SARPE Surgery

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#1276 Post by **avy** » Tue Aug 04, 2009 5:08 pm

My gap is just under 4mm now! I cant believe how fast its closing up

I'm so glad it decided to move before the braces! Only 3 weeks until they go on... then I have to learn how to eat all over again

#1277 Post by **zeira** » Thu Aug 06, 2009 10:53 am

That looks great! The gap looks so much more natural now, it will close completely before you know it

.

I'm just starting to expand tomorrow and I'm getting nervous about it (but also excited, finally things are moving!). I'm just a bit swollen and bruised after the surgery, but feeling a lot better. I think the painkillers just made me feel like crap, and I had a terrible headache on Sunday. I hope it won't get worse again after I start expanding!

#1278 Post by **avy** » Thu Aug 06, 2009 3:39 pm

Dont worry about expanding - I seriously didnt feel anything when it was turned. I was nervous like you though before my first one because I didnt know what to expect! It was kind of a let down because I was like 'is that it?' Only once did it feel a bit tight but other than that it was pretty uneventful. Everyone is different though so it might pay to take some pain mild pain killers about half an hour before your first one just in case. Its really exciting seeing everything move and your smile open up

I cant believe I had surgery 2 months ago - it really does go quickly.

#1279 Post by **zeira** » Wed Aug 12, 2009 5:00 pm

You were right, avy! Expanding has been pretty uneventful so far, although now it feels a bit more tight in the back when I expand. When I first got my treatment plan they said twice a day for 8 days, but now it seems like I'll be doing 30 turns, so I have 17 more and already a pretty sizable gap. I'll be traveling for a couple of weeks, so I'm hoping I can start expanding again if necessary when he sees me again.

I was wondering if other people had retainers/bite plates on their lower jaw while expanding. I've started to eat with it now, just because my teeth don't fit very well together otherwise. I think mine is supposed to fix the cross-bite and recenter my lower jaw. It was sort of a pain to wear it at the beginning, but now I'm really glad I have it!

#1280 Post by **badbite** » Thu Aug 13, 2009 9:05 am

I expanded 7 mm and my gap ended up being 8mm. I had no gap before the surgery. My gap didn't close until after the braces were on. It took about six months of braces to close my gap. All is well now.

#1281 Post by **zeira** » Sun Aug 16, 2009 6:47 pm

The numbness in one of my front teeth already started going away (a bit over two weeks after the surgery) but it's incredibly sensitive now. Did anyone else experience this? Anything that is slightly cold just gives me a terrible tooth ache.

I still have 8 more turns (out of 30 total), now I'm moving to 1 turn per day. The gap stabilized around 3mm, and hopefully it will stay that way. I had to get a haircut, new makeup and start doing my nails to get over how I look with this gap.

#1282 Post by **zeira** » Sat Aug 29, 2009 3:01 am

My last turn was on the 24th and I can already see a small improvement in the gap. There's a small gap forming on the other side of the front teeth. I've been hiding the gap quite successfully with a "fake wax tooth" since I'm traveling and I don't want to have everyone staring at my teeth

#1283 Post by **avy** » Sun Aug 30, 2009 8:55 pm

Well i finally got my braces on... and I think I would rather go through surgery again than put up with these! I am in some serious pain and discomfort. The bottom ones are really hurting and rubbing on my lip something shocking. At least this is it now. Now more surprises... the expander comes out in 3 months so that will be the next big event.

Hey did anyone else find it impossible to floss right after they got braces on? I can only floss in between a couple of teeth - the other ones are too tight or sore to do yet. I'm brushing and rinsing with mouth wash 3 times a day to try and compensate the lack of flossing

#1284 Post by **na2r4** » Sun Aug 30, 2009 9:23 pm

Hey there everyone,
Back after a long time, was just checking the site for some questions i wanted answered. I initially posted pics on pg 46 of this topic and i am now at the very end of my treatment it seems! I will be having my braces removed in 2 weeks and am soooooo excited.
The changes since the SARPE have been extraordinary. I'm taking my initial pre-op impression with me, so that i can compare it to the one that i will get on brace removal day, when they will make the impression for the invisalign retainers. I will post pics, so that u can see the difference. It's amazing! I hope everyone's treatment is coming along great.

#1285 Post by **zeira** » Mon Aug 31, 2009 9:17 am

I'm so jealous, avy! Our treatment plans have been very similar so far, but you are about 6 weeks ahead. I can't wait to get my braces on (or at least that's how I feel right now

).

Welcome back, na2r4! Did you only get the SARPE or did you have another surgery as well? It seems like most people on the board are getting SARPE along with other surgeries, so it's unclear what to expect just from the expansion. I would love to see some photos of your progress!

#1286 Post by **zeira** » Wed Sep 02, 2009 2:49 pm

I know people have been asking about facial changes, and I was very curious about this as well. I might just be imagining all these, and the changes are definitely very very tiny, but some of these have been confirmed by my parents. They don't see me very often, and just saw me now after I finished expanding.

Some of the changes: face seems a tiny bit more rounded, cheeks seem a bit fuller (someone even wondered whether I'm going to develop dimples), i think that because of the cheeks my eyes don't look as droopy anymore and seem a tiny bit bigger. And of course the nice, wide smile. Again, I might just be imagining this, and I've definitely started taking better care of myself: makeup, new haircut, painted nails, new clothes, etc just to compensate the huge gap I have

.

I had a great experience with the surgery, and I would recommend it to anyone who had to choose whether or not to get it.

Thu Sep 03, 2009 5:18 am

Well zeira, I did develop dimples! They aren't hug things, but when I smile you can definately see them

#1288 Post by **glenncoyle** » Fri Sep 11, 2009 9:02 pm

hey all

thought id join this forum as im going through the surgery on wednesday.

my expander was meant to go in last thursday, but the ortho forgot to put my spaceers in hence i have to wait till tuesday to get it in. oh well, at least i get one last weekend of talking normally

been great reading all of your experiences and it has helped calm the nerves a fair bit.

anyway i too have started a blog.

http://sarpe-and-braces.blogspot.com/

i cant wait to get it started, ive wanted a nice big straight smile for ages!!

#1289 Post by **chicago29** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 7:05 am

glenncoyle,

Welcome! I checked out your blog, and your upper palate resembled mine before I had my SARPE (I also had an MSDO to widen the bottom jaw). Mine may have actually been a bit worse, but they are similar nonetheless.

Best of luck with your surgery, and let me be one of the first to tell you that you are going to LOVE the results. It will make such a dramatic difference in your case. The gap won't be fun, but I'll cross my fingers for you that it closes up quickly on its own.

Let us know when you are "on the other side".

Take Care
Chicago29

Sat Sep 12, 2009 12:58 pm

I ditto chicago's sentiments. This surgery makes such a huge difference, and since it looks like you need quite a big expansion, your results will be all the more worthwhile and fantastic

It's such a weird- but great- feeling to have the expander removed; you just think 'wow, my mouth is huge!' (by the way chicago- since you had the double surgery, how crazy did your new mouth feel sans expanders?

)

I have pics on my blog of my results. My palate was tiny, though my pre-surgery pictures aren't very clear (though you can see from my overcrowding), and I expanded around 10mm in all

Good luck. And even though people seem to have had it a bit worse than I did, I always say SARPE is not that bad. The worst thing is the expander!