Having some work done...

Next week my ENT is going to fix my deviated septum and my sinuses, which he called some of the worst he's ever seen. No wonder I sleep so poorly and can't breathe through my nose... Anyone been through this recently and can comment on what to expect? I'm not looking forward to the process but the end result should be worth it.

Hey... I got it done a couple of years ago. It's really berkeleying messy, but well worth it. Doesn't hurt as much as you'd think, despite how invasive the procedure is, but you're going to be really swollen for a while. Get some straws and soft food. You can't blow your nose for a couple of weeks, that's going to be annoying. The worst part is getting the packing removed... there's like 18 feet of gauze jammed up your nose, and they pull it out with a great yank with a set of forceps. More shocking than painful, I went cross-eyed. What a difference though - my one nostril was almost closed due to the deviated septum, and having the sinuses cleaned made a dramatic difference. No more snoring, I can breathe, and best of all, my horrible headaches are gone.

Thanks for the good info on the soft foods; I guess I'll get my fill of steak this week. I asked specifically about packing, thankfully they now use gelfoam now that dissolves and apparently will be vac'ed out at the first post-op visit. Not being able to blow my nose will suck but hopefully it won't be as necessary as it is now with my endless sinusitus infections.

Oh yeah.. and don't look in the mirror.

I had a tooth extracted last week. It turned out to be a bit more involved than expected, but went fine. Until, at the checkout line, I was told "soft food only for three days". I get home and wifey had cooked up a couple of nice steaks to cheer me up. I swear, she ran mine through a food processor till baby food consistancy and it tasted fine. Strange, but fine. One side note- Vicodin is some nasty E36 M3. Made me sick as a dog. Shades of the Exorcist vomiting.

pigeon wrote: I asked specifically about packing, thankfully they now use gelfoam now that dissolves and apparently will be vac'ed out at the first post-op visit.

I had the old fashioned packing for my "nose job". You're dodging a bullet with this new stuff. It felt like someone had rubbed salt in my eyes when the packing first came out. Holy smokes...

Oh gawd, yes, that Vicodin sucks. Nasty-ass nightmares.

I had it done too.

I can now breathe out of both nostrils, which is good. However, I exchanged about 8-10 minor to medium sinus infections a year to 2 big assed ones a year. I had periorbital cellulitis 2 years after I had the surgery done..

Way to encourage me ignorant... Still happy you had it done?

pigeon wrote: Way to encourage me ignorant... Still happy you had it done?

Sorry the note sounded so maudlin. Up until the surgery I hadn't been able to breathe out both nostrils. I will say It's nice to be able to do so.

Now as time has gone on.. I had the surgery nearly 10 years ago. I've had less sinus infections. I think overall it was worth it. I only take antibiotics 2-3 times a year now, which is a definite bonus.

So I had the work done on Friday. I still feel like hell. The biggest problem is a sore and swollen throat probably from the anesthesia. The nose is full up stuffed but doesn't hurt too much, just feels like a sinus headache. Seeing the doc again Wed. AM and hopefully will be feeling better by then.

Wait til it starts to itch... Just don't blow your nose.

Or stand over a bucket

Well, mutant aliens come out.

Remember that scene in Star Trek, where those gross big scabby jellyfish things fell off the ceiling onto Kirk and Spock?

I HATE prescription pain meds, They make me halucinate within an hour of taking them. When I had my appendics out I came to in restraints and a male orderly in the room with me . Long story, no charges were filed.

Dang, and I liked Vicodin.

Vicodin doesn't seem to do much for me which is kind of a bummer. Good thing my pain levels have been pretty low. I definitely won't be blowing my nose though it's starting to bug me especially on the side the deviated septum was on. Should be interesting when the doc removes the gel foam packing on Wed. AM - looking forward to spewing lots of bloody mucus goo :)

I'm on the line.

I can breath thru my nose just well enough to well...breath thru it, but not well enough to only breath thru it. I snore, but not all the time.

I should have it looked at.

I had it done a couple of years back. One of the best things I have ever had done. My doc had tubes in the nose for breathing, I had no idea how big they were until he took them out, that was, um interesting. However I can now breathe out both sides and my wife said that I snore quite a bit less, very happy with the results so far.

If Vicodin isn't working see if you can get Oxycondin (sp?). When I was in the hospital the Vicodin did nothing for me and they had to give me something so I could do the pt. With the Oxy I felt like I could run through brick walls. It was one case where Rush was absolutely right.

Drugs effect different people differently. Narcotics like Vicodin, Oxycontin, etc., are highly abused.

The reason your throat is sore is from the endotracheal tube that was stuffed down it.

My wife had one side roto-rootered a few years ago and it has helped. Get Well Soon.

porksboy wrote: I HATE prescription pain meds, They make me halucinate within an hour of taking them. . Long story, no charges were filed.

My neighbor was using a torch to cut steel pipes on the ground when he cut into one filled with rocket fuel. He got pretty Berkeleyed up, spent months and months at the Westchester burn unit. He was one of four in the crew, two died within a month. They induced a coma which lasted 7 months. Skin graphs from all over his body, he has trouble regulating his temperature because the skin doesn't have pores.

He told me one day "Holy Crap, you wanna hear about dreams and hallucinations?"

Pass, but I'm glad he's better.

Dan

My wife and son both had major sinus surgery recently.

His was at age 13, two years ago now. He had a tonsillectomy and also some sinus reconstruction at the same time. The tonsils were the worst of it - the sinuses were cake relatively speaking, his septum wasn't deviated, so that wasn't done. Packing was some sort of biodegradable stuff - the Dr had him blow it out his nose while in the shower a week or two after surgery. He had surgery in early August and was back at football practice before regular season started (he was still a bit weak, but he wanted to play his final year of youth ball).

The wife had her septum and some sinus reconstruction done last year - she decided to do it after seeing how much better the boy was after his surgery. Miserable for a few days after. Nose was sensitive (pain) for weeks, but mostly if you bumped it. Packing was normal gauze, with a plastic splint to keep her septum aligned. She did have a nose bleed a few days post-surgery - had to go to ER for that. It was gross - she and Dr sitting around shooting the E36 M3 about high school football (Dr's kid played with my son) while Dr is digging stuff out of her nose (the splint was like that scene in Total Recall and the gauze was like a clown hanky out of a sleeve, but bloody fabric out the nose instead), jamming stuff back up nose (more gauze, replacing the splint) - I had to leave the room.

Both have been much healthier and happier since. The boy gets normal colds now - prior to surgery everything turned into an infection and he got strep frequently. Wife has had a few sinus infections, but they clear up normally - prior to surgery, they lasted forever and often turned into chest/lung infections. Both sleep better. Both are glad they did it.

Dr. Hess wrote: Drugs effect different people differently. Narcotics like Vicodin, Oxycontin, etc., are highly abused. The reason your throat is sore is from the endotracheal tube that was stuffed down it. My wife had one side roto-rootered a few years ago and it has helped. Get Well Soon.

Thanks for the kind wishes. I saw the doc again yesterday morning because I was having some difficulty swallowing and lots of throat pain. Doc was very impressed with the level of swelling I had in my throat and my nose and the bruising on my uvula from being tubed, and extended my steroids a few extra days. The Vicodin doesn't do too much for the pain but does make me sleepy so I take that at night and Tylenol in the day. Overall I really can't complain about the nose pain, its still the throat that's killing me. I see enough drug-addicted people every day that I'm minimizing my narcotic intake to just what I need to get by on.

I think the hardest thing for me and what's making me cranky is that I can't really do much at all and there's only so much web surfing and TV I can stand.

Thankfully no splinting for me, the septum wasn't too bad I guess. I go tomorrow AM to have the biodegradable packing sucked outta my sinuses, I just know that's going to suck LOL (no pun intended).

Vicodin is loaded with Tylenol. Don't take both at the same time. Don't take a Vicodin if it is too soon for you to take a Tylenol. Too much Tylenol will kill you dead.