June/July 2015 Surgery Buddies

[snapdresser]

Jaime - So I check out your blog update! For the screw you say you're able to feel next to your nose, are you sure it isn't where the suture is that keeps your nose in place? I BELIEVE it's on either side of your nostrils. Not positive on that, but I had strange feelings on either side of my nostrils after the surgery too, especially when I kinda scrunched up my face. It's gone though now. Also, I totally get what you're saying about the kind of phantom feelings. When I brush my teeth on the lower left side, I get a weird feeling on the outside of my left cheek lol. Silly nerves need to figure it out

[jaime]

Snap, there's definitely a hard bump under my eye next to my nose. The photo of the x-ray I have is not the greatest so it's hard to tell exactly where the Lefort I hardware all is. When I look at photos online of Lefort I surgeries, it's not totally surprising the screw is so far up on me. I have a small head.

Back in the first few weeks when I tried lying down flat, the same spot below my eye went numb for a day or two. So there's definitely something there.

Also, I keep meaning to tell you that you look like one of my extended relatives. You could pass yourselves off as brothers easily. Unfortunately I don't have any photos because he and I are not friends on Facebook and his profile pic is from a distance.

12 weeks today!

[snapdresser]

Jaime - Ah, ok, that's pretty high up. Maybe you could swing by your surgeon's office and ask to see your xray? Or they're a couple hours away right? So maybe they could e-mail you a digital copy? I have a wicker blood blister on the inside of my cheek back by my molars so maybe it's just a blood blister, but you can't move it around at all, right? Yeah, I remember you had a lot more under-eye numbness than I did.

Oh jeez... Comparisons to people I look like. That gives me flashbacks to some particularly unflattering comments I received about my old face Didn't you also think I was like 40 years old? Is this guy your uncle? I think I mentioned that FB keeps auto-tagging me as my brother in pictures lol. I'm sure it's learning tho, since I uploaded so many selfies from London. Some good ones, too

Did my hair for work today. I figure I may as well go all out, now that I can pull it off!

Congrats on 12 weeks!!!

[jaime]

My relative is in his 70s actually. Just kidding! He's the same age as me, 29. I wish I had a photo to show you.

I also did not think you LOOKED older, I just assumed you were and then didn't think too much about it. I have learned to keep my trap shut when I wrongly assume people's ages.

That's hilarious about Facebook auto-tagging your brother. What's the age difference between you? People can never tell who is the older one between my sister and I and it drives her insane because I'm 29 and she's 24.

That's cool you did your hair. It's amazing what the surgery does for your self-confidence, eh?

[snapdresser]

Hahaha phew! He must be a stud-muffin!

That's interesting about assuming I was older. Maybe I type differently? I think I assumed most of the people on here were around my age, tho maybe hindsight is 20/20 now that I know you guys' ages lol

My brother is only 2 years older than me. I see a big difference between us still. I think we'll have to do a picture side-by-side sometime and then maybe I'll see the similarity. I haven't seen him since my surgery tho You know, people may say that about you and your sister even more now! I've been told I look much younger now Have you heard that? Made me feel better too, cuz only in the last year or so have I started to notice the lines in my face

Haha yeah, totally true about the self-confidence. My wife joked that my surgeon had created a monster It's pretty neat!

[KaylaChristine]

Hey everyone...just checking in real fast. I'll have to catch up on recent posts!

My upper jaw stills shifts upwards when I bite down. I'm now 11-1/2 weeks post op. The bone isn't as soft as it was...I don't think...but it still isn't fully solid I'm beginning to get really, really frustrated with all of this---and worried. I see my surgeon on the 17th. He wanted to wait a month before he saw me from my last appointment because he didn't expect much to change in a week or so--he was correct. My bite has shifted and gotten worse (compared to 6 weeks when I got unwired). I'm starting to get really, really worried with how much it's shifted. Most of my teeth aren't touching on the sides/back now---I had gaps beforehand but it's getting worse each week. And the teeth that do touch are only touching a tiny bit. I just hope elastics and braces adjustments can fix it all :/ My spirits are a bit down right now. I thought I'd be eating almost normally by now. I'm afraid to see what my bite will look like in a couple weeks. I really hope the bone is solid by my next appointment so I can stop worrying about how crappy my new bite is getting :/

Anyway, I hope everyone is doing great. I'll be sure to read all the missed posts

[Nozzelnut]

Just thought I'd stop in with an update. The hits just keep on coming....

So, last week my tongue got a rough spot in an unusual place; not in a bracket area; a lot lower. So I started feeling around and found a screw that was stretching the skin quite a bit in my lower jaw on the tongue side. It is starting to poke through. Probably didn't notice it before because of all the swelling. I had a scheduled follow-up with the surgeon today and we talked about it. I really don't need this to become a site of constant infect or irritation so I'm scheduled to have it (and possibly the other 2 in the area) removed Sept 23.

This is getting old; it's never ending. I'm not sure if I would do this over again. The expectations weren't really met; I still have sleep apnea (from symptoms not by sleep study) and this recovery is way too long and I still have some spots that are pretty numb, my bite opened up again on my upper left side because my upper arch was collapsing in while bringing the canine to meet the lower teeth with the elastics and thinner wire... It's not a horrible outcome but I was kind of hoping for more positives.

Pretty frustrated; again.

[jaime]

Hey Nozzel,

That sucks, good thing you had an appointment with your surgeon already scheduled.

I sympathize with your feelings as things haven't been perfect for me, either. Sometimes I think orthodontics and jaw surgery are more of an art than a science.

[snapdresser]

Nozzelnut - Wow, jeez, that's pretty crazy to be able to feel the screw. Does it hurt or does your tongue hurt from where it was being rubbed? It seems like they would trim the screws according to the thickness of your jaw... Apparently not So you'll be back under and all again? Did your surgeon discuss the difference in recovery this time with you? I would expect it to be much less trauma/muscle stretching/etc and therefore a much easier recovery, right? Still, I can understand how you're tired of all this When it IS all over and done with, which I'm sure can't be too far away, you'll appreciate having gone through the effort.

Jaime - I definitely agree that it's more art than science, and of course the "canvas" is different for everybody too... How you healing up? How's your numbness?

I have a fair bit of numbness remaining too. I have a little altered sensation at the tip of my chin still, but my gums are still pretty numb all around. On the top left side I still can't really feel anything at all in the gums, but my surgeon did tell me all the feeling in the maxilla will return 100%. It's just taking a lot time, as I'm sure you all empathize with

My wife thinks I've gone crazy with the selfies. But I'm trying to get in 30-years worth of looking at myself in mirrors and pictures so I get back where I was in terms of self-identity. Plus I dig how much better I look in pictures now

[snapdresser]

Wow, I didn't realize today is 3 months for me!!! Maybe I should have a beer or something. Days like this I wish everybody knew so I could write a special FB post about it

[jaime]

Why not write a Facebook post? I've been very open about my experience and the people who know me are way more interested in it than I would have expected. It's just in my nature to be an open book, but I do know that not everybody is like me. But my point is that you might be surprised by the supportive feedback!

My numbness sounds similar to yours Snap, but I can feel my gums at the sides of my mouth. The front upper and lower gums are still gone, as is my palate. Only the meaty part of my chin has slight tingly feeling, the rest of it feels fine.

Those of you who had the sliding genio (I can never remember who got what), do your chin muscles feel tight? I'm not sure if I should be trying to exercise my chin with exaggerated facial expressions, or if it just feels like that because the feeling isn't totally back.

I plan to make a video tonight or tomorrow since tomorrow is 3 months for me. Congrats to us, snap. It has flown by!! At this point I am (hopefully) at most 9 months away from getting my braces off, but I am hoping it's more like 4-6.

[snapdresser]

Jaime - Well, I have a ton of FB friends that I'm not particularly close with. I don't really want to share my medical info with them. Also, I feel kind of embarrassed talking about it with acquaintances I'm sure I'd get some nice positive feedback tho! Yeah, our numbness sounds pretty similar. I had the sliding genio but I wouldn't really say my chin muscles feel tight. Maybe you could try hot compresses or little massages with your fingers? I DO stretch my whole face out with the exaggerated facial expressions tho. A lot. Looking forward to your new vlog entry!!! Yup, time's going by quick. Tho it seems like forever ago that I returned to work lol. I could stand for another trip to London again tho! I'm ready!

[Nozzelnut]

I'm with you about the chin muscle tightness Jaime; similar feelings. I do the exaggerated stretching too. Muscles feel tight and there's a decent amount of altered sensation there too. It's like I can feel the muscles cramping but can't feel the skin; it feels like 2 separate parts even though it's not.... Still a bit numb on my left side in the chin area. But, it's slowly getting better. The first couple weeks were large improvements, but now it's small gains. The front of my upper and lower gums (on the lip/cheek side) are still numb too; but I can feel the roof of my mouth

It's just the one screw that's poking. Of course, in your mouth it feels like a 4" decking screw but it's probably only 1-2mm higher than the surrounding area. It doesn't hurt, but it's definitely a focal point and it does rub my tongue quite a bit. I can't feel the other 2 so I guess he used the right length screws for those. He called it "tenting" and it typically doesn't cause an issues; but I don't need this to be a site for thin skin, irritation, and possible infection; forever. He said it's much simpler removing them than it is putting them in. The bones have fused well from the xray. Current plan is to make a small incision on the outside; in the same spot he made an incision for surgery, locate the screw and remove it. If he can't find it from the outside, he'll have to make a small incision inside too. If he does that he said he'll remove all 3 of them. If it doesn't want to easily come out, he'll have to trim/grind it off from the inside by my tongue. Yay! He did give me a couple options; sedated or just numb. As of now I'm going with just numb. I hope this goes simply and smoothly and he's able to find it from the outside.

[snapdresser]

You know, that's something I didn't realize pre-op: that the gum numbness would last so long. I figured it'd come back at the same pace as the rest of the face. Wacky.

Nozzelnut - Lol, yeah, I'm sure it feels huge. I was afraid to feel around in my mouth after I read your post lol. If they can do it without you going under, that sounds pretty straight forward. That'd be awesome! Then you'd stay on pace with the healing and whatnot too, I'd think. It's a bump in the road but at least it's a small one!

[Liz192]

Hello all! I know it has been a while. I have finally moved up to Oklahoma. My hubby is still in Texas but I hope to get him back at the end of the month. My 2 month post op is tomorrow. I can't believe it as only been 2 months. That is craziness to me. I am still numb in all the same places. My lower gums, lower lip, chin and left side of my tongue are still numb. I am getting extremely frustrated with the numbness, my lower lip especially. When did y'all start to get the feeling back in your lip? When I saw my oral surgeon last he told me to exercise my mouth and massage my chin. He didn't tell me how to exercise my chin so I have just been doing exaggerated facial expressions. I don't know if any of you have had this problem but EVERYTHING gets stuck in my braces now. It doesn't matter what I eat or how much it all gets packed down in my cheeks and braces. It is ridiculous! I have to brush and use interdental brushes non-stop throughout the day. Way more than pre-surgery. Post surgery I have also noticed that my lips fall apart when relaxed. I have to make a conscious effort to keep them closed. I have also noticed that at times I have a crazy amount of saliva. I drooled when I slept pre-op but man post-op seems worse. Everyone asks me if I like my new face and the answer is "I guess". I'm still getting use to it. I'm sure there is still some swelling or at least I am hoping so. I'm not the biggest fan of my resting face. Smiling is fine but I can't walk around smiling all the time, people will think I'm crazy. I feel like there is a bigger dent in my chin under my lip more than other people but maybe that's because I've never had a chin before.

Nozzelnut- That is crazy about the screw. I would totally be too chicken to be awake for the removal. I will be thinking of ya and hope it all goes smoothly.

Snap- I'm the same way. I wouldn't want to share my medical info with Facebook either. I'm too much of a private person. I'll probably shoot out a group text tomorrow about my 2 month post-op.

Jamie- I look forward to your next vlog. My chin/skin around my mouth does feel tight sometimes. I just stretch it out and it seems to be alright for a while.