Post-Surgery FUN!!!

Message

#61 Post by **WhiteLurcher** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:54 am

Hey phil

Glad to hear things are coming along, slow but sure, as long as you get there in the end right

You are probably right about the asymmetry being to do with your jaw rotation, I have similar, also on my right. I asked my OS about it yesterday and he said it was to do with the surgical rotation and the overgrowth of my jaw on that side. He said they can do something about it but, like you I think if they can fix the bite I'll be happy!

You could try blending the pizza with marinara sauce, I haven't tried it but others have

I was never really that into pizza!

Good luck and hope your elastics do the trick!

#62 Post by **phil** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:59 am

WhiteLurcher,

Hmm, pizza blended with marinara...sounds like it has possibilities! Not that I'm a HUGE fan of pizza. It was really an inside joke--Delag said that by the time she got back from traveling, I would be eating pizza. That was a real joke! I've tried just about everything else blended though, so why not?!?

Tomorrow is DAY 30, so I'll probably post new profile/front view pics. After all, I have to celebrate at every little step along the way I can!

#63 Post by **phil** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 12:23 pm

TODAY IS DAY 30!

I just got back from the orthodontist's office. I guess I went in with a somewhat confrontational attitude, which is no surprise--I haven't felt like I've received good answers to any of my why and when questions from the surgeon. Well, when I asked the orthodontist the "why" question about my mandible shifting forward about 1mm from the post-operative postion, he said, "these are questions that you really should be asking the surgeon." Go figure! Everyone wants to pass the buck. Everybody thought that things were looking good, though, and both orthodontists agreed that the finished result will be good. I was quite a pill to all those people in the office, though, and that dear assistant who I had never met before didn't know what hit her!

I have a new elastic configuration, which is asymmetrical, and makes perfect sense to me, since my mandible tends to want to rotate back to the right. It has a slightly stronger pull to the left. I have to wear my elastics 24/7, and change them once a day.

Both orthodontists also said that I need to up my dosage of Ibuprofen to 800mg every 4 hours, in order to get the anti-inflammatory effect. We'll see what my stomach has to say about that, but I'll give it a shot when it's time for my next dosage.

Here are some pics to help us all (mostly me) celebrate day 30. All in all, I don't think I'm looking too bad. Enjoy!

#64 Post by **WhiteLurcher** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 12:47 pm

Congratulations on reaching your 30th

Sorry to hear your still struggling with pain meds though, that's pretty cra@@y! You're pictures look great, I can just about see the asymetry in your right side, but that's only because I know what to look for! Maybe if I had whiskers like you I wouldn't notice mines so much!

Good luck with the elastics, isn't it amazing what you can do with a tiny rubber band these days

#65 Post by **HighandLo** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 4:04 pm

Happy Day 30!!

It seems like just yesterday we were getting ready for surgery...

You look like you have hardly any swelling left to worry about. Big difference in your smile, too! Here's to getting the elastics working and out of the way!

Lo

#66 Post by **phil** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 5:06 am

ELASTICS ARE IMPLEMENTS OF TORTURE!!!

Ok, that's a little dramatic. Actually, they are tools of healing. This morning I changed my elastics like a good patient. Oh my goodness, it took me a half an hour to figure out how to get them around those surgical hooks. At least I finally did it!

I'm hoping that tomorrow will go a little more quickly.

#67 Post by **phil** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 8:37 am

For those of you who are interested in elastics configurations, here's a low-tech diagram.

If you think about it, the pattern on the left will have a little more pull than the one on the right, which makes perfect since to me! We want to make sure those muscles find the new 3mm to the left position!

It amazed me that in just 30 seconds he manipulated the elastics, said, "There. That's EXACTLY where I want your bite to be right now," and got the midlines DEAD ON. Fascinating!

#68 Post by **dubnobass** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 10:09 am

phil wrote:Both orthodontists also said that I need to up my dosage of Ibuprofen to 800mg every 4 hours, in order to get the anti-inflammatory effect. We'll see what my stomach has to say about that, but I'll give it a shot when it's time for my next dosage.

Crikey, that's a whopping dose

Maximum licensed dose of ibuprofen in the UK is 2400 mg daily, though it seems to be 3200mg daily in the US. If it doesn't help at that high dose, I would go return to a lower dose. At higher doses, it's not just GI risks that increase, it's thrombotic CV risk too, though you are younger than most of the people who tend to be at risk of CV events.

#69 Post by **phil** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 11:15 am

dubnobass,

Thanks for sending up the alarm. I did check with my surgeon just a bit ago. He said 800mg every SIX hours, and I'm fine.

I thought it was a whopping dose. Man, my stomach hasn't enjoyed it much either.

Well, that's just fine. Less pills going down my gullet is OK with me!

#70 Post by **phil** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 1:41 pm

Thanks, Meryaten. I'm going to try 800mg 4x (with meals, and before bed).

Incidentally, I think I'm having less problems, now that I have the new elastic configuration. My OD really knows what he's doing, and my bite is even more comfortable than it was yesterday. So, it's either the Ibuprofen, the the elastics, or the combination.

It was a delightful combination of artistry and science to witness him working yesterday, making those decisions in such a short time, and really nailing it! Now, THAT'S the benefit of receiving treatment from someone with experience!

I wish I could put my elastics in with as much artistry as he did, but of course he used a hemostat!

#71 Post by **WhiteLurcher** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 4:45 am

Did he not give you a haemostat to take home? That's a bit mean, I got given one at the hospital, it is way easier especially if you need to reach hooks near the back! You should ask for one, things are hard enough for you as it is!

#72 Post by **phil** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 5:10 am

Lurcher,

Yeah! Where in the world am I going to find a hemostat in THIS town???

And here I am once again, preparing to face the changing of the elastics. Heaven Help me!

#73 Post by **phil** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 9:35 am

Meryaten,

I'm switching to four doses of 600mg today. The 800mg doses yesterday were just too much for my stomach.

A friend of mine pointed me to a medical supply/pharmacy in town, and I am now the proud owner of a hemostat! It even has a curved tip for getting in tight places. And, it only cost me $7.00. Things should go much easier tomorrow when I change my elastics!

#74 Post by **phil** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 1:04 pm

I have to say that I understand how you felt "ham-fisted" with the hemostat! This morning was a little comical to be sure, trying to figure out which angle to hold it, where the band goes, how to move my wrist! By the time I was done, though, it took a LOT less time, and I'm sure that tomorrow will be a SNAP. Well, let's hope not LITERALLY!

#75 Post by **phil** » Tue Aug 07, 2007 11:58 am

Today is WEEK SIX since my surgery. WOO HOO!

Here are some pics to celebrate. Not that much has changed, but I figured, what the hey!

I have an appointment with the surgeon in about an hour, and at the orthodontist tomorrow morning. I'm pretty sure the OD will put me back in arch wires, and change my elastics configuration then. Go figure, I've just gotten to the point where I can do the current configuration pretty quickly!