. He's 16 years old and cant jump up or down off it anymore, and I can't lift heavy objects (at 22 pounds he's pretty fat for a miniature poodle). So far I've had water and ginger ale to drink. To eat I've had cold mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, jello, and apple sauce. Gonna try to sleep soon, goodnight everyone! Updated on 5 Feb 2014: Not feeling too bad for day 2. sleeping last night was pretty challenging. I didn't fall asleep until around 4:30am and I slept on and off until 7:30am, waking up mostly due to dry mouth and pain (I keep flaring my nostrils in my sleep for some reason and that would hurt and wake me up). I spoke to my nurse coordinator today, she's super surprised that I am able to breathe a bit through my left nostril - my surgeon didn't expect that this would happen until next Monday, I booked my stitches removal for next Tuesday and unfortunately there was a ton of swelling in my tip during surgery so they want to leave the cast on for 13 days! there goes my valentine's plans lol if it came off at 10 days like it was supposed to, it would have been removed February 14. we'll have to postpone our dinner plans for the following weekend. oh well, it will heal faster this way. i'm not bleeding anymore, but I still have my drip pad on because it's oozing a clear liquid. my mom says that i'm a fast healer and that's a sign that it's healing. I've only taken my prescription painkillers 3 times since the surgery. the last time was at 10am this morning. it's almost 2pm now, so it's safe for me to have more if I need it, it doesn't really hurt though aside from the area around my stitches sometimes when I move my nose inadvertently while chewing or sleeping. Will post another update later, going to catch up on my soap opera for now, lol Updated on 5 Feb 2014: Updated on 6 Feb 2014: Today has been the most difficult day so far. I'm all stuffed up and swollen and my neck and back hurt from lying around being propped up all day. It constantly feels like there is mucous draining down the back of my throat and coating my mouth, making it difficult to swallow. You know how some men [grossly] hork up their phlegm onto the sidewalk? I feel like that's what I need to do, except I don't know how and whenever I try, only saliva comes out. Any tips? Updated on 6 Feb 2014: Updated on 7 Feb 2014: Updated on 7 Feb 2014: Woke up this morning with a horrible headache and terribly sore neck from sleeping propped up in my travel pillow. Don't know how much more of this I can stand. And as you can tell from the photo, the swelling has moved down from my eyes to my cheeks. They're quite puffy, I feel like how I did when I got my wisdom teeth pulled. I'm still wearing a drip pad, as my nose is still blowing out bubbles of bloody mucous at times. Gross, I know. Just touching my stitches to put polysporin on them hurts, I'm scared to get them taken out on Tuesday. I've been cleaning around my nostrils with wet q-tips but I haven't been wiping inside of my nose with them too much because there's a lot of stuff going on up there and I don't want to irritate anything. When did you guys start cleaning the inside of your nose? Updated on 8 Feb 2014: I'm feeling a bit better today. I must have found a better position to sleep in because my neck, back, and head didn't hurt as bad when I woke up. As you can tell from the photo, the swelling has moved further down my cheeks and my black eyes are turning more yellow than purple. My body still feels weak and achy like I have the flu, but not as bad as yesterday. I still take a painkiller maybe once during the day and again at night to help me sleep. A couple days ago, I ate solid food that required a lot of chewing (chicken, fries, macaroni salad) and I regretted it after. My nose tip started throbbing and my cheeks felt inflamed and even more swollen. It just wasn't good and I attribute it to the chewing motion pulling on my nose. Too early for that. So I had to take a couple painkillers after that because I was paranoid about it getting inflamed and infected or something, somehow. This sounds gross, but what's irritating is I still have to wear my drip pad because every time I swallow, speak, or burp, a bloody snot bubble comes out of my left nostril. So gross. I go through so many q-tips trying to coax that crap out but it just keeps coming. Oh well, better out than down my throat. Oh, and another that they don't tell you that you should be prepared for is the drugs + inactivity will result in your bowels getting plugged up. I had to take 2 stool softeners to finally "have to go" because I was eating some normal solid food this whole time yet I hadn't gone "number 2" since Monday (the day before my surgery). It's now Saturday. So yeah, you can see why it's pretty necessary to have stool softeners or laxatives handy, lol. It hurts quite a bit (more in my right nostril than left) to wipe around the stitches just inside my nose with a q-tip. Is this normal? The other ones don't hurt near as much. It's not infected is it? I've been putting polysporin antibiotic ointment on them twice a day these past 4 days, as instructed Updated on 10 Feb 2014: Super rough night last night. My fears about having anxiety attacks from not being able to breathe through my mouth and thinking that if my mouth can't gasp for air either, then i'm screwed happened. It came on kind of suddenly while i was watching tv, i started feeling tightness in my chest whenever i breathed in, mucous was running down my throat instead of out my nose, and I began to panic because I couldn't breathe through my nose at all, what if my mouth stops working too? I don't know if it was like this before or if being terrified caused it, but my heart started beating fast and I couldn't calm down. It was 1am and I wanted so badly to sleep and wake up and feel better, but I couldn't calm myself down enough to sleep. As if I were a little kid again, I called my mom into my room and she stayed with me, held my hand, and said soothing words until I fell asleep on her shoulder. Then I woke up and there was a new problem, my stomach felt absolutely horrible like I had to puke. My mom checked my aftercare instructions and said vomitting isn't allowed within 24 hours of the surgery, but it's been 6 days so it should be fine. I projectile vomitted like 7 times into the toilet and felt a little bit better, but I still had a rough sleep after that. Woke up with the same queasy feeling in my stomach and it's still there. My body was feeling almost 100% normal these past couple days, but now I'm so achy and weak feeling all over, it hurts to exist, to touch anything. I hate this. I didnt even take any painkillers yesterday so I don't know what caused this. Maybe eating too many rich solid foods (my dad made me dark chocolate cake and I had some of that, and a burger at dinner), the mucous building up in my stomach, feeling upset from my panic attack, withdrawals from not taking the codeine painkillers any more, or a combination of everything? Updated on 11 Feb 2014: Today I had my stitches removed like a champ - no freezing, no numbing, no painkillers. I've never had non-dissolvable stitches before, so this was a new experience for me. It hurt but it wasn't unbearable. I think I had about 12 in total. The nurse also removed the plastic splints that were up my nose holding my septum together. Once she did that, I was able to breathe through my nose after one week of not being able to properly. One nostril bled when she did that but surprisingly the other one didn't (i'm quite a bleeder). And thankfully the mucous has stopped constantly gushing out of my nose. I'm also feeling better than yesterday and certainly better than the day before. I did puke again this morning and felt better after, but my stomach still feels a bit nauseous and bubbly. Going next Monday again to have my cast removed! Jeez I feel like I have to wear my cast longer than anyone else on here, most people report that they get theirs taken off after 5-7 days, but I have to wear mine for 13! Funny story about the pic I just posted. It's of my right side, and when I took it I instinctively thought "ew, I can't post this, the right side is my nose's bad side" but then I remembered that I don't have a bad side anymore! :) Updated on 17 Feb 2014: Well, after 13 days of having it on, I got my cast and bandage off today :D I had always been told that Dr. Warren is a very conservative surgeon and would rather take off less than more - so with that in mind, I was shocked when I looked into the mirror for the first time and saw that my nose had been deprojected SIGNIFICANTLY, which is what I've always wanted. I wasn't expecting that at all, I thought the main change would be in the tip, but nope! At first I started freaking out a bit when I was alone in the examination room washing the goop off my nose. I was worried that it was too drastic of a change right away because even though it's still swollen, it's noticeable. Of course I'd be thrilled if there weren't other people in my life that I'm trying to keep this a secret from, but there are. I was worried that my dad would notice right away, especially since he'll probably be taking a good hard look at my nose when he sees me after work today now that my cast is off (he's been so worried about me). I was also scared that my mom would have a mini heart attack at the difference, because I downplayed to her how much he'd be changing. But all that disappeared when she saw me and was thrilled with the result. She can't stop looking at it and commenting on how pretty it looks and how much better it suits my small face. She completely understands why I did this and blames my large triangular shaped nose on my dad's side of the family, lol. I can tell when she's lying and it makes me relieved to see that she genuinely loves it. It makes me feel so much happier about my decision. I've posted some pics - keep in mind that everything from the bridge to the tip is still swollen, so this is not the final result! It's definitely looking better though. Right now I've got it taped up and I'm wearing my glasses so it won't be so obvious when my dad looks at it, haha (please excuse how horrible my face looks, I still have some bruising and my skin is awful due to not being able to cleanse it properly for 13 days!) Updated on 18 Feb 2014: Here's a comparison photo of my left side angle and what it looks like with the tape on that I have to wear for a month. Boo. You can already see such a huge difference though! I love it. No more bump, and it doesn't stick out a mile from my face anymore, so now my cheekbones can be the focus instead of my nose :) can't wait to see what I look like with makeup on cuz right now obviously the rest of my face looks pretty horrid Updated on 18 Feb 2014: Heres the comparison photo of my left side angle Updated on 18 Feb 2014: Here's a pic I made comparing before & afters of my left and right side profiles. Keep in mind this is only the first full day of having my cast removed, so there's still lots of swelling! Updated on 19 Feb 2014: I normally never leave the house without wearing makeup, so the fact that I posted pics on here without any is quite an accomplishment lol. Today I have a job interview so I finally got to see my new nose with makeup on! It's still swollen but I'm loving it so far Updated on 21 Feb 2014: Updated on 21 Feb 2014: Updated on 24 Feb 2014: From what I can tell, the swelling has gone down quite a bit! What do you guys think? Updated on 3 Mar 2014: Can't believe it's been a month since I had my surgery! Not sure if it feels like way longer or way shorter. I'm thinking the former, so much has happened since then. My nose is still swollen and feels numb to the touch. Putting on makeup feels so weird and sometimes I get like phantom pains on my tip and where the stitches on my nostrils used to be. I'm posting some pics of my profile view (keep in mind its still very swollen, I'm still taping!) As per request by some of you. Agai, thanks for following my journey :) Updated on 11 Mar 2014: Updated on 2 Apr 2014: Hi everyone, sorry i haven't posted in a while, but there hasn't been much to say :P Had my post-op with Dr. Warren today, it was my first time seeing him since my surgery almost 2 months ago. He's very pleased with my progress so far and says I'm right where I should be in terms of my recovery. There's still swelling, as the tip is still quite hard (I can't even stick my pinky finger into my nose cuz it's so swollen) but that'll take a year to subside. He poked it and felt where the cartilage is under the swelling, cuz that's where it'll stop, and said there isn't that much more to go, but if I'm happy with the results now, I'll be even more happy in a few months. I don't have to see him again until October, then that'll be it if all goes well then! Oh and he checked my septum and said it's holding up well. I still tape my nose when I'm at home or sleeping sometimes but I still find that it's noticeably swollen in the morning. The nurse coordinator said that's ok and there's absolutely no harm in taping. When I first got to his office, his receptionist freaked out when she saw me, and she's normally very chill and professional. I was so happy that she was thrilled with the results, since she's seen tons of his patients, you'd think she'd be used to great results, so mine must be especially fantastic! I told Dr. Warren that too, that I had very high expectations and he managed to exceed them :) I posted some before & afters here for you guys to look at. Will update if anything new comes up Updated on 6 Apr 2014: I like making before & after photos to see how subtle yet fantastic the difference is! Updated on 13 Jun 2014: By request by some of you, here's what I look like now. The swelling has gone down tremendously as you can tell and I'm really happy with the results. I dunnoif it'll subside over time but from the front view, the nostrils look crooked, like one is higher than the other. What do you think? Updated on 9 Jul 2014: Hi everyone, some of you already know this, but there's a reason why I haven't really been posting any detailed updates lately. Since this is the only blog I have where I can share my thoughts, aside from my facebook statuses, and generally a safe community (aside from one bully who was harassing me and posting horrible things about myself and my mother about a month ago), I thought I'd post on here for some support. 3 days ago my mom lost her 14-year battle with cancer. She fought it with courage, dignity, and a sense of humour all the way to the end. I loved her so much, more than anyone or anything in this world, and I feel so empty without her. This is more than someone at my age of 23 should be going through. I've lost all 3 of my grandparents, but nothing compares to losing a parent at this age, so if you are going through/have gone through a similar experience, feel free to reach out. :(
Tonight I am saying goodbye to my tiny boobies and tomorrow morning I will have new breasts! I personally had a hard time finding stories from others who had subglandular implants so I've decided to write about my experiences to hopefully help others. I am 5'7, about 120 lbs with a small and narrow frame. My measurements are 32 inches at the bust, 23 inch waist and 34 inch hips. I am currently about a 32 b bra size but sometimes can wear a 32 c from Victoria's secret. My plastic surgeon will be Dr Richard Warren. I also went for a consultation with Dr Pugash, and while he did seem great, I decided to go with Dr Warren since I was impressed by his experience and CV. Also, apparently Dr Warren is the only plastic surgeon in Vancouver who will go over the muscle! I initially did not think I would be a candidate for subglandular implants due to my low bmi and small breasts. So I was very surprised when Dr Warren said that he thinks I could have a great result going over the muscle. Since I am very active and have strong and thick pectoral muscles (I love pushups!) he encouraged me to go with the over the muscle placement but said he would ultimately let me decide. I spent a lot of time going back and forth, but I have decided I definitely want to go with subglandular implants since that will eliminate the risk of animation deformity, and I won't have to worry about my workouts causing migration of the implants. Also, since my breasts are a little widely spaced, the subglandular implant will help give me more cleavage. Plus, the recovery will hopefully be easier! I tried on several sizers and I liked the look of 300 and 325 ccs. However, since my BWD is only 11.2, to get that volume I would have to have high profile implants. I emphasized to Dr Warren that I really want a natural shape and I don't want a stuck on ball look. Since I am going over the muscle I was worried that that the tops will be too rounded. So in the end Dr Warren said that he will try out different profiles and sizes during the surgery to see what looks best. He warned me that I may end up with 275 moderate plus since that profile looks a bit more natural, and I think I am ok with that. I also gave him some wish pics and he said that he will do his best to match them! I am going to get ready for bed now since I have to be up super early but I will try to post more soon! Updated on 23 Aug 2016: So I had my surgery this morning! So far it has been an easy and smooth day. I arrived at Dr Warrens office at 7:15 AM. I then spoke to the anaesthesiologist for about 15 minutes and he answered a few questions I had about nausea and side effects. He was super nice and warm and put me totally at ease. The nurse then asked me to change into a gown and robe, and I relaxed in the Preop area for a little while. Next Dr Warren came in and marked my breasts while explaining all the marking as he made them. All this time I was super relaxed and comfortable as everyone was so nice and friendly. The nurse then took me to the operating room and I started getting a little nervous. Luckily everyone was very fast to get me into position and get the IV in. Before I knew it I was closing my eyes and then waking up in the recovery area! When I woke up I didn't really have pain and I didn't have the feeling of an elephant sitting on my chest that everyone describes. I just felt a little bit sore with some tightness and pressure. It's kind of how I normally feel when I wear a tight sports bra when my breasts are swollen before my period. Dr Warren came in shortly after and told me that I received 300 cc high profile. During the surgery he discovered that my BWD was only 11.0 cm and the 300 cc implant is 11.1 cm so that was the biggest he could put in. He also reassured me that my end result should look very similar to my wish pics. I waited in the recovery room for about an hour and the nurse gave me some apple juice and crackers. I wasn't nauseous at all and I didn't vomit. When my mom arrived to pick me up the nurse came out with us to the car and helped me sit down and do up my seatbelt. The nurse was really amazing and had also blocked off the elevator so that I would have it to myself on the way to the parking lot. Everyone at dr warrens office was so amazing today and it really made a difference in how great I feel now. The drive home was smooth, although I did have a brief wave of nausea which passed when my mom turned on the ac and I closed my eyes. I got home and lay down in bed propped up with pillows and I've been here since. I'm not sleepy at all so I've just been watching tv. I also do not have any pain yet but I know that it will kick in once the local anaesthetic wears off. So far the day has been much easier than I expected. I haven't had any nausea or vomiting, my head is clear, and I can easily walk to the bathroom. I'm tempted to study a bit (my phd defense is 3 weeks from Friday) but the nurse insisted that I don't do any work for the first 2 days! Updated on 23 Aug 2016: I forgot to mention that I received mentor smooth round high profile cohesive 1 implants. Updated on 25 Aug 2016: So far my recovery has been much easier than I expected. I did have some pain the night of my surgery, but the pain killers dr Warren prescribed helped me fall asleep and ignore it. The following morning was not bad and I didn't have any of the expected pain or tightness. But I did take a few more pain killers throughout the day. Today I only took two extra strength Tylenol once in the morning and once in the evening. My back has been bothering me a bit, but I have been trying to support it with pillows when I am reclining. Today I was allowed to take of my bandages and finally have a look at my results! My boobs are a bit bigger than I expected, but I am know that they will shrink a bit as the swelling goes down. I like the shape so far as it looks very natural and I think it will get better as they drop. I was also allowed to shower today which felt amazing! I am now wearing a surgical bra which dr Warren's office gave me. It's a bit uncomfortable as the band presses on my incision, but it's much better than the foam and bandages. I didn't want to leave the compression bra off for too long (mainly because it feels like my boobs are going to fall off) so I was only able to snap a few photos but I will post more soon! Updated on 27 Aug 2016: I'm now 4 days post op and feeling fantastic! I have no pain anymore besides a little tightness in the morning. I did take a pain pill last night but only to help me sleep, because I actually had no pain. I couldn't handle wearing the surgical bra I was given anymore. The band was much too loose and kept riding up and pressing on my incision which was very painful. Plus it has been very hot this week and the synthetic fabric was making me super hot and sweaty. So I since last night I have been wearing a cotton fruit of the loom front close surgical type of bra which I ordered on Amazon. And this thing is amazing! The material is soft and breathable, it provides great support and compression. And since it's longer, the band is well below my incision site. I wasn't sure which size to order so I ordered 34 and 36 and the 36 was perfect. While the 34 does fit, it doesn't cover the sides of my breasts (at the armpits). The hardest part of the recovery (besides the awful surgical bra) has been sitting at home! I'm going absolutely stir crazy! I normally work out 5-6 days a week and fill my days from morning to night with work, exercise and social activities. This is the most I've been at home for years and I can't handle it! I have been taking my dog out for walks but since it's been very hot, the walks become quite strenuous and I worry about bleeding so I have been trying to keep them short. I can't wait to go back to work on Monday. I'm loving the size and shape of my new breasts so far. However I would like them to settle a bit as they look a little high. And I also can't wait for them to soften up, but I'm sure this will happen in time. They are definitely bigger than I expected for 300 cc but I'm happy with the size. I think they look proportional to my frame but I'm certainly happy I didn't go bigger! I'm also surprised at how much of my chest is covered by the implants, since they are high profile. I can see now why the moderate plus didn't fit. I'm glad I didn't get a lower profile as I think they may have made me look fatter. I'm curious to find out what bra size I will end up! Updated on 31 Aug 2016: Yesterday I went for my post op visit at Dr Warrens office and was instructed on massage which I am supposed to do everyday for a year. The massage feels great at this point and helps take away the tight, sore, heavy feeling that I've been getting. My nipples have been excruciatingly painful and sensitive, and even the slightest breeze or bounce causes pain. Dr Warren said this is normal and is a good sign that the nerves are healing. But I can't stand it! I've been wearing silicone nipple cover which help a bit because they reduce friction. If anyone has other tips please let me know! My breasts are dropping and becoming a more natural shape. I am liking the size more as they drop. Updated on 10 Feb 2017: I've been meaning to write this update for ages but haven't gotten around to it. Sorry about the delay! My breasts have settled nicely and are extremely soft and squishy. I was recently told by someone I started dating that he wouldn't be able to tell they're fake if it wasn't for the scar! I've been measured at 32dd at Nordstrom and Victoria's Secret, but 32dd is a bit small in the cup in some VS styles. I still have the slight asymmetry that I started out with but it doesn't bother me at all. I can still do the same workouts I used to do, including lots of chest and upper body exercises on the TRX. I love the size and the natural looking slope of my breasts. Overall I'm very pleased with my results. Updated on 10 Feb 2017:
