Can I have double-jaw surgery while nursing baby?

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#1 Post by **marycotter5678** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 10:39 am

Can I have orthognathic surgery when I'm still breast-feeding baby?

#2 Post by **OhioM** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 11:12 am

I doubt it...unless your baby is older and can drink from cups or bottles while you are unavailable. And even then, do you want to deal with pumping in the hospital while you are unable to breastfeed due to the medications? You will also be sent home with prescription pain meds and these will go straight into your baby if you feed her.

Most people also have trouble getting enough calories in to support healing without major weight loss, and nursing ups your caloric needs by 500 a day, right?

I thought about doing this surgery back when I had babies and I decided to put it off for this very reason. I wish I could have sqeezed it in during those very busy years. But maybe for you it's just a matter of waiting a few more months. Good luck!

#3 Post by **mp921** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 1:10 pm

I struggled with the decision to wait on trying to conceive our 2nd child until after the surgery or go ahead and try to have our 2nd child prior to surgery. My Orthodontist made it sound like no problem....caring for and/or nursing a baby after surgery. But boy and I glad I made the decision to wait! (He's also the one that told me I could have the surgery on a Thursday and be back at work the following Monday....HA I think not!)

It's hard to take in enough calories after surgery for yourself, much less while breastfeeding. Also, if you are one of the lucky ones you might can avoid strong pain medications but you never know. I ended up on prescription pain meds, strong antibiotics, Zofran for severe nausea & Flexaril to help with the intense muscle spasms. None of these things were anticipated with my recovery. Plus, there was no way during the first 2 weeks I would have felt like nursing a baby. I didn't even feel like taking care of myself! Now keep in mind, my recovery was a little worse than most due to infection. But you never know!

Good luck with your decision.

#4 Post by **marycotter5678** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 8:16 pm

Thank you both for answering. My orthodontist says I should be ready for surgery in about 6 months but she keeps extendign the time every time I see her so I'm thinking it will be more like 8-10 months possibly. And I was thinking maybe I could squeeze a baby in that time since I am home now anyway and we really want to have one...

#5 Post by **Tribal** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 7:23 am

Ummm, I haven't had a baby (and don't plan to for that matter) but I'm pretty sure it's hard on your body and going in for jaw surgery within a month of giving birth would probably result in a significantly longer recovery time from the surgery. If your ortho is saying 6 months I wouldn't take that chance, even if you think it's going to be 8 - 10 months... unless you're already pregnant you won't be having the baby before 8 months is up, and some couples can take months or years to conceive, so saying you could have a baby within the next 10 months is a little unrealistic.

At the very least you should discuss it with your ortho. It is very likely they won't clear you for surgery untill well after you've given birth which would mean being in braces even longer. There's also the fact that after jaw surgery you're not going to have the energy to care for yourself, much less a newborn, for the first few weeks. I would really recommend having the surgery first (if the ortho is saying 6 months, then it could very well be in 6 months) and recovering fully from that before subjecting your body to the stress of a pregnancy.

#6 Post by **projo198** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 10:29 am

I would worry about the medication, as well as having the patience/energy to take care of the baby.

I have a 1 yr old running around and I could tell I was neglecting him for the first 2 weeks or so. I do my best to make it up to him now, but honestly your gonna want to just sit there and be left alone.

#7 Post by **nomadic myth** » Sat Oct 24, 2009 7:17 am

I'd have the baby, and then maybe you can put surgery off a little. Family is important. You will want someone to do almost all the baby stuff for two weeks after surgery, though.

I think you only do medicine for two weeks maximum, and you could always pump your breasts to keep milk production up and use formula for feeding just for when you are on medicine dangerous to the baby.

#8 Post by **mp921** » Sat Oct 24, 2009 8:42 am

I was going to do what you said, squeeze in our 2nd child prior to the surgery. But my gut told me not to and I'm so glad I didn't. You've got a tough decision to make, and I would suggest talking to your surgeon, not just your orthodontist, about it before jumping into anything.

Another avenue to think about. This surgery can be emotionally taxing. And we all know that new Mom's are at high risk of the baby blues after delivering. I couldn't imagine the emotional (much less physical) overload of both in such a short amount of time. And you have to get plenty of rest with this surgery in order for your body to heal properly, but with a newborn we all know that rest is not an option.

I agree with what someone said above. If you decide to go ahead with having a child before surgery, personally I would delay the surgery for a while until I was completely recovered emotionally & physically from childbirth.

Good luck with your decision!