How long after rhinoplasty surgery will I be feeling normal again?

I have had a rhinoplasty myself so I can tell you the
experience. I was back to work in 9
days. At that point I was ready to
resume all activities, including strenuous exercise. Now, we do not know exactly what needs to be
done for you. Some people have
septoplasty and turbinate resection to improve the airway and other
reconstructive procedures; others will have a purely cosmetic procedure. Nonetheless, you need to be fit and looking
A-okay 16 days after your procedure, so that you can start your job, I think it
is a good bet.

Remember, some patients tend to bruise and swell more
than others. The swelling and bruising
is also a factor of the length of the operation, the technical issues involved,
the skill and expediency of the surgeon, and whether or not additional drugs
are used to reduce swelling and bruising.

Today swelling and bruising is less of a problem as it
was before because of medications that are very helpful. The most important factor is the agility of
the surgeon and the ability to operate rapidly and efficiently. A long operation at 3-5 hours is more apt to
produce more swelling and bruising than a 1-1/2 hour rhinoplasty. Likewise, if cartilage is grafted, that adds
to the length of the operation and often
means a little more swelling and bruising.
There is no 1 rule that covers the experience for everybody in the hands
of all surgeons.

Your consultations will be very important. You want to prepare by reading books, look at
the websites and particularly the before and afters, look at the computer
imaging results on the website. Review
the testimonials and patient reviews on the website and on the standard review
sites such as RealSelf. You want to know
about the surgeon. You want to know how
specialized the surgeon is. You do want
a surgeon who majors in nasal cosmetic and reconstructive surgery, and in whose
practice most of the time is spent doing those procedures. It is very difficult to be a generalist and
perform well on all the myriad and varied cosmetic and reconstructive
procedures on the face, neck, and body.

The homework you do upfront will pay off.

Best
wishes,

Robert
Kotler, MD, FACS

Over
4,500 nasal procedures performed

 At 16 days after a rhinoplasty procedure, most of the visible bruising and swelling will have subsided. There will still be very minimal swelling that only the patient and the surgeon can detect.  It is possible to get bacteria her exercise routine at 2 weeks after the procedure, however it's important not to get hit in the nose for at least 6 weeks