Hump Nose and Autologous Costal Cartilage Tip Elevation Surgery

My nose seemed large compared to my face, so I went for a consultation. They said my nose was on the larger side for my face, slightly upturned, and so high that it actually made my face look longer. Above all, the shocking CT results showed severe deviated septum and rhinitis... I only just realized that I had been living without ever breathing properly. I used to think, “It must be hard for friends with rhinitis; how hard would it be if I had rhinitis?” but I never imagined I actually had rhinitis... Since I had the time, I decided I should have surgery to improve both the cosmetic and functional aspects at the same time, and quickly went to consultations at a few places. First, reducing the large nose size to fit my face shape was okay. I also didn’t want it to look obviously operated on, didn’t want the bridge of my nose to become too narrow and sharp, and most of all, I did not want to reduce the nostril width through an incision under the nose. After consulting with several hospitals, they all gave similar opinions: it would be good to slightly shave down the hump on the nasal bridge and raise the nasal tip to match that angle. Among them, one place said they could straighten the deviated bone inside my nose and use the bone obtained from there to fill the nasal tip and the shaved hump area, so I probably wouldn’t need additional ear cartilage. They also said the nostril width would naturally narrow if the nasal tip was raised slightly, and I liked that place the most, so I decided on it. More than anything, I liked the comfortable feeling I got from the consultant and the director. I felt that the chemistry had to match to some extent for the surgery result to come out well, and the surgery schedule I wanted was available, so it felt like fate. I immediately set the surgery date and made the reservation. On the day of surgery, not being able to drink water until the operation was a little uncomfortable, but bearable. Before entering the operating room, I had a few tests, then changed clothes in an instant, stopped by the restroom briefly, gargled with disinfectant, and was moved straight onto the operating table. I said, “I recently had sedation anesthesia for a health checkup, and they said I wake up too easily... so...” (Nurse: “Yes, we’ll make sure you sleep enough, so don’t worry~ Now you’ll go to sleep.”) It felt like it took less than 3 seconds, and before I knew it, I was lying on a bed and the surgery was already over. I felt absolutely no pain at the surgical site, but it was really hard because I was so groggy and couldn’t wake up from the anesthesia. After resting enough and waking up sufficiently from the anesthesia, I was discharged right away. Until then, it just felt numb and I was simply out of it. After arriving home, it was a little frustrating that I couldn’t breathe because of the cotton packed inside my nose, but there was no other pain at all. I lay neatly on a recliner and did cold compresses, then fell asleep right away with my head elevated on the recliner instead of in bed. Day 2 after surgery: breathing only through my mouth was extremely, extremely painful. My nose didn’t hurt, but breathing only through my mouth was really, really hard... My eyes gradually swelled up, so I kept doing cold compresses whenever I had time. Even so, the swelling kept increasing, and after lunch it was hard to open my eyes. By the afternoon, breathing through my mouth was so, so miserable, I still couldn’t sleep, my throat hurt a lot, and my eyes hurt so much as if I had a stye. My nose still didn’t hurt at all, but the swelling and bruising became severe, and having to breathe only through my mouth felt like pure hell.. On the evening of day 2, I really wanted to pull all the cotton out of my nose and say, “I’ll stop here,” and quit. Day 3: I dozed lightly on the recliner, and my whole body hurt and felt exhausted as if body aches had started. But today I could go get the cotton removed from my nose, so I barely managed to shower and barely got to the hospital in the morning. (I used public transportation, but my eyes were so swollen I couldn’t see well in front of me, so I was panicking.. I should have taken a taxi..) Removing the cotton was really, wow.. this is... you don’t know unless you experience it... After they removed the cotton from both nostrils, I realized how grateful I should be to breathe through my nose... I barely got back home, took my medicine, and fell asleep for a nap. When I woke up, I was breathing through my nose and felt like I had slept deeply for the first time in a while. My eyes were still swollen, and they said light walking helps, so I urgently called a friend and walked about 2 km to a restaurant near my house to eat. From the evening of day 3, the swelling around my eyes started going down and I began to see in front of me.. Today is day 4. The bruising around my eyes has gone down a lot, but the swelling has moved down to both cheeks like a dog stung by a bee, and the blood bruising around my eyes that feels like a stye is still so itchy and hard to deal with... I had nose surgery, so why are my eyes suffering... In 3 days, I’m scheduled to go remove the nasal splint and the stitches tied at the nasal tip. The swelling is worse than I expected, and the breathing difficulty I never even thought about... plus the misery of eyes that feel like styes, are all really hard... My nose doesn’t hurt, but my entire face hurts... Maybe I’m overreacting.. Anyway, I’ll post another review after removing the nasal splint!