November Buddies

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#106 Post by **Broadway Bill** » Fri Nov 19, 2010 3:08 pm

Beowulf, while the numbness does linger for a long while, I found that my drooling phase was over within 3 weeks, tops.

The numbness does become something you get used to. You'll do fine, trust me...I was back to 14 hour work days after 2 weeks. It sucked at first, but it is honestly not that bad.

#107 Post by **beowulf68** » Fri Nov 19, 2010 3:49 pm

Thanks Broadway.....i'm really concerned about the numbness/drooling. I can can deal with the pain, being wired shut and muscle spasms but I hate the numbness and drooling. Just have to stay positive and before I know it this nightmare will be over with.

Broadway I don't quite recall why you had your jaw surgery. I suspect though from other postings it was for bite issues? Was your surgery a complete success? Mine was for for Obstructive Sleep Apnea. So far so good but I won't know if I'm cured till I do a sleep study 6 months till a year from now.

#108 Post by **ColoradoGirl** » Fri Nov 19, 2010 7:49 pm

beowulf - I agree with BB, the numbness becomes a non-issue. I'm so used to the lower half of my face being numb that I even know roughly where my chin will fall if I go to hug someone.

As per drooling--just wipe your chin nonchalantly every 45 seconds or so. Seems to do the trick. You can even look thoughtful while you do it---stroking the chin with a "hmmmmmm" look.

#109 Post by **Izzy1979** » Fri Nov 19, 2010 9:06 pm

sauerkraut - I was browsing throught the thread and saw your post about having an open bite now. I remember you were in the same situation as me as far as advancing one vs 2 jaws. Did he say if this is happening because you did only lower? And what do they call "open bite"? Cause both my surgeon and ortho think things look good, but my further back molars and 1/2 the one in front still dont touch when I bite down - is that similar to you?
Overall happy with my decision as far as esthetic goes, even if I still sometimes wonder - what if? - how about you?

#110 Post by **beowulf68** » Sat Nov 20, 2010 1:06 am

ColoradoGirl: That's good to hear that you can get "use to it". I just think it sucks that you would have to. I, like most people went into this surgery knowing there was a chance that I would have permanent numbness, but you would think with advances in technology and procedures the surgical team would be able to mitigate these issues. Oh well...I try not to dwell on it. With your numbness do you also get like burning or aching pain? I don't get it all the time, but quite frequently I get these kinds of pains in my chin. My lips are completely numb with the exception of the upper tip part and I don't have any pain in them. I'm curious if this will go on forever or it eventually goes away?

#111 Post by **ColoradoGirl** » Sat Nov 20, 2010 1:28 am

Oh, I don't think it's a long-term thing--you get used to it for a couple of months and then sensation starts returning in weird ways (for me, the front corner of my upper palate and the bottom jaw's sensitive teeth all.at.once). I think pretty much any sensation within the first 6-12 months is a good sign (nerves waking up). Not a fun process in-and-of-itself, but okay in general.

#112 Post by **Rodney008** » Sat Nov 20, 2010 10:24 am

Starting to get some feeling back in my lower lip and chin. The shooting pains are killing me. If it wasn't for the nerve damage this wouldn't be that bad.

#113 Post by **Rossy89** » Sat Nov 20, 2010 6:57 pm

hey just had my two week post op check up, all is doing well , much of my swelling has gone down, i only have numbing on my top lip on left hand side and that leads on to my nose.

while i have been reading this thread, i have noticed many of you have mentioned having a splint, could someone tell me what thats is , sounds awful. as when i came out i have just been put on elastics , cheers

dani looking real great after your surgery

and to beowulf , dude i can't imagen what your going through, beening wired shut for 10 weeks if i read correctly. i wish you all the best, hope your keeping alright and stay positive.

and also id quite like to ask people what they have been eating in regards to soft foods, all i been eating is mash potatoe and scrambled eggs. i'm mainly on a liquid diet, like the majority here right?

anyway positive thoughts guys , hope your all doing swell

ross

#114 Post by **Rodney008** » Sat Nov 20, 2010 10:34 pm

My splint is clear, like a mouth piece, and it wraps around my upper teeth. It is molded for my bite and it stays in place through the use of wires that wrap around my braces. My splint gives me the feeling that my entire set of upper teeth is constantly being sucked on and I can't wait to get it off.

As for diet, I've done the eggs and potatoes. My favorite right now is mac and cheese. I've found that I don't even have to chew...its just slides right down. I'm not sure where you're located. I have friends that live in London and they don't sell this there. We bring some with us from the U.S. when we visit.

#115 Post by **Dani73** » Sun Nov 21, 2010 3:44 am

Rossy, I'm onto soft foods, so I've been eating scrambled eggs and potatoes as well.

I've also had...

Omelette's with fresh cooked mushrooms in it.
Casseroles that have been blended
Roast chicken, roast vegies blended together with gravy.
I have tin's of shredded tuna with mayo in it - mayo makes it more moist.
I actually had taco's the other night - well I had the mince and then chopped up the cucumber and tomato into tiny pieces and mixed it together - that was delish.
I've had bangers and mash
I blended 2 minutes noodles (which was absolutely gross - never do it again)
I've had banana smoothies - that's all I can think of atm

Tonight we are having roast pork with roasted vegies - so I'll let you know what that is like.

It's coming up to summer here, Friday was 40 degree's (104f,) and I am desperate to eat a salad.

#116 Post by **elizabeth109** » Sun Nov 21, 2010 4:47 pm

Hi everyone, I love this site it says a lot of great information and I just had my Lefort and BSSO 4 days ago on Nov. 18th. Great to hear about everyone's experiences! I still can't quite believe I did it. To be honest, this whole thing was much worse than I expected, and I expected it to be bad. My first night in the hospital was honestly one of the worst nights in my life. I'm so impressed everyone here seems to be getting through with it, and sometimes with such humor and cheer too! For those who are wired shut, man, I can't imagine how that must be like...I think I have splint and elastics on right now but they'll probably be taken off in the next week or so.

I hate the numbness and swelling and feel, like someone had said, "claustrophic" in my own face. Sometimes I get so anxious that I can't open my mouth. I also have hypoglycemia so it's hard to manage just drinking liquid and not eating real meat protein. It's hard to replace that, no matter how much soy or whey protein shakes I eat. Hope to post more in coming days!

#117 Post by **Izzy1979** » Sun Nov 21, 2010 4:58 pm

elizabeth - while my recovery went well, I can totally relate to you with the night in hospital. THANK GOD my good friend, a vet tech, spend the night with me and was able to fix the suction tubes and such cause the nurses were USELESS. I'm a veterinarian, so it's not like I over react to crap as I know what's normal and what's not, and if I didn't have that knowledge and I didn't have a knowledgable friend there with me, it would have been awful. I literally may have choked on my blood clots. She also stayed with me for a few days at home which really helped me stay more relaxed, as I was confident she knew what to look for as far as problems and such.

on that note, I'd like to say that we give WAY better care to dogs and cats at my emergency hospital that you can ever hope to get in a human hospital. I wish I was in a cage at work post op:) (and my bill would be about a tenth of what it is too...)

#118 Post by **dvdrdiscs** » Mon Nov 22, 2010 12:47 am

2 weeks post op on Monday. Swelling has mostly subsided. The inner cheeks are still somewhat sore and there is a patch below my lip that is still numb including the gum area. But what really bothers me is that I have clicking on my left side when I open and close my jaw. At first I thought it was maybe the screws coming lose or something. But I have since ruled it to be my joint causing the clicking noise. I figured this out because when I place pressure below my temple on the joint, the clicking would stop. Is this normal?

#119 Post by **Izzy1979** » Tue Nov 23, 2010 4:49 pm

Since most of my "october buddies" seem to have migrated here, I'll put my first day back to work update here

Good lord, was it a long day! I'm 5 weeks out today and had to do a 10hrs day at the ER with pretty sick dogs and cats. After about 5 hrs I was EXHAUSTED!! And I really had to make an effort to talk properly to people. I need to build that stamina back up!

Who else has gone back to work and how is it going for you all? How quickly did you get back to "normal" and didn't feel like you would collapse for 20hrs once you got home?

#120 Post by **Broadway Bill** » Tue Nov 23, 2010 6:04 pm

Izzy, I've been back on the grind for about 2 weeks now. I do 12-16 hour days, 6 days a week. I honestly haven't had any trouble, but everyone seems to think my experience is anomalous.