Patience pays off

As an adult, I never liked my nose. Then on July 1, 2015, I experienced a near tragic fall that resulted in breaking my nose in 4 places and a severe concussion. I was told that I had the type of concussion that would keep me out of work the rest of my life. This aspect of my healing was my focus in the first year.

Once I got through the brain fog and felt like my brain was in a better place, I started focusing on getting my face back. I used to feel beautiful... I was used to comments regarding this often. After my fall, these comments stoped. Nobody ever said I was ugly, but the lack of comments made me more self conscience. At the time, I was a mom of 2 preschool boys.

In July 2015, I visited a ENT and he asked me how my breathing was through my nose. I had a concussion at the time of the visit and it was hard to process what he was telling me about my nose and what he could do to fix it... all I could gather was that he would have to break it to realign it. The thought mortified me... I had already been through so much already.

In December 2016, I visited my first plastic surgeon. He gave me a quote and was ready to set an appointment for surgery on my initial visit. I did not have the $10k in cash... I did not feel right in taking out a loan for my nose having my family needs in the mix. I needed to wait a few months and plan for this.

In late January 2017, I found out I was pregnant. I was in shock... I was 40 and while I loved my boys, I felt like I was still recovering from my accident. I was not excited about the pregnancy either. I more wanted to reclaim my life as I knew it before the accident.

God had a plan... In 2019, I visited a plastic surgeon that was both an ENT and plastic surgeon. He did an excellent exam... asked a lot of questions... through his examine, I mentioned when I was 17, I had orthodontist surgery that left small hardware in my jaw. We did a CAT scan (I think that was the name of it).

The scan revealed there were some screws in the top of my jaw that would prevent access by the surgeon to my nose. This surgeon referred me to an oral and maxiofacial surgeon to have the hardware removed.

When at the oral surgeon's office, he tried to talk me out of having the hardware removed. Telling me to be at peace with my nose and be grateful I was alive with 3 healthy children. He also pushed back and said I should have the plastic surgeon remove the hardware since he was to be in the area.

When I went back to ENT/Plastic surgeon, I had asked about him removing the hardware. He was firm that he wasn't the one to do this because he did not have the tools like the oral surgeon would have who normally install this hardware. At this time, I could tell my situation was complex and I needed to get another opinion.

In December 2019, I made an appointment with Dr. Edward Gross. My appointment was over a month away... In January 2020, I met with Dr. Gross and all the puzzle pieces came together for me. We talked about my previous orthodontist work, we talked about my accident, the addition of my daughter to the family. My concerns of how my perception of my beauty was tarnished. I saw how much my daughter looked to me like I was the most important person in her life. I felt like if she knew me before the accident... there were just so many trauma stricken thoughts I kept coming back to.

Dr. Gross listened to the entire story. He told me we needed to looked into everything to confirm a plan. In a month, a plan was developed and I set an appointment with the oral surgeon to remove the hardware. This needed to be handled prior to addressing the nose. Surgery date for the oral surgeon was set end of March 2020.

As we all know Covid-19, shut down the world at this time. I rescheduled the surgery for May. Then the surgeon set to do the work moved away. May was spent getting to know a new oral surgeon and surgery was set for June 2020.

The hardware removal surgery went well. Now that this was done, I was able to set my surgery date with Dr. Gross in late August 2020.

I can't express how pleased I am with my new nose. I just love it! Waking up from the surgery, the first thing I noticed is how easy it was to breathe through my nose!!! Until that point, I did not realize I could barely breathe through my nose!!! I used to wake up in the middle of the night... I attributed this to having hormones and changes in the body due to my daughter and age... it turned out, I was experiencing sleep apnea!!! Wow! I can't believe I was so unaware, but so grateful I am on the better side of the journey.

Dr. Gross and staff did an excellent job. Took care of me and expectations all along the way. I ended up needing cartilage from my ear to rebuild my nose as well as the bridge of my nose had to be rebuilt with an implant. My surgery was as complicated as they came. I am so blessed to have had the journey I had and met Dr. Gross and staff to help me heal and restore my nose and reclaim a sense of my former self.

My nose turned out to look so natural and fitting to the rest of my face. Best investment I did for my health... likely extended my life because I sleep through the night now... also my confidence is restored.

Thank you Dr. Gross and staff!!! May God continue to bless the work of your hands.