Recovery preparation

The clinical instructions are your surgeon's to give. This list covers the arrangements that are easier made before surgery than during the week you are least able to make them.

Print this checklist Free to read and free to print. It is a page.

Arrange before you go

1. Time off work. Desk work commonly resumes at one to two weeks; physical work needs longer.
2. Someone to be with you for the first few days after you get home.
3. A way to sleep propped up, which reduces swelling in the first week.
4. Food that needs no chewing and no cooking for the first few days.
5. Glasses that do not rest on the bridge of your nose, if you wear them.

Know before it happens

1. The nose is markedly swollen when the splint comes off. That is not the result.
2. Bruising around the eyes typically peaks in the first few days and then fades.
3. Congestion is normal in the early weeks because the lining is swollen, and breathing can feel worse before it feels better.
4. The tip is the slowest area to settle and continues changing for a long time.
5. Contact sport and anything with a risk of a blow to the nose is avoided for considerably longer than exercise generally.

Know when to call someone

1. Read the warning signs page before you travel, not after something happens.
2. Have your surgeon's contact route saved somewhere you can find it quickly.
3. Know where your nearest emergency department is, both in Istanbul and at home.
4. Agree in advance what counts as urgent enough to call out of hours.

From rhinoplasty.istanbul. For advice about your own nose, ask the surgeon in a consultation. Last reviewed 11 August 2026.