Recovery Update
June 27th, 2025
This may be the last solely recovery update email. The next should be a ministry update. We’ll see. 🙂
It’s been a week since surgery. I can’t believe it.
Two things to note since last update: 1) Recovery is going so much better than planned, and 2) Out of the thousands of deviated septums my doctor has performed surgery on, mine landed in the “severe” category.
On Tuesday, June 24th, I visited my doctor to have the nasal splints pulled out. They came out nicely and without pain. Instantly, the pressure was relieved - as you can imagine. Rachel has a pic of the splints that were up my nose (if you want to see them). I hear these splints are way better now than what they used to stick up your nose during surgery. 😅
After the splints were removed, the doctor brought the words I had been waiting to answer and experience, “Can you breathe now?”
I replied, “Yes, to my left side, but No on my right side.”
The right side was the original problem side.
“Hmm, you probably have a blood clot or two stuck in the way,” said the doctor.
He reach for his suction tool and proceeded to attempt to suck out a blood clot or two from my right nasal passage. He was somewhat successful to snag a couple, but I still couldn’t breathe out of that side. The doctor decided it was time to advance his tool selection. He left the room to retrieve his “level up” suction device equipped with a cool camera. (The right tools always make the difference.)
Rachel was surprised at how far up that neck of the handheld, cool tool went into my nose. The doctor immediately found the last blood clot which was threatening my breathing, and he sucked that thing right out of there. Instantly, I was in tremendous relief. I never knew the freedom of breathing like I experienced at that moment. I was so used to breathing my way (sounds like a powerful point to a Gospel sermon-doesn’t it?)
Sometime during this process (I can’t remember if it was before the last suction or after) my world started to spin.
I said, “Guys, I’m starting to sweat and get real warm and dizzy. I think I’m getting ready to pass out.”
The doctor was on it and somewhat expectant of this possibility. He instantly laid me back in the chair in just enough time to keep me from passing out. They got an ice cold pack and placed it under my head and neck. I started feeling pretty good.
As the room stopped spinning and I stopped sweating, I remembering saying, “No wonder people with regular breathing complain so much when they are stuffed up. This is amazing!”
You see, even though I could breathe decently through one nostril and at times through a sliver of the other, I was still missing out on the whole breathing experience. You could say I’ve lived my life being “stuffed up” and not knowing the difference, because when allergies hit and breathing through my nose got bad, I just relied on my default breathing anyways - through my mouth. I have been a mouth breather all these years, and now (even with the clarity in my nose) I’m having to purpose to relearn how to use my nose for breathing. It’s only been a week of trying to purpose to breathe through my nose and I’m struggling to get it, but I will. It just takes time.
The doctor expressed that after performing thousands of these surgeries, mine certainly has fallen into the severe category due to the curvature of the septum, it’s depth and all that needed to take place during the surgery.
Praise the Lord I was able to be handled in surgery with no further issues.
Currently, I have minimal discomfort where the surgery happened, and I’m working through the post surgery weariness. That said, my nose is extremely tender, and the doctor said it’d be this way for a month or two.
All this translates to: I need to be really careful when sliding down slides face first for the next couple months. (If you know, you know.)
We aren’t sure if this surgery will take away the physical difficulties I’ve been facing. At this point, I’m still taking antibiotics and some Tylenol on a regular basis. Once I’m through with all the meds, we’ll be able to close the door on my past issues or look for the next open door to understanding what is going on in my body.
Praise the Lord for so many answered prayers and so many wonderful prayer warriors. You are a blessing.
Thank you for your continued prayers and all the wonderful extra love offerings. Each of you are certainly helping to relieve a burden as we face this season of our lives.
God is always good,
Justyn Smith
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