This was my first rhinoplasty, so I had a lot of worries. Before surgery, I basically had very little nasal bridge, so my face looked flat overall and lacked dimension, which was my biggest concern. Every time I took photos, I felt more and more disappointed, so I decided to have surgery. I went around to about five places for consultations, and when I had a consultation at Louvre Plastic Surgery, I liked that the director first listened carefully to the “best version” image I had in mind, and based on that, set a direction while also considering my facial proportions and overall harmony. It didn’t feel like they were simply trying to make my nose higher, but rather thinking through a design together that suited both my needs and my face, so I trusted them. They also explained each material option in detail and even pointed out why side effects can occur, so I was able to decide with peace of mind. I was also satisfied that they shaped my nose while considering my facial asymmetry.
I used autologous costal cartilage for the nasal tip, so in the beginning, the pain around my ribs bothered me more than my nose. But once I wore an abdominal binder and went about daily life, recovery was faster than I expected, and after about 2 weeks, I was fine enough that daily activities weren’t significantly uncomfortable.
After surgery, since my nose was raised relatively high, my features definitely became more defined. At first, because of the height, I also felt like my philtrum looked slightly longer. Still, I was told this would gradually settle more naturally as the swelling went down, so I wasn’t too worried. And even considering the swelling, the nasal bridge line looked clean, so from early on I felt like it had turned out well.
The recovery process was generally smooth too. I’m the type who barely swells, and I only had a little bruising that went away quickly, so it wasn’t too burdensome. I think it was even more so because they did swelling laser treatment every time I went to the clinic!
But the truly hard part was breathing. After the nasal packing was removed, I could breathe really well from then on, so there wasn’t anything especially difficult. I recovered without major problems while following the swelling care and management instructions the clinic gave me. When washing, after getting the stitches removed in week 2, I couldn’t let water touch the columella for a week, so I managed it by wearing a bangs cap, and I used gauze attached to the columella on my nose. For cleansing, I lightly wiped with cleansing tissues, and if it felt uncomfortable, I cleaned it up once more with toner, so my skin stayed fine without major issues.
As for the one-month result, I’m satisfied. I think I’ll be even more satisfied once more swelling goes down and it settles into place.