I thought for all of you that are considering jaw surgery that you might be interested in hearing about my experience.
I got my braces on in December of 2004 and was told to expect that I should be ready for surgery (upper and lower) in about 12 - 15 months. So, On January 23rd, 2006 I found my self in the hospital, waiting in a room for them to take me away and do the dirty deed. I must say I held up well for the entire time I was expecting to have my jaw "broken" - I might have been in denial.
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The next thing I remember is waking up in the recovery room, and being told that everything went well. During the surgery my blood pressure went up pretty high but I was just fine after that. Being in the hospital sucked afterwards though, they had these coffs on my legs that were just to keep circulation going but I found them really uncomfortable and they made me feel very warm. The other thing was the tube in my nose, not so much that but with it in they wouldn't give me any water. I was so thirsty. I must have drank about 4 litres of water the next day after they took it out. All in all, I have to say if those were my worst problems, I did alright.
So, the next day they said they would take out the tube & they did in the late morning. They also took off those leg cuffs once I was able to go to the washroom, that felt much better. They also brought food in the late afternoon. Word to wise, stay away from anything too acidic the first few days... ouch! I got to go home that night which was great because I wasn't resting well in the hospital.
I was wired shut for 14 days. I found it to be difficult but not too bad. I felt it was hard to breathe enough air but that could have been been my sinuses were pretty congested. My teeth inside felt pretty gross too, so i was thankful to get those wires off and brush in there. I must admit to freaking out on my husband once or twice due to anxiety of being wired shut, plus it was hard to get enough calories in - that certainly could have attributed to my crankiness.
I got my wires off almost two weeks ago now. I'm trying to strech my mouth to open as much as I can - so far about an inch if I really try. Enough to get actual food in anyway - soft food but at least not liquid. I'm so sick of protein shakes (no matter how many variations we tried to make ; liquid food is liquid food).
I think my biggest challenge after getting the wires off is just the nasal congestion. It makes it hard to sleep when combined with the extra swelling that happens when I sleep. But I take an antihistamine at night and that helps a lot. I think in general things have gone really well for me & though I don't know if the doctor said "We have to go back in and do it all over again" if I would, I'm glad that I did it and am recovering well.
If I can answer any questions that people might have about my experience, I'd be happy to. And for anyone who is going in soon - it's really not as bad as it sounds. I was in no pain at all - mostly just discomfort. Good Luck!
Kimberley