By the time you read this I should be heavily dosed with Happy Drugs and about to go under General Anesthesia. Although Art Scott considers me a surgery junkie, I only allow myself to undergo surgical procedures when I’ve exhausted all previous options.
I suffer from rosacea which has the side effect of inflammation. My dermatologist told me, “Unless you do something about your swollen nose, it will be the size of a banana by the time you turn 80.” He suggested an appointment with a plastic surgeon. Diane and I met with the plastic surgeon and he explained the procedure. Here’s an idea about what’s going to happen to me soon, before and after (theoretically):
https://www.google.com/search?sa=X&q=co2+laser+for+bulbous+nose&tbm=isch&source=univ&ved=2ahUKEwjZ1crFxq3gAhXgIDQIHTU9B_QQsAR6BAgCEAE&biw=1158&bih=573
I work ahead on my blog posts so even though I’ll be in LA LA LAND for a few days, there will be something here each day to amuse you.
MEDICAL UPDATE:
My laser surgery went well. No complications (yet!). Nurse Diane drove me home and is keeping an eye on me because I’m still a little loopy from the Happy Drugs and anesthesia. I had nothing to eat or drink since midnight last night so I’m now busy drinking fluids and cautiously eating foods on the BRAT Diet (bananas, rice, apples, and toast). Things should return to normal tomorrow. I meet with my plastic surgeon on Friday, March 1, for a post-op checkup. So far, so good. Thank you all for your kind wishes for a rapid recovery!
Best wishes for a successful outcome and a quick recovery, George.
Deb, thanks for the kind wishes! Everything went well and I’m resting comfortably.
Keep us posted on your DARK PASSAGE experience.
The last time I considered surgery, the Doc said kept bitching, “I was booted out of the Academy for my unorthodox experiments with the human brain!”
Haven’t been back since.
Dan, I survived my DARK PASSAGE experience and now I’m loopy with Hydrocodone-Acetaminophen. Can’t read, but I can watch THE PUNISHER, SECOND SEASON.
“No Mr. Bond, I want you to die.”
Good luck! I’m sure it will come out fine.
Jeff, the laser procedure went well, but I won’t be going to the pool for 4-6 weeks. I have to be completely healed before I get the Green Light to frolic in the pool.
Good luck, George! I have rosacea, too, but I understand the rhinophyma component is worse in men. You have my sympathies, and I hope this does this trick!
BV, thanks for the kind words! I’ve tried several therapies to control my rosacea, but nothing really works. The rhinopehyma worsened the last few years so my dermatologist suggested I investigate plastic surgery to deal it. We’ll see how this laser surgery works on the problem.
Good Luck, George! I hope you get the result you’re looking for.
I too have rosacea but it’s primarily a deep red coloring – kinda like an ugly blush. It’s most apparent when I drink, when I’m cold, or get angry over something.
At least you can recover at home.
Beth, I’m just following my dermatologist’s suggestion. My nose has swollen over the past few years and the thought of a nose the size of a banana by the time I’m 80 was enough to motivate me to do something about it. I am recovering at home with Nurse Diane keeping an eye on me. But I look like I was on the losing end of a bar fight!
Jackie also has a mild rosacea.
Jeff, plenty of our friends have rosacea–some worse than others. My dermatologist says no one knows what causes it exactly. And there are few treatments that actually work.
La-La Land sounds fine, but the rest, not so much. Wishes for a speedy recovery and positive outcome. Hurry back.
Rick, I’m coming down from the Happy Drugs and the anesthesia. But reading is impossible right now so I’ll just veg out on Netflix for a day or two. I’m hoping to be back in the saddle by Friday.
Per Dan’s remark, if the bandages come off and you look like Humphrey Bogart, will Diane be pleased or appalled? P.S.: I don’t see any difference in Patient #8 in the Nose Gallery. She should demand her money back…and what was wrong with her beak to begin with?
Art, beauty (and cosmetic changes) are in the eye of the beholder. Like you, I didn’t see much of a change in Patient #8 either. I’m not sure what my new nose will look like, but it will be less than my old nose…which is a Good Thing.
Best wishes for a speedy recovery from Europe, George!
I didn’t know that Rosacea was so common – in my family amog us older men it’s Basalioms aka white skin cancer, not too much of a problem though.
I already had half dozen small operations and several applications of liquid nitrogen to destroy growths on the skin.
So we always say that health is the most important thing …
Hope to hear from you soon again – your site is one of those few which I really enjoy!
Wolf, thanks for the well wishes! I’ve followed all the pre-op instructions that the plastic surgeon gave me. And, I’m taking the pain pills and antibiotics required by the post-op protocols. I’ll be thrilled if I manage to avoid getting an infection. Two of our friends went to the hospital for routine procedures–a colonoscopy and some nasal surgery–and one got MRSA and the other got Sepsis. Yikes!
Hospital infections seem to be a problem all over the world – and the use of antibiotics whether necessary or not isn’t helping.
I also heard horror stories about this in Europe -mutations of bacteria which no antibiotic (or just a special, very expensive one) can kill. Happened to one of my relatives – the doc tried three antibiotics until the clinic found the right one.
I wish you luck and as we say in German “Ich drücke Dir die Daumen” i e “I press my thumbs for you”.
And after that cures we’ll do something about that hump!
Bob, well Wednesday is Hump Day…
So this is just cosmetic? Will your insurance pay for voluntary surgery like that?
Rick, because the laser procedure to correct rhinopehyma is considered “elective surgery,” I had to pay out-of-pocket. My dividends from my oil stocks covered the tab,
Get well soon, george!
I had to look this up:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhinophyma
Wiki has many nice pictures of you there … 🙂
I’ve seen some people with it but didn’t know the reason and the name for this condition.
PS:
Sorry for that bad joke – anyway it’s rhinophyma (without that e).
Wolf, having a nose that keeps growing is No Fun. I’m hoping this laser procedure makes things better.
Forgot the good news:
It’s not cancer, so no worries about it reappearing somewhere else in your body.
Wolf, you’re right. It’s not cancer. We have at least a dozen friends who are fighting cancer in it’s many forms.