The Lovely Season for Scalpels Club (calling all Dec. dates)

Message

#31 Post by **Arvensis** » Thu Dec 06, 2007 9:06 pm

Zou is such a spoilsport. I plan on spiking my eggnog as soon as I'm off the strong narcotics. I'm choosing Meryaten as my example and my OS hasn't told me no so that's good enough for me!!

BTW I met with the "nutritionist" my OS makes me see... (1) it's his wife and (2) she was annorexic looking. There is nothing more depressing than meeting with an excessively skinny woman who keeps telling you that you must not lose weight after surgery. Literally, she looked like a Barbie Doll in a bad way. Like a Barbie Doll after having a few inches shaved off manually.

As for coping, Merkitaminasi, I find that being rather ridiculous and starting silly clubs about surgery dates works quite well. I highly recommend it. Perhaps contribute to our Twelve Days of Surgery roundtable song? It's my first major procedure, aside from wisdom teeth, as well.

Membership Roster:
mmh - November 17th
zou - December 12th
Phil - December 12th
Overjet - December 13th
Pagey - December 14th
Arvensis - December 17th
Merkitaminasi - December 17th

Welcome to the club! Yay for another December 17th!!

#32 Post by **phil** » Thu Dec 06, 2007 9:12 pm

I plan on refraining from alcohol for a few weeks for another important reason: it tends to congest! If I end up wired shut, and still have residual congestion from this sinus infection, it could be a deathwish! Not trying to be a spoilsport, I just want to live to tell about this!

BTW, I am finding saline nasal mist to be quite helpful this evening in alleviating nasal congestion. Doesn't do the WHOLE job, but it does help.

How does everyone like my new avatar?

#33 Post by **zou** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 12:33 am

I am not a spoilsport. I was giving the sage advice not to mix alcohol and narcotics and that it is believed that during the healing process it is often discouraged because of the added stress processing alcohol can place on the body.

I NEVER SAID I WOULD TAKE MY OWN ADVICE

I do plan on refraining from mixing demerol and alcohol, but given my high threshold for pain and the fact that following other operations I needed only one or two pills, I'm hoping to be off the stong stuff pretty quickly. I really doubt I'll make it through the holiday without some of that spiked eggnog.

I went to the doctor today for my pre op physical and bloodwork and was pleased to see I have managed to put on a few pounds. Not something I would normally say, especially after losing almost 20 this year. However, now I have a little buffer between looking healthy and looking like that anorexic barbie doll. I figure I can now safely lose up to 12 pounds before things start to look bad.

#34 Post by **merkitaminasi** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 10:36 am

I was lucky enough to be born without wisdom teeth so I've never had to get any teeth removed. I'm not too worried about lsing weight after the surgery cuz I hav quite a few pounds i wouldnt mind getting rid of. Does anyone know any really good low calorie drink mixes that I can try immediately following surgery? Also about how much activity should I expect to be able to do two days post op? At my preop evaluation the lady said the procedure is pretty long. Does anyone know about how many hours I can expect to be "Under the Knife"? I would like to thank everyone for the support. When I first got braces I knew I was going to have to have surgery but now that I'm at the point of having surgery, its a huge reality check.

#35 Post by **zou** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 11:02 am

DO NOT use post op as an opportunity to lose weight. You need to keep your calorie count as close to normal as you can and you especially need to get plenty of protien.

I am currently using Jay Robb's egg white protien powder (both the chocolate and vanilla flavors) and it is the best tasting stuff I've ever used. It has no lactose and it blends really well with fruit juice and other items. They also sell a flavorless version online that I assume could be mixed with soups.

I know it is hard to resist, but please do not put your recovery at risk by trying to lose extra weight at this time. Once the bones are healed then you can start a weight and exercise program to shed those unwanted pounds.

#36 Post by **merkitaminasi** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 1:59 pm

Zou thanks for the advice....I didnt mean I wanted to try and lose weight afterwards i just meant i didnt want to gain any by drinking things that are high in fat and calories. My mom wants to go shopping next weekend for things for me to eat post op. Does anyone have a list of things that I should remember to buy?

#37 Post by **zou** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 3:01 pm

The most important thing you need to look for in liquid items is whethr they have nutritional value or are just packed with suger, especially high fructose.

Go to health food stores that carry protien powders or supermakets like Sprouts or Whole Foods, or even Trader Joes and look for creamy soups, natural fruit juices and other soft food items such as instant mashed potatoes that can be liquified as necessary. You can of course use Boost and other premade drinks, but they tend to be so sweet that you may get sick of them quickly.

There are a ton of great soups out there, and if they are not creamed you can usually blend and strain them to make them edible. If you are going to be on soft chew pretty quickly look for things that you can get down easily like cream of wheat, puddings, jello (not overly nutritional but fun to eat).

Also, get yourself a big container of Benefiber (or a similar store brand, I know CVS has their own version) and put this in everything you drink to keep the intestines happy.

This is the perfect opportunity to extra nice to you body and give it healthy food. Since you may not have much of an appetite, or you may find eating too much of a chore just be sure that everything you get down has nutritional value. Just remember, complete carb (to keep your energy up) and protein (to keep the healing going) are super important. Also, keep hydrated, and minimize caffine to keep the mucus from thickening up and causing more problems.

There is some great information available on this board, plus if you order the zip and squeeze bags I highly recommend the book that is available at that website as well. It has a ton of information about pre and post op recovery, nutrition and receipes. Also check out 8weekswired.com for other useful information.

#38 Post by **Arvensis** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 3:03 pm

Actually you want to take in more calories than normal post-op b/c your body will be using the calories faster than normal to heal itself. I've got a nice buffer zone thanks to summer job recruiting fun and finals.

But I'm still planning on ice cream, oh yeah! AND spiking my eggnog... in the 2nd week probably, but still;) Glad you're going to be right there with me on that one, Zou.

My list so far for the first week:

Coffee flavored Ensure
Ice cream (Vanilla)
Rainbow sherbet
liquid vitamins
whey protein powder
Malt Powder
Milk

That's as far as I've gotten

My annorexic Barbie complaint is that this woman actually did the surgery too not too long ago, hence why she's the "nutritionist"... Her before and after is quite drastic, and I wonder if she became so skinny before or after the surgery. Just interesting, is all... I just didn't feel like her nutrition information was very useful - I've learned tons more here than in the appointment with someone who is being paid to offer the advice.

#39 Post by **merkitaminasi** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 4:52 pm

I'm ready to get this surgery over already....I'm probably the baby out of the bunch on here at a mere 20 years old...I hope some of my questions dont seem "stupid". Is a humidifier recommended for use post op for comfort at night? Since I wont be wired will I be able to have at least some verbal communication within a couple days? or should i brush up on my sign language? Also r there any foods I should avoid other then stuff with high fructose corn syrup?

#40 Post by **shani** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 5:54 pm

dont worry about the 'baby' factor or the stupid questions, dont know unless you ask, and it can be easier to ask on here than asking your surgeon. i was banded tightly with a splint post op, and i was talking almost immedietly post-op, my mum could understand me, but my dad could not, but by the next day, most people could understand me face to face if i spoke slowly.

#41 Post by **merkitaminasi** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 6:13 pm

Ok another big question...What does a splint look like? My doctor is fitting me for them on the 12th but I dont exactly know what it looks like? Will it protrude from my face?

#42 Post by **ohmyjaw** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 6:22 pm

I found that I wasn't very hungry after my surgery... but still, you gotta eat, so here's my list:

Mashed yams
Lentil soup (for protein)
Couscous
chocolate pudding
various fruit and vegetable juices
ice cream
soft tofu (blend with soups for more protein)
bananas (great in milkshakes)
broth (chicken, vegetable, miso, etc)

Sorry I can't help with the splint question - never had one of those.

My operation was 6 hours long, and that is on the long side. I think something like 4 or 5 hours is normal for both jaws, 2 hours for one jaw.

I never used a humidifier - where I live is plenty damp already. I actually didn't have much of a problem with congestion, but I had some saline nose spray just in case, and some Vicks Vapo Rub, which I used once or twice.

#43 Post by **shani** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 6:45 pm

its a plastic thing that is basically a mould of your projected bite. it is then used intra-op to make sure that everything is in the right spot, then depending on surgeons preferance and type of surgery it is either wired to top +/- bottom teeth and sits basically flush with them, doesnt project out, and people wouldnt really know it was there unless you showed them

#44 Post by **dubnobass** » Sat Dec 08, 2007 2:27 am

merkitaminasi wrote:Ok another big question...What does a splint look like? My doctor is fitting me for them on the 12th but I dont exactly know what it looks like? Will it protrude from my face?

It looks like this:

That's the splint they used on me before my jaws had been re-positioned. You can see how big an overjet I had. They will use a second splint in the surgery, where both arches line up as they should, to make sure your re-positioned jaws are in the right place. They may or may not leave this in place after the surgery - I had mine in for a week.. some people don't have them at all.. some people have them in for up to 6 weeks. They're not much fun, it must be said.

#45 Post by **zou** » Sat Dec 08, 2007 9:28 am

Ohmyjaw - Wow, what an overjet. Thanks for the pictured of the splint. I have never seen one outside of the mouth and was very curious because my OS says I will have mien for the full 6 weeks I'm wired. I'm guessing I have to have it the whole time because once I'm wired he does not want to unwire me to take it out. Must say I am not looking foward to the thing.