Cheek implants before surgery?

[Neverloved]

I've decided I can live with my gummy smile, lip incompetence, crowding, and negative overbite for a few more months (or however long it takes till I get a surgery date), but the thought of having to spend all that time with my cheekbone deficiency is driving me insane. It's the one thing that really completely throws off the balance of my face, making it look even longer than any of my jaw issues do, and giving me a weird cheekline that's narrower than the top of my lower jaw. Oh, and to top it all off, they're asymmetrical, which makes my entire face look crooked.

Does anyone know if it's possible to have cheek implants/bone grafts/anything done before jaw surgery?

From what I understand of a Lefort I (it doesn't affect the malar complex at all), it shouldn't have any impact on the surgery when it's carried out, and in the worst case scenario they can just be removed/revised during the surgery if they do cause problems.

Has anyone had this done before?

[Marisama]

My surgeon is planning on doing cheek implants during my double jaw surgery.

[Neverloved]

I guess if it's possible during, it must be possible before.

[BracketRacket]

Have you consulted a surgeon at all yet, about any of your concerns?

If not, please do -- it'll answer a lot of your questions and perhaps give you more peace of mind than guesswork and Internet research/diagnosis.

[Neverloved]

I'll be seeing my surgeon on december 10th, but that feels like forever to me now.

[Broadway Bill]

I gotta say, if surgery is probably only a few months away, doing another facial surgery before it is probably a bad idea. Have you had any facial surgeries before, beyond simple extractions? The recovery is no joke. You really do not want to do it twice back-to-back.

Also, if you think that the worst case scenario is messing with/redoing/changing the implants during your second surgery, that's not a good thing. You do not want to be going into the jaw surgery with such a huge variable.

Talk to your surgeon, but I am inclined to say that doing implants before hand is a huge mistake, and I would wager that your surgeon will say the same. Plus, there is no telling how the second surgery will change things in your face; let that get worked out first, then after a year or so, address any remaining issues you see.

December tenth is NOT ALL far away. It is less than a month.

[Broadway Bill]

Whoops...

that should read "NOT AT ALL"

Odd how there is no "edit" function here, eh?

[Neverloved]

The problem is, I've actually got to actually live for the next [insert time until Lefort surgery], and manage to live a relatively normal life at that, without feeling hideous and abnormal every time I walk out the front door, otherwise I'm just heading for another breakdown.

Braces I can live with...I doubt I'm the only person my age getting braces. SARPE I can pass off as just getting my wisdom teeth removed...again, certainly not the only person my age going through that. I can hide my lip incompetence; I hate my gummy smile, but that's only noticeable when I smile rather than constantly. Hell, even after my surgery I can just tell people I broke my jaw in an accident (it's technically exactly the same fracture). The one thing I can really do nothing to hide is my malar hypoplasia, which is a real problem because it's something immediately noticeably wrong and "not normal" about my face when you look at it.

How am I supposed to be able to live a normal, active social life for months, possibly over a year between now and my surgery with a glaring problem like that?
And what's the alternative? Living as a recluse? You might as well put me in a coma between now and my surgery date.

Between throwing away yet another year of my life or having to have implants removed during my lefort surgery, I'll choose having the implants removed.

I'm sick of sitting by and watching my life go out the window.

[qwertz1]

if i may give you some advice, because i think i'm familiar with how you feel right now:
get out for a while. no one cares how you look, in most situations.

Of course in some situations people do care how you look, that's (part of) why you'll have the surgery. But it's no reason to rush decisions. you should be prepared that your surgeon tells you next month that you can't have surgery in a year or more.
And continue to live during that time, without obsessing about the surgery.

Besides, the effects of cheek bone modifications are usually very subtle (at least the good ones). I doubt this "throws of the balance" of your face for anyone but yourself.

[Broadway Bill]

Well, it seems like you've made up your mind. Not sure why you're asking for input, or maybe I misread and you aren't looking for input.

The only other thing I can say is that recovering from having your face opened up is not something to do more often than is absolutely necessary. These procedures are fairly tough, and I think it's important to keep safety in mind. Not to mention, I really doubt you'll have great results doing two separate surgeries.

As for how you should get through the couple months preceding surgery, I suggest you do whatever you've been doing for (x) years. I know that it's tough to handle life when you really are unhappy with your appearance, but a few months is nothing. It's an unimportant fraction of a lifetime, in the long run. As was mentioned earlier, the vast majority of people don't care what you look like. Sometimes you just have to do your best to see beyond yourself and realize that your issues mean very little to anyone else, and that things will be fixed and fine in good time.

Not sure how old you are, but I'm 31, and no one gives a damn that I have braces, or just had surgery, or that prior to all of this, I had a pronounced underbite. No one cares.

Talk to your surgeon, and good luck with whatever you decide to do!

[Neverloved]

I thought cheek implants were a relatively minor procedure? I know a lot of people have had cheek implants after their jaw surgery, which is still 2 separate operations...I guess all I can do is talk to my surgeon about it when I get the chance.

As for what I've been doing for past years, nothing but burying my head in the sand, trying to deny a problem that was staring me in the face. Eventually I just couldn't go on like that anymore, and had a nervous breakdown last year.
As much as I'd like to try to carry on a normal life until my surgery and recovery is through, I can't see it ending any way other than with another breakdown.

Sorry if I seem rash, it's just that I'm feeling more and more hopeless at the moment.

[mamaneedsanewjaw]

Neverloved- You are now in the drivers seat controlling your future. you have made the right steps to get the problems fixed. You are in braces and know that before to long these problems will be a thing of the past. I know how it feels like it is TAKING FOREVER for surgery to get here and I myself got a bit down before surgery because of how much worse my bite looked/felt.

I agree with Bill in that a few months is nothing in the grand scheme. Yes, it does not feel that way when you are in the midst of it but realistically you must know that it is nothing.

Both your body and mind needs to be in tip top shape before undergoing something as serious as jaw surgery. How did you recover from your first breakdown...surely you spoke with people to talk you through it....maybe just talking with someone will help.

[BracketRacket]

SARPE I can pass off as just getting my wisdom teeth removed...again, certainly not the only person my age going through that.

Being honest with people (not necessarily giving them every gory detail, but being honest about having surgery) is IMO very important. Not to mention, I highly doubt that if you are in school or have a job, you can pass off SARPE recovery as wisdom teeth removal. When I had SARPE, I was out of work for a entire month. I had a bit of complication that caused me probably an extra week, but two to three weeks is probably the least amount of recovery time you will need, and with that, you will have residual swelling and ROM issues, you will have a palate expander that you can't hide, you will have a sizable gap in your front teeth, etc.

Not trying to scare or discourage you, but orthognatic surgery isn't generally something you can "hide," and it's in your best interest (again, IMO) not to do that anyway.

And please, please, please make sure that you are seeking continued guidance throughout your journey. I am sure that you will feel more confident as time goes on, but having the surgey is not a magic bullet -- it won't "cure" everything all on its own.

Take care...

[ColoradoGirl]

I also sympathize with the wanting-to-hide-in-the-sand thing, but like others, I would say that jaw surgery isn't necessarily going to fix all your self-image problems. It will undoubtedly fix some of them, but I bet you'll notice after everything's done that people pretty much react to you in the same ways they did before. Of course, the surgery eliminates lots of the self-consciousness (or did for me), but it also sucks massively, and the recovery is not fun. Have you talked to a counselor about BDD? I did before my surgery, and even though I don't think I had it--I just hated my jawline!--it was really good to discuss the possibility and get an unbiased opinion about my own state of mind. Good luck in any case--hating how you look is awful, I know.

[ColoradoGirl]

P.S.--don't know what gender you are, Neverloved, but blush and highlighter can do wonders for the look of cheekbones (and weak jawlines, in my case). I recommend going to a MAC store or counter (they've got a very cutting-edge vibe, and I've seen them do makeup for males and females) and asking the consultant to help you enhance your cheekbones. Even if you don't end up buying their products, you will get some good tips that might make you feel more confident until you can get surgery.