Revision with Dr. Grigoryants... I Found Hope!

Quick Facts About Me:
1) I had my primary rhinoplasty in 2010 with Dr. Lame. I was devastated by the results.
2) I have been trolling this website for 7 years, seeking hope
3) Over the years, I interviewed about 4 doctors
4) I eventually found Dr. Grigoryants. Consult was Nov. 2016. Surgery was April 2017.
Note, I have a separate posting about my primary rhinoplasty detailing the emotional roller-coaster I went through with a surgeon I will call "Dr. Lame". I HATED my face after the surgery for many years. Still to this day, I have not shared photos of my wedding because I despised my nose. I felt like it was a pushed-up, shapeless blob. I know this might sound crazy, but about 6 years post primary I started to think my nose hump was growing (more noticeable on one-side). My nose never had "good days"; swelling was obvious during seasonal changes (allergies) & eating certain foods.
I was so traumatized by my primary with Dr. Lame, it was emotionally hard to have any faith that my nose could be fixed. Dr. Grigoryants is a nose specialist with many years experience. I was seeking a doctor that focuses on NOSES, versus a surgeon that does a little bit of everything. His portfolio of noses showed his refinement skills & attention to detail. The majority of his noses have an up-turned Hollywood look to them... I was not sure if this was his preferred aesthetic & was initially worried he would go rogue on me.
I tried to mentally prepare myself for worst case scenarios and finally garnered the courage to take a chance on a REVISION. I felt like I spent my 30's being miserable & reclusive, which is the complete opposite of my personality. With my birth nose: I was always laughing out loud, social, friendly, playful. I thought, do I want to spend the rest of my life regretful that I am responsible for screwing up my birth face?
The first time I met Dr. G, I thought he looks young! He was very courteous & listened to everything I said. I never showed him photos of my birth nose. This is because I did not want to give myself a false sense of hope. It's not like he is working with a blank canvas! My nose had a TON of deformed scar tissue from my primary. I simply explained, I wanted a long & skinny nose. My husband mentioned he wanted it straight from the profile... I personally didn't care about my hump. Since I don't see it, it never bothered me! My husband is an architect & he literally sketched the ideal profile for Dr.G to reference. It was pretty funny.
Dr.G made suggestions, including raising the tip & giving it more shape. I told him that I did NOT want my nose to look shorter or pushed-up. I said I like the overhang look, & thought it would give the perception my nose "looks longer" & straighter. Be very clear with him what you want. Repeat over & over what you do not want.
I did provide images right before surgery (salma hayek & natalie portman) & he was concerned my bridge would look "too thin". But because he was ALSO fixing my deviated septum & shaving, rebuilding bridge-- I was afraid it was going to look really wide with all that work. I signed paperwork that he was allowed to take/use ear cartilage if needed. He said he would use thin spreader grafts using my own cartilage to avoid an "inverted v", so that the nose does not collapse after shaving the hump (& gives a smooth slope to the nose). Look up "inverted v" images if you don't understand. Scary!
After mentioning via RealSelf that I had a surgery booked with Dr.G, I had random emails from "former patients" claiming he botched them. I never really saw clear photos of their claims, but I definitely sensed these few people were very unhappy with him (could be personal?). Their messages "warning" me started to mess with my head. I was crazy nervous 1 week before & actually tried to cancel the surgery, knowing I would lose $5k-- I couldn't sleep, my stomach was in knots, & I was just about to give up.
I sent an email to him, briefly explaining my anxiety & that for the record I wanted to cancel. To my surprise, Dr.G called me back within a day. I just happened to be with my husband, & on speaker phone he thoroughly explained every step of the surgery, and gave me the assurance I needed. He said "Your nose will look better. Trust me. I do noses all the time." Which is true!
My husband has been my rock of support over the years. Make sure that you have a friend to lean on if you do plastic surgery! A sounding board is very important. Recovering from major surgery is mentally & emotionally grueling.
Dr. Grigoryants is great, his staff is nice, & the surgery center was fantastic. It's good to have photo reference, but don't set unrealistic expectations for yourself... I went in to surgery hoping for improvement, but not an extreme makeover.
I think my last words to him, before I dozed off from anesthesia, were "I want it skinny." LOL.
Recovery was so-so. I did not bruise that bad. My eyes itched like HELL. I had the worst acne on my nose & still do. I think I was constipated. When the cast was removed, in his office I saw my husband's "Oh Wow!" facial expression. Dr. G grabbed a mirror for me to look & I pushed it away. My primary nose job was such a terrible experience, I was sincerely scared to see my face. I just felt overwhelmed that this day had finally come & I just said "I am not ready to look in the mirror." I now realize that was rude of me because I think Dr. Grigoryants was very proud of his work. He is such a nice person... but I was just not ready to see it.
I am now 2 months post-op & I'm glad I went through this revision with Dr. Grigoryants. It is a big improvement from my primary. Results look great already. Irony is, nobody has noticed the difference (close friends)... but I see it :) So, I am very happy. He said that my tip is still very swollen & that I will see refinement in later months (& years). Yes, I know it's hard to understand... but I swear my nose evolved 5 years post with my primary.
I realize I look a lot older now, comparing images from my primary 7 years ago. This has been a very long journey for me. I am so thankful for the Real Self community, always reaching-out & honestly sharing their stories: the ups & the downs. Personally, if I could go back in time I would have never changed my birth nose.
If you are considering Dr. Grigoryants, you will be in good hands. I would highly recommend him. I am now finally able to embrace this new me. Make sure to communicate exactly what you want (don't assume he knows). Everyone has a different aesthetic or "ideal" nose. Speak up if you have questions. I believe he is the nose master, but also be aware that surgery is irreversible. Good luck!
Oh, I forgot another cherry on top... I can breathe better with his septoplasty work. Yeah!

The healing process is so weird! Last week my nose was swollen. It looked so awkward... my nose bridge looked crazy skinny in proportion to my (fat, round) tip (?) I was starting to get scared. However, today I look pretty good. LOL. I think I will start to keep a food journal & see if there is a correlation with my diet & my nose looking swollen. Overall, I am still very happy. My breathing is great. I do get stuffy, but I'm pretty sure it is related to my allergy issues. I did have excessive scar tissue on my nose tip from my primary (not from Dr G's revision), so there was always an unbalance. There is still a lump on 1 side of my nose but it is drastically smaller-- since the revision. Like I said before, I was not expecting perfection. Best part, no filter needed OR nose contouring.

Last week, I felt my nose was looking too skinny. Today I woke up & my nose looks huge (especially tip). I did eat salty tamales & a massive plate of spaghetti late last night... so may be it is sodium overload? I am not liking how my nose looks in photos, but it's way better than previous. I filmed a YouTube video, unrelated to Rhino Journey & I intentionally tried add a little shadow to my bridge. My friend is gorgeous... so I have nose envy. LOL. Anyways, after watching the footage, I thought my nose looks crazy skinny ?!? Oh dear. Anyways, I am sharing the video link. Please be respectful & avoid commenting on my nose via YouTube-- 2 different worlds! Haha. https://youtu.be/SlxbizPH59w