WTF is... rhinoplasty/a nosejob anyway?
You've all heard of it - do you know what one actually is?
So… WTF is it?
A type of plastic surgery that aims to permanently change the appearance of the nose.
How do you pronounce it?
Rye-no-plass-tee
Nosejob (I mean…)
What’s the point of it? I mean, what does it actually do?
It can change the width, length, angle, bulbosity, symmetry etc of the nose.
How does it work?
During surgery - which is performed under general anaesthetic - the surgeon removes or reshapes bone and/or cartilage to change the shape of the nose.
And why would someone want it?
In the instance of a deviated septum, the surgery is performed for medical, rather than aesthetic, purposes and is done to correct asymmetry of the septum that is causing breathing or other health difficulties.
Cosmetic rhinoplasty is done if someone wants to change the size or shape of their nose.
Both are likely to involve the manipulation of the septum. There are a small number of cosmetic rhinoplasties that are tip-only1.
How much is it?
Upwards of £$5k, plus surgical theatre and anaesthetic costs. Some doctors charge north of $20k for a rhinoplasty.
It’s possible to get one for less than this outside the UK/US but AS WE KNOW, cosmetic surgery tourism is a terrible idea.
The Venn diagram of
a) people in plastic surgery forums gleefully announcing pre-surgery that they’re off to Turkey/Mexico for their nosejobs
b) people in plastic surgery forums post-surgery, devastated that their surgery did not go as expected
IS A CIRCLE.
Does it hurt?
Yes.
I woke up from my second with the immortal words “I feel like I’ve been punched in the face”.
A rhinoplasty is major, traumatic surgery. It will hurt. That’s it.
Has anyone you would have heard of talked about getting it?
This article catalogues 20 celebrities who have openly discussed getting rhinoplasty. And here are some more, you ghouls.
Have I had it?
Yes. I liked it so much that I did it twice.
Would I have it?
I have now reached my limit of permitted surgeries on this body part.
You know that.
Should you have it?
That is a deep question that the deliberately brief format of ‘WTF Is…?’ cannot cater to.
If you’ve read the Rules and would be having rule-compliant work done
AND you’ve completed the research phase and have found a surgeon whose expertise you trust to get you a realistic outcome
then yes, it’s probably safe for you to proceed.
It is a lot cheaper and less stressful to just learn to love your nose. But I couldn’t, so I certainly won’t judge you if you can’t either.
Oh and ABSOLUTELY NOT if you’re a teenager. Your face is still growing and changing. Wait until you’re at least 25. 30 is even better.
Anything else I think you should know?
I think nosejobs are massively underplayed. They’ve somehow become normalised. A rhinoplasty is a major surgery, the healing of which takes a year and, even with the best surgeon, the outcome is hard to predict.
If you want one and getting one will definitely help you smile at yourself in the mirror, then I support you 100%. But they are a bigger deal than you may have been led to believe.
Disclaimer: ‘WTF is…’ guides are intended to be a 3-5 minute introduction to a topic. They are, by their nature, not exhaustive.
If you have a concern that I’ve irresponsibly included/omitted information, don’t hesitate to get in touch to let me know and I’ll take a look.
Reminder that any cosmetic work undertaken should be in accordance with The 6 rules of cosmetic work. Here they are, in case you missed them the first time…
It's not a venn diagram. It's a circle 😂
It’s tragic how normalized this is (especially in certain cultures). Not only is it expensive but has potential health repercussions (even mental if one isn’t doing it for the right reasons or in right state of mind). I’ve debated getting one but realized that the fear of something going wrong outweighs my desire. To me that means I don’t really want one (I probably don’t need one, heck no one does unless your nose is broken!)
Hopefully society moves away from this normalization of invasive cosmetic procedures because everyone on Instagram is starting to look a bit alien!