June/July 2015 Surgery Buddies

[gruntled]

Forgive me but I'm going to spell my last name phonetically so hopefully it won't ever pop up in a Google search...

See eye eh* tee tee eye (*like how a Canadian says it)

You know my first name already. I'm the only person on FB with my name so I should be easy to find.

I only had to type the first part and it came up immediately

[snapdresser]

gruntled - Sent you a PM. I can be hard to find on FB I added Jaime and Liz from my end, I think.

Jaime - LOL. Canadian pronunciation... Any progress with the bite? It's been what, a week with the new elastics?

[jaime]

gruntled - Sent you a PM. I can be hard to find on FB I added Jaime and Liz from my end, I think.

Jaime - LOL. Canadian pronunciation... Any progress with the bite? It's been what, a week with the new elastics?

I have no idea if it's actually gotten better...but I think it is easier to chew on that side now.

I have my little elastic tool which is 1mm thick. If I stick it between my molars, I can bite down on it, so that's good. The space between my premolars is probably 2mm.

[snapdresser]

Jaime - That sounds really encouraging! That's kinda like what I'd expect: it's hard to tell if it looks closer together but it seems to be easier to chew with that side, etc. That sounds like progress to me!!!

Btw, I appreciate your message about the Apple Watch! I kinda don't like immediately knowing when I have a message either, but if I don't immediately see it, it's probably because I'm busy with something at work The sports scores and weather might be nice tho! And the phone-free music when running sounds nice too!

[Nozzelnut]

Congrats Gruntled! It's a day that I can't wait for...

It's been a couple weeks since I checked in; just got back from (a well needed) vacation (after a pretty crappy summer)....

Well, the expander is tipping my molars instead of expanding them outward. That's pretty much what I expected though; but I have read about studies using bonded expanders in adults achieving expansion. So who knows what the next step is. I really don't want SARPE; but want this orthodontic stuff behind me ASAP. So, maybe the bonded expander will get my teeth where they need to be. If not

I'm still numb in my upper front gums and have decreased sensation in my left chin. At least I'm not the only one.

Jaime; sent you a FB request. I think you have the other folks info.

[jaime]

That's too bad about your molars tipping out. Is your ortho aware of the problem?

Hopefully you won't need SARPE but compared to what we just went through, it's a cake walk. Far less swelling and recovery time.

[Nozzelnut]

My appt is next Wednesday. I'll be sure to point it out. I'm not sure what the allowable tipping is though.

[jaime]

Here's a question for my fellow jawperation victims!

You know how your nose kind of tingles leading up to a sneeze? I'm finding that my palate tingles now too, and it is uncomfortably intense. It makes having an incoming sneeze kind of annoying, and I haven't yet gotten used to the intensity of it. Anyone else?

[snapdresser]

Jaime - That hasn't been the case for me, but I have been getting a really intense tingling on the left side of my palate when I touch it with my tongue. It's not a very nice feeling and it seems to radiate into the gums on the left side. Silly nerves need to figure it out!

[jaime]

Hey everybody! We've sure gotten quiet this month!

Just thought I'd give an update on my ortho appointment yesterday. My left side is still not making any contact, but now my overjet is relapsing, ugh. So I'm in class II triangle elastics on both sides, in small, heavy strength elastics (3M Bummer). It's just as bad as the elastics we had after surgery. It hurts like heck and I can't open my mouth.

I've pretty much abandoned any hope that my braces will be off by May which was my hope because I turn 30 in May. I keep having to tell myself that it's more important my bite is completely fixed than having some arbitrary goal, but it's still upsetting.

Anyway, I hope everyone else is doing better. It sucks not being optimistic about my treatment anymore. :\

[snapdresser]

Jaime - Oh nooooo! That definitely sucks that you're back in elastics I set up my 6-month appointment with my surgeon later this month. Do you go back and see your surgeon again anytime soon?

[Nozzelnut]

Jaime keep up with the elastics for now. Maybe prompt your ortho to do something in addition to the elastics to get the movement you need. Additional bend in the archwire, springs, whatever he needs to do to get you to your goal.

You may be on to something with your TPA limiting the closing movement; your tongue pressing the TPA and essentially keeping your molars apart. Maybe add a button above the TPA; between it and your palate to help push things down; or remove it all together. Bring it up at your next appointment; express your concerns about your timeline and how things seem to be stagnant with the gaps and a change of treatment might be in order.

I know you've been working on this for quite some time; some gains but several setbacks or minimal movement. It can be difficult to talk to a professional about your treatment; but they should listen to you and work with you to satisfy your needs! That's what I had to do a couple months ago to get more width. Guess I caught him on a good day; and he actually listened. Bringing donuts and coffee for the girls in the office can't hurt either. I've done that a couple times. You are an adult and should have some input as to how you want your teeth to look.

This quad helix expander is great! It does work and I can actually see my #4 and 5 teeth on both sides. The tipping has stopped and it seems the teeth are starting to move out. I still have gaps between my uppers and lowers too (both sides); so I'm guessing elastics will be in my future again too. My original estimate of this December will come and go as my teeth are nowhere near as good as they can be. I want this to be the last time I have braces. I haven't kept any of the braces/ortho stuff they take off; but I think I will keep the quad helix if they let me. Just as a reminder to wear my retainers.

[jaime]

Thanks for the support, guys. It's nice to have a place to whine!

Snap, I don't see my surgeon until May. He said in July or August that everything looked fine so he didn't see the need for me to keep driving out there.

Nozzel, you're right that I will need to express my concerns to my ortho. I meant to ask about the TPA limiting movement but forgot. I see him again the start of next month so I'll see what I can find out. I trust my ortho a lot because he's been doing this longer than I've been alive, but he never says much so I don't know if things are progressing well or not. In a perfect world, I'd like to know how much longer he thinks I have left but we all know that nobody can give an exact answer.

I'm glad to hear the expander is working as it should! I wanted to keep my RPE too, but wanted to burn it in a fire and taunt it.

[Nozzelnut]

Jaime; I'm not sure if you have a regular assistant that you work with in your ortho's office or not, but if you're having some trouble starting the conversation about it, ask them to help you. "I'm not sure how to bring this up..." "What do you think about..." Sometimes having another experienced set of eyes look at the problem and give the ortho some prompts and asking them the right questions will help start the conversation. I understand they're not an orthodontist but I'm sure they've seen plenty of teeth being moved.

I've probably only had my ortho work on my mouth 2-3 hours total since I started this stuff; but the assistant has worked with me for close to 15+ hours I'm guessing. At my monthly visits, he checks things, like my bite and stuff and orders the changes, but always seems to be in a hurry. Not sure if he has to get back to his Clash of Clans or Sim City on the computer or what... I have a better working relationship with his assistants.

[snapdresser]

How are you guys' TMJs doing? I noticed yesterday that my right one no longer clicks. It has for several years and I think right after the surgery it was doing something kinda funky when I tried to open wide, but now there's no click or strange feeling or anything. Jaime, I know you still have some soreness and tightness, but have any of you guys noticed improvement in TMJ disfunction?