[Deviated Septum Surgery] Day surgery was hell… Intense local anesthesia pain experience and cost disclosure [Hospitalization is definitely better ◎]

(▲Dramatic before and after the surgery. I went through hell for this refreshing feeling…)

I finally had nasal surgery (deviated septum surgery) to resolve my long-standing nasal congestion. To cut to the chase, **”I absolutely don’t recommend day surgery. Take my advice and get hospitalized for general anesthesia”**.

This time, I’ll candidly share the real flow of the grueling day surgery I experienced, the hellish downtime after surgery, and the costs that everyone’s curious about.

Table of Contents

1. Surgery Day Flow: Unexpectedly “Dentist Style”
2. Hell Surgery Begins: The Impact of Chisel and Hammer
3. Post-Surgery to Discharge: The Harsh Night of Mouth Breathing Only
4. Downtime Progress (Day 1 to Day 3)
5. Cost and Insurance Coverage
6. Summary: Why I Don’t Recommend Day Surgery

Surgery Day Flow: Unexpectedly “Dentist Style”

My surgery was scheduled for 8:15 AM. I took the train to the hospital. When I arrived a bit early, there were only about 5-6 people in line, and since I had a reservation, I felt comfortable taking a short walk around the area. However, when I returned right at 8 o’clock, there were already nearly 20 people in line! You shouldn’t underestimate the morning rush at a hospital.

After completing check-in and paperwork, I passed the antigen test (negative). Everything was going smoothly up to this point.

The Terrifying “Nasal Noodle” and Anesthesia

I was taken to the treatment room, and first came the anesthesia preparation. Because “the anesthesia injection is painful,” they stuffed gauze soaked in anesthetic deep into both nostrils. The image is like pushing a single noodle into the back of each nostril. At this point, nasal breathing was completely impossible. Feeling slightly breathless, they inserted an IV and I waited for about 20 minutes.

Then my name was called, and I finally headed to the operating room. I had imagined a dramatic surgical suite like in TV dramas, but what was there was a regular dental chair like you’d find in a dentist’s office. “Wait, we’re doing it here?” The anxiety combined with my light clothing (no jacket, just slippers) and the slightly chilly room amplified my fear.

(▲A surreal scene on a dental chair with “noodles” coming out of my nose)

Hell Surgery Begins: The Impact of Chisel and Hammer

As I sat in the chair, they removed the “nasal noodles” and began the local anesthesia injection. The doctor said “you’ll feel a little pinch,” but the actual sensation was a sharp “Zing!” pain. This continued in multiple places.

While waiting for the anesthesia to take effect, I had to stay in an angled position that made surgery easier, but it was uncomfortable. Anesthetic liquid trickled down the back of my throat, and saliva accumulated but I couldn’t swallow. Breathing was also difficult. When the doctor touched my nose and confirmed there was no sensation, came “the final shot” of injection.

The moment that went in, my heart started **pounding rapidly!** and the pulse monitor began beeping with warning sounds. (※This was likely due to the vasoconstrictors in the anesthetic)

Me: “Doctor, am I okay?” (slurring) Doctor: “You’re fine, fine. This will be about 3 times more intense”

Before the surgery even started, I was already losing my nerve from the breathing difficulty and heart palpitations. It felt like desperately breathing with only my mouth above water.

Intense Pain Piercing from Between the Eyebrows to the Back of the Head

I switched my breathing to “big deep breaths” (though it was more like panting), ignored the saliva, and braced myself.

The surgery finally began after a smell and pain like laser burning. “Scrape, scrape, crunch, crunch” I could directly feel the sensation of bone and cartilage being shaved away with a chisel and hammer.

This was just intense pain. The sensation of a hard blow to the nose pierced straight through from between my eyebrows to the back of my head. When the doctor said “we’re about halfway through,” I felt despair, but I endured the alternating torture on both sides. The initial cartilage scraping, which was the peak, was the hardest part—the second half was more bearable.

(▲Inside my head, tiny construction workers were going wild with chisel and hammer. It was truly “scrape scrape, bang bang” intense pain)

Post-Surgery to Discharge: The Harsh Night of Mouth Breathing Only

After surgery, my nose was packed with gauze all the way to the back, making nasal breathing impossible. Completely exhausted both physically and mentally, I waited about 40 minutes for the IV to finish. The waiting room was uncomfortably cold due to excessive ventilation for COVID precautions.

I left the billing to my wife and escaped the hospital around 12:30 PM. Back home with no appetite, what awaited me was **”mouth breathing hell.”**

• My mouth was constantly parched
• When trying to swallow saliva, negative pressure caused my eardrums to collapse inward
• Each time, I needed to equalize the pressure in my ears

Sleep “Saliva Management” Life Hack

When I tried to sleep, my mouth was open so saliva would drip, or I’d wake up when swallowing, making it impossible to sleep. So I came up with “the strategy of putting tissue inside a mask to absorb the saliva.” Limited to sleeping on my side, but this way I could manage to doze off.

(▲The night after surgery. Mouth breathing only, my mouth was like a desert. I jolted awake multiple times from the sensation of suffocation)

4. Downtime Progress (Day 1 to Day 3)

[Day 1 (Sunday)] Battle with Dryness

Since my nose was completely blocked, food didn’t taste quite right, but I could make out the basic flavors, so I consumed “drinkable jelly” and “egg over rice.” The real struggle was the dryness of my mouth and throat. After a day, my saliva stopped flowing, and my palate became completely parched. The night was even worse—I woke up multiple times from the sensation of suffocation. For someone who normally breathes through their nose, sleeping with only mouth breathing is **like having a drowning nightmare**.

[Day 2 (Monday)] Gauze Removal → Sponge Insertion

Finally, the day for gauze replacement! When they removed the gauze on the examination chair, I was amazed at how much gauze could fit in a human face. After cleaning, they inserted a sponge instead. Just that alone made breathing suddenly so much more comfortable, and I could actually enjoy pumpkin soup and yogurt.

[Day 3 (Tuesday)] Liberation from Packing

Finally, the day all the packing was removed. When it came out with a “pop!” the world changed. “The air is… so rich!!” Given how stuffed it was, it made sense, but the amount of air I could breathe was completely different. My nose was still swollen with **”a tightness like it was sealed with super glue,”** and I still needed cotton to stop nosebleeds, but I was so happy I bought cream puffs and eclairs at the station on the way home.

My first bath since Saturday was so wonderful I cried. Health is truly precious.

(▲The moment the packing came out. The air is so rich! This sense of freedom was truly moving)

Cost and Insurance Coverage

Here’s a breakdown of the surgery costs:

• Surgery cost: approximately ¥35,000
• Total including medications: approximately ¥40,000 with change

Recently, thanks to the “My Number Insurance Card,” the high-cost medical expense system procedures are completed on the spot. The window payment is limited to the self-pay limit, so no temporary advance payment is needed. This was truly convenient.

6. Summary: Why I Don’t Recommend Day Surgery

Let me summarize this surgery experience.

• Cost: Approximately ¥40,000 (good value)
• Results: Both nostrils become clear and open (the world changes)
• Downtime: The “complete nasal blockage” for several days post-surgery causing breathlessness and mouth dryness is mentally draining

And the most important thing I want to convey. Day surgery is too painful and too difficult.

With partial anesthesia (local anesthesia), you experience the bone scraping sounds, vibrations, and pain all live. The discomfort of anesthetic flowing down your throat and the sensation of breathlessness are traumatic. It’s surprising that no one runs away mid-procedure.

For those about to have this surgery, take my advice.
I strongly recommend getting hospitalized and having “general anesthesia” so you sleep through the whole thing.

(▲Summary. The cost is about ¥40,000, but take my advice: choose hospitalization and general anesthesia)