Any adults in their 40's on here?

[aussiere]

Hello Aussiere,

Hi gems4deb,

I will be 3 weeks post op on Tuesday. I had upper jaw advanced and moved up, lower jaw moved 7mm on one side and 8mm on the other as well as a genioplasty. I am one of the unfortunate ones that did not have insurance that covered orthognathic surgery.

Did you have all that done at the same time, and how long after the surgery were you able to travel?

I had all 3 procedures done at the same time. My surgery was on Tues, May 17 and I went home to Las Vegas on Mon, May 31. Had my last appt with the surgeon on the Monday I went home.

[Minerva]

Thank you for answering,Aussiere,

Do you mind sharing what you were told about the effects on the skin?

I hope you're not in too much pain.

[dtdtdt]

I am about 2.5 months post BSSO and see the 40s fast approaching.

1. This is my first surgery so I don't have a comparison, but I suspect age is slowing me down from getting back to "completely, 100% normal". I can't put my finger on what is off. I have no pain and the outside world thinks I am completely fine, but sometimes I think my energy level is still lower than I would have expected. I feel as if my jaw and mouth still take up a large share of mind. This is one of the things I didn't anticipate.

2. Also, I wonder if this numbness is worse because of my age. I still can't feel light or medium touch on lower lip and chin but I can feel heavier pressure on just one side. I know this impacts the way I talk and move my mouth. I did the ice test today and I could feel the cold on one side, a little on the other, and none in the center.

3. Finally, I went to the dermatologist recently and he suggested I might want to come back to him 9 month post surgery. I see him only for skin checks (fair, blonde with South Florida childhood) and we have never had a conversation about cosmetic tweaks or surgery (not to say that I couldn't use some freshening up ha!). He volunteered that sometimes "older" jaw surgery patients can look "jowly" after the soft tissue settles back in place. I wonder what he was seeing? Trust me I am tempted to go back to get his POV, although the thought of another recovery related to my face is not appealing right now!

I almost didn't write this out of fear that someone might second guess this surgery. I would choose to do it again even knowing all of this. I just wish I had been a little more focused on these things instead of worried about time off work, swelling, and FOOD!

All the best to you,
Danielle

[Minerva]

Hi Danielle,

Economy is not at its greatest. The dermatologist could not necessarily be seeing anything but just

hoping, he he.... Who knows. Your skin must still be adjusting, so hope for the best

Thanks for mentioning it, by the way. It's good to know both the good and not so good.

[aussiere]

Thank you for answering,Aussiere,

Do you mind sharing what you were told about the effects on the skin?

I hope you're not in too much pain.

No pain, just some swelling. My surgeon kept telling me over and over again, I cannot judge anything until the 6 month mark as it takes that long to settle. The only discussion we had regarding skin is that I would get the benefit of a "mini face lift" (not his words, but in the spirit of our discussion) because my lower jaw will be moved out almost a 1/4 inch pulling all the skin under my chin forward. That may have been his way of putting me at ease. Right now, my face looks weird to me, but I see changes from week to week.

[keeponsmiling]

Aussiere I'm loving your 'mini face lift' response. No pain, corrected jaws and improved skin - sounds like a pretty good deal to me! Hope the swelling goes soon and that you'll be loving your new features.

[Minerva]

It would be nice to see some before and after pictures of people who have had

these surgeries in their forties. So far, I haven't found any online.

[LaLi01]

Hello!

I'm 32 years old and 34 days post-surgery on my lower jaw (my second go-around, actually).

I just wanted to chime in and second the point Bullfighter made about going through this solo. I'm married (plus we have a long-term houseguest at the moment). Of course, I don't wish my husband *weren't* here; however, it is very hard to constantly have people around you making food you can't eat and trying to talk to you and make you repeat things when you can't talk very well. In general, I think recovering in peace and complete privacy would be a good thing. You will probably be feeling very antisocial (or perhaps "introspective and focused on self-care" is a better way to put it!) for at least a few weeks.

As Bullfighter suggested, stock up on protein drinks (for a quick snack), soups (freeze them), and smoothie ingredients while you can -- I'd say 10 days' worth.

Sometimes I wish I'd taken care of this 10 years ago, but obviously, the time wasn't right. I would encourage you to take the next step now -- I have a strong feeling you won't regret it! Yes, surgery is scary, but it's not like you'll remember it! If you take the time to choose the right team of doctors, they should be able to calm you and reassure you.

Best of luck to you,
LaLi

[Minerva]

Hi LiLa,

It's good to hear you're doing well.

Was your fist surgery on the upper jaw?

[Minerva]

Before and after videos of a 46 y/o woman

http://www.youtube.com/user/vmmc64#p/a/u/1/csCcoepeANE

http://www.youtube.com/user/vmmc64#p/a/u/0/wOsFpdera0w

[Dani73]

Minerva - I'm not quite 40, but not far off turning 39! I have before and after pics in my post called 'One year on...' HTH

As for the sagging skin, I do have a little, but I don't know if it's to do with age or sagging skin.

dtdtdt - hang in there, it took me a good 3 months before I started to feel better. I've just hit the 12 month mark now and I'm starting to get used to my look. It was hard in that first 6 months as my swelling would change and then change my look again! It's frustrating.

[Minerva]

Thank you, Dani73.

Thanks for sharing your age ( and pictures). I did see them and thought your

results were great.

Congratulations

[amyD]

Thanks for all of your stories. I am new to this forum, seeking answers and wanting to be intelligent about such decisions! So far, Im just beginning, but i hope my journey will help others as well.
Having looked through some surgeons sites, and a couple of consultations later, there are still many questions and concerns. I find that although what has brought me to surgery is functional (not able to bite, chew, and restricted sleep and shortness of breath), that aesthetics are also relevant. The next consultations I have scheduled are with doctors who are md, dmd, craniofacial (highly experienced with trauma and various life changing procedures)... as well as trained in plastic surgery. The discussions so far stress the natural function and appearance, and the subtleties of soft tissue changes over the structural (bone) changes. The issues of sagging skin, bags under eyes, etc, are taken into consideration, (without additional procedures for myself- for each individual this may be different); it makes me more comfortable knowing that these doctors are so meticulous.

[amyD]

[quote="Minerva"]Before and after videos of a 46 y/o woman]

the video links...

Thanks for posting these !

[Sherrie64]

wow! so glad to have found this message board. I am 47, almost 48 and have thought about surgery for quite some time now. I have an open bite that, to me, seems to have gotten suddenly worse over this past year. I am very afraid at the thought of surgery and have not consulted with anyone about it yet, but I believe, from the research I have been doing and what I have read here, that the only way to resolve the issues I have is through surgery. This thread has been great....all I seemed to find previous to this thread was information posted by much younger people, which was beginning to lead me to believe that perhaps people in their 40's and older were no longer candidates for surgery. Soooo glad to find that is not true. Now.... if only I can get up the courage to actually consult with someone and do something about this!