November 2013 Surgery Buddies

[survenant]

I contacted my surgeon and he told me that I had nothing to worry about. So 8 days aftere the surgery I'm elastic-free. However, I think that I will have to wear elastics later during the treatment.

[Alicia110613]

Congrats survenant for being elastic-free! I have to replace the two elastics near my molar as they break. The latest one is really tight and the pressure hurts a little. =(

Btw, I also feel a little nauseous /dizzy right after I wake up - though not necessarily related to standing up.

The swelling is going down SO SLOWLY now. Day 9 and I still look like I weigh 100 lb more than I actually do.

[Alicia110613]

@Lattie :
My surgeon said no waterpik until Day 10 - I can't wait to use it! (dedicated waterpik user here pre-op)

@Riley:
It really sounds like it's more of an orthodontic issue. Stress to your ortho that your midline used to be matched up. Also, you have to look at the placement of your chin to determine the midline - not just at your teeth. During a consult, one of the surgeons lay a string vertically on my forehead then down to my nose/chin area to show how both my lower teeth and chin were assymetric to my face, (i.e. a true midline issue, not just of the teeth), maybe you can try something like that at home. hope that makes sense?

[riley3245]

I just got back from doing my pre-op work up. It took 3 hours. I had measurements, molds, and x-rays done. I am scheduled for a double jaw surgery, but the surgeon said I could just have the upper moved forward. If I just have the upper it would be moved about 8mm forward and 2 mm left. If I had double they would move the lower to match the centerline and back 1mm.

He said it is up to me. I just have to see if the added risk of lower jaw surgery is worth a perfect centerline. I don't think a centerline that is off by 1.5-2mm is that bad. I'm just going to tell the surgeon to do what he feels is best.

Any thoughts from the group?

[survenant]

I think it's fine if your lower jaw is off 1.5-2mm from the midline as long as you have a small chin. If your chin is long it might be a problem.

In my case, my lower jaw was about 3.5 mm off from the midline and my chin was kind of long. So the surgeron corrected the assymetry of the lower jaw and he performed a genioplasty so my chin is now a little bit shorter. However the reason why my chin was shorten is because of my lip incompetence not because of the lower jaw assymetry.

[riley3245]

I agree I told he that I would rather no risk permanent numbness in my lower lip for 2mms.

[Alicia110613]

Agree that 2mm is a very small movement for such a large risk. Prob not worth it unless it bothers you a lot.

[Alicia110613]

i began using heat packs which have been very helpful in reducing the swelling and the hematota, but at the sane time I started bleeding again. I haven't really bled since Day 5 or so, and I'm suspecting the heat is increasing the blood circulation, hence the renewed bleeding. Any thought on this and should I be concerned...?

[survenant]

I would stop using the heat packs for a day or 2. Then try again. I'm pretty sure that it's "normal". The tissues are not fully healed I guess.

[riley3245]

I was wondering how everyone is doing with regards to exercise post op. I wanted to get walking around the block asap and was wondering how long after surgery until you could do light activity.

Also how long do we wear that splint? I'm going in next monday and got the jitters a little today.

[survenant]

It's been 12 days since the surgery, If it were up to me I would start running again today, maybe like 2-3 km (instead of 15), but I'm waiting for my surgeon's approval before.

7 days after the surgery I started going on 2-3 km walks.

[Alicia110613]

I started going out for quick errands and taking walks at about 1-week post-op. I don't have a splint, so can't help you there --- but heard others have had them for about 4 weeks.

[riley3245]

I found out that I will only have the upper jaw advanced. They said about 8mm so I how that works out. It seems like a lot, but I trust the doctors I have.

I'm glad that its upper only for a lot of reasons. One of which is that the recovery should be quicker and easier.

Any suggestions on post op meals? I was thinking a juicing diet with some protein shakes would be good. I got a new juicer and a couple containers of whey protein mix.

[Alicia110613]

I love juicing pineapple and carrots together. You can do whatever combination of fruit/vegies really, but I prefer to juice items of similar color togehter (i.e. if I'm juicing celery, then I'll add green apples and other "green" things). If you juice some vegie and it tastes horrible, just add apples (for sweetness) or pineapple.

During my initial recovery, I've made pureed pumpkin soup (sautee chopped pumpkin with some onions, cook with chicken stock until tender, puree, then add cream). I also made a huge crockpot of chicken with vegetable soup (organic bone-in chicken, onion, carrots, potatos). You can then blend the chicken/vegie into the soup when you drink it, or just drink the soup portion if you get sick of blending.

I think the key is to do a variety of fresh soup/juices as you can get sick of the same taste very quickly!

[riley3245]

Hope everyone is doing well. I have to be at the hospital at 6:00am on monday. I'm happy that they decided to just do the upper jaw. My ortho thinks they should do a double, but the doctor said the lower is not that bad and i run the risk of sleep apnea because I have a narrow trachea. I just hope my face doesn't look wired after my upper is moved forward 8mm.