POSTED UNDER Rhinoplasty Reviews REVIEWS
21 Year Old Who Waited Years... - Edmonton, AB
ORIGINAL POST
Ugh...where to begin? I've wanted a...
gc.yegFebruary 23, 2016
Ugh...where to begin? I've wanted a rhinoplasty for the majority of my life, my mother has had 3! I'm eastern european and am in love with all my features; however, my nose never pleased me. I had a big dorsal hump, it was long, skinny, and with a tip that drooped when I smiled or laughed. On top of this I had several functional issues: cartilage collapse that sucked in and obstructed when I breathed, a deviated septum, and enlarged turbinates. Finally when I was 19 I got a referral from my GP... 3 months to be contacted by the ENT's office, another 1 month wait for an apt followed by a 3 week wait for a second apt. 14 months from my second apt, I finally had my surgery.
I want to wait before I state the name of my doctor, I will say that he seems to be a very nice guy with great bedside manner. I would like to wait and see what his resolution is for my concerns before I completely drag him through the mud. Despite being a facial plastic surgeon as well as an ENT who said "it will be about $2500 or $3000", he never seemed like he was forthcoming about my expectations when I requested a "cuter" nose with a "gentle slope", which was ultimately my only cosmetic request. I was never concerned with changing the tip or the fact that my nose would be slightly wider, I truly only wanted profile improvement. I probably should have been a lot more aggressive when I spoke about this, but he should have as well and told me that he didn't think this was anatomically possible or appropriate for my face. I should have also taken a bit of a red flag for the lack of communication or standard rhinoplasty process in this clinic. There were never any before photos taken, digital imaging to show what I might look like after, or offers to show me photos of similar cases. I was never given a cost breakdown as to what exactly the $3000.00 charge was for, which I did not appreciate... where does that number come from? Was it just pulled out of a hat? Despite this, his excellent bedside manner, my eagerness to have a rhinoplasty, and his good word-of-mouth reputation eclipsed all of those shortcomings. 2 weeks post op I feel somewhat ripped off. Himself and his office was eager to take my money but not particularly interested to discuss much of anything else.
My out of pocket cost for this was $3000.00 which felt like a bargain for a rhinoplasty I've been dying to have for most of my life. Can't say that I feel my current results live up to the out of pocket cost + whatever insurance paid for the rest.
Fast forwarding to 7 day post op splint removal... I was nervous/excited. It came off to reveal a much improved profile but still a hump. I chalked this up to swelling and didn't have a meltdown as I promised myself I wouldn't. Tip work was minimal to my knowledge other than raising it slightly to make everything proportionate (my tip doesn't seem very swollen even now and I have no issues with it). Anyways, I was initially very satisfied knowing that it seemed to have turned out well and would have even more improvement from here on. As the last week has gone, I am growing more disappointed with my results day by day. I understand it is still very early, but I get the impression from reading experiences of people with this same issue (a persistent hump) that it will not likely improve to a satisfying result anywhere near to what I was hoping. It appears my swelling has gone down in the upper area of my bridge (more towards the area between my eyes) which has exposed this residual hump. I have booked an apt with my PS for later this week to determine if something has moved or stitches didn't hold as the appearance of both my bridge and nostrils seem to be changing for the worse. I am already feeling very depressed and embarrassed about this- I was very public about getting this procedure and now I feel like I can't even pretend to be excited when someone asks me about it. I am concerned already that this will require a costly revision procedure... also something that my doctor never discussed with me...
Anyways, comments and opinions (professional or personal) are welcome. I will be updating over the next weeks and months.
I want to wait before I state the name of my doctor, I will say that he seems to be a very nice guy with great bedside manner. I would like to wait and see what his resolution is for my concerns before I completely drag him through the mud. Despite being a facial plastic surgeon as well as an ENT who said "it will be about $2500 or $3000", he never seemed like he was forthcoming about my expectations when I requested a "cuter" nose with a "gentle slope", which was ultimately my only cosmetic request. I was never concerned with changing the tip or the fact that my nose would be slightly wider, I truly only wanted profile improvement. I probably should have been a lot more aggressive when I spoke about this, but he should have as well and told me that he didn't think this was anatomically possible or appropriate for my face. I should have also taken a bit of a red flag for the lack of communication or standard rhinoplasty process in this clinic. There were never any before photos taken, digital imaging to show what I might look like after, or offers to show me photos of similar cases. I was never given a cost breakdown as to what exactly the $3000.00 charge was for, which I did not appreciate... where does that number come from? Was it just pulled out of a hat? Despite this, his excellent bedside manner, my eagerness to have a rhinoplasty, and his good word-of-mouth reputation eclipsed all of those shortcomings. 2 weeks post op I feel somewhat ripped off. Himself and his office was eager to take my money but not particularly interested to discuss much of anything else.
My out of pocket cost for this was $3000.00 which felt like a bargain for a rhinoplasty I've been dying to have for most of my life. Can't say that I feel my current results live up to the out of pocket cost + whatever insurance paid for the rest.
Fast forwarding to 7 day post op splint removal... I was nervous/excited. It came off to reveal a much improved profile but still a hump. I chalked this up to swelling and didn't have a meltdown as I promised myself I wouldn't. Tip work was minimal to my knowledge other than raising it slightly to make everything proportionate (my tip doesn't seem very swollen even now and I have no issues with it). Anyways, I was initially very satisfied knowing that it seemed to have turned out well and would have even more improvement from here on. As the last week has gone, I am growing more disappointed with my results day by day. I understand it is still very early, but I get the impression from reading experiences of people with this same issue (a persistent hump) that it will not likely improve to a satisfying result anywhere near to what I was hoping. It appears my swelling has gone down in the upper area of my bridge (more towards the area between my eyes) which has exposed this residual hump. I have booked an apt with my PS for later this week to determine if something has moved or stitches didn't hold as the appearance of both my bridge and nostrils seem to be changing for the worse. I am already feeling very depressed and embarrassed about this- I was very public about getting this procedure and now I feel like I can't even pretend to be excited when someone asks me about it. I am concerned already that this will require a costly revision procedure... also something that my doctor never discussed with me...
Anyways, comments and opinions (professional or personal) are welcome. I will be updating over the next weeks and months.
Replies (3)
Thanks
3000.00 is incredibly cheap for a nose job, I’m wondering if yours was done in AB or somewhere else in Canada?
I’m researching surgeons in the LA area and the average cost of a nose job is 14K CAD.
I do think your new nose is a big improvement, but tbh yes I see a very very slight bump still- maybe it’s still the swelling and it will go down!
All in all your nose looks good, it’s not butchered by any means! It’s a cute nose! but I understand where you’re coming from with the disappointment.
Yes, in Edmonton. It was $3000 because I paid a cosmetic fee on top of having a covered surgery for functional issues (cartilage collapse, turbinate reduction, septoplasty). This was a great and affordable option of course compared to paying 100% private.
I ended up having a revision with the same doctor afterwards (free of charge) about 2 years later. It is better now. Not perfect but my profile is now straight (I have a weird little dent that shows sometimes in the right light but it’s whatever). Reflecting on my first surgery, it was certainly an improvement, it just wasn’t nearly as dramatic as I’d wanted and expressed.
The disappointment definitely comes from lots of waiting, paying money, going through the procedure, and getting a result that you weren’t happy with. The hardest part was waiting until the 14 month mark where he agreed to do a revision. Im glad I did it nonetheless, but it truly was much better after my second surgery. If you have any questions feel free to PM me!