He Destroyed my Nose. :(
He Destroyed my Nose. :(
I hated my nose my entire life. It was large, ugly, and had a huge dorsal hump with a droopy/bulbous tip, and a mild deviated septum. It was always a source of embarassment-- when I was a kid the other kids used to call me "Jew Nose" and throw pennies at me. (kids back then were rotten little [RS bleep], but what does not kill you makes you stronger, right?!) However, I was able to breathe perfectly and never had any respiratory problems. When I turned 50, I gave myself the gift of a nose job because I worked hard all my life and figured I deserved it. I chose Dr. Parker because he had very impressive before and after pictures and he was in my state.
He and his staff were very nice. I felt comfortable with my pre-op visits, and my surgery went well. However, after the surgery I was never able to breathe well and it felt like there was a lot of scar tissue inside my nostrils. When the cast came off there was swelling inside the inner portion of my right nostril by my septum, and I went for injections of steroid 2 or 3 times after which helped minimally (I believe it was not really swelling as much as a very deviated septum with scarring post-surgery). Also, the left tip was firm while the right tip was soft and kind of shapeless. From the side my nose aesthetically looked better, but I could not breathe well out of either nostril and especially the right.
As time went on, it got worse and my right nostril collapsed to the point where it became basically a little slit that I could not breathe out of at all. My nose also has twisted more and more to the left. It kind of looks like Voldemort from Harry Potter from beneath. I also developed allergies--which I have never had in my entire life--as well as a constant runny nose and post-nasal drip. I have never had any of these problems before in my entire life.
I never went back to Dr. Parker because I figured if it wasn't done right the first time, then how was he going to fix it with a revision rhinoplasty which is a much more complicated surgery? I went to an ENT who said I had severe nasal collapse and referred me to a plastic surgeon in my state. I went to him and he said my nose was so bad that I would have to have a septorhinoplasty done with rib or earlobe cartilage grafting. He said he couldn't do it but suggested a specialist at a university in PA. I never went.
For 6 years I have been scouring Realself to find a really excellent revision rhino surgeon. The only ones that sounded good were Dr. Nassif (can't afford him and he is in California, actually thought about applying to be on Botched but my husband said my nose isn't jacked up enough, lol), Dr. Ion in London (Really can't afford or want to go to London!) and Dr. Toriumi in Chicago. There wasn't anybody with that kind of rep on the East Coast, until recently when I began seeing all the reviews about Dr. Reish in NY. After 6 years of worsening breathing, I am finally seriously considering a revision rhinoplasty with Dr. Reish, and had a consultation this week. I am very excited--and terrified--but I love his results, he has a great bedside manner and was kind and down-to-earth. His pictures and reviews speak for themselves. I do believe I am going to go for it. I am waiting for my insurance to pre-auth the part that will (hopefully) be covered, and then I will schedule my appointment!
I know this was super long, but after all these years I really felt that I should post this, so as to avoid anyone else going through what I have gone through. Had I known this was going to happen, I would have stuck with my ugly-but-functional original nose! At least I was able to breathe.
I will post some pictures after my hubby gets done making me a little more anonymous and blacking out the eyes and stuff. I'm not good at the technical stuff. And I will definitely update you on my revision process!! :)
My nose 6 years after my primary rhino, pretty messed up.
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Original nose
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I have the receipt and can furnish it. This is my story and pictures of my actual nose. I'm sorry, I didn't want to say anything because I am not the kind of person that likes to badmouth anyone, and you guys were very nice to me. But my nose is completely destroyed. I was never able to breathe properly out of it after the surgery, and it just got worse as time went on. The right nostril got smaller and more slit-like and the side of my nose is--for lack of better description--caved in. I cannot breathe at all out of the right nostril, the septum is more deviated and my nose is twisted to the left.
When I went to Dr. Sparano (another PS in NJ who was recommended to me after I went to my ENT, because he said I had complete nasal valve collapse/obstruction) he said you took too much cartilage out, the septum needed to be repaired, I needed cartilage grafts, and there was saddle nose deformity from the surgery. He said it was beyond his skill level to repair and suggested I find a PS who specialized in revision rhinos. He actually recommended a craniofacial surgeon at a teaching hospital in Philly because my nose is so bad.
I never went back to you because like I said, it wasn't done right the first time, and I know that a revision is a much more complicated surgery. For 6 years I have been trying to find somebody who specializes in rhinoplasty revisions so that I don't have to have multiple surgeries and wind up looking like Michael Jackson.
There are only two or three surgeons in the US that I would trust at this point to repair my nose. I am not risking going through this again. That is why I never went back.
It wasn't so bad at first, and I thought it would get better over time. I thought it was just the initial swelling, and I was waiting for the "nasal tip refinement" that comes after time. The nose itself was prettier than my original nose and I was very happy with the original look of it.
But the breathing issues got worse and worse over time, as did the total obstruction of my right nostril.
And this is my nose 6 years later.
I realized a long time ago that we as doctors (and nurses) are not perfect. We make mistakes, just like everyone else. When I was a vet I did a surgery that went bad. I admitted my mistake straight out. I apologized profusely, as I felt terrible. I corrected my mistake and I did not charge my client for the reparative surgery. It was a blow to my ego, but I felt worse about messing up my patient and having him have to go through a second surgery. Fortunately, everything turned out well.
My point is this: None of us--even the most skilled doctor/surgeon--is infallable. it is the ethical, moral, and right thing to do to admit when you screw up: Own it, apologize for the distress you have caused, and do what you can to fix it. We take an oath to do no harm, but nobody is perfect. I certainly am not.
Just my .02.
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Another thing is, it freaks me out to have to go under general anesthesia. I never had any surgery with general anesthesia (had a breast lump removed and then revised under local because I was too scared to get knocked out!) until I was 47. I am terrified that I will go under and never wake up (that said, I have had general anesthesia 3 times, and they all went fine).
I really have a good feeling about Dr Reish. He has so many excellent reviews on here, and tons of before and afters of complicated nose surgeries, so I feel that I will be in good hands. I really loved his bedside manner and communication.
I will definitely keep you posted! :) I am very excited to get this going. :)
I am so devastated, I really thought insurance would cover at least a good part of it because it is mainly a functional issue, not a cosmetic one. All I want is to be able to breathe right again (not looking like Voldemort would be nice too).
I am still planning on going to Dr. Reish to have my surgery because I really feel that he will be able to fix my nose. It's just going to take some saving up, and will be later rather than sooner, unfortunately. :( But I will have the surgery, when I have the money. I'm tired of not being able to breathe. It's hard to wear a mask, I have to breathe out of my mouth and it sucks.
Write a letter stating that he is experienced with revision and they will have to pay another surgeon in NJ for the same procedure. Send pictures and who knows you might get lucky.if they it deny it, appeal it and even threaten to file a complaint with the department of insurance and banking of NJ .
The point is that if they do cover the procedure in NJ ( or part of it) they should offer that coverage amount for you to pay an out of network provider