Sinus Surgery
April 27, 2006
As Colin mentioned in his requests for Songs of the Week, I had minor sinus surgery this past Thursday. I thought it was going to be a walk in the park and not painful at all, but I have been a little bit displeasantly surprised.First off, when I got out of surgery I was in a lot of pain. The doctor said it would take between an hour to an hour and a half. From what my brother told me, I was in surgery for well over 2 hours. When I “woke up” it felt like it. I not only couldn’t throw up, even though I really wanted to, but I also could breathe through my nose so it made me want to puke worse.
Once the nauseau and brain fog subsided, the pain was very very bad, especially when trying to talk or drink. The gauze acted as a pressure factory that made blood bubble out of my nose with every sip. This was no problem because my little snot/blood packaging under my nose caught everything, but when it overflowed, that wasn’t quite fun. Getting the nurses attention to wipe me like a baby wasn’t fun either, especially since raising my voice at all caused a vomit/pain combination that I wasn’t quite ready for.
They said I was on a multiple oxycodone and demoral concoction that would relieve the pain. They are liars. The gauze plug inside my nose swelled up and stretched out my already painful nostrils. This was the most painful aspect of the whole thing.
Removal of those was fun the next day. Just an fyi, when a Dr. says “All done” it really means it just started to hurt really bad so I’m going to lie to make you think it’s over. After those were removed though, the pain was pretty much gone. However, the headache wasn’t. That lasted for about 2 days and has since subsided.
I have had blood clot/snot removal on Monday, Wednesday, and now added to the party, Friday. They can only remove a little at a time before the flood gates open. And today was pretty much a wash when it came to getting anything out.
I have to start another course of steroids to get the inflammation down and finish up the antibiotics to prevent infection. After that it should be smooth sailing as long as I don’t do anything too physical for the next two weeks or so.
Sleeping is another aspect that isn’t pleasant about this surgery. You have to breathe through your mouth all night, and by the time 8 hours or so rolls around, the back of your mouth feels like you’ve been walking in the Sahara for the past month. Add to that the blood crust that is caked to the back of your throat/tongue gives you the taste of a fresh anus in the morning and you’ve got yourself a fun little wake-up call.
It’s been so long since I’ve been able to breathe, walk straight, or even think straight from the constant pressure in my skull that it will be a relief when the whole thing was over. Hopefully this will take care of the problem now and for good. Since it hasn’t gone away for over a year, I’m pessimistic but still hopeful. However, I got polyps removed from my sinuses, which I heard have a high potential of coming back again.Has anyone else had sinus surgery, and if so, how long did it take you to recover? Did the sinus problems come back after the surgery? Please share your story.
Update 2/28/08: I had to have a second sinus surgery. This time he used the balloon to increase the size of the upper sinuses (where I have all my problems). He said the first surgery probably never even really got up that high, and I had a big polyp up there blocking everything up.
This surgery is much better and I would recommend everyone to ask their doctor about this type of surgery instead. There is moderate to very little pain involved and the blood clots seemed to be much less.
Also, he didn’t use the packing (which causes much of the pain and definite discomfort). He used gel that dissolves and you don’t even realize it’s there. You feel congestion, but that should be a normal feeling.
I’m feeling much better after two weeks. Still have a minor headaches, but the doctor assures me he thinks this is going to go away. Also, I have a piece of scar tissue that keeps closing over, but he said eventually that should go away.
That’s all for now. It’s good to hear everyone else’s experiences, and hope you all are doing well.
April 27, 2006 at 3:08 am
Oh man, that looks pretty tough. But I guess it will all be worth it when it heals. Keep on truckin.
April 27, 2006 at 3:40 am
You got this.
April 27, 2006 at 12:20 pm
You got this?
April 27, 2006 at 5:23 pm
You know, “you got this” as in you got this beat. Focus on the positive and get yourself some Three’s Company or Rockford Files on DVD when LOST is finished.
April 28, 2006 at 6:42 pm
Hey Chris. Sorry to hear about your surgery. I wish I had read this before lunch instead of after. Great snotty detials. Hope you feel better soon. Tell everyone I said “hello”.
May 4, 2006 at 1:19 pm
Amy, so nice to hear from you. Thanks for stopping by and thanks for the encouragement. Tell everyone I said “hi” and send my love.
September 27, 2006 at 5:16 am
Thanks for sharing. I’m thinking about sinus surgery myself. My question to you…Now that it is over; was it worth it?
Thx,
Greg :O)
October 4, 2006 at 2:55 am
Hi Chris,
I just had surgery on 9/12. Still in a lot of pain… I had my left sinus cleared and a deviated septum fixed. I did not know it would be so bad! You said it all!!! Wondering if it will be worth it? I can breathe through my left side which was impossibel before… Having trouble with blood clots still… so what do you think, would you do it again?
Thanks for sharing! They sure don’t tell you the whole story at the doctors office.
Thx,
Wendy
October 6, 2006 at 4:00 am
Greg and Wendy: Yes, I would do it again. Recently, I have started having some of the same issues I was having prior to surgery, but I hope to get it under control to prevent the need for another one. However, it has provided me with a couple months of free symptoms, which were really interfering with my work. I know this may sound odd to some but severe sinus infections can really mess you up.
January 4, 2007 at 12:17 am
Sorry you had so much trouble. First of all - for ANY future surgeries - let you anesthesiologist know that you get VERY nauseus from anesthetics. Knowing this - they will get anti-nausea drugs in you from the get go. I found this out the hard way. My last two surgeries I had the anti-nausea drugs early - I had my husband stop for carry-out food on the way home! This makes a HUGE difference.
I had some pressure - after 3 days I was allowed to blow my nose - this felt great! I had the ‘crust- emoved today - weird to have someone pick your nose! It is really the scabs - you breathe easier after they are out. have your Dr. go slowly - makes it easier. Some of the scabs are still a bit attached - going slowly lets it pull gradually. Still a very weird feeling. I can breathe much easier now.
I have an allergy nasal spray to use for a month and I’ll begin sinus rinses. ALWAYS keep your mouth open as you do this.
From what I’ve heard - the whole proceedure is a HUGE improvement over the prior nasal packing. I’m just grateful that the sdinus infections will be done. Hope you feel better.
January 23, 2007 at 12:14 am
Hi - I just had sinus surgery on Jan 18. I, too, am hoping this will make my life normal again. I’ve had sphenoid sinus issues causing vision issues where I get dizzy and don’t feel right driving. I did not have my nose packed so I cannot compare to that (thankfully). I had septoplasty and sinus surgery. I, too, asked fo r anti-nausea drugs and that really helped! I am still having major head congestion and headaches but each day seems better. I hope to be able to drive again after my week-follow up with my dr (to get the scabs cleaned out). Good luck to you (and me).
May 21, 2007 at 10:53 pm
I just had sinus surgery three weeks ago and thought I would be feeling great. The bleeding has stopped, but I still feel congested and have a headache almost every day. I am ready for this to be over. Do you still have headaches?
August 8, 2007 at 9:00 am
Hello,I had Sinus Surgery about 3 1/2 weeks ago,I am still not feeling much better,I had sinusitis in the front,and a huge polyp in the right Maxillary sinus,that also had old infection,that was not resolved from the 8 rounds of antibiotics I was on,anyway,=I told my doctor I still do not feel much better,and he said,I probably will not feel better for a couple months,I guess that is normal,but I was sick for 8 months and just want it to be over.
October 4, 2007 at 8:09 pm
I too just had deviated septum fixed and turbinate reduction and ethnoid sinuses shaved down on 9/13/07 , can finally breathe thru right nostril which hadnt been able to since may but still having clots come out and headaches in forehead , has anyone experienced headaches?
October 13, 2007 at 10:14 pm
Michelle can you totally breath now aside from the clots? It’s been a little or a month now for you. I just had the same thing done last Friday, it’s been 8 days now and like everyone else I am taking an antibiotic 3 times a day. I also take Benadryl at night and Mucinex-D during the day. I do nasal washes twice a day (morning and evening). This is the very first time I have experienced what seems like a bad sinus infection. My left nostril I can breathe through a little, but my right one still gives me trouble. I can feel the sinus draining, which is a good thing. I pray that it doesn’t take months for the sinus infection to go away, I am ready to get some sleep.
Does anyone know what I can do to get ride of the dry mouth while sleeping is there an old school remedy?
November 26, 2007 at 11:43 am
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February 3, 2008 at 5:39 pm
Hi, I too had surgery on 01/03/08. It has been 4 weeks and 3 days since I had endoscopic sinus surgery bilaterally, turbinate reduction, septoplasty AND rhinoplasty. Yes, I am nuts. I was not packed as the norm these days. I am glad to hear I’m not alone with the Sahara sleeping problem, headaches, green gook, etc…I had and still have some of that. Day 12 post-op.- I slightly bent my head over and it caused a major bleed that was something striaght out of a horror flick..blood gushing out of my nose and mouth like a waterfall. I got it to stop with Afrin and pressure, however at 4 the next morning the exorcist visited me again to only be stopped by my suregon meeting me at the ER to have my nose packed with dissolvable packing. That was worse than the surgery itself because i was awake and felt everything. I’m still waiting to “feel better” like everyone else here. Surgery was my last resort and I hope it pays off. Good luck to everyone
February 9, 2008 at 12:01 am
Had sinus surgery on Feb 1…one week ago. I’m having problems with blood clots causing infection-type illness! Had them removed twice, but they are coming back again! Going to suffer with illness and pain all weekend.
I thought I’d be well by now, but reading all these comments tells me I have a while to go.
February 28, 2008 at 5:30 am
you guys are killing me. i’m having sinus surgery in 2 days. why on EARTH am i online scaring myself reading all of your accounts???? yikes! i just want to run screaming!!!
March 19, 2008 at 6:07 pm
I am praying to God it never gets this far. I cannot have any of my nostrils plugged up. I am incapable of sleeping only through my mouth. I’d have to be admitted into the hospital and put in an oxygen tent with a tube down my throat until I got better.
My left nostril is constantly for years dealing with scabs and I have to blow my nose to clear them or pick them out because they obstruct my breathing (I can’t ignore them, they make sounds, they might even inflame my nostril), but I don’t know what else to do. Nobody seems to know what it is either.
March 25, 2008 at 2:43 pm
I had deviated septum, several polyps removed, pan sinusitus (all infected). I am on day 13 and getting better each day. I had very little pain from the surgery. The sponge packing used stayed in for five days but I could get air through my nose with them in, just very congested as before the surgery. It did not hurt when it was removed, only a slight sting. I too was fearful of being completely plugged in my nose but I was not and it was not that bad. I am really starting to breathe good through my nose now but I still flush 3 - 5 times a day and will continue for several months. All in all was not a bad experience and very litte pain other than head aches a few days. Just take recovery slow and be patient.
April 29, 2008 at 11:53 am
I had turbinate reduction on both nostrils. They used both laser and radiofrequency.
I felt no pain at all. The packing was removed minutes after I woke up from the surgery. It’s 6 days after the surgery now. I’ve been doing the saline rinse 4-5 x’s a day and on Antibiotics. They also gave me pain killers, but I never took it since I have no pain.
The first 3 to 4 days, I had to breathe through my mouth…. Which I thought I wouldn’t be able to do when I slept. I guess my body learned to adapt to it. The first few days, I wanted to kill myself because it was really hard just breathing through my mouth. I wasn’t really used to it. Eating, brushing my teeth, drinking water turned into a very laborious task.
Despite not feeling any pain, it feels like I have worst cold of my life. My nostrils were totally congested, and only recently started clearing up. I get drips of fluid coming out of my nose without any warning. The worst part of it, is that I’m not allowed to blow my nose because it may cause scabs to come off the nose and then I’d be bleeding like somebody punched me on the nose a few times.
I was at the supermarket buying some stuff, and I was behind a hot girl in line.. All of a sudden, I had watery discharge dripping all over. It was embarrassing to say the least. I was going to ask her out, but now she thinks my nose is a water fountain of snot.
I’m locked up in my room. I’m going to stay here until all the snot stops dripping and my nostrils clear up complete. I hate my life now, but hopefully it’ll get better soon.
May 10, 2008 at 1:38 am
Hi I am on day 4 post sinus surgery. I was searching online to see if my experiences are normal. Its nice to find others that have gone through this. The comment about the Sahara desert mouth is so true
I was unsure if water could even help it was so dry. I have already had the lower packing removed which hurts. BUT I was not prepared for the pain of pulling out the splints today. That was like pulling BIG razor blades out. After they pulled out one splint I requested to just leave the other in 
Its great cause with everything after surgery you get to feel it once in one nostril, then you know what to expect, and then they have to do it ll over again to the other side. I am getting the other packings removed on Monday. I have no idea where they are? It must be up there…..that should be fun. This is a short post beacuse the bad headache is kicking in & the med’s are making me dizzy. All in All this was definatly worse than my 2 knee surgerys, broken pelvis and ribs. Hopefully it gets better. I had a good laugh reading peoples posts because I can relate, which in turn made my smile, which in turn feels like I got kicked in the face. I’ll probably be more positive later in the week sorry.
June 4, 2008 at 1:06 pm
I hate to hear about the pain you went through with your surgery. I just had mine Saturday, and I was expecting a lot more pain and discomfort than what I am experiencing. I just hope it was the right decision for you. LOL I also hope it was the right decision for me, it is just to early to tell at this point. Well I hope everything healed up for you.
June 10, 2008 at 12:41 am
Going in for FESS on Wed. this week. Dr. is not sure is there is a fungus ball and probably won’t know until he’s in there cutting the infected sinus tissue out. Kinda nervous - not sure what to expect - any air flow pass the sinuses? Major amounts of gunk & blood? Dissolving sinus packing? Gushing liquids? All kinds of stuff going thru my head now. Though I’m glad to have found this site; thanks everyone for sharing, even if it is snotty
June 17, 2008 at 3:26 am
Well good news. Surgery is now behind me. It turned out to be septoplasty, bilateral turbinate reductions and bilateral ballon sinuplasty. No fungus among us I might add. No pain to speak of with the exception of awful headaches. Will need to have the plastic stents removed next Monday. Tired with little energy and drainage has finally stopped. Going to try sleeping in bed tonight. I’ve realized the lazyboy is only my friend just so many days. Today is day 5 after the surgery and I was able to taste orange gatorade and smell a smelly airfreshner too. Yipppeeee
June 29, 2008 at 3:39 am
i had the works too - sinus surgery, septoplasty & turbinate reductions eight days ago. it sucks but hopefull that it is worthwhile in the long run. i appreciate the blog here - i was beginning to wonder if i were alone in this misery. question i have is how long will it last before i am functional again? i am still miserable even after getting splints out yesterday. which by the way, i almost fell out of the chair when i saw the size of those things - ugh! all i could say to the doc when i saw them was “Oh Sh@#!” anyway, need to get back in the game asap to take care of my two little ones and full time job. hubby is exhausted caring for all of us…hoping it is soon!
August 1, 2008 at 5:20 am
Hey,
I just had my sinus surgery today. The doc removed “a pinky fingertip” sized polyp from my right maxillary sinus. My nose is plugged up with something. I don’t think it is packing, though. What could it be? He said something about a stent or tubing to hold it open but that was before the surgery. Afterword, I only got to talk to him for a few minutes so I don’t know what is up. My return visit is scheduled for August 13.
I feel glad to have all your collected experiences described here. For those who follow me, it hasn’t been too bad yet. I’m okay breathing through my mouth and even with the stuff in there and gauze and all I can breathe a little through my nose too.