5 Weeks Out

The first picture of me taken by someone else (since my surgery)

Good News friends, it does get better! Once again I blinked and a week flew by. I am so thankful for the distraction of school because it helps me to feel normal again. Today I yawned super big, and for the first time it didn't hurt. I think the popsicle stick stretching is paying off. I can open my mouth up about the width of two fingers. While this seems painfully small, I feel like my mouth is at max...openness I guess? IT FEELS WIDE OKAY. And then I look in the mirror and realize its almost nothing. I thought school would drain me, but it really didn't, so I did what all recovering jaw surgery patients do, and got a job. I like to keep busy so why no be paid too, right?

I had an Orthodontist appointment this week. He and all the assistants said I look great, but I think they are obligated to say that since I'm paying them thousands of dollars to fix my teeth. This visit, they were scheduled to fix a bracket that came off during surgery. They couldn't fix it last time because I couldn't open my mouth wide enough and it hurt like hell. So they fixed it and changed my bottom wire. I'm now on track to perfecting my smile and being done with braces once and for all! There's a small chance I'll have to go through the whole 'Sure Smile' process again depending on how drastically they feel my teeth need to move. If so, Ill get them off in June. If not, probably April!

Havasupai Falls baby!

I also have been attempting to exercise more. When I can fit it in, I try to walk on the treadmill or on campus. I tried to really push my heart rate on the treadmill (just to see what would happen) and I quickly realized why they want me to wait a while to exert myself. I could literally feel the roof of my mouth and my jaw pounding. So for at least one more week, I'm not gonna try jogging or lifting weights. I recently went with one of my friends to our local lake and did a mild hike around there. Its was beautiful and it was really nice to hike again. In April, I have the opportunity to hike the Grand Canyon down to Havasupai Falls. I'm stoked but I'm realizing I need to get in amazing shape as soon as I'm allowed to. The hike is 2 miles down and 10 miles into the canyon. I've heard its super hard and I'm basically a pile of dough right now... so I need to get on that.

I've had a week of realizations too. When I was hiking, my friend took a picture of me and I realized it was the first picture of me that hadn't been taken BY me. It was so crazy to see myself from a different view and see how different I really do look. I think it will still take a while to get used to my new face. My friends are slowly getting used to it, but I have a feeling my mom is gonna freak when she sees me for the first time again. Heck, I still stop and stare at a mirror when I see myself. But the best part is honestly that my teeth all fit together. Something else kind of blew my mind this week. My speech is ALMOST normal again which means, people don't know anything happened to me in the first place. I met a gentleman today and I realized that, he will never know what I used to look like. No person that I meet from now until I die, will ever know the face that I had for the first 20 years of my life. They will only know who they see before them now. And I don't know why, but that was crazy to me! Not that I'm a new person now, but I'm slightly less self-conscious now. I think that when I get my braces off, I'll have waaaaaay more self-confidence. I really can't wait for that. :)

I only have one week left until I'm "technically allowed to chew." 6 weeks is almost here!! I've been trying to force myself to experiment with chewing my pasta, but its so foreign and weird. While I can chew through the noodles easily, I don't have control of my cheeks yet. I've discovered that we literally rely on every mouth muscle to eat our food. My lips still don't close comfortably. Today I was stretching my face, AND SOMETHING POPPED. It didn't hurt or anything but it was so. weird. It might have been nose cartilage or maybe it was the tightness under my nose releasing? I don't know, but if I suddenly have all my feeling and control back, I'll be attempting to pop my face more. I should also note that my bottom lip has been super sensitive and it hasn't gotten any better yet. Even putting on chap-stick is still uncomfortable. My gums are slowly coming back; I can feel all my bottom gums, but my front top ones still have no feeling. All the numbness is my face is gone! I'm super surprised because most people have at least one patch of numbness somewhere on their chin. The only thing still slightly numb is the upper left lip. Go figure. But lip, I love you, I need you, and I want you back. Please come back to me.

One Month Out

Wow how time flies! I woke up and was like, "HEY. You made it a month with your new mouth." So I gave myself a little pat on the back and went back to sleep. Just kidding I had class- that's right I started school again this week. Its been interesting seeing and hearing everyone's reactions. Some people say I look pretty much the same, others are blown away at how different I look. Its really quite entertaining running into people who didn't know about the surgery, and watch them scan my face trying to figure out what is different. I've been trying to avoid bringing the surgery up to anyone and everyone I meet just because I feel like I'm oversharing and because its difficult to explain to a stranger. Plus I didn't want people thinking that I was just seeking attention. So I only tell people if they ask, or if I start to talk weird and have to explain myself.

8 Popsicle sticks wide.

Its been glorious to be able to eat soft foods again. I've had a lot of soft pasta, mashed potatoes, and ice cream. Since I've been cleared to smoosh food against my palette again, I've transitioned into the phase of "if it fits, I'll eat it." I can only open my mouth about the width of a finger. So if I can get it thru that gap, I'll eat it. Things I've "tongued" to death include, soft cookies, PB&J sandwich, pancakes, and Tuna. Its uncomfortable but it beats a strictly liquid diet. I've gained about 3lbs back which is good because that means I'm on my way back to my healthy weight.

I've started trying to get my jaw mobility back. I read somewhere to use Popsicle sticks to lodge your mouth open. So far at my best, I can open 8 Popsicle sticks wide. I do this about once a day for 10-15 minutes intermittently. One minute in, 30 seconds rest. If It starts to feel normal, or no longer hurts, you can add another stick and repeat.

I go back to the Orthodontist office next Monday. I'm hoping I'll be able to open my mouth wide enough for them to fix my missing bracket and replace my bottom wire. One thing is for sure, I'm going to take a percautiously large dose of IB Profin before I sit in that chair again.

The Numbness is actually really going away. I can feel almost my whole chin again! My bottom lip is still tingly and sensitive, but my upper left lips is still kinda numb. The stiffness is starting to subside, probably because of the face exercises. I still can't close my mouth comfortably, it still feels forced and looks weird. I'm sure its only a matter of time before I get it all back! 

Also, no matter how much I brush, I think the damage is done. My poor teeth are a dingy yellow. They are healthy and clean though, just stained from having braces and from not being able to brush for two weeks straight. I can't wait to get them cleaned and whitened when this is all over! :)))

3 Weeks Out!!

Can I get a WOOT WOOT?

This Gelato really hits...the SPOT...

It's week three and almost everything is getting easier. I am more active, taking in more calories, and getting even more into my Netflix shows.. yeah, while I've been getting out more, its also exhausting. So for the time, Netflix is still my go-to for relaxing. Plus I'll be returning to school in a week, so I'm enjoying all the screen time I have left.

Today was my three week appointment with my Surgeon AND my first post op appointment with my Orthodontist. First stop was the orthodontist, and what I thought would be a short, sweet, "wow, looks good" appointment, quickly turned into an hour long cry fest. He poked around, and stretched my mouth more than I had hoped. He decided that I was ready enough to have my segmented pre-surgical wires taken out and replaced by the usual single braces wire. Sometime last week I figured out that I was missing a bracket on my right back molar. Turns out it came out during surgery, and they forgot to tell me. So I spent most of the week freaking out, thinking the thing had somehow entered one of my open mouth wounds and was lodged in my face forever. ANYWAY, my orthodontist wanted to replace this bracket but after lots of jaw stretching and tearing up on my part, he could not get his tools down there to fix it. I was relieved because I had already had my mouth open to max capacity for 30 minutes. So they just replaced my top wire and told me to come back in a week. Its not the orthodontist's fault that I'm such a baby, so I'm thankful that they're so flexible with the timeline of my post-surgical braces appointments. :)

I'm adoring my new profile. :)

Next up was the Surgeons office. It was a magical visit. As soon as I sat down in the chair, *POOF* my surgeon appeared. He had me open and bite a few times and wiggled my top jaw to
make sure it was stable. Then he said the words that I had been dying to hear for weeks, "MASHED POTATOES." But it didn't stop there-oh no. He continued on to say I could even start to chew very soft foods. He said I could have Mac & Cheese, oatmeal, soft pastas and Ice Cream. I was NOT expecting him to tell me I could chew anything at all until 6 weeks so I was totally caught off guard. I literally got teary eyed when he told me. Partially because I was already emotional from the traumatic appointment before, but also because my brain partially shut down from happiness overload. You try going three weeks on a strictly liquid and mush diet, and then come talk to me. They told me everything looked good, answered my questions, and said they'd see me in three more weeks.

In celebration of this milestone, my mom took me to get Gelato! I asked for a sample but it was too big to fit in my poor wounded mouth. The lady looked at me like I was psycho as I tried to open wider to shove the sample in. Nothing, not even weird looks, was gonna stop me from eating gelato... That night I got KFC mashed potatoes and mac & cheese. Let me tell you, wow. Mashed Potatoes never tasted so good. I tried to chew a cheesy noodle but quickly lost it in my cheek. This is gonna take some serious time and patience to re-learn how to chew again.

Numbness and Stiffness
The numbness is slowly going away as I get sensation back. Its not quite feeling yet but really prickly when I touch parts of my face. I've figured out that my speech is awkward still not because of the numbness, but because of the stiffness. The Doc told me that the stiffness will go away with time and I'll eventually be able to close my mouth without looking forced.

Pain & Swelling
I switched from my fluffy pillow to my flat pillow and the next morning I woke up feeling super swollen and in some pain. I think that maybe sleeping completely flat is not the best idea yet...switching back to my fluffy pillow as we speak. In general, the swelling is like 95% gone. Only I can tell there is any left. My pain is really only in the morning when I wake up and its just a dull soreness. Now that I've started chewing soft stuff, I have a little more aching but its tolerable.

At least its not creepy anymore..

I go back to school this week which should be interesting. My biggest worry is just my talking, but I doubt anyone will make fun of me. I just wish I didn't have to introduce myself in every class. I'll probably end up telling everyone I had Jaw Surgery just so they don't think I'm having a stroke. I feel like I have 98% of my energy back now, and I'm on my way to getting back to a healthy weight. I can't wait to start lifting weights and running again! In about 2 weeks I'll be allowed to jog/run and lift light weights. Still not too much bending over, but I'll make it work! Life is starting to slowly feel normal again and I'm excited to be with all my friends again. I'm hoping time will start to pass quickly so I can get to the part where I get my braces off. :)

Two Weeks Out!

My emerging profile

For those of you still keeping track, its been 14 days since my surgery.

In the grand scheme of things, I've had a somewhat pleasant experience so far with recovery (compared to other people). I've read about people who had complications and lingering problems, but I've encountered very few issues. This isn't to say I haven't had my fair share of minor "pain in the butt" problems, but I'm realizing how blessed I am to be recovering well.

So what's changed over the past week?

Eating 
I've self-graduated myself to eating my soup mush with a spoon! I take my front bands off to do so, and I don't know if my surgeon would approve...but I do it anyway. I also used a straw properly for the first time!! Milkshakes taste so much better through a straw than through my ketchup bottle. It might be too soon, but I've started mushing up pieces of cake with milk so that I can have my cake and eat it too (haaaa).
I've discovered over the past week that a lot of foods don't blend well. Most foods actually. I've learned that I like a lot of foods because of the flavor/texture combo. Once you take away the texture and blend, lets say a pizza, it just becomes salty mush... Thanks, but I think I'll just wait to enjoy pizza the correct way. :)

*side note* I'm only on week 2/6 of no chewing, and I didn't realize it would be this hard. Prepare yourself to be bitter anytime you see someone eating anything..

Talking
Other than eating, this has been the most frustrating part of recovery. My mouth is slow to move and still is very stiff. I am now 90% understandable, but I sound and look ridiculous when I talk. I do mouth exercises that I read about online (make a kissy face, then open as wide as you can) but I can't really tell a difference yet. My smile is less creepy than before, and it doesn't hurt to laugh anymore. I still feel like one of those ladies on TV whose had a ton of botox injections.

Sleeping
I got my first few nights of solid sleep this week! On Sunday night I was told I could lose the incline and sleep flat again! It's really a miracle how much better I feel the next day when I've had a full nights rest. Not to mention you heal in your sleep. I actually find that my face feels most tingly when I start to fall asleep. My body is just itching to get better!

Numbness

I've seen other bloggers make these to explain the numbness in their face. So as of January 5th, 2016, these are the locations of the numbness that I feel in my face. A lot of full feeling has come back to my cheeks, but my chin is still pretty numb. I labeled it as sensation because I can feel when my finger is on it, but it mostly feels like tingles. The red is where I am still completely numb. Its extremely annoying in my nose because there's lots of nose itches that refuse to be cured with a scratch. Not super fun, but also not a huge deal. The progress is slow, but each day I have a little more sensation/feeling in different parts of my face. The patch under my eye is confusing when I put makeup on, but I'm sure it'll come back with the rest of my face. 






Pain
The pain is totally manageable now. I only take some IB Profin before bed, and as I feel necessary during the day. The bruises on my chin are also starting to disperse and get smaller.

Swelling
The swelling is about 88% gone. I can feel my jawline and all the bumps and bones. Most of the swelling left is in my cheeks and chin. Most people say I look normal, but I look in the mirror and see the layer of chunkiness. I just want to be able to see my cheek bones more defined. Once I can see them again, I'll know the swelling is all gone. This is going to take a while as the swelling can take up to a year to completely disappear...ugh.

OTHER ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• I brushed my teeth with toothpaste for the first time.
• I've gone out in public about 5 times now (and survived)
• My teeth touch on both sides now
• I'm eating more which gives me more energy

A couple days ago I got really discouraged. I'd been laying in bed or on a couch for over a week. I felt sluggish, unproductive and worthless. I started going through other people's blogs again, seeking some sort of encouragement. The best advice I found was to give myself small goals to complete for the day. Walks, showers, small chores, art projects, and rewards are all things that I've started incorporating into my day. When I make a list and check things off as I go, I'm able to look back at the end of the day and see that I accomplished something. It's been really helpful in lifting my spirits and helping me to feel like a contributing member of society again.

One Week Out

Okay so its really been 8 days, but for the sake of this blog its been a week.

Quite a lot of progress has been made in the past 4 days! First the drooling got significantly worse, and now it's pretty much gone. I am gaining back feeling in my face more and more everyday. I can now feel the entire right side of my upper lip, along with random patches all over my cheeks and chin. It feels so weird when the nerves are regenerating! There's lots of tingling and sometimes a little prick of pain. On my chin it keeps feeling like I'm drooling, but then I wipe and there's nothing there! Its quite a trip.

I had my one week post-op appointment yesterday. I had a list of questions a mile long for my surgeon. The first thing he said was "Dang, I got you really good didn't I?" He was referring to the large bruises I've had under my chin. He said that most people only get a little yellow bruising but I bruised pretty badly (I WOULD be the one to bruise like this lol). He looked around, told me to bite and told me it looked fantastic. I was extremely worried going in because I've noticed that my teeth are only touching on my right side. My surgeon explained to me that it is TOTALLY normal and that when more of the swelling is gone, my orthodontist will be able to move my teeth around again and make everything perfect. He said I have absolutely nothing to be worried about, and it will all be corrected in time. So I feel a ton better about that. Then they took an X-ray of my face and for some reason I think its the single coolest thing I've ever seen. I even posted in on Instagram...I'm sure some of my friends were grossed out. It shows all the hardware that's now permanently in my face (my upper jaw, lower, and chin). ITS SO COOL.

Just call me the Terminator.

In other news, I got new pain meds AGAIN. I switched from taking 1000mg of Tylenol 4 times a day to 800mg of Motrin 2-3 times a day. Its a huge relief for me because IB Profin works better for me anyway. My pain is manageable and the swelling is still going down, but at an agonizingly slow rate. I'd say that I currently look like I have just gotten my wisdom teeth out. Also with the my nerves returning, its been a little easier talking. My lips move a little better but my smile is still the creepiest thing on the planet. Its so awful because my life is usually full with so much laughter, and now that I'm feeling back to my old self again, I'm laughing all the time. This wouldn't be so awful if it didn't hurt so dang much and I didn't look so creepy when I do so. It's the worst when my creepiness makes the other person laugh harder, so then I laugh harder, which makes me squeal in pain, and make the other person laugh even more. I guess this is a good problem to have though.

I don't know why, but I keep torturing myself by watching food shows. I think that maybe since I can't eat the food, that I can stimulate all the other senses involving food and be satisfied...this is not a working theory anymore. Sorry Bobby Flay, I'll see you and all your friends when I can chew again.

Tonight I'm going to see if I can brush the outside of my teeth with my baby toothbrush. The doc said it was okay, and if I can tolerate the slight pain, then I'm going for it!

I'll post pictures once the swelling goes down a little more. :)

4 days out

Since I'm officially over "the hump" now, I get to ice as I please. I've been experiencing more pain today than I have all week. I think its because my nerves are starting to regenerate and I can feel more of my incision sites and where they actually broke my face. The bruising is starting to go from a dark purple to a yellowish color and is sliding down my neck. I've upgraded, once again, to taking pills rather than the liquid Tylenol (thank God!). The pain only dulls though, from like a 7, to a 4 or 5. One the the blogs I first read about had said to prepare yourself for one of thee most undignified recoveries ever. Its day 4 and I think I can back this up by now. I've started doing this totally awesome thing where I drool non-stop and I can't feel it. Its really quite the party trick. Today I started wearing a baby burp rag like a bib... along with this I also handed over my dignity card. I feel like an infant, or a really really old person who can't control their bodily fluids. I have no pride left and have given up on caring if my family sees me in my decrepit stage. So that's fun.

On the positive side of things, my nausea has been gone and I've had quite the appetite! This is great because I can start to gain some of my strength back. It's really hard though because I'm still on a liquid diet and haven't even graduated to soups or shakes yet.. My calorie count is still extremely low and I can feel it in my body when I try to walk around the house. I weighed myself and I've already lost 6lbs (yikes). The downer about finally having an appetite is that I want to eat EVERYTHING. I now spend my days avoiding the kitchen and turning the TV off when food commercials come on.
Its only day 4 of 42 and I'm already planning the day where I eat anything and everything I want. :)

Cravings
Pizza
Meatball Sub
Bread in general
KFC chicken
Peanut butter Kiss Cookies
Hot dogs
Sushi

I also laughed really hard for the first time today. It hurt my poor face muscles so bad, they havent tried to move at all since surgery and to jolt them out like that. It was awesome to laugh again, but wow my face is sore already. Maybe this will help me get the feeling and movement back though, so I will continue to laugh and smile until I can't take it anymore. No pain, no gain right?

The First 72 Hours...

(warning. this post gets gross. just keeping it real)

Let me just start out by saying....oh....my gosh.

On all the other blogs I've read about this surgery, the people tend to disappear and not post for a while and I always wondered why. Now I know why..

Coma or jaw surgery?

I woke up from surgery and I was super drugged up. It was great, they gave me morphine whenever I wanted, anti-nausea meds, IV fluids, the whole shebang. I was never in a lot of pain (cuz of all the nerves they cut) but the swelling was RIDICULOUS. The nurse would wake me up to use the bathroom and it felt like my face weighed 50lbs. I also happened to be in an inpatient-room with two other kids who also had under gone jaw surgery that day. The poor boy at the end was sick most of the day but then slept most of the night. The girl next to me was very quiet but her family...was SO loud. I remember at one point I told my mom to make them leave. I might have made a couple of death threats under my breath, but hey, who doesn't get grumpy when they feel like they've been hit by a train? Another thing that was interesting was that they gave us all suction straws (like at the dentist) that we could use to suck all the excess blood out. I definitely should have used mine more because all the blood I swallowed made me feel ill.

Drugged swollen me...lol

Okay so the hospital, not that bad. It was once I got home where shiz hit the fan. I'm not about to sugar coat this people, so strap in. Basically I was in a vicious cycle of medication. I had to take a laxative because all the narcotics stop you up and make you nauseous. This is common post-op protocol and you'd think by my third surgery that I would have figured out the importance of this. I was nauseated for the entire three days. Honestly, I would have rather have been in pain than nauseous. Because I constantly felt sick, it took every effort in my body to try and consume anything. I needed some sort of food in my stomach before taking pain meds, but I didn't want to eat. So then I'd be in pain AND nauseous. Then after about 12 hours of taking the Tylenol with Codine we realized that my body was having a reaction to it. My heart felt like it had been racing all day and I couldn't sleep at all. We called in and they told me to just take kids Tylenol instead. That stuff was awful and I had to take a ton to get the correct adult dosage. Then my sinus decided to join the party. I got extremely congested and then mucus started flowing into my stomach...making me more nauseous. The ice bags that I had been strapping around my face were getting old. At night I would wake up and rip them off feeling claustrophobic and unable to breath. I eventually got sick the second and third night, which is awful when your mouth only opens 2mm and you can't spit. Christmas Eve was probably the worst. I was so tired, and I hadn't eaten anything and I basically had decided I was going to die. Like no joke, I was doing the math and I was convinced that I could no longer attempt to take care of my body. I told my mom that if I was still like this in the morning, she HAD to take me to the ER. I was praying so hard just for one thing to go my way, and then it happened. God gave me a Christmas Miracle.

Before and immediately after surgery. The swelling actually got wayyyy worse than this.

I woke up the next morning and I was able to go to the bathroom!!! This immediately relieved my nausea and I was able to eat! My dad found adult liquid Tylenol so I didn't have to take the awful kid stuff anymore. The swelling had gone down a little and since it had been 72 hours, I didn't have to ice 24/7 anymore. I took a shower and wow, I've never loved a shower more in my life. I was more alert, able to watch TV, and even text all my friends back (finally, sorry guys).

They told me once I got past 72 hours, "the hump" they called it, that the worst would be behind me. I'm so glad that was true because that was the longest 72 hours of my life. I may be overstepping here, but I think childbirth just might be a breeze now...

It's Tomorrow...

Well shoot. Here we are.

Just one more thing to get food stuck in...

Today I had my last Orthodontist appointment before surgery. This was where they took 2 hours to put on what are called "surgical hooks." These bad boys are for nothing more than to irritate the living daylights out of my lips. No, I kid. They're so that when the surgeon is done making my mouth all pretty, he doesn't have to sew it shut. I guess they used to have to wire people's mouths shut, but now they can just put rubber bands to hold everything in place. They're not even hooks though, just a little stick with a ball on the end (thank God). I have to keep them on for 3 weeks after surgery, then I get normal brace rubber bands.

God's gift to man.

Today is ALSO my last day of chewable freedom...And boy did I take advantage of it. Krispy Kreme for breakfast, Chick-Fil-A for lunch, and MEXICAN FOOD for dinner. Even though I know I'm going to lose weight from my liquid diet, I still felt kind of guilty eating all the bad food. Whatever, I'll thank myself for it after only 24 hours of smoothies and shake.

How am I feeling? You know when you promise your mom you'll clean the toilet? And then you realize that you are terrified of germs and that it was a bad thing for you to volunteer for? But you gotta do it now, because you already committed to it. And now you're just absolutely dreading it because you know how much its going to suck. But you have to do it NOW, there's no turning back, because there's guests coming to the house tonight and you can't let them sit on your dirty toilet! So you do it and it sucks, ohhhhh it sucks so bad. But when its over you feel accomplished and you even get a compliment on how clean the toilet is (that's weird). It's all fine and dandy now, but you will never volunteer for that again...apply that metaphor to jaw surgery and that's how I'm feeling. The surgery is happening tomorrow, there's no question about that. I'm not even nervous for the surgery itself, just the recovery. My doctor keeps telling me that it won't be as bad as I think, but it doesn't sound like a walk in the park to me. What is getting me past the dread to recover, is the fact that the end is in sight! In less than 5 months, I'll have my braces off and put this chapter of life behind me! I'll be able to bite things, and smile with pretty brace-free teeth. That, along with all the support I've been getting from everyone, is what's making me believe that I can get through this alright.

I'll try to post as much as I can during my actual recovery along with some pictures. Thoughts and prayers are appreciated because as Greys Anatomy has taught me, anything can happen during surgery...


Here's to hoping for the best! :)

One. Week. Away.

I keep telling people that I'm nervous but for some reason I have this sense of calm about the whole thing. Maybe its because everything has been explained to me so many times, that I have nothing left to question. Or maybe its because of the hundreds of other blogs I've read to help inform myself of what to expect. I'm sure it'll be the minute I'm sitting in my hospital gown, getting an IV stuck in my arm, that it'll all hit me at once and I'll really freak out.

I remember when I was a little kid, I told myself that I would never have any surgeries in my entire life. Surgeries were for reckless people who did dumb things to get themselves hurt. I fully believed I was invincible until my senior year of high school;  I had two surgeries in one year. First I had knee surgery to repair a torn patella tendon, then I had one for the removal of my wisdom teeth. Perhaps these previous experiences with surgeries are contributing to the lack of emotions I am feeling. All I know is that it will all be worth it when it's over...

OKAY, MOVING ON.

Let's get to what you people really came here for. THE PICTURES.

I don't have access to all the crazy photos that they make you take before the procedure, but as soon as I do, I will for sure post them (along with the after pictures). What I have here are the before and the PREDICTED after side shots. This is what my profile should look like when the swelling is gone. The lighting is terrible, but if you are able to zoom in, you can see where my chin really ends. My results may be more or less drastic than this but this is their prediction.

Pretty cool technology to be able to predict the outcome. So excited!

"What's the sitch?"

Okay. So here is my particular situation. I'll try to explain all the big doctor terms in small words, so you can leave your Merriam Webster on the shelf.

I have a "Stage 2" (whatever that means) Open Bite. I have a "weak chin" because either my jaw never grew up with the rest of my body, or its actually grew backwards. This all means that my teeth touch in the back but not in the front. When ever I explain this to people, I show them that I physically can't touch my front teeth together, and they usually get it.

So what does this mean procedure wise? It means that in order for me to bite correctly, I will be having Double Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. During my many appointments, the surgeon showed me a model like this (right). The first step it to slide my lower jaw forward. But sliding my jaw forward wouldn't fix the bite. In addition to moving it forward, they will also angle it upward to match my upper jaw. Next, they'll be separating my entire upper jaw from my skull in order to widen it, and to correct the ever so slight tilt in my upper jaw. They'll reattach it, throw in some screws, and make sure my bite fits perfectly (yay). Then they'll move on to my chin. They literally cut my chin bone off and pull it forward as far as the surgeon sees fit. He claims he has an eye for it and honestly, I trust him. Then they put some more screws in and they're done. My surgeon said start to finish, he can do the whole thing in under 2 hours. I will have minimal swelling when I wake up and not be in much pain (or so they say). This is because during surgery, they have no choice but to sever lots of my important facial nerves (don't worry, they'll grow back). As cool as it is that I won't be able to feel the full extent of the trauma my face has endured, all the other blogs say the numbness returning is extremely annoying. I guess I'll have to wait and see for myself. 

"But what about all that metal in your face? Won't you set off airport security alarms?"

Actually no. All the plates and screws going into my face are made of titanium. I guess titanium doesn't set off metal detectors or whatever.

"How'd this happen?"

 GREAT QUESTION.


Well it all started in a Galaxy Far Far Awa- ahhhhh gotcha. No but really, this whole thing started a long time ago. I have no idea if this had any effect on start of my mouth issues, but I sucked my thumb until I was about 8 years old...Yep I was a thumb-sucker. My mom tried everything short of just cutting the damn thing off. I was in third grade when I got a thumb guard, (right)

I always got food stuck in it. Yum, save that for later.

that I finally quit for good. They slapped some braces on poor little third grade me and sent me on my way. I was literally the only 3rd grader in my school who had braces and I was mortified. About a year later they finally realized that braces alone weren't fixing the damage that 8 years of thumb-sucking had done. So off came the thumb guard and on came the palate expander (left). They cranked that thing for another year until they assumed my bite was wide enough, then off came the braces and the torture device. I got my braces off at about 11 years old (the time all my friends started getting them on) and I thought that I had finally gotten the last laugh. But oh was I wrong...

Worst. Pain. Ever.

Fast forward about 5 years and...Wow, would you look at that. My mouth was messed up once again. I had lost my retainer after about a month, and at the time, no one was talking about how important retainers were. Guess what...my teeth all moved. I was about to enter high school when I really started noticing the awkward gap between my upper and lower teeth. I could stick my tongue through it and drink through a straw. I remember one car ride I mentioned it to my mom and we soon returned to the orthodontist. I thought that they would be mad because my teeth had moved, but they were so perplexed by my mouth shift, that they sent me to our local Oral Maxillofacial Surgeon. We had a consultation, they told me I'd need surgery if I ever wanted to bite right, but the price tag drove us away. I was going to have to live with my open bite until/ IF we ever found the money to make it happen. I gave up hope for the correction of my face forever. I didn't think about it much except when I tried to bite foods or if I saw myself in pictures. I always noticed in pictures that I would have a double chin. I soon realized that I basically had no chin... or as the doctors call it, a "weak chin." I became very self conscious of this which was super fun, especially going through high school.

How I felt 24/7

Freshmen year of college, I got pulled aside and told that, SURPRISE, you get to have the surgery after all. I was literally in shock though. Like, I was happy because it meant good changes, but I also might have started crying because I was scared of what kind of surgery that would mean for me. It also meant that I would have to be THAT kid in college with braces. Of course by the time you get to college, everyone else has already gotten their braces off and have perfect, amazing, white smiles. Just my luck that I would have braces book-ending the normal time for people to have braces... awesome.

So here begins the adventure into my Jaw Surgery journey.

Really? Another Jaw Surgery Blog?

Dang right another Jaw Surgery Blog.

If you have come across this blog, Congrats! You are probably in the FREAKOUT stage of finding out you are getting jaw surgery. (Don't worry, we all went through that stage) Your surgeon probably warned you about blogs like this. But if you're anything like me, (and I assume you are because you're here) you've probably been frivolously scrambling through the internet trying to find out what might be in your near/distant future. I can't tell you exactly what your experience will be like, but I'm here to tell you about mine. Maybe...just maybe, I'll be able to help you get through your journey by teaching you what to-do, and what NOT to do after jaw surgery. So lets do this thing.

Happy blending my friends...