Almost a year post-op... still unhappy

After my surgeon discussed his revision plans for me, I decided to get some second opinions as I just felt uneasy about it all. After visiting numerous facial plastic surgeons - all of whom knew I wasn't there to book surgery, but rather JUST to get second opinions (I cannot afford another surgery as I'm going to be paying off my surgery with Dr. Horowitz for years to come) - I have decided to completely cancel all future appointments with my original surgeon and will not step foot into his office again. The first surgeon pointed out that I have a severely deviated septum - something that was never brought to my attention and could have been fixed during my original surgery! Not only that, it may have alleviated some of the expense as my insurance would have covered that correction.
Secondly, all surgeons cringed at the idea of injecting steroids into my nose AND doubly cringed at the idea of doing the rasping procedure without anesthetic. I've been told that obviously, my surgeon isn't a "nose guy".. that the dark circles and scar under my eyes as a result from the surgery are likely permanent and there's not much I will be able to do about them, that he "didn't do totally wrong by you, but he definitely didn't do right by you.." And, by all surgeons I have visited, that I would need another open rhinoplasty to fix things and get desired results. This is so disheartening and I got emotional about it every time. And to top it off, I have had ZERO follow-up from my original surgeon's office on why I've cancelled or if I'm planning on rescheduling, etc, etc. I feel like he got my money, permanently damaged me, and that's it for me.
To everyone considering surgery... you MUST MUST MUST visit many doctors.. get a lot of consultations. I, unfortunately, trusted the first surgeon I visited and am paying for it now.

I'm approaching one full-year post-op and thought I'd throw an update up. I am pretty unhappy with my results so far. I don't feel like my nose has changed much at all. My two main concerns, the nose being large and too bulbous, are still very present. Beyond that, I had bruised terribly with surgery - beyond normal, according to my doctor, and have been left with these dark, baggy circle under each eye. No amount of concealer, expensive under-eye cream, or experimental treatment issued by my doc has helped thus far. Instead of looking better and feeling better, I'm feeling more down on my appearance than ever. No one has noticed any change in me, not even family who knew about the procedure... the only thing I hear from others now is how tired I look.

At my nine-month follow up, I expressed my concerns to my doctor. After having to explain to him what I was unhappy about, I was told of two options we could start with. First, the bulbous tip... My doctor explained that the cartilage under my skin should be perfect.. that he has created beautiful framework, but that I have thick skin and it's not "hanging" or "shink-wrapping" the framework. He said we could start steroid injections (Kenalog) to thin the skin, but this, of course, has risks of it's own (i.e. in an extreme case, a Michael Jackson nose). He also stated we could "rasp" my nose... shaving down the bridge to it isn't so over projected. He suggested that we do both of these procedures on the same day, same time. The rasping can be done in his office, under local anesthetic, but I may hear everything that is going on during the procedure (this makes my stomach turn just thinking about it). He has offered to cover the costs of the steroid injections and rasping procedure, so long as they are done in his office and not at a surgery center where an anesthesiologist and operating room nurse is needed. I have done a ton of research on both the steroid injections and the rasping procedure, but have not had a strong feeling either way that it's the right or wrong thing to move forward with. I'm incredibly nervous about it all. I have the procedure scheduled, but am having a few appointments with other local facial plastic surgeons for second opinions... of course, which I cannot afford should they offer a different or better route in fixing things.

If anyone has had rasping or steroid injections, I'd love to hear about your experience.

Day 17 - Adding a picture (holding my son - titled Day 17). My husband snapped this photo at a birthday party and I was shocked that I didn't HATE my profile! My nose/profile isn't quite where I want it to be just yet, but I am seeing progress! Yay! Still dealing with swelling and soreness, and still have bruising under my eyes, but each day is better and better.