Septoplasty Post-op Diary -- Day 6

Previous post: Day 5

Day 6

Little has changed today. Other than being rudely awoken at 7am by an over-enthusiastic neighbour doing some early morning DIY, today feels the same as yesterday. I still have a bit of a headache, my nose is still running to some extent, and I'm still flushing out occasional pieces of gunk with my saline wash.

It seemed like it was time to head out for another walk to clear the head, but it turned out to be 35°C today which ended up making me light-headed instead. So, the walk terminated after 15 minutes with a return to the air-conditioning of home.

Do's and Don'ts

Today I got thinking about all the rules of what you can't do post-septoplasty. When you look at the instructions given by your doctor, and read the instructions other people have been given on the internet, there is some common ground but also quite a few differences in timescales. I guess some doctors are more conservative than others!

Anyway, based on what I've read so far, the situation seems to be:

• Days 1-7: try not to do anything more than watch TV and read books. You'll need lots of rest, and it's vital to avoid blowing your nose, touching your nose, picking your nose, sniffing, sneezing, or basically doing anything at all within a mile's radius of your nose. Do not go to work, or even go outside at all, in case you pick up an infection or accidentally get smacked in the nose.
• Days 8-14: this second week is a bit more liberal. You're allowed to go to work again and resume sedentary daily activities, but still don't do anything like travel, exercise, sex or anything which might raise your blood pressure or get your heart racing. And still avoid all the nose-related activities for this second week too.
• Days 15-60: hallelujah! Now you can start to live life again! As of the two week point, if all is going well you should be able to return to normal life. The only things that remain banned at this point are activities that are likely to put pressure on your nose -- so diving, contact sports, water parks, and doing cocaine are all still off the agenda.
• Day 61+: in theory at this point you're almost back to normal. They say that those more rigorous activities can be resumed after "at least two months", so are you willing to risk a dive on day 61 just because you're allowed? There's no more guidance from this point, so if not now then when?!

Next: Day 7