See ya later big nose :) - Chicago, IL

So it's been a few months and everything is still going good. My nose doesn't feel exactly back to normal yet and is still swollen at the tip but it has definitely been worth it!

I can't believe it has already been over a month since I had my rhinoplasty! Things are healing very well. The tip is still swollen, but I couldn't be happier. I love my new nose and am a lot more confident. I get a lot more compliments as well since the procedure surprisingly. It already looks 1 billion times better, it's crazy to think it will continue to improve! :)

Recovery Summary

Day of Surgery- Woke up from surgery with a little pain but the nurse kindly fed me applesauce with vicodin to make that go away and added nausea medicine to my IV because of my long drive home. This day was very easy/enjoyable thanks to the drugs I was either sleeping or singing in the car with my ice packs on. All I ate was naked smoothies with a straw and applesauce because my mouth was numb and I drooled a bit. Going out in public (gas stations for the bathroom) is a fun experience people stare but try not to look you in the eye because you look so ridiculous bruised, cast, and a feminine look alike product taped across your face.

Day 1- This day was worse but more miserable than painful. I felt like I had a bad cold with a throbbing head. Pain medicine and frozen peas were my comfort. I added cooked spinach, quinoa (good protein), and mashed potatoes to my diet. I constantly was drinking water with a straw all recovery week because my mouth got really dry.

Day 2- This was the worst day for me for discomfort. I just lounged around and slept mostly while following the same regimen as day 1.

Day 3- Started to feel a lot better on day 3! Getting up and walking around makes you feel less miserable than just laying around so I added that to my routine. I could actually function such as studying and making myself meals etc. I stopped taking my pain meds and switched to Tylenol.

Day 4- Back to kind of my normal self and can start to somewhat breath through my nose (my left nostril mainly). I didn’t have to take any pain meds or Tylenol this day. I even cleaned and made chocolate peanut butter cupcakes for fun today!

Day 5-Day 6- Just keep getting better and can’t wait to be able to workout and get back to my normal daily routine in a couple of weeks.

Swelling/Bruising
My swelling and bruising weren’t bad at all. I got one little bruise under my left eye and not too much swelling besides my nose. This is probably due to Dr. Shah using precision and care during the surgery. I also took supplements of vitamin C, Arnica Montana (pills, and gel form), and Bromelain while icing religiously. I followed a pretty healthy diet before and during the recovery including lots of vegetables and fruits. “They” say that pineapple helps swelling so I added a lot of that to my recovery smoothies.

My necessary items
-Q-tips, gauze, medical tape
-Saline (lots of it to clean out the crust in my nose)
-Deep Clean Neutrogena cleansing wipes- great to clean my face when I didn’t want to move
-Straws (My mouth and teeth hurt/felt numb so straws saved me)
-Peas in gloves/plastic baggies- I used peas in gloves then switched to plastic ziplock baggies after 2 days because I liked that better. (I iced 3.5 days)
-Vaseline (Constantly rubbing on my lips to stop dryness).
-Pillows, blankets and a recliner to make a nest for the healing process.

***Google says you’re not suppose to wash your hair for a week after rhinoplasty but I’m a grease ball so I did wash my hair carefully in a shallow bath and didn’t even get water close to my cast. Being clean does make you feel SOO much better.
***Don’t watch comedies during recovery it hurts so BAD when you laugh! I even got mad at my Dad for making me laugh too much.