MAY 2011 BUDDIES!!!!

[Sams]

Yup, chewing does feel strange! It does feel like my teeth squash into my jaw a bit and I need to be careful and slow as I chew. I believe it's partly to do with the numbness. Chewing does get easier over time I've found. Enjoy your food!

[Rizzie]

Thanks, Sams. I'm relieved to hear this is normal, so I will take your advice and enjoy my food!

[aussiere]

Hi All,

Aussiere here. 5 weeks post op. Still a lot of swelling, jaw looks square and cheeks look sunken in (could be the weight loss). I have dark circles under my eyes, I feel like I am sleeping ok, but maybe I'm not. My face looks really weird/scary to me - like it is contorted or something. I can't close my mouth without forcing it shut and I can't keep it shut very long without it being uncomfortable. My surgeon did mention something about stitching in the bottom jaw, which would require me to really work that area. I just wish I asked more questions about the stitch.

I am trying not to panic about my slow progress, as he did tell me - can't judge anything until the 6 month mark. I am 50, so maybe slow progress at my age.

Hope everyone is doing well and progressing along.

[trc]

Hi Aussiere,

I can totally relate to your post. I am just past 4 weeks post op and have almost the exact same feeling about my face as you. It looks very square in the jaw and beside my nose looks very puffy and swollen still. My top lip looks like it is too small for my face now because my cheeks and jaw look so big. I try to keep moving my face all the time by stretching it, moving my lips, puckering, etc. I am not banded shut but I do have elastics that I can take off for eating and brushing which seems to be all the time! I do still have the splint still wired in and do not get that taken out until July 19th (8 weeks). It seems like such a long time to have a splint compared to everyone else. My last stitch fell out today. The hard white wire kind. The knots on this one were huge. No wonder it hurt alot in the first few weeks. I am also trying not to panic about the slow progress of the look of my face but it is hard. I haven't seen a lot of people that aren't family but the ones I have seen have commented right away that I look different. I hope it is just the swelling and not a noticabley permanent thing.

I am still numb under my eyes which seems to bother me the most of all the swelling. I can't put eyeliner on because the feeling is just terrible. I hope that it will come back soon. I am wearing my contacts for the first time today. They feel weird in my half numb eyes but I am getting used to it.

To anyone who has also had genioplasty - please tell me the swelling goes down and you don't have a "shelf" like chin forever!

[TitaniumAdded]

Hey all,

I'm roughly 8 weeks post op and made a video today.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyFWS3TB ... ideo_title

Lip muscles are still a bit tight, but otherwise my mouth feels okay. Eating is now soft foods but in the tougher range.

[Minerva]

Thanks for the video. Great result looking from the outside!

m

[Rizzie]

Hello May buddies. I'm assuming that most of us are back under the care of our orthodontists. Mine has me in elastics--two on one side and one on the other side to close some small gaps and bring my bite together. I am supposed to wear them except when eating and brushing. I have 4 oz. elastics to wear during the day and 6 oz to wear at night. There is just no way I can tolerate the heavy duty ones. I have tried off and on to see if I can get used to them, but I can't wear them longer than 15 minutes. He has me wearing them in V shape, so it is almost like they are double strength. For now, I am being very compliant with the 4 oz ones and plan to discuss the problem with him at my next visit.

Is anyone else in super-tight elastics?

[trc]

I don't know if any of the May buddies are still around but thought I would do a quick update post.

7 weeks post op from double jaw surgery and genioplasty. I had the surgery done to close an open bite at the front. I had an appointment to remove the splint this morning. 7.5 weeks with it in. I realized that it was helping a lot to keep my bite stable. Without it only a few teeth touch. The back teeth do not touch at all. I will have to get elastics to close the open bite in the back. I certainly won't be chewing anything for awhile. He said I could "eat" whatever I want but that doesn't mean much when your teeth don't touch so you can't chew. A little depressed about that. I notice that I still lisp even without the splint in. I am hoping that will go away in a few days once my tongue gets used to all the space in my mouth now that the splint is out of the way.

I still have swelling around my nose and cheeks, chin and the lower jaw where it was cut. I am still not sure about my new look. Some days I think it looks okay and others I have feelings of regret. I am trying not to worry about it too much as it could take several months to settle in.

I also have a lot of trouble moving my lips and mouth around. Talking takes a lot of effort. I hope it will come back over time as the muscles recover and learn their new position.

How is everyone else doing?

[TitaniumAdded]

Hey TRC,

I feel for you having the splint in for so long. I had it for about 3 weeks and it hampered any sort of chewing I could do, and in turn limited healing. Nutrition is very important, hopefully you can start eating properly soon.

I'm 10 weeks post op. Going to the gym 3 times a week as hard as I used to before. Eating pretty much anything, however I have a tendency to resort to soft foods anyways. Finally starting to put back all the weight I lost when I was only consuming liquids. I'm pretty much back to normal with diet, and that means everything.

Negatives:

Range of motion in mouth is still not back(can get a knuckle + index finger into mouth)
numbness in chin persists. Other parts could be numb but I don't notice them as much.
Most of my teeth touch, however my right side teeth on the top need to be pulled over as they are colliding directly with the teeth below them.

Hope all is well.