Summer 2016 Surgery Buds

[snapdresser]

KatMarie99 - I was off from work for 4 weeks. I didn't have a splint, but I had a ton of elastics when I went back. Made it a little hard to talk, especially loudly, but otherwise 4 weeks was plenty of time. I know some people returned to work after only 2 weeks, but it seems like that might have been a little tougher. I still had a fair bit of swelling at 2 weeks post-op. 3 weeks seems like a happy medium, but frankly I'm glad I took 4. I was perfectly ready (and tired of sitting around all day in my apartment).

[KatMarie99]

Thanks @snapdresser!

[KatMarie99]

Well, today is the day for braces! Not looking forward to it but at least it is a step towards getting it over with. I have an appointment with my orthodontist who, based on the molds and pictures they took last time, will walk me through the suggested treatment in detail and then put the braces on. I am hoping to get all my questions answered so I can feel confident getting braces is the right decision.

I'm also going to ask about a company called Acceledent. Anyone heard of it? It is supposed to speed up the process by using the product every night for 20 minutes. Not sure how he will feel taking treatment advice from a patient, but I am hoping he is open to it. Trying to do everything I can to speed up the process!

[drgnfly]

I'm using an Acceledent, but I just started with it two weeks ago, so I can't really say whether it works or not. I hope to know more at the end of the month, when I go in for my first wire change. There seem to be a lot of posts mentioning Acceledent, but almost always with Invisalign. I'd love to hear from people who used it with regular braces.

Good luck today! I had mine placed almost three weeks ago now. I don't love them, but I don't hate them either. And I was anticipating hating them.

[KatMarie99]

I got the top braces on today and will get the bottom ones on in 3 weeks. The ortho said I should be ready by end of May/early June for surgery. He said since my teeth are straight I can come in every 3 weeks for adjustments rather than every 6 weeks to speed the process along.

I asked about Acceledent and my ortho didn't think it would help my case very much and would not be worth the money especially since I will only be in braces for ~4 months before surgery. So I am interested to see if you think yours speeds your process up at all as you go along.

[americanabroad]

Hey all, having surgery at the end of July too on both jaws. And also starting grad school in the Fall, so fingers crossed that recovery goes well!

[specky]

Hello!! I'm also having surgery this summer! June 2nd is my op date...right after the college semester ends! I've had my braces back on for about 11 months now (which is crazy to think about). I am also hoping that I am good to go by the time classes start up again in the fall! I'm thankful that I can hopefully have a chance to talk to more people about surgery, especially those who are experiencing it around the same time I am! I'm having BSSO and possibly IVRO surgery.

[jaime]

Good luck everybody with your surgeries! As a summer 2015 surgery veteran, it's hard to believe it's almost been a year but you, too, will see how time flies starting about 8 days post-op.

Please feel free to PM me or post in the June/July 2015 thread if you guys/gals have any questions. I'll keep reading here too to see how you're all doing!

[glennstanzalone]

Hey everyone, just checking in again. Met with Dr. Sabol today and he decided that moving me up 4mm is the best option for me. He's betting on my lower jaw swinging forward by about 4mm as well once they move the upper jaw. I'm concerned I won't have enough length to my lower jaw and I'll still look bad. It will fix my functional problems but I would really like to have a more defined jaw line as a result. He said I can go back for a genioplasty after the surgery if I still want more length. Does this seem like a good plan?

[KatMarie99]

What do you mean he thinks your lower jaw will "swing" forward? That it will grow once it has the space to? Do you have a surgery date yet?

I just got my date of July 16th, so less than 2 months now. I haven't seen my surgeon since the consult, so I don't know the exact plan yet but I know him and my orthodontist talk about my case after ortho appointments. Is your insurance covering your surgery? Mine approved it as medically necessary but since my surgeon is out of network, I will still have to pay beyond what the insurance says is the "reasonable charge" for the surgery.

[specky]

I've had my preop appointment now....my last orthodontist appointment....8 days until surgery and my feelings are switching from excitement to nerves! A lot of things I see, well, read about are people having double jaw surgery...not a lot about lower jaw surgery.

[glennstanzalone]

What do you mean he thinks your lower jaw will "swing" forward? That it will grow once it has the space to? Do you have a surgery date yet?

I just got my date of July 16th, so less than 2 months now. I haven't seen my surgeon since the consult, so I don't know the exact plan yet but I know him and my orthodontist talk about my case after ortho appointments. Is your insurance covering your surgery? Mine approved it as medically necessary but since my surgeon is out of network, I will still have to pay beyond what the insurance says is the "reasonable charge" for the surgery.

So he means that my lower jaw is forced to be receeded because of how long my upper jaw is. That by removing the 4mm of bone from the upper jaw, my lower jaw will have more room to move and thereby rest in a more natural, outward position. My jawline will go from diagonal to more vertical. He says I have a good 90 degree angle to my lower jaw but that my upper jaw is sort of forcing it downward. I have NO idea if it makes sense how I'm describing it! lmao but he says my chin will be naturally advanced 4-5mm without cutting into bone, just by adjusting the position of my upper jaw. I am still going to ask about the genioplasty because I'm really unsatisfied with the resting appearance of my chin. It's just not a good chin.

My ortho is saying for us to book the last week in July and I'm waiting to hear back from Sabol's office for a specific date. But I did hear that insurance approved it 100% so that's a huge relief. I've been waiting for 6+ years for this. I have to pay $100 to hit my out of pocket max for the year and that's it. Other than that, you'll probably see your surgeon twice before the surgery - at least that's what Sabol is doing. A final consult and then x-rays and official measurements 3 weeks before surgery.

Are any of you getting those fancy computer images of what your face might look like after the surgery? Sabol doesn't do them but I'm wondering if that's something I am dumb to not get?

[specky]

Hello from the other side! I'm several days post op and doing pretty good! I can't wait to here about your surgeries and talk more about it! The biggest thing that shocked me is that I woke up and they had to do outside incisions, and I thought I was just going to have surgery just inside my mouth. But....yeah, I'm doing good and being as active as I can be..but the food is the biggest challenge currently.

[snapdresser]

specky - Wow! I'm not sure I've read anyone else getting outside incisions. Where exactly are they?

WOOOO!!! You're out the other side! Welcome to the fun world of mysterious swelling and Chocolate Ensure!

[specky]

Snap--> They are right along my jawline, pretty closer up to my cheek area. They are kinda hard to see because of my hair (thankfully) I have 3 stitches on one side and 2 on the other. Plus all the stitches in my mouth. They said the only way to get the screws in straight was to go in from the outside.