January 2010 Buddies

Message

#136 Post by **HelenUK** » Thu Feb 04, 2010 1:13 pm

Hey emma,

thats great news! ur pics look amazing, such a difference from before! I'm so glad ur happy with the team, it helps me to go into my treatment with full confidence in them.

And if you feel like getting cards/flowers for the surgeon and ortho, then do! I'm always really pleased to get gifts from my patients, even though i just do my job!

helen x

#137 Post by **Davide** » Thu Feb 04, 2010 2:04 pm

I always show my appreciation for my ortho by sending emails. Let your ortho and OS know how much you appreciate them. They will love it.

#138 Post by **lfwood** » Fri Feb 05, 2010 7:32 pm

Hey Emma, nice pics and thanks for sharing. I haven't taken one photo of myself yet, not really a part of my life I want to remember IYKWIM. That would be great if you only had to have your braces for another 3 months!! Fantastic. My lower advancement is over corrected by a tiny bit (unfortunately) so I will need to have my teeth moved a bit to fix my bite.

The good news is that my infection has gone, my OS gave me some great anti biotics and it has gone. Hooray. Now back to healing myself. I have started to have a little go at soft chewing but it is slow and tedious.

I still have to wear my bands 20 hours out of 24. I take them off for breakie and then put them on at around 11 am. Hopefully it will all start to stabilise a bit. Am worried that I won't be allowed to see my ortho at the end of Feb and will have to try and get another appointment scheduled in. Have an x-ray this coming monday and then an appointment with surgeon straight after.

Hows everyone else doing?

#139 Post by **crazybeautiful** » Wed Feb 10, 2010 2:28 pm

I'm not really one for pictures (I only have a few before profiles just for comparison) but I think it helps for reference. I certainly enjoyed looking at people's results on here before I had the surgery. I do tend to look generally bad in photos though, so I think I'll stick to just profiles

As for my bite- my upper jaw is still slightly smaller than my lower, despite SARME. They debated expanding a little more during the surgery but decided against it. It's not a huge deal, as my teeth still meet absolutely fine, but my ortho may decide to work some more on it; so if I end up not getting debraced in 3 months I don't really mind. I'm not holding my breath for that, anyway. Currently I have powerchains to close 2 gaps. Other than that there's not much else to do I don't think.

Oh, has anyone used a straw yet? I was with my friend today and got a drink from MacDonalds since she wanted something (ugh, I don't eat their food though) and could I hell work out how to use the straw. It's not even just because my lip is numb, but I felt like I'd physically never used a straw before, and couldn't work out how to get it in my mouth because my jaws were in the way

That sounds odd I know, but my upper teeth have never gone in front of my lowers, and it feels wrong

After extracting less than a ml through the straw in about 10 attempts, I just took the lid off

#140 Post by **enigma** » Thu Feb 11, 2010 6:58 am

Hi all,
Well just a hello and a quick catch up. Im now accepting that Im tired Im still anemmic so Im bound to be but hey everything else is fine!
Better than that really I will try to put some photos up soon sadly I never got a side profile shot before surgery but my overbite was so bad you will get the idea.
My bands are gone in the front so I can really see my smile and its the best thing ever!!! I actually have a pretty smile now find myself looking in the mirror and smiling more!
As yet I havent tried through a straw Im finding lots of things funnier now though like thinking Im eating really well only to find Im wearing it!
Totally numb on bottom lip and chin, but hilarious twitches and jerks on my bottom lip its going crazy and the spasms are really strong, family spent last nite watching my face instead of tv lol
So Im getting there finally which is great and this site has been such a help so thanks again to everyone.
xxx

#141 Post by **lfwood** » Wed Feb 24, 2010 7:37 pm

So, today I am six weeks post op - Hooray

Had an xray monday and appointment with my surgeon - she has now handed me back to my ortho for more teeth movement.

Went to the ortho today. Got new ligs (thank goodness) on top and a powerchain on the bottom. I had a small gap between my bottom middle two teeth - but in 2 hours it has already gone. I only have to wear one elastic now and thankfully its not a tight one. Goes from the top back molar to my bottom canine on my right side. Still have all my surgery hooks and didn't get a new wire either. Oh well. Go back in 5 weeks.

As for eating, was getting back on to mostly a regular diet (I don't eat steak anyway). My bottom teeth are hurting today from the powerchain, but other than that all is going good.

Hows everyone else going? Anyone know how much longer in braces they have? I don't yet, but the worst is over now anyway so I don't mind so much.

#142 Post by **ReneG** » Thu Feb 25, 2010 6:50 am

Just had another ortho appointment today. The stubborn gap is closed and he removed most of the powerchains but left the spring. I'm also on to "green" elastics (larger than "rabbits"... seems the same as my "penguins") but only at night and only on the right side. I see him again in four weeks.

I asked how long more would I be braced and he said about two more months. I was tempted to ask about what else he was going to do about my teeth - levelling? movement? - but decided I didn't want to know.

Early on in my treatment I asked a zillion questions and worried endlessly. Now, I'll just trust that my ortho knows what he's doing and let him worry about it. So I see him again in four weeks and that's that *shrug*

#143 Post by **OhioM** » Sat Feb 27, 2010 10:02 pm

Hi, all...positive developments for me today! I've been having significant discomfort on my right side, especially at the base of my nose. I was doing my daily q-tip nostril cleaning and I felt a POP - painful - and I stared in the mirror expecting blood to come poring out of something - but nothing. I went on with life, but when it came time for my next Advil dose, I didn't have pain. I also noticed improvement in how I could move my face and I could smile and talk normally with NO PAIN in the usual spots. I looked in the mirror, I had a semi-normal smile, and the swelling was down! (not all the way, but more even with my left side)

My husband is a doctor and he thinks that it was probably scar tissue hung up on something or perhaps a stitch that was sticking to something. But I'm really suprised that such a little moment could just turn things around for me. I feel like a new woman! Now I just have to pass my 6 week post op visit and get these arch bars off and I will be feeling confident about recovery in general.

#144 Post by **crazybeautiful** » Thu Mar 04, 2010 2:16 pm

Well today was a good day. Saw my ortho, and got 3 bits of good news (2 teeth-related):

1) I don't need to wear my elastics anymore

2) I'm getting my braces off in MAY

I need a gap to close, but other than that I'm all done. One of my molars is slightly in a crossbite position, however it has no direct impact on my bite. My ortho said she'd like it fixed in the sense that it's her job to get everything perfect, but since it doesn't make a difference to my bite -or to me personally- she's going to leave it. I don't necessarily mind her working on it, but as far as I'm concerned having one tooth that isn't perfect makes little difference to me.
I have one more normal appointment in 4 weeks, and then will be debonded in May

The third bit of good news is more on a personal level, but I'll share anyway. I'm a student of Clinical Psychology (second year undergraduate) and my ortho always asks about it and what I'm doing. Anyway today she was like, 'oh Sheffield [where all orthognathic surgery is done in this area] is desperate for a Clin. Psych, and you'd be perfect because you've experienced it yourself! We'll have to talk about it next time...'
Now I'm not taking this to be a job offer because obviously I'm not qualified yet

, but some form of work experience in that area would be great for me. So if she can hook me up, she can

#145 Post by bb » Thu Mar 04, 2010 5:54 pm

Debanding- May... that's so close!!
psch job- Awesome!!!
yay you!

#146 Post by **lfwood** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 3:02 pm

WOW Emma that is fantastic. Good news for you all round.

A debanding date in May would be fantastic. I have only had one appointment with my ortho and that was just over 10 days ago. I have booked my next 2 appointments to make sure I keep on schedule but my next one isn't til 1st April.

I have planned to get coloured ligs on my upper arch for my last 4 weeks in braces!!! I normally only get the clear on the upper. I am hoping that I will get them off by September. I won't of actually paid them off til July anyway.

Wishing quick teeth movement to everyone

#147 Post by **lfwood** » Fri Jun 04, 2010 9:50 pm

Thought I would drag this up again to see where everyone is at as I have seen some of the January Buddies getting their braces off.

I am going to ask my ortho on Monday, but am sure that I will have a few more months yet.

Whats happening with everyone else?

#148 Post by **ReneG** » Sat Jun 05, 2010 1:35 pm

Surgery wise - everything seems fine so I'm postponing my followup visits due to work complications.

Braces wise - it doesn't really feel that everything is in place. but I'm so tired of them i just want them off. Slightly off? who cares?! I can actually bite/chew properly now!

Counting down to the removal in 26 days!!

#149 Post by **lfwood** » Sun Jun 06, 2010 7:42 pm

So, had another adjustment today. Still no idea how much longer. My ortho just said that it would be 9 - 12 months after surgery for debanding. She says that things are going at a good rate - so I am aiming for the '9' month which would be at the earliest October

I had two very tight elastics on this month and a powerchain on my top arch OW!!

Wow ReneG - only 26 days to go. That would be fantastic!!

Oh well I will just keep plodding along......

#150 Post by **crazybeautiful** » Wed Jun 09, 2010 1:41 pm

I should have had my braces taken off last week, but my bite shifted slightly, so instead it's been changed to August. I was glad of the delay because I didn't feel like I had a comfortable, and therefore stable, bite. With the elastics on it is so much better, and I can feel the difference already.

Instead then, I came out with 8 powerchains on the bottom, one on top, wire-ties along my front teeth, and strong elastics to wear all the time except to eat. Even the elastics I had on right after surgery weren't so strong!

Last week was the first time I had serious pain since I first got braced and the first few adjustments.

I still have numbness on the left side that has remained the same, but other than this everything is great.