So, as the subject - FFS complete on Tuesday and I've been sleeping (if you can call it that) with my head elevated since.
I'm just curious, at what point did you all manage to sleep flat? I know sleeping elevated helps reduce the swelling so I'll keep it up but I'd love to know there's an end in sight of basically sleeping like im flying economy to Australia! :)
I could hardly sleep until my nostril packing was removed. I did lay flat from the get go though.. my surgeon wasn't bothered.
My FFS doctor had me sleeping elevated for about 10 days. It really depends on how fast you heal and how much swelling you have. At about day 7 or 8, I lowered the pillows somewhat and that helped me sleep better.
Tbh - I've done really well on the swelling front.
I might try flat tonight - outside of the chin strap, everything else looks pretty good.
Unless you have major rhinoplasty with severe swelling resulting in difficulty breathing thru your nose, you would not need to sleep in an elevated head position after FFS. I had minor rhino, plus brow shave, brow lift and rejuvinating surgery including neck. Never had to sleep in a head elevated position. Alot has to do with recovery and your general health.
Every morning I would wake up with a swollen eyelids especially the side I slept on (side sleeper here). It looked bad, I could hardly open my eyes, but by lunch time it pretty much went away. A small price to pay for a semi-decent sleep in my opinion.
It really depends on what you had done. Others have mentioned nose work.
I only had a few things done. My doctor said for swelling to sleep elevated for two weeks. But it's not like a 90 degree thing.
I had a recessed chin so I had a implant. The main concern was not resting on my side. Keeping my chin up. So I slept flat on my back with a pillow under my head trying not to turn my head. You don't want to put any pressure on one side or the other while healing. My external stitches were around my nose for a lip lift. So nothing there that would really require staying elevated. The other thing was internal so nothign there.
I would follow your surgeons advice. It's worth the wait to make sure everything heals correctly.