POSTED UNDER Rhinoplasty REVIEWS
Rhinoplasty
ORIGINAL POST
After years of hating my nose I finally decided...
DS2013October 19, 2013
WORTH IT$4,000
After years of hating my nose I finally decided that it's time to do something about it. Rhinoplasty it is!
Being Iranian originally, it is not uncommon for us to do our noses, we are genetically flawed in that sense. Yes, to my fellow Iranians reading this, this is a fact we cannot deny.
I had a very tough predicament. Do I do my nose in Iran, nose job capital, a country that has the highest rate of rhinoplasty operations in the world or in London? I debated for weeks and I decided to stay in London, after some research from family members I gathered that Iranian surgeons have the tendency to make your nose look very "Barbie like" and not in a good way. Also, if anything was to go wrong after, they don't have the same protocol and procedures like we do here in London.
After having consultations with Harley Medical, Mya & Transform, I felt most comfortable with Transform and decided to go ahead with the procedure! I was quoted £4,250 for an open rhinoplasty with Mr Lahoud. Working in sales in the past, I knew you can always get the price down if you really tried. Alas, my charm (I hope) got the price down, quote amended to £4000! Only £250 off you say? That's a new handbag for some ;)
Consultation with surgeon:
Mr Lahoud, he was very professional, straight forward and clear as to what he can do for me. I asked whether I can see what my nose would potentially look like and he stated "We don't do projections as they give you an unrealistic expectation as to what can be achieved, your face isn't photoshop where we can do whatever you like. I can't give you Angelina Jolie" - I respected that and actually agreed. (I could never pull off her perfectly small nose) I didn't want to have any expectations of what my nose will look like, I know what I don't like and I know what I want to change, how it looks after, that's not something I can control. So maybe it's best I don't have an actual image.
I told him I wanted to have a slight curve and reduce my tip as I find it to be so chubby and bulky. He said as I have thick skin to not expect a small nose and I gladly told him I didn't want a small nose at all. He took his notes and even drew the curve I wanted (which was very reassuring), he stated what would happen during the procedure, recovery, expectations etc. and I was off to book the date.
Day of surgery
Friday 11th October 2013! The day has finally arrived! I arrived at the hospital in the morning and they gave me clothing to change into. The nurses checked on me regularly and an hour before surgery Dr Lahoud came in with his notes just to summarise what he was going to do. I agreed and he said we'd be proceeding in an hour. The anaesthetist also came in and asked questions and went off. They were all incredibly friendly and made me feel very relaxed. An hour later, the nurse comes in and says it's my go. My sister hugged me tight, wished me luck. Off I went to the operating room with my fluffy slippers.
The last thing I remember was laughing while I was being injected with the anaesthetic was the nurse saying "Uh oh, we have a giggler." I tend to laugh in awkward situations. Just under 2 hours later I woke up in the recovery room. There wasn't any pain at all, maybe I was full of medication but I was pleasantly surprised that I wasn't screaming in agony. Soon after I was settled in my room Dr Lahoud entered and said everything went very well and he was very pleased with the operation and that he will see me in 3 months time for a follow up appointment! I spent the night at the hospital and went home the next morning.
The following few days post op:
A few things I ought to mention:
First, the deceiving thing about rhinoplasty. You will think you won't bruise having come out of the operation with none. But oh boy does it hit you later! 1-2 days after I was more swollen than a pufferfish and more bruised than a MMA fighter :-) The bruising gets progressively worse. Luckily by Monday my bruising had started to fade, I give credit and will definitely recommend taking Arnica tablets as I do believe they helped reduce the bruising significantly.
Be warned: THE CAST MAKES YOU ITCH. Not a normal itch. The kind of itch where you want to tear off your skin. At one point it was so bad I had a dream where I removed my cast and itched it like crazy. Sad, I know. But it felt beautiful. But alas, I had to wait. Just a few more days until the cast is off. My remedy: very very lightly tap the cast, it temporarily relieves the itching sensation. (You're welcome for when you try it)
In terms of pain, it occasionally did get mildly painful. A slight throbbing feeling from my nose. A more painful issue for me was the fact that I had the sleep on my back and up right with my head elevated. Coming from a person who always sleeps on her side with one leg out of the covers, this was truly a challenge. If you're one of those people who struggle to stay in one position whilst sleeping. My solution: 1 x large U shaped pregnancy pillow for your back to stop your body shifting sideways and 1 x smaller U shaped travel pillow for your neck. It worked for me and I'm the worse of them all, so it will definitely work for you.
Cast removal, 7 days post op:
The stitches being removed, that hurts. For the women reading, and men (no sexism here) it feels like plucking very long overgrown eyebrow hairs. I arrived at the nurses office to take off my cast, she warned me that my nose will be very swollen so don't panic. Yes, yes it was. It was so swollen that it looked bigger than before I had the operation. Luckily, being the over analytical and somewhat obsessive person I am, I had read endless articles about that moment, all reassuring me to not freak out, my nose won't look like this forever, it's just the swelling. So I calmly smiled and said I wouldn't make a judgement for another few weeks. I was however, already very pleased with my side profile, but from the front it was still too swollen to tell. Ah. The dreaded wait till I dies down. Only a few weeks? That's torture.
Being Iranian originally, it is not uncommon for us to do our noses, we are genetically flawed in that sense. Yes, to my fellow Iranians reading this, this is a fact we cannot deny.
I had a very tough predicament. Do I do my nose in Iran, nose job capital, a country that has the highest rate of rhinoplasty operations in the world or in London? I debated for weeks and I decided to stay in London, after some research from family members I gathered that Iranian surgeons have the tendency to make your nose look very "Barbie like" and not in a good way. Also, if anything was to go wrong after, they don't have the same protocol and procedures like we do here in London.
After having consultations with Harley Medical, Mya & Transform, I felt most comfortable with Transform and decided to go ahead with the procedure! I was quoted £4,250 for an open rhinoplasty with Mr Lahoud. Working in sales in the past, I knew you can always get the price down if you really tried. Alas, my charm (I hope) got the price down, quote amended to £4000! Only £250 off you say? That's a new handbag for some ;)
Consultation with surgeon:
Mr Lahoud, he was very professional, straight forward and clear as to what he can do for me. I asked whether I can see what my nose would potentially look like and he stated "We don't do projections as they give you an unrealistic expectation as to what can be achieved, your face isn't photoshop where we can do whatever you like. I can't give you Angelina Jolie" - I respected that and actually agreed. (I could never pull off her perfectly small nose) I didn't want to have any expectations of what my nose will look like, I know what I don't like and I know what I want to change, how it looks after, that's not something I can control. So maybe it's best I don't have an actual image.
I told him I wanted to have a slight curve and reduce my tip as I find it to be so chubby and bulky. He said as I have thick skin to not expect a small nose and I gladly told him I didn't want a small nose at all. He took his notes and even drew the curve I wanted (which was very reassuring), he stated what would happen during the procedure, recovery, expectations etc. and I was off to book the date.
Day of surgery
Friday 11th October 2013! The day has finally arrived! I arrived at the hospital in the morning and they gave me clothing to change into. The nurses checked on me regularly and an hour before surgery Dr Lahoud came in with his notes just to summarise what he was going to do. I agreed and he said we'd be proceeding in an hour. The anaesthetist also came in and asked questions and went off. They were all incredibly friendly and made me feel very relaxed. An hour later, the nurse comes in and says it's my go. My sister hugged me tight, wished me luck. Off I went to the operating room with my fluffy slippers.
The last thing I remember was laughing while I was being injected with the anaesthetic was the nurse saying "Uh oh, we have a giggler." I tend to laugh in awkward situations. Just under 2 hours later I woke up in the recovery room. There wasn't any pain at all, maybe I was full of medication but I was pleasantly surprised that I wasn't screaming in agony. Soon after I was settled in my room Dr Lahoud entered and said everything went very well and he was very pleased with the operation and that he will see me in 3 months time for a follow up appointment! I spent the night at the hospital and went home the next morning.
The following few days post op:
A few things I ought to mention:
First, the deceiving thing about rhinoplasty. You will think you won't bruise having come out of the operation with none. But oh boy does it hit you later! 1-2 days after I was more swollen than a pufferfish and more bruised than a MMA fighter :-) The bruising gets progressively worse. Luckily by Monday my bruising had started to fade, I give credit and will definitely recommend taking Arnica tablets as I do believe they helped reduce the bruising significantly.
Be warned: THE CAST MAKES YOU ITCH. Not a normal itch. The kind of itch where you want to tear off your skin. At one point it was so bad I had a dream where I removed my cast and itched it like crazy. Sad, I know. But it felt beautiful. But alas, I had to wait. Just a few more days until the cast is off. My remedy: very very lightly tap the cast, it temporarily relieves the itching sensation. (You're welcome for when you try it)
In terms of pain, it occasionally did get mildly painful. A slight throbbing feeling from my nose. A more painful issue for me was the fact that I had the sleep on my back and up right with my head elevated. Coming from a person who always sleeps on her side with one leg out of the covers, this was truly a challenge. If you're one of those people who struggle to stay in one position whilst sleeping. My solution: 1 x large U shaped pregnancy pillow for your back to stop your body shifting sideways and 1 x smaller U shaped travel pillow for your neck. It worked for me and I'm the worse of them all, so it will definitely work for you.
Cast removal, 7 days post op:
The stitches being removed, that hurts. For the women reading, and men (no sexism here) it feels like plucking very long overgrown eyebrow hairs. I arrived at the nurses office to take off my cast, she warned me that my nose will be very swollen so don't panic. Yes, yes it was. It was so swollen that it looked bigger than before I had the operation. Luckily, being the over analytical and somewhat obsessive person I am, I had read endless articles about that moment, all reassuring me to not freak out, my nose won't look like this forever, it's just the swelling. So I calmly smiled and said I wouldn't make a judgement for another few weeks. I was however, already very pleased with my side profile, but from the front it was still too swollen to tell. Ah. The dreaded wait till I dies down. Only a few weeks? That's torture.
UPDATED FROM DS2013
10 days post
10 days post op photos.
DS2013October 21, 2013
Still very swollen but I thought you'd find it helpful seeing the progress 10 days post op!
Replies (20)
October 23, 2013
The bridge of your nose looks reduced, but honestly the tip projection has increased. Did the Dr add cartilage to your nose tip to make it more sharp and westernised, or maybe it's just the swelling?
Good luck with the healing~
October 24, 2013
They did watn me that the tip will look bigger at first 'because of all of the swelling.' So I can't make a judgement as to how I feel about it for another few months. When I took off the cast it was even bigger than in the picture, so I do think it is the swelling as it's getting progressively smaller. Let's hope it is!
October 24, 2013
Oh ok, yeah I think it'll look significantly smaller 1 month after the surgery, it's still only been 10 days or so. Good luck! Your nose bridge looks much better now :)
UPDATED FROM DS2013
1 year post
A year later
DS2013January 15, 2015
I love it. I know I've taken off my photos but that was for privacy issues. If you want to see, please don't hesitate to inbox me and I will get back to you as soon as possible, but I would DEFINITELY recommend Dr Lahoud.
Replies (21)
February 28, 2015
Hi,really undecided as to what surgeon to go with would you be so kind to show me some pics please
March 22, 2015
Hi, myself and my two sisters are getting our noses done by Dr Lahoud, any chance you wouldn't mind sending some pictures over for us to see? ************@hotmail.co.uk thank you
Replies (15)
Fabulous results! And I love that your doctor drew the curve you wanted for your nose. How reassuring to know he really listened. Thank you so much for sharing and please keep us posted as your swelling subsides. :)