[Clinic A] Full removal, day 13: detailed review

I was desperate for every single surgery review before my operation, so I’ll write this in detail for those of you who are still pre-op! First surgery: 12 years ago, closed approach with cartilage binding + dorsal hump shaving + 5 mm silicone bridge implant + removal of ear cartilage from the tip. Pre-op symptoms: for about six months, the tip kept turning red and then pale again, my nose would sometimes swell, the whole nose felt hot, and when I applied lip balm and made a kissing motion, I felt a pulling sensation at the tip. I was preparing for pregnancy, so I decided to remove everything as quickly as possible. After removal: all symptoms disappeared except for the pulling at the tip. It has not been long since surgery, so my nose still feels uncomfortable with any expression. The surgery was done with an open approach, and they removed the silicone, capsule, scar tissue, and ear cartilage, then repositioned the cartilage. But what was surprising was that they said there was no inflammation when they opened the nose...;; I really wonder what I was feeling. On the day of surgery: I arrived at the hospital, changed clothes, took photos, and had a consultation with the surgeon. During the consultation, I told them that I had even been hospitalized for panic disorder, that I am very easily frightened, that I once fainted while getting an anesthetic injection at the dentist, and that I had hyperventilation during SMILE LASIK, so I asked them to please put me to sleep if possible, while saying I would try my best to endure it... But they said not to worry because a sedative would be given together with it. Then I gargled and went into the operating room. I lay down there, had an antibiotic test, they removed my nose hairs, and disinfected everything, and that part was a little uncomfortable When they removed the nose hairs, they did it quite forcefully, so it hurt Then the doctor came in and drew the incision site, and at the same time the sedation anesthesia started. From that point on I was on a roller coaster It is hard to explain, but I could see all kinds of colors and I felt like I was flying around, so it was really fun. As soon as I came to a little, I said, Wow, I’m flying around!!! and the nurse told me I shouldn’t say things like that because it would contaminate the field So I asked, Am I in surgery now? and they said it was local anesthesia and I was waiting for the anesthesia to take effect. Crap, I had already opened my eyes, but the surgery still hadn’t even started So I talked to myself under the influence of the anesthesia and fell asleep again. Then when I woke up again, I was in the middle of surgery, so I said, I’m awake now, please put me back to sleep.. I’m not sure whether they gave me more medication right away, but I fell asleep again immediately. I kept riding the roller coaster inside a fantasy world until the surgery ended;;;; It was my first time with ketamine anesthesia, and it was so interesting. For those who are worried about the anesthesia for [Clinic A], I think you do not need to worry too much. Even when I woke up in the middle, I knew I was in surgery, but maybe because of the sedative, I wasn’t scared. Days 1-3 after surgery: Even though I iced diligently, I was extremely swollen. My eyes were so swollen I couldn’t even open them, and the bruising spread all the way to my eyes Since I did not have packing during the first surgery, this was my first time experiencing packing-related panic, and if I had known it would be this hard, I would have gone to a hospital that does not use packing;;; I could not sleep because I did not know how to breathe through my mouth, and I really felt like I was dying. Days 4-7 after surgery: Once the packing came out, I felt much better, slept well, drank plenty of swelling tea, and walked a lot. Because of my dog, I always walked for at least one to one and a half hours every day. In between, because of runny nose and crusts making it hard to breathe, I went to an ENT clinic twice for dressing changes and foreign-body removal. It felt relieving. Days 7-13 after surgery: As you may know from my previous post, after the splint came off and I looked in the mirror, I was mentally shaken and my hands even trembled... I looked so ugly.. I was really shocked and regretted not having revision surgery. If your original nose is really bad, I recommend revision rather than removal I had surgery 12 years ago, so I had forgotten what my original nose looked like;; But since the splint came off, the swelling has gone down day by day, and today it looks a little better. Today I even had the internal sutures removed. There is a tiny bit of scar tissue forming in the columella area It should be fine as long as it does not get bigger. Also, the tip turned dark, but they said that is because the skin has become thinner. I do not know whether it will fully recover. Oh, and they prescribed three months of anti-contracture medication (Montelukast). Overall review of the surgery: Since I lost a lot of baby fat in my face over the past 12 years, even though I still have swelling, I do not feel puffier than my original nose, so I like that. And I watched [Clinic A]’s YouTube, and the doctor said that when repositioning the cartilage, he also flattens it with aesthetics in mind. I do not know if that is why, or because of the baby fat, but although it is uglier than my surgery nose, it is better than my original nose. The foreign-body sensation has also mostly gone away, and I feel at ease ~~~ My nose is slightly tilted to one side, but that was already the case because my face is very asymmetric. And even after all the swelling is gone, if I am still too upset, I plan to do revision surgery after having a baby.. For now, I will try to get attached to this small nose and live with it!!!!! I hope my review helps those of you who are thinking about surgery!