June/July 2015 Surgery Buddies

[jaime]

KaylaChristine, are we the same person? I'm 130lbs and I run regularly...I'm mega bummed I'm not going to be able to run for awhile. Lately while running, I've been trying to savour it because I know soon I'll be missing it!

I bought the Zip-n-Squeeze options on Lynn's site, dentakit.com. I need to try them out so I know what I'm doing...or what to tell my husband to do, at least.

I also bought the jaw bra on dentakit as well. It came with some ice gel packs, I'm hoping they will suffice as the sleeves for the packs are pretty small; smaller than what my older gel packs will fit into.

I was so pumped when I saw that season 3 of OITNB comes out the day after surgery.

Can't go wrong with Breaking Bad, either.

I am hoping to watch The Wire while I'm off as everyone says it's the best show they've ever seen, "even better than Breaking Bad."

I feel like I still have so much more to buy and I've already bought lots. I saved a big order from Amazon that I need to put through. I tend to go overboard on these things, though...

[snapdresser]

KaylaChristine - Yeah, but I think the cost will be pretty low. Hopefully less than $1k. I think my insurance says I have to pay for the hardware, then the hospital stay is like $125/night and my surgeon wants me to stay for 2 nights (awesome! then the nurses can pull out my blood clots instead of me going to the ER cuz I can't breathe! ) and each surgeon is like $200. I wonder how much the hardware costs...

Ahhhh good thinking for Game of Thrones. I shoulda done that... I dunno about picking a funny show. You got some good ones on your list, KaylaChristine, but I'm thinking laughing might be painful Actually, real scary stuff might be painful too, if you jump out of your seat! The most recent American Horror Story wasn't too bad in that sense tho. I think you'll be alright

Jaime - Ooooo The Wire. Good call. I should def check that out.

[Nozzelnut]

I have my mold and measurement appointment on Tuesday. I'll have at least one more appointment before surgery to confirm everything.

My surgical hooks go on the day before my surgery at my orthos office.

Starting to get a little real.

Anyone making an overnight bag for their hospital stay?

[deathorglory]

Truth be told, I made an overnight bag for myself (with pj's, a tiny toothbrush in case they cut my bands off early, my e reader, a few physical books, phone charger, extra syringes in case the hospital had a syringe backorder, napkins in case I drooled, etc) and I didn't even touch it. ...It kind of helped that the bag was on the chair in my hospital room, which I couldn't reach without getting out of bed, but I had my e reader and phone right next to my bed (EASILY within reach) and I didn't touch them. Why? I was kind of tired. Not in pain tired, not out of it from the anesthesia, not trying to sleep because I thought I should, but just tired. I'd wake up for 15-30 minutes, talk to whoever was in my room, then fall asleep for a few hours. Just my body trying to recover from surgery. My friend even visited me and I fell asleep while she was in my room. AND I woke up every 2 hours to pee overnight thanks to all the liquid they were giving me through my IV...and of course those 2 hours were opposite the 2 hours the nurses made room visits. So I was extra tired. ........I slept a lot and didn't use anything I packed, not even my drool napkins...


.....I did really miss that suction thing when I got home, though. I clutched it even while sleeping so it'd never be where I couldn't reach it...!

[jaime]

Deathorglory, what did you wear overnight at the hospital? I was told I'm going to have a catheter although I'm not sure if that's only during surgery or overnight as well. I imagine I would need to just wear the gown in that case. I am generally pretty cold (I'm running a space heater under my desk as I type this) and so I'm thinking I'll at least bring my heavy American Giant hoodie and maybe a blanket?

[deathorglory]

I was given a hospital gown to wear, and I wore that all night and in the morning until I was discharged. I get cold easily too and I brought a very warm set of PJ's in case I needed them, but I had enough blankets on my bed (and you can ask for more if needed and they're warm when you get them) and stupid anti clot leg compressor things on my legs. The compressor things inflate and deflate on your legs and were quite loud at my hospital. I also didn't have a catheter, so I'm not sure if that gets taken out once you're out of surgery or what, sorry...!

[snapdresser]

Nozzlenut - Yeah, that's good that you have one more appointment. My surgeon seemed to think she wouldn't need to see me after my final molds and measurements and stuff, but I'd certainly like to see the treatment plan before I "ok" it!

Deathorglory - What suction thing are you talking about? A hose connected to central vacuum at the hospital or something?

I wasn't really planning on bringing a hospital bag... And my surgeon told me she wants me to stay for 2 days in the hospital (cuz it's for sleep apnea and she's concerned about my airways, apparently). I figure they'll give me everything I need. I guess I could pack an oversized shirt that'd be easy to get over my head post-op for check-out? Or I could just wear that there. Other than that I'm just not sure what I'd find a use for. If I was staying there supporting someone, that'd be different, but as the patient, I feel like I wouldn't really need much.

SO. I did a little shopping this weekend. I got:
Now Foods Whey Protein Isolate - 1.2 lbs (unflavored)
Dental Mirror with light (off Amazon)
Jaw Bra (kaylachristine, I got this one: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AZMQQHE/re ... xvb154FZAN)
PSTV (Yaaaayyy!!! Netflix in bed is gonna be KEY!)

[Nozzelnut]

Just got back from my pre-op appointment. Molds, xrays, pictures, and a little planning discussion.

My surgeon is believes moving the upper and lower jaw forward about 10mm will get things where they need to be. Focusing on my airway more than anything. Will also be fixing my deviated septum, doing a turbinate reduction, and leveling my jaws to eliminate my upper and lower jaw cant. Sliding genio to pull my tongue forward.

He said it's possible he might have to section the upper jaw so everything lines up; depending on how the mock surgery goes. My upper molars are already / \ and my lower left is / and my right being more | . So if my ortho maximizes my lower jaw tongue room it might move beyond my upper jaw. So we'll see how that goes...

[jaime]

Exciting Nozzlenut!

Is that a 3-piece Le Fort your surgeon is considering? I'm wondering if that's what I'll end up getting too...it sounds like we have similar issues.

My pre-op appointment is on Monday. I go to my surgeon first for moulds and x-rays, and then I go to the hospital for my pre-op there.

I'm also all finished buying stuff to prepare myself...the only thing left to do is pack a bag and get cut open.

[snapdresser]

Haha "get cut open"...

Nozzlenut - Why are they concerned about your airway? You getting sleep apnea treated with the procedure? That's the case for me. My bite is good, they're just opening my airways. Not dealing with my deviated septum or turbinates tho. Deviated septum was within biological norms and I feel like my turbinates are much less swollen since I took allergy shots. I ALSO have slightly canted jaws! Crazy, it seems like we have very similar situations! My surgeon went into it also saying she'd move my maxilla forward 10mm (because she's not familiar with O-Surgery to treat sleep apnea and that's what her books said was the typical treatment) but I found a research paper saying people got great results will much less movement. If you're getting it for sleep apnea, let me know. I got some pertinent info you may want to hear, even if you disregard it.

[KaylaChristine]

snapdresser - I see what you mean about funny shows being painful while recovering. I think I might be okay though. Most of the time I'm a laughing inwardly type of person. Though I do occasionally burst out laughing at certain things...I'll just have to watch some shows and see how I react lol. Did you like the most recent season of AHS?

jaime - I'm going to miss it too. It's also going to be tough retraining and getting back into it. I had a 5K over the weekend and I have one more planned the weekend before my surgery. OITNB comes out before the surgery for me so I'm going to have to try really, really hard not to watch it lol. I'll add The Wire to my list!

Nozzelnut - I over-prepare for everything so I'm definitely bringing an overnight back to the hospital.

I'm starting to get really nervous for the surgery lol. I only have 10-1/2 more work days until surgery. I have SO much to do at work before then. I'm going crazy

[deathorglory]

Guys, DEFINITELY bring a button down shirt (oversized or not) to the hospital to wear home. Your face will be super swollen (at least mine was) and you'll likely have ice packs on your cheeks so getting that through a small over the head type shirt can be a little hairy.

The hospitals usually have a suction tube to help clear out the spit and gunk in your mouth while you're banded shut. It's almost exactly like the ones the dentists use when they're working on your teeth, except my tube wasn't very bendy. It was awesome, though... By the morning of my discharge it wasn't much help. I didn't have too much thick spit (think the spit you've got in your mouth when you wake up) or mucus or anything in my mouth at that point.

Good luck, you guys! It's almost June!

[Nozzelnut]

Exciting Nozzlenut!

Is that a 3-piece Le Fort your surgeon is considering? I'm wondering if that's what I'll end up getting too...it sounds like we have similar issues.

My pre-op appointment is on Monday. I go to my surgeon first for moulds and x-rays, and then I go to the hospital for my pre-op there.

I'm also all finished buying stuff to prepare myself...the only thing left to do is pack a bag and get cut open.

Yup; he's considering it. I'll know more after he does the mock surgery in a couple days. I just hope if it's close he opts to do it; I'd rather just go through this once. I'd rather get a couple extra mm of movement now than say "we should have done it this way" after I'm healed up.

I can feel that my lower left molars are a few mm outside my upper molars now and my right molars are about even. The sides of my top and bottoms are decent as far as the cant goes, it's primarily the upper left incisor and the front that show the most cant.

[snapdresser]

Woah, this thread's getting active! I guess it's finally getting real for people, eh? It's wacky to think about. In less than 2 weeks I'll be having bones in my face purposefully broken and when I come to I'll have a new appearance. Almost like getting a face tattoo in a way, ya know? More socially acceptable, but an obvious and permanent change to your facial appearance. Kinda scary Chomped down on my lip again the other day tho, so that's keeping me focused

KaylaChristine - The most recent AHS was aight. I'm not suuuuper into AHS, but it was the least scary of the seasons IMO. It's interesting and the acting is good tho. If you're an AHS fan, I'd check it out. Why are you stopping working so long before surgery? I wasn't planning on taking off any time before the surgery. God knows if I did, I'd be sitting around the house thinking about nothing else lol. I can use the distraction.

deathorglory - Good thinking on the button down. I guess I might just plan on wearing that to the hospital, then throw it back on when I'm discharged. I don't think I have enough stuff to warrant a bag. The surgery for both jaws is like 7 hours long or something, isn't it?

[KaylaChristine]

deathorglory - I plan on buying a few button down shirts for after the surgery. I can't imagine putting a shirt on over a swollen face feels all too great lol.

snapdresser - Oh, no I'm not, I mean I have 10-1/2 work days left at work before the surgery. I was excluding the weekends and my pre-op appointment days. Darn, I was hoping for a scarier season this season.