Rhinoplasty, Houston, Dr. Etai Funk

There’s no need to explain why I decided to get surgery to change the shape of my nose. I was unhappy with the details. The way I felt about my nose did not reflect the way I should feel. I am confident in many aspects of my life: at work, socially, sexually, but one thing I have always felt holding me back was the way I felt about my nose. It took me a very long time, and extensive research (ie LOTS of googling, reading reviews, YouTube videos, playing with photoshop, etc.) before I decided it was right for me. After 2 years of researching the procedure itself, I began my search for the perfect surgeon. Luckily, with lots of resources, I was able to find a wonderful surgeon by my first consult. Of course I found him through this app (RealSelf). Dr. Etai Funk and his team in Houston, TX have been absolutely wonderful. I had to reschedule the surgery twice because of work, and his down to earth team was able to work with me. After 2 years of waiting, I finally had the surgery this month. I am ecstatic. Currently I am post op 5 days. I get the cast removed on Monday (in 2 days). (More pics and details coming soon!)

Okay, first i want to say that I’m so happy with my results already. Dr. Funk did say that my nose is still swollen and what i see now is not the final result. But I already love it. I went back to work 9 days after the surgery, and I was lucky enough that the bruising was completely gone. I do have to say, this is not a solo surgery. I wanted to go through it without anybody knowing (my family is super judgy—and I have no close friends). I planned on taking an Uber and staying in a hotel for a few days but that just isn’t possible. The first two days I needed help. I ended up having my mom and sister help me, and I stayed at home with them while I recovered. Anyways, let me just update with my recovery experience.
Day 1: The first day was the hardest. There was no pain, just a congested feeling. I took one phenergan for nausea as soon as I got home, and then I took one of the prescribed pain killers a couple hours later only because I needed to sleep. The anesthesia made me feel surprisingly alert when I got home, so I had to force myself to stay in bed and rest. I was told there would be a significant amount of bleeding, to the point where I had to change the drip pad just about every 3 minutes. I was afraid that was too much so I called and they said it’s normal and to just get some rest. I drank lots of liquids the first day, which I found a little difficult because I didn’t want to risk tilting my head back or sucking through a straw, but I did so gently. Gatorade, water, and broth were my best friends. When I took medicine, I put some oyster crackers in the broth and let them get soggy so that I had something more in my stomach with the medicine.
Day 2: The second day there was significantly less bleeding, i only had to change my drip pad every hour or so. I also started cleaning the stitches and my nostrils twice a day, as well as using saline spray every hour or so. By day 2 I was allowed to eat soft foods, so I had stocked up on those little applesauce and fruit/veggie purée pouches for kids, instant mash potatoes, and I still drank broth and liquids throughout the day. I also ate a handful of thin sliced lunch meat to get some protein in my system. I had little to no pain, except still feeling congested (which is a given, due to the nature of the surgery). So in the afternoon I took an OTC extra strength Tylenol although I really could’ve done without it. Day 2 was also mandatory bed rest, so because I’m used to being constantly on the go i took a Benadryl at night to help me rest.
Day 3 I was eating a lot more, and I was able to get up enough to make my own food and watch tv. I also had my sister French braid my hair since I couldn’t shower (and risk getting the tape on my nose wet). Day 3 was starting to get boring. By then I had no bleeding, continued the nose spray and cleaning routine. I took a sudaphed at night to help me sleep, because I was starting to get irritated with the dry mouth I had from having to breathe through my mouth. I kept a water bottle next to me and woke up every few hours to wet my mouth. That was probably the second most difficult part of recovery aside from being bored.
Day 4-8 were smooth sailing. Still very little movement but gradually worked back up to my normal daily routine minus working out.
Day 6 was cast removal and retaping. Day 8 was tape removal and I could go back to work. My nose was still really swollen then, and I still felt congested. But I loved it already. Dr Funk is an artist.
Throughout recovery, my face was feeling oily so I carefully used a little bit of warm water and face wash on a wash cloth to clean up and feel better and I took baths until I got my tape off. I noticed I have a lot of blackheads where the tape was, which was expected. I use a really good gentle exfoliator and very gently wash my precious nose to get rid of them. Luckily I had no bruising when I went back to work, so I don’t have to wear makeup (I usually don’t except mascara and a little eyeliner).
Other than that, I’m back at work as if nothing happened (except now I feel great about my face!)
I’m still due for a post op appointment in about 3 weeks. I’ll update again as soon as I can. I’m going to add pre op pics later, too.