Well all the pain is behind me and my bite is almost perfect. I can breathe through my nose like I've never experienced before and thanks to the weight loss I look fantastic in my skinny clothes....
BUT there is one thing that is really worrying me. Before the surgery I had a very long face, hardly any lower jaw a very pointed chin. Now I think my face is even LONGER!!! The distance between the base of my nose and the top of my upper lip is about 20mm when my lips are open and 23mm when I close my lips. It seems much longer than before and looks awful. I have to strain hard to close my lips and talking is difficult because I can't close my lips to say letters like "p", "b" or "m". I have spoken to my surgeon about it and he says things like "it hasn't changed', "it will settle down", and something about it looking better when I get old. I know that it's early days yet but most of the swelling has gone and can't see my face actually shrinking vertically at this stage.
My lower jaw did not change much...it still looks fairly small (although I didn't have the genioplasty). I'm starting to contemplate becoming a cosmetic surgery junkie but this surgery cost me so much i don't think I'll be affording much. I've already had 5 surgeries to correct my bite so I don't think my face would cope with another one.
Any word of hope?
Five weeks post op and dissappointed
Moderator: bbsadmin
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
Hmmm, what I don't quite get is how come you are having trouble closing your lips to make those sounds if you upper lip is now longer than it was before. . . I probably misread your message though. I am interested to know what surgery you had as I am wondering about my that very measurement for when I have my own surgery. I guess I should find out what it measures right now. Do you have your pre surgical records?
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
5 weeks is still really early in the process. I had a similar problem after I had my surgery of not being able to close my lips and I was very disappointed in the cosmetic results. I am now 17 weeks post-op and I am finally starting to like how I look. I am not sure when exactly but at some point I was able to close my lips again. I still feel like I have to strain a little to close them but I think once I don't have braces on my teeth anymore it will be perfect. It will take a while for your muscles to adjust to the new shape of your face. I know it is hard and I was so depressed at many points in the last 17 weeks. When I had my first orthodontist appointment 3 weeks after surgery I was very disappointed in the results but he assured me that in 6 months I would be pleased and that my muscles would adjust to fit my new face. I didn't believe him at the time but it does seem to be happening. Simple things like chewing and smiling still seem weird but it is getting better all the time. Just try to be patient and if possible focus on other things than how you look for the next couple months.
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
Thanks azjaw for your advice. It seems that so many people come out of the surgery jumping for joy with their new faces. It's nice to hear that this is not always the case.
Stunner asked why I couldn't close my lips if my upper lip is longer...well it's not that my upper lip that is longer, but my upper jaw (between the base of my nose and my teeth). It makes my face look "droopy" and out of proportion. I don't understand why the surgeon didn't do an impaction to reduce the length of my upper jaw to compensate for bringing it forward. Yes my lip may eventually stretch and without the braces my lip will have an easier time closing but it will still look abnormal.
In another forum somebody mentioned that the max recommended length of the upper lip (the philtrum) should be 17mm (for a female). My lip needs to be at least 23mm to close and is currently 20mm. I'm hoping it may look better if my nose drops down a bit, but I'm not sure if there is still any swelling there ..so fingers crossed.
Stunner asked why I couldn't close my lips if my upper lip is longer...well it's not that my upper lip that is longer, but my upper jaw (between the base of my nose and my teeth). It makes my face look "droopy" and out of proportion. I don't understand why the surgeon didn't do an impaction to reduce the length of my upper jaw to compensate for bringing it forward. Yes my lip may eventually stretch and without the braces my lip will have an easier time closing but it will still look abnormal.
In another forum somebody mentioned that the max recommended length of the upper lip (the philtrum) should be 17mm (for a female). My lip needs to be at least 23mm to close and is currently 20mm. I'm hoping it may look better if my nose drops down a bit, but I'm not sure if there is still any swelling there ..so fingers crossed.
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
Hi davinci7,
like azjaw said, your still pretty early in recovery so once your soft tissue settles even more and you get your braces removed, lip closure should be easier. However it's important to note that lip competence is just as much a function of your lower lip as it is your upper lip. For example if you look at actress Kristen Stewart, she has A LOT of tooth display at rest which makes her upper lip look really short yet she has lip competence. Why? because her lower lip compensates for that distance due to it's posture and length. Lower lip tends to be much more self-supporting than the upper hence why upper jaw positioning has a tremendous influence on the upper lip.
When it comes to lip lengths, there is no length that's absolutely ideal for either gender or necessary for natural lip seal. On average, women's upper lip range from 18-22ish and men 21-25ish. So there's quite a lot of variability and in the context of lip closure, it's the skeletal position and posture of your soft tissue that matters. Even if your upper lip length (measured from the bottom of your nose to the lowest part of your vermilion) was "long", you could still have lip incompetence or like the Stewart example, your upper lip could be technically short but you still have lip closure without strain.
like azjaw said, your still pretty early in recovery so once your soft tissue settles even more and you get your braces removed, lip closure should be easier. However it's important to note that lip competence is just as much a function of your lower lip as it is your upper lip. For example if you look at actress Kristen Stewart, she has A LOT of tooth display at rest which makes her upper lip look really short yet she has lip competence. Why? because her lower lip compensates for that distance due to it's posture and length. Lower lip tends to be much more self-supporting than the upper hence why upper jaw positioning has a tremendous influence on the upper lip.
When it comes to lip lengths, there is no length that's absolutely ideal for either gender or necessary for natural lip seal. On average, women's upper lip range from 18-22ish and men 21-25ish. So there's quite a lot of variability and in the context of lip closure, it's the skeletal position and posture of your soft tissue that matters. Even if your upper lip length (measured from the bottom of your nose to the lowest part of your vermilion) was "long", you could still have lip incompetence or like the Stewart example, your upper lip could be technically short but you still have lip closure without strain.
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
Okay. I get it. (grabbing for a metric ruler).
I find the level of knowledge here quite impressive and I have learned--and continue to learn--so much.
FIVE DAYS TO GO
I find the level of knowledge here quite impressive and I have learned--and continue to learn--so much.
FIVE DAYS TO GO
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
How come I'm learning more here from my peers than from my doctors? How do you know all this stuff Reosity? I have a hard enough time with the terminology.
Thanks everyone. I really need to stop looking in the mirror and let my face sort itself out for the time being.
Thanks everyone. I really need to stop looking in the mirror and let my face sort itself out for the time being.
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
Many members here have done tons of research before jumping into surgery. I know that I knew exactly what the surgeon was talking about every second of the consult because I had researched everything from mentalis strain to normal lip length to normal tooth height and gum show. It was very important for me to find a doctor that was going to look at the whole picture and would consider aesthetics as well as functionality and if the reccomended doctor had not, I would have kicked him to the curb.
I hope you can find a way to voice your concerns to your doctor so hopefully he can address what he did/didn't do during surgery to fix the problems you are seeing now.
I also beg you to be patient, especially when it comes to the upper lip. I was CONVINCED that my upper lip was uneven and was still like that beyond 8 weeks post op. I stopped looking at it and 3 months post op, it was back to normal! There is so much residual swelling, you wouldn't believe it! Be patient and try to collect your concerns into words that will be productive and informative to the surgeon. Maybe point out things on pictures or write down what you would like to talk about.
Hoping things will improve for you!
I hope you can find a way to voice your concerns to your doctor so hopefully he can address what he did/didn't do during surgery to fix the problems you are seeing now.
I also beg you to be patient, especially when it comes to the upper lip. I was CONVINCED that my upper lip was uneven and was still like that beyond 8 weeks post op. I stopped looking at it and 3 months post op, it was back to normal! There is so much residual swelling, you wouldn't believe it! Be patient and try to collect your concerns into words that will be productive and informative to the surgeon. Maybe point out things on pictures or write down what you would like to talk about.
Hoping things will improve for you!
My upper jaw surgery blog
http://becksupperjawsurgery.blogspot.com/
http://lingualbracesincognito.blogspot.com/
http://becksupperjawsurgery.blogspot.com/
http://lingualbracesincognito.blogspot.com/
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
+1 for bmueller's post.
Research, research, research haha. I sought jaw surgery to correct my lip incompetence so naturally I know quite a bit about it.davinci7 wrote:How come I'm learning more here from my peers than from my doctors? How do you know all this stuff Reosity
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
I'm 5 months post-op and I still feel I have some lip incompetence/mentalis strain. I'm satisfied with my surgery, but I feel like it is "almost" there. Not exactly. I don't know how much that will change from now on... After my surgery I display more of my lower teeth, and I wonder if it's just the lower lip that is not used to it's position and needs time to do as Reosity says (compensate). or if this is how it will be. I don't think the surgeon could have done that much different either, I show the right amount of teeth. I'm trying to be better at doing jaw exercise so my jaw range will widen even more. I have lingual braces so it wont change when I get them off. I feel the same way though -One of my most important aspect of doing the surgery was to be able to close my mouth. But I have seen it improving little by little. 5 weeks is way to early to say anything about the result
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mandiechien
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2016 2:35 pm
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
[quote="annepanne"]I'm 5 months post-op and I still feel I have some lip incompetence/mentalis strain. I'm satisfied with my surgery, but I feel like it is "almost" there. Not exactly. I don't know how much that will change from now on... After my surgery I display more of my lower teeth, and I wonder if it's just the lower lip that is not used to it's position and needs time to do as Reosity says (compensate). or if this is how it will be. I don't think the surgeon could have done that much different either, I show the right amount of teeth. I'm trying to be better at doing jaw exercise so my jaw range will widen even more. I have lingual braces so it wont change when I get them off. I feel the same way though -One of my most important aspect of doing the surgery was to be able to close my mouth. But I have seen it improving little by little. 5 weeks is way to early to say anything about the result[/quote]
Hi annepanne, how is your lip incompetence/mentalis strain now?
Hi annepanne, how is your lip incompetence/mentalis strain now?
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3cheersforsweetteeth
- Posts: 7
- Joined: Wed Mar 23, 2016 1:52 pm
Re: Five weeks post op and dissappointed
[quote="mandiechien"][quote="annepanne"]I'm 5 months post-op and I still feel I have some lip incompetence/mentalis strain. I'm satisfied with my surgery, but I feel like it is "almost" there. Not exactly. I don't know how much that will change from now on... After my surgery I display more of my lower teeth, and I wonder if it's just the lower lip that is not used to it's position and needs time to do as Reosity says (compensate). or if this is how it will be. I don't think the surgeon could have done that much different either, I show the right amount of teeth. I'm trying to be better at doing jaw exercise so my jaw range will widen even more. I have lingual braces so it wont change when I get them off. I feel the same way though -One of my most important aspect of doing the surgery was to be able to close my mouth. But I have seen it improving little by little. 5 weeks is way to early to say anything about the result[/quote]
Hi annepanne, how is your lip incompetence/mentalis strain now?[/quote]
At five weeks when I smiled I look extremely creepy. I was so scared my smile was ruined. One side of my mouth pulled back while the other did not. Three months in and that has completely changed, I smile normally now. You're gonna wanna wait until 2 - 3 months before fretting about the way your mouth/lips are acting.
Hi annepanne, how is your lip incompetence/mentalis strain now?[/quote]
At five weeks when I smiled I look extremely creepy. I was so scared my smile was ruined. One side of my mouth pulled back while the other did not. Three months in and that has completely changed, I smile normally now. You're gonna wanna wait until 2 - 3 months before fretting about the way your mouth/lips are acting.