Surgery for broken/bulbous nose -my journey

Like many others as I grew older, I became very aware of my ethnic nose. Mainly because the older I got (I am 49), the wider and more bulbous it seemed to become. It was way too prominent a feature on my face. I would joke about having my nose made tiny with my husband. Well, two weeks ago, I had fainted and face-planted onto the floor leaving me with a broken sinus/nose - septum. I went to my ENT who told me that he could not do anything for me, too much of the nose was damaged and I would need a reconstruction through a plastic surgeon.

I didn't know how I felt when I was told that I needed a reconstruction. Surgery is never pleasant but at this point, I just want to breathe right and sleep through the night peacefully. So I am scheduled to see Dr. Michael McNeel in 5 days. Of course, in anticipation and researching doctors, I have been reading this site, looking for noses like mine (which seem to be impossible to find) and many do not have reviews for people who have had a reconstruction from injury. My septum is pushed to the side (along with the rest of my nose). If I run my finger lightly along the nose, I feel various breaks in the bone and dips. I have posted a before picture which was taken a month ago, one up nose shot (the nostrils were swollen then and actually look more tilted now) and one I took today (11 days after my injury). As you can see my nose is broken at the bottom of the eye level and pushed to one side, my brow bone is still swollen (I had a nice knot on my head above the eye) and my black eyes have faded just leaving a purple/black mark below the side of my face that took the most impact.

Basically, what I want out of this surgery is: (1) to improve my breathing (make it like it was before the fall); (2) straighten the nose; (3) reduce the general wideness of the nose; and (4) reduce the bulbous tip and pronounced nostrils. I look forward to consulting with Dr. McNeel as he uses the Vectra 3D imagining system. I am curious if all four wishes I listed can be fulfilled.

Today was my consult and I was very excited. Dr. McNeel and his nurse were very nice. The doctor did not do any "hands on" examination of my nose as he said you can plainly see it. He was concerned about the fracture and discussed with me the different approaches to surgery after a break and the different schools of thought with regard to timing of surgery after a break. He wanted to have some time to review the scans from the hospital, so I returned to his office later with a flashdrive with the scans taken at the emergency room that was provided by the hospital for my primary doctor. He said that I might need a surgeon who does more facial reconstruction depending on the damage shown on the scans but he would let me know Needless to say, I was disappointed that I did not leave with a plan for a working, centered and improved nose but better safe than sorry.

Now it is just wait and see.

I got a call from Dr. McNeel today. He said that after reviewing the hospital record, he thinks we can address the issues from the fall and tip of my nose. So basically, they are putting together a plan to re-break my nose, straighten it, fix the broken septum and brace it with some inner splints and shave down the bulbous tip and I am extremely happy. I am just waiting for the nurses to get back to me with scheduling.

If you have had this procedure, I appreciate any tips you might have. I don't smoke and take a daily multivitamin.