<Front now><Nostrils now><Right/left side view now>I had posted my review several times, and since I thought I had shared enough information, I asked the community admin to delete everything. But when I came back after a long time, deletion was not possible. I think there are people who, like me a few months ago, are in a similar situation or having similar concerns, so I’m leaving my experience here.
<First surgery at a large hospital in March 2018> I had a slight dorsal hump and a hooked nose, and I was more concerned about the hooked nose than the hump, so I had surgery. People with a hooked nose will know, but the tip drooping when you smile is really ugly To improve that, I had surgery with silicone + septal cartilage, and at the 2-month mark the area between my eyebrows turned slightly red, so I contacted the hospital. They said it didn’t seem like a major problem and told me not to worry. Looking back now, I think the warning signs started then. There were occasional episodes of redness between the brows, but I brushed it off. Then in early December, redness, swelling, and heat all appeared together. The “heat” wasn’t like a fever from head to toe; it was more like that area alone felt warm.. It was such an unpleasant feeling, so after contacting them I went to the hospital the next day. They said it was the early stage of inflammation and that if it was managed well at that stage, there would be no major problem, so they gave me an injection and prescribed a week’s worth of antibiotics. When I said the nostril asymmetry and crooked nose were more noticeable and bothering me, they said the nostril had become crooked because of the inflammation and that it would go back once the inflammation subsided. It was my first rhinoplasty and I was being too simple-minded, so I just went along with it like that, which was foolish of me.. Anyway, after that there were repeated episodes of redness and heat, and in the end they said they would do a revision with mesh. So I looked into mesh, saw a person with complications on YouTube, did my own research on the material, and decided I should remove it rather than revise it. Since I heard there was a hospital specializing in removal, I consulted four hospitals. I went around deciding whether to have it done at the hospital where I’d originally had surgery or at a removal-specialist hospital, after hearing opinions from a place that specialized in removal.
They were called the “top three” for removal, and at the time I believed it. Especially because if you look at the reviews on this site, those three places make up most of them. Looking back now, “top three”? I wonder where that term even came from and who started it first, but as long as the surgical result is satisfying, that’s what matters
For hospital 1, I went for a removal consultation, but they mostly talked about revision surgery. Accordingly, the cost was also high. They quoted 8.8 million won for revision. At the first consultation they were a bit sharp and sensitive, and because it was mostly revision-focused, I went back for a removal consultation. The second time they were kind. They showed me photos and asked if I had any more questions.. The removal cost was 3.5 million won? Anyway, it was in the 3 million won range. The reason I didn’t have surgery there was that I went to the first consultation with my older sister, and since my sister had also had nose surgery, she was afraid of complications too. When she asked questions, the doctor got irritated. So my sister told me not to do it there, saying that if something went wrong later, the aftercare probably wouldn’t be good. I didn’t go there because of my sister’s opinion and the cost. I also went for a second consultation at hospitals 2 and 3 like I did with 1. At hospital 2, the doctor was sweating while consulting me during the first visit. There were many reviews about hospital 2 on this site at that time, so I was leaning toward 2, but they said if shape matters, keep the tip; if you can’t tolerate hardness, remove everything, but they couldn’t guarantee the shape. That’s true. Of course, having material in the tip is better visually and surgically, and easier. But I felt like removing everything meant giving up on shape entirely. So I went for another consultation, this time with my mom, because I was thinking of having surgery there and wanted at least one parent to come and hear the final explanation with me. But in the second consultation they were actually annoyed and spoke as if it was a hassle. When they said it could be this way or that way, I also thought that might be fair, but if even the expert doctor can’t be certain for a patient who is already anxious, then who is the patient supposed to trust to have surgery? And at hospital 2 they said it would be difficult to correct the nostril asymmetry. Hospital 3’s consultation, just like in the review, was brief and short, and they didn’t show photos. That was why I was initially drawn to 2, because 3 didn’t show photos. The consultation was so short that I went again, and this time they explained the questions I had written down, and I felt like they had a good eye. I agonized until the very end, and because it had to be my last surgery, I was having trouble deciding and had deposits down at two hospitals, but in the end I had it done at 3. I canceled the deposit for 2 a week before surgery and got a full refund.
The reason I chose 3 despite the simple consultation and no photo reviews was that I’m extremely indecisive, so even if I went with 2, I’d have to worry again about whether to leave the tip in or not, and I hated vague answers. Also, the doctor at 3 understood my nasal condition in more detail. There had been messages and comments asking about the cost before, and I answered all of them, but not a single person said thank you after just taking the information ^^ And because the cost differs depending on the nose condition and the materials used, I recommend getting a consultation and a quote yourself.
I decided to have it done at a different hospital rather than the one I originally had surgery at, and I told the original hospital about compensation/refund for the removal, and we reached an amicable agreement with a full refund.
<Removal surgery in August 2019> Even on the morning of surgery, I wondered if I should just keep living like this, but I went to the hospital and had the surgery with the mindset of removing it quickly and living comfortably. I’m the type who bleeds a lot even from very small cuts and doesn’t stop bleeding easily, and the doctor mentioned that too. They said I was bleeding too much and it was hard to stop.. Anyway, the plan was to wake up from sedation and have the surgery without pain, but it hurt a lot Maybe I felt that way because the operating table was scary and I was nervous, but it hurt.. Still, after hearing from people who had surgery recently, they said they were fine because they were given painkillers. After full removal, I had a saddle nose, and the doctor said they would correct it as much as possible. I just kept saying, throughout the surgery, please do your best
After the splint was removed, I was stressed and depressed because a slight saddle nose remained, but now, looking at the photos from then, it wasn’t enough to be that stressed, so I think I was overly sensitive. In fact, compared to then, the swelling has now gone down, so the contour is actually more noticeable now, but I’m more satisfied now than I was then I was more anxious and scared psychologically, so I was under more stress, but over time I think I came to accept this nose and got used to it. Anyway, I’m very satisfied now.
There was a time when I blamed myself, wondering why I’d even done cosmetic surgery and made myself suffer, and I resented the doctor who operated on me, but I think I learned a lot through nose surgery. It feels like I studied life again.. Honestly, if it hadn’t been for my coworkers, I might not have even realized my nose was crooked. I only recognized it after hearing it from people outside my family and acquaintances, and from then on I was very stressed, but now I don’t really pay attention to my nose and I’m doing well.
Like those who worried here, before removal I was very anxious because of the silicone inflammation and afraid of contracture, and I was scared of the unseen future, wondering whether removal would truly bring me back to my original nose. Honestly, I didn’t return completely to my original nose. I think it became a third version of my nose. For some people “third nose” has a good meaning, and for others a bad meaning.. Objectively, I can’t say it’s good or bad, but for myself I think it falls on the good side. Other people might look at it and think, “What’s wrong with that person’s nose?” but I think what matters is that I’m satisfied. Usually when I see people who get revision surgery because they aren’t happy with the shape after the first surgery, most of them get revision because they themselves aren’t satisfied, so in the end it’s about personal satisfaction, and since I’m satisfied, other people’s opinions don’t bother me that much. And other people don’t really pay much attention to my nose anyway; they usually look at the overall harmony of the face, not just the nose Even though my current nose has some contour, people around me say it’s better than the surgical nose was, and the parts I worried about have improved, so my satisfaction is high. My nostrils aren’t perfectly symmetrical, but it’s rare to find someone whose nostrils are perfectly symmetrical, and my original nose wasn’t symmetrical either, so this is good enough for me. Breathing is also easier because the passage is wider.
There may be people here who have stayed on this site longer than I have(?), but from what I felt after exchanging reviews, messages, and KakaoTalk chats since early this year, there are people who are satisfied and people who are dissatisfied after procedures at 1, 2, and 3. I don’t know where is better. I didn’t have surgery anywhere else, after all. I’m just writing what I felt based on consultations, so please use this as reference only, and I recommend going to consultations without prejudice. There are many cosmetic surgery review sites, but when someone posts a review saying one place did well, everyone starts supporting that place, and then when someone else posts a dissatisfied review, everyone turns away. That’s how people are. When you see a good review, you think, “Oh, maybe they’re good!” but when you see a dissatisfied review, you think, “I shouldn’t go there;” I was like that too, but looking back, reviews are really, really important, yet every case is different, so I think it’s also good to consider things like whether you and the doctor communicate well and whether your goals are aligned, etc.! I don’t regret my removal and I’m satisfied, but please don’t be swayed too easily by reviews when deciding on a hospital or surgery
The photos are in the order original nose - surgery - removal, and I don’t remember which day post-op the removal photo was.. The transparent liquid on the columella is scar ointment.