Out of Town Patient Rhinoplasty - Two Weeks Post Op! - Glendale, CA

Hello Real Self community! This website has become an invaluable resource for me. I love reading people's personal stories, reviews and experiences with plastic surgery. Since my own rhinoplasty is coming up, I thought it was finally time I made my own contribution to the website in hopes that it will help others who are contemplating rhinoplasty. So here goes nothing!


A little background info on me: I am of Middle Eastern descent, and have been blessed with a "typical" Persian nose. My feelings towards my nose are mixed. In my early teenage years, I used to despise it with a burning passion and couldn’t stand my appearance. Presently, I have reached the point where I feel mostly neutral about my nose and am comfortable enough with it that I don't loathe myself every single time I look into the mirror. To put it simply, I have learned how to live with my nose. Plastic surgery never really seemed like a realistic option for me. I mean, we live in a society where there is so much negative stigma around plastic surgery and my knowledge on the topic was very limited and biased. Rhinoplasty always seemed like some far fetched dream that I would never go through with. In fact, my worst nightmare was getting rhinoplasty and ending up like the celebrities we see too often on the cover of trashy magazines with the title "Plastic Surgery Gone Wrong!!!!!".

However, this all changed when I discovered Real Self. I spent (and still do!) an extensive amount of time simply reading people's experiences with rhinoplasty and researching the plastic surgery world more in depth. After reading so many positive, life-changing stories, something suddenly clicked inside of me. Plastic surgery didn't seem so scary anymore. I realized I didn't want to live a life where I felt lousy and insecure about my appearance. The position of your nose is critical. Since it's in the middle of your face, it puts it right front and centre for every communication situation. I’m tired of constantly tilting my head in order to disguise my big nose in photographs, tired of using filters, covering up my face with a crap ton of makeup and hiding under my big hair. Mentally, I was finally ready for a change. I was ready to invest in my own personal happiness.

After months of searching for a plastic surgeon that specialized in rhinoplasty, I came across Dr. Grigoryants. I was incredibly impressed by his vast array of beautiful before and after photos and amazing reviews from his patients. It was also very reassuring to me that he had already worked with noses similar/identical to mine! I feel as though I can trust him to work wonders on my nose (which crazy since I have never even met him and I will be flying down from Canada for the surgery but my heart is all for it so I know it will all be worth it!).

My surgery date is now set for August 14th... a little too far away for my liking but it gives me a good excuse to practice my patience and save up (which is hard when you're in university full time!). Anyone have any tips on saving money when you’re a reckless spender?

Also promise to post pictures soon!

Cheers! x
N

(The fact that I can now write “before” on my photos makes me so giddy- anyone else feel the same?! So excited my rhinoplasty is actually happening, it isn’t an idle dream/thought/idea anymore! 6 months to go.... so close but so far.)

As promised, here are some photos of my nose at its best! (cringe) My biggest issue with my nose is the hanging tip. It is especially evident when I laugh or smile. It truly resembles Squidward’s nose in my opinion. My wish is for a more "feminine" nose that will balance the rest of my facial features.
Via email, Dr. G said he will reduce the hump, narrow the bones, and refine / raise the tip!

And the waiting game continues...
N x

Photos didn't upload in the other post... awkward.

A little over two months to go. It’s so hard to believe how quickly time has passed since I first booked my appointment. I remember counting down the days, back when I still had over eight months to go...

Before making the big decision to obtain rhinoplasty, I had learned how to live with my nose, and had a pretty positive self-image. But as the days go on, I’m becoming more and more restless. As unhealthy as this sounds, this surgery has kind of begun to consume my life. It’s all I ever think about. My self-esteem has plummeted and I no longer feel comfortable when I look in the mirror or at photographs of myself. All I keep imagining is how good my nose will look after rhinoplasty and how I wish I had gotten it sooner. I feel as though I have been waiting my entire life for this surgery. (Did anyone else feel this way pre-surgery?) Insecurities aside, I am also so incredibly proud of myself for finally taking the initiative to make this positive change in my life. I’ve been telling all of my family and friends and they’ve all been so great, as they know how important this is to me. I am so lucky to have such supportive people in my life.

In other news, I’ve been taking a lot of “before” photos to ensure I have plenty of pictures to compare my nose pre and post surgery. I’m also working three jobs in a race to make the $9,500 ($11,700+ CAD!!!! damn you conversion rates…) to cover the cost of the surgery. Another thing I’ve started to think about are things I need to purchase both here and down in California (plane ticket, supplies, rental car, place to stay, etc). If anyone has any recommendations for Airbnbs, or medical essentials/ supplies for life post-surgery please feel free to share!

So all in all, things are going okay. Sorry if this blog is all over the place. I’ll most likely check in once more before the big surgery.

Lots of love x

Greetings RealSelf! Long time no see. A lot has happened since we last spoke, so I'll try my best to try to update you all. Sorry if any of this is incoherent. Currently on a bunch of pain meds and am so tired but trying my best to write this all out so I don't forget!

Flew to LA and had my pre-op appointment with Dr. G on Thursday. Everything went really smoothly from the flight, to checking into our Airbnb, to driving down to his office. Met the infamous Dr. G and I can see why everyone is so in love with him! He's very clear, concise and to the point on what can be achieved with your nose through the surgery. He also has a great sense of humour- my mum, sister and I all got a really good vibe from him. Not to mention the guy isn't hard on the eyes either ;) Also! Dr. G said I had a lot of deviation in my nose that he would fix during my surgery.

Day of the surgery I wasn't really nervous to be honest. I knew I was in good hands, plus I had my mom and my sister by my side so I was confident everything would work out. I had my surgery at the Verdugo Hils Hospital in Glendale. The nurses who took care of me were the absolute sweetest. They did their best to make me feel comfortable and relaxed. When I woke up from the surgery I felt so out of it. When I got home and looked in the mirror, I noticed how much bruising I had, which I thought was kind of weird for only being 6 hours post-op (I thought normally the bruises come on day 2-3 post op?).

Post op day one. The night before my mum and I had to keep waking up every hour or so to change the gauze under my nose. I spent the day mostly watching TV and trying to eat food. My left eye was completely swollen shut.

Today is post op day two. The bruising and swelling around my eyes have gone down SIGNIFICANTLY. However, the chipmunk cheeks have made an appearance. My nose feels extremely congested. I have to do everything in my power not to get a tissue and blow everything out of my nose. I am also coughing quite a lot and my ears feel kind of plugged. My biggest issue is sleeping at night. It's so hard to find a comfortable position whilst sleeping upright. I have a special pillow I got from CVS but it isn't doing much to help. Other than that, everything is going mostly okay. Will update again soon!

Happpppppy healing everyone xo

Good afternoon, Realself!

Just wanted to check in. The bruising/swelling around my eyes have faded significantly (shoutout to arnica gel/tablets!!!!). My top lip has completely disappeared though... (I've also been told that this is a normal part of the recovery process and shouldn't worry too much about the disappearance of my lip)... hopefully my lip will make an appearance sometime after the cast is revealed lol. My nose is still feeling kind of stiff/congested, but it's nothing terrible. In regards to sleeping, I always end up waking up on my side. Praying my sleeping habits don't affect the shape of my nose!

So far I'm also loving the slope of my nose. I'm kind of terrified about the space between my lip and my nose though, especially because of how thin my lips are. However, I've also been told that the tip drops a lot post-op. So we'll just have to wait and see! My throat is doing absolutely fine, which I find kind of weird since most people at this stage post op have terrible sore throats. I believe I owe this all to the humidifier that sleeps beside me at night, as well as the amount of water I consume everyday. Nothing really else to report. Again, sorry if this is all over the place. Cannot WAIT to get this cast removed and feel like myself again.

Happy healing everyone x

Hello Realself!

Long time no see. A lot has happened since we last spoke, so I will do my best to break up the past two weeks into comprehensive mini updates.

I was supposed to get my cast removed on Day 6 post op, but I was getting very restless. I missed smelling, tasting and breathing so badly, so I called the office to ask if I could get it removed a day earlier and to my delight, they had a last minute cancellation and were able to squeeze me in! So at five days post op, I got my cast removed.

I knew my nose would be incredibly swollen and wouldn’t take its final shape until a few weeks/months from then, so I tried not to get my hopes up too high and walk in with no expectations, but damn. I felt like my whole life had led up to that moment! When Dr. G removed my cast, he said that my nose looked beautiful (this comment seems so small, but it came as quite the shock to me. No one outside of my immediate family had ever called my nose "beautiful"). He said he would like to see me for a final post-op appointment in a year from now when all of the swelling has gone down. He showed me how to tape my nose, and also told me to tape every night for the next two weeks. We went over a few last minute details and off I went.

When I got home, the first thing I did was shower and oh my, cleaning my body and my hair was just the best feeling in the entire world. After I was all squeaky clean, I looked at myself in the mirror for the first time and was unsure of what I saw looking back at me. On one hand, my profile was GORGEOUS. The slope of my nose is what I have been dreaming about for years and years. However, the front of my nose was not so glamorous.

Between day five and six, I was very overwhelmed whenever I saw myself in the mirror (not particularly in a good way). And I have no shame in saying I had a good cry about it too. What I came to realize is that the surgery part is the easiest bit. the waiting game is the hardest. I just had to keep reminding myself that this is a normal part of the recovery process and that it's okay to be this swollen. So what I look like a pig? I've always hated the tip of my nose and should be happy that the droopy tip is finally gone!

Accidentally posted the last review without proofreading/ posting all of the photos I wanted. OOPS. Will be back soon with more updates, I promise!

Continuing from where I left off, day 7/8 post-op were spent exploring LA. I still had prominent yellow bruising underneath my left eye/cheek (which did not fade until about day 13 post op). My skin was also in horrible condition. It was extremely sensitive, irritated and flaky, yet oily at the same time?! I also remember feeling sooo congested (cleaning my nose was such a process the first few days). Following cast removal, I also immediately started taking vitamin c, zinc and turmeric pills (as prescribed by my naturopath) to boost my immune system. I flew home after 8 days in LA. Initially, I was nervous about the air pressure and how it would affect my new nose, but all in all, it was completely fine.

Fast forward to today- I am technically 17 days post op. My nose has it's ups and downs throughout the day depending on what im doing/eating but overall, i really believe it's refining more and more every day. Time and patience really is key! Right now, I am over the moon with my results and so happy i underwent surgery- it was definitely one of the best decisions i have ever made in my life. I have never felt more confident, comfortable and beautiful in my own skin than I do now. If this is my nose at two weeks post op, I can only imagine what it will look like in two months, or two years from now.

If anyone has any questions or would like advice, please don’t be shy I am more than happy to help! Happy healing to those of you currently in recovery. And to those of you who are still pre-op, I hope you all get the nose of your dreams. xxx