Not much major progress to report on. Still very sore.
- I am off all painkillers which is good.
- My bite feels perfect
- I am still very numb
- Still hyper sensitive
- Getting slight feeling back in upper lip
- Dribbling issues continue
- Smilie is still uncomfortable and unnatural.
- Very tired all the time!
Monday, 21 July 2014
Monday, 30 June 2014
2 weeks post op!
Making progress!!! Looking way better, feeling way better and bloody tramadol thank the lord. It literally made me feel so shit, I don't understand why people would take it for fun. EW EW EW.
Now i'm just on Paracetamol, ibuprofen and traumeel and feel great. In saying that I still am tired and get worn out easily. I went for a few walks which felt like marathons because my bod is so fatigued. I saw a movie with my friends and it was very nice to get out of the house. My hip is feeling a bit better still rather sore and I can't sleep on it or move to quickly. My entire top lip to the bottom of my nose is numb. My chin is so sensitive and when it touches cold water it feels like ice is burning me. The face is still pretty swollen, tender and numb. It constantly tingles and has pins and needles which drives me crazy especially when trying to sleep. Inside my mouth is sore as there are soo many stitches, rubber bands and surgical hooks which just continually irritate my gums and mouth. I'm very sensitive physically and emotionally it is weird how a surgery can really take it out of you. But I have great friends and family supporting me. You wouldn't really understand how draining this surgery is unless you have had it or have had a major surgery of some sort, its hard to explain but it is so exhausting. My family have had to deal with loads of tears, moods, tantrums and many more unpleasant experiences around me. Its safe to say that everybody including myself are extremely over this and I wish I could just fast forward 6 months and be fully recovered. To anyone getting this surgery this is not meant to scare you, everyone is different and already I feel the surgery is worth it. I visually look like a chipmunk but having my top teeth over my bottom teeth is rather amazing and if given the choice I wouldn't go back and change anything!
Now i'm just on Paracetamol, ibuprofen and traumeel and feel great. In saying that I still am tired and get worn out easily. I went for a few walks which felt like marathons because my bod is so fatigued. I saw a movie with my friends and it was very nice to get out of the house. My hip is feeling a bit better still rather sore and I can't sleep on it or move to quickly. My entire top lip to the bottom of my nose is numb. My chin is so sensitive and when it touches cold water it feels like ice is burning me. The face is still pretty swollen, tender and numb. It constantly tingles and has pins and needles which drives me crazy especially when trying to sleep. Inside my mouth is sore as there are soo many stitches, rubber bands and surgical hooks which just continually irritate my gums and mouth. I'm very sensitive physically and emotionally it is weird how a surgery can really take it out of you. But I have great friends and family supporting me. You wouldn't really understand how draining this surgery is unless you have had it or have had a major surgery of some sort, its hard to explain but it is so exhausting. My family have had to deal with loads of tears, moods, tantrums and many more unpleasant experiences around me. Its safe to say that everybody including myself are extremely over this and I wish I could just fast forward 6 months and be fully recovered. To anyone getting this surgery this is not meant to scare you, everyone is different and already I feel the surgery is worth it. I visually look like a chipmunk but having my top teeth over my bottom teeth is rather amazing and if given the choice I wouldn't go back and change anything!
1 week post op.
After one week I had definitely made progress. The first week was slow but progress was definitely made. The swelling had started to go down and I could speak a little better. (Still wasn't my normal voice but a little less like a baby). I had worries in the first week as my bite didn't feel perfect anymore and some of my teeth weren't touching. Naturally I panicked but after seeing my orthodontist and surgeon they assured me that there is loads of movement in the beginning as they fine tune my jaw. So that little freak out was over thank god! I really worry about these things as I monitor every little thing and get rather impatient. I also expect perfect results so unexpected outcomes concern me!. Week one is the worst week but it is important to know that jaw surgery is a very slow looonnnngggg recovery and it will be months before I really feel like me. I talked to my surgeon and he said it takes 4-6 months for the bone to fuse back together so I have to be extra careful about being knocked etc. So unfortunately my Uni drinking habits will have to calm down for a while. This is annoying but at the same time hopefully I lose some of my student unwanted weight.
I hear things about people losing 8-10 kgs from this surgery and well I have had 2 other surgeries that I have lost much more weight than I have lost from this. I am sort of angry as I was prepared to lose tons of weight so didn't care much about my eating in the months before my surgery. Unfortunately I have only lost about 2kgs and the first week is where you lose the most. A little bit upset about this as I have been through so much pain I was hoping to be skinny as a reward but NOPE not in my case. Never mind I will just have to lose weight like normal people... (exercise and healthy eating) HOW UNFAIR HA. So in conclusion week one basically sucked but I defs had started to feel better. Also I am sorry that these posts are written so poorly, I keep switching to the past and present tense as I am writing them from memory and get confused.
I hear things about people losing 8-10 kgs from this surgery and well I have had 2 other surgeries that I have lost much more weight than I have lost from this. I am sort of angry as I was prepared to lose tons of weight so didn't care much about my eating in the months before my surgery. Unfortunately I have only lost about 2kgs and the first week is where you lose the most. A little bit upset about this as I have been through so much pain I was hoping to be skinny as a reward but NOPE not in my case. Never mind I will just have to lose weight like normal people... (exercise and healthy eating) HOW UNFAIR HA. So in conclusion week one basically sucked but I defs had started to feel better. Also I am sorry that these posts are written so poorly, I keep switching to the past and present tense as I am writing them from memory and get confused.
Days 1 - 5 Post op.
Day 1: This was a hard day. My body was so tired and it was the day the nurses made me stand up. It sounds crazy but standing up is harder than you think after an 11 hour op. I sat up first and started crying because my hip was so sore and I was so dizzy and nauseous! After waiting 2 minutes I finally stood up and made it to the bathroom I constantly had to hold rails etc as fainting was a possibility but I did have privacy. I ate for the first time through a syringe, well it was homemade apple and pear juice. I was on a completely liquid diet for the first week but having mum as a health coach really helped in having delicious healthy food to help with a fast recovery.
Day 2: This was a great day!! 2 nights in hospital felt like a lifetime. I got discharged this day and had so many visitors who all brought me beautiful treats and my room became a florist! The only problem with guests is they made me super tired and after they left I would often get really moody, sleep or even through a tantrum. I am a dramatic person but I would just start crying because of the exhaustion.
Day 3: This was a quiet day, pain levels were high but I managed. Showering was hard as I kept feeling like I was doing to faint. Luckily my shower has handles and things to grab on to so I didn't drown!!
Day 4: Day 4 was the worst day. I was miserable! I had no idea what I wanted? mum would ask do you want to eat? do you want to see friends? do you want me to get you this?... And I honestly would just cry. Its hard to understand how something can make you so miserable but all the painkillers begin to have a negative effect on you. It was an awful day, I refused any visitors and I really just hated this day. I was in so much pain!! I still couldn't clean my teeth properly, my mouth was sore and felt disgusting. I saw my surgeon atleast once a day for the first week. This was a painful but reassuring process. It didn't feel nice having my mouth yanked open with tools, rubber bands etc. I was so swollen and could bared open my mouth at all, everything was very tight!
Day 5: The turning point. Day 5 was when I felt that I had finally begun to make progress this was a good day as I started to feel like myself again. Not properly but sort of.
Day 2: This was a great day!! 2 nights in hospital felt like a lifetime. I got discharged this day and had so many visitors who all brought me beautiful treats and my room became a florist! The only problem with guests is they made me super tired and after they left I would often get really moody, sleep or even through a tantrum. I am a dramatic person but I would just start crying because of the exhaustion.
Day 3: This was a quiet day, pain levels were high but I managed. Showering was hard as I kept feeling like I was doing to faint. Luckily my shower has handles and things to grab on to so I didn't drown!!
Day 4: Day 4 was the worst day. I was miserable! I had no idea what I wanted? mum would ask do you want to eat? do you want to see friends? do you want me to get you this?... And I honestly would just cry. Its hard to understand how something can make you so miserable but all the painkillers begin to have a negative effect on you. It was an awful day, I refused any visitors and I really just hated this day. I was in so much pain!! I still couldn't clean my teeth properly, my mouth was sore and felt disgusting. I saw my surgeon atleast once a day for the first week. This was a painful but reassuring process. It didn't feel nice having my mouth yanked open with tools, rubber bands etc. I was so swollen and could bared open my mouth at all, everything was very tight!
Day 5: The turning point. Day 5 was when I felt that I had finally begun to make progress this was a good day as I started to feel like myself again. Not properly but sort of.
Sunday, 29 June 2014
FIRST NIGHT
Possibly the worst night of my life... I am a drama queen but seriously the worst night of my life.
(So far).
So I hoped that all the drugs would just make me fall asleep, but no there was no chance of that... I was awake the entire night... THE ENTIRE NIGHT.
- I had a drip in my hand which is pretty normal for hospital stays, that didn't bother me.
- I had drains coming out of me neck and hip!! ew ew ew they were attached to glasses that collected all my blood. ( SO WEIRD)
- I had a machine attached to my legs this was to help circulation.
- My arm was attached to a blood pressure monitor... this went off every 30mins and was constantly attached.
- I was practically upright this was to give the swelling somewhere to go.
Basically sleep was impossible as I could not move as I was attached to all these machines and it was impossible.
I will spear you the details but being on a drip constantly meant alot of bed pan usage (goodbye dignity)
The first night was awfully uncomfortable but the pain wasn't too bad as I had loads of meds, icepacks and the local anesthetic was still present so feeling hadn't started coming back. It was a traumatic night and I felt like I was trapped in a coffin because I literally could not move any body part besides one arm although I had to be careful as it was attached to a stupid machine.
(So far).
So I hoped that all the drugs would just make me fall asleep, but no there was no chance of that... I was awake the entire night... THE ENTIRE NIGHT.
- I had a drip in my hand which is pretty normal for hospital stays, that didn't bother me.
- I had drains coming out of me neck and hip!! ew ew ew they were attached to glasses that collected all my blood. ( SO WEIRD)
- I had a machine attached to my legs this was to help circulation.
- My arm was attached to a blood pressure monitor... this went off every 30mins and was constantly attached.
- I was practically upright this was to give the swelling somewhere to go.
Basically sleep was impossible as I could not move as I was attached to all these machines and it was impossible.
I will spear you the details but being on a drip constantly meant alot of bed pan usage (goodbye dignity)
The first night was awfully uncomfortable but the pain wasn't too bad as I had loads of meds, icepacks and the local anesthetic was still present so feeling hadn't started coming back. It was a traumatic night and I felt like I was trapped in a coffin because I literally could not move any body part besides one arm although I had to be careful as it was attached to a stupid machine.
Waking up!
Waking up from anesthetic is never fun but this time was awful!! I woke up in tears and I was struggling to breath. I still had tubes down my nose and they suctioned blood out of my lungs. Even with all the pain killers it hurt. Luckily within minutes the dr's gave me strong meds IV so the pain relief was in my blood stream instantly. It felt good not gonna lie, I could feel it through my veins and starting to work it was weird and I was super out of it. Waking up was definitely not fun though especially after being under for 11 hours. I went under when it was dark and woke up when it was dark. It was a long day... well not for me because I was unconscious, my poor mum! I don't really remember much except for wanting to see my parents when I woke up but not being able to move my body or speak properly.
THE SURGERY!!! - 16/06/14
Firstly this surgery was purely conducted for mechanical reasons to fix my deformed bite/ jaw and to resolve issues of pain, discomfort and my chewing problems. It is orthognathic surgery not cosmetic.
(Cosmetic surgery is performed on all areas of the head, neck and body. It is undertaken when areas function PROPERLY but lack aesthetic appeal, cosmetic surgery is elective.) Although correcting an incorrect bite may result in positive changes to appearance this was not the reason for the surgery but purely a possible result as fixing an incorrect bite may make me appear more "normal". My surgeon stressed that I needed this surgery or I would have problems in later life, already I had clicking, pains, discomfort, struggle to chew and was wearing out my teeth. My parents would never allow me to have such a major operation if it was cosmetic as being under for 11 hours has many risks involved.
(Cosmetic surgery is performed on all areas of the head, neck and body. It is undertaken when areas function PROPERLY but lack aesthetic appeal, cosmetic surgery is elective.) Although correcting an incorrect bite may result in positive changes to appearance this was not the reason for the surgery but purely a possible result as fixing an incorrect bite may make me appear more "normal". My surgeon stressed that I needed this surgery or I would have problems in later life, already I had clicking, pains, discomfort, struggle to chew and was wearing out my teeth. My parents would never allow me to have such a major operation if it was cosmetic as being under for 11 hours has many risks involved.
MY SURGERY CONSISTED OF... (The medical terms are straight off the letter I received from the surgeon).
• Multiple segment Le Fort 1 advancement osteotomies of the maxilla (operation to move the upper jaw forward, widen and level the upper dental arch).
• Bilateral sagittal split osteotomies of the mandible (operation to reposition bottom jaw.)
• Possible bone graft to the upper jaw, harvested from jaw or pelvis.
(you may need to google if I don't explain well enough)
My surgery was predicted to take 9 hours but mine ended up being 11 hours. I didn't notice this but my poor anxious family apparently did! It took so long because initially it was thought that there was enough bone from my bottom jaw to put in my top jaw but the ended up needing more so they needed to harvest the bone from my pelvis. (This is common but only known while in surgery.) I later found out that the surgeon used 43 screws and 9 plates. I will post xrays when I next see my surgeon.
My surgeon was very pleased with the surgery and it all went well.
My surgeon is amazing and I definitely would recommend him if you decide to go through this surgery.
When dealing with your face it is important to have someone of top standard and who you trust.
The video linked below is basically what I had done, except my underbite wasn't nearly as bad and exaggerated as this one! My operation was a little more complicated as they also had to fix the angle of my bottom jaw and fix my open bite. Also my top jaw got split into 6 parts not 3 parts. This is an animation so don't be scared its not graphic.
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