August/September surgery buddies

[snapdresser]

Congrats to all three of you!!!! Now you get to hang out at home, watch TV instead of going to work, and watch as your beautiful new face slowly emerges It's pretty awesome Soooo when you're done taking your medication from a syringe and choking down yet another bottle of Ensure, remember the good stuff too

[VandyCru]

Nausea actually kept me from doing much yesterday, my initial burst of energy from leaving the hospital seemed to have subsided. Thankfully, the nausea's gone now! I managed to choke down an Ensure without too much going down my chin. Ensure at room temperature, though... yuck!
I have my first follow-up appointment tomorrow where I (hopefully) will get my splint out along with some of these elastics! I'm kind of glad I got the BSSO rather than the IVRO. I definitely would not be able to make it 4 weeks wired shut. Everyone out there who's wired up, you're amazing for being able to stick it out that long!

In other news, half of the Internet is now a hellhole full of funny things that make me smile (ouch), and pictures of perfectly cooked solid foods.

[slewsmissy]

I just got back home from my day long appointment at the Mayo Clinic and everything is good to go for September 1st. They are thinking my top jaw will have to go up 4mm and there is a slight chance they will cut it in half to widen it at the same time. If that happens he said I will have something on the roof of my mouth when I wake up to act like a little cast? My bottom jaw will come forward about 10-12mm (they will know for sure once he practices on the 3D printout of my skull). He assured me that I would only be awake for the first IV being inserted and then I will be asleep when they put in the second IV, the arterial line, the catheter, the breathing tube and the tube to suction out my stomach. He said all that fun stuff will be taken out before I wake up and know whats going on so that makes me feel so much better. He is estimating that surgery will take 6-7 hours so I feel bad for my best friend and my son having to hang around that long. He is still not sure if I will need my chin done too and will decide in the OR on if he is going to do it or not.

He had another surgeon come in and look too and I hope that one isn't around much while I'm in the hospital. I didn't like him at all!! I have done very good with my quitting smoking and using the patch and right away he started accusing me of smoking because he could smell it on me. Well I still live with multiple smokers so even though I quit I still smell like it because other people around me do it. If he would've paid attention during my exam he would've noticed that it was just my clothes that smelled a little like it, not my hair, skin, or breath. Once my surgeon came in he set this other one straight. I work in the medical field so I know the risks and I'm not going to risk my jaw not healing by cheating. And I did ask my surgeon if I had to be off of my lowest nicotine patch by then and he said no and if I forgot to bring them with me he would prescribe the one I'm on while I'm in the hospital. This new surgeon also talked down to me the entire time which I didn't appreciate. I have done my homework on this procedure and my cousin had the same operation so I know what I'm in for and what's going on. Even my son said that guy was icky.

I loved the mile long list of possible complications that can rarely occur like the hardware becoming loose and other fun stuff like that. He made sure he went over the possibility of needing a blood transfusing which I thought was weird. Isn't that a possibility of any surgery? I work as a lab technician so I'm not worried about it because I know how well the screen donors and the blood but the way he stressed it made me wonder if some people have a problem with that. He did say that since I'm 33 I might not ever get total feeling back in my chin and my bottom lip might tingle a little for the rest of my life. I just feel emotionally drained from today and it was only the pre-op stuff!! I feel like I should feel better because he did put a lot of fears at ease but I don't. Maybe it's because I've never had a real operation before and have never been in a hospital more than 24 hours? Or maybe it was him going over all the different possible complications that I've been trying not to think about and dealing with that icky surgeon who I've never seen before on top of everything else.

[Nozzelnut]

Hi all
So today I have eaten a nutrition shake, cottage cheese & pineapple Blended up, and some chicken soup.

Am starting to feel some buzzing, fizzing & twitching in my lips & chin so imagine that's the nerves waking up.

Has anyone been taking bromelain for swelling ? Has it helped you?

Thanks x

Kelse, I did take bromelain; not sure it worked but it definitely didn't making anything worse. I also used the arnica gel for the bruising that ended up going from my chin into my chest. Again, I can't say for certain that it worked but as much swelling and bruising that I had it could only help.

Good luck August and Sept folks!!

[kelse]

Thanks nozzlenut!

My lips at really buzzing today, almost a burning sensation - those nerves must be waking up

[snapdresser]

kelse - That tingling could last a while. The nerves are the slowest thing to regenerate But the fact that you have tingling is a good sign that the nerves weren't damaged too severely!

slewsmissy - That's quite an appointment! When I came too my catheter, 2 IVs, A-line, and tube to suction blood out were all still in. They had removed the breathing tube but that was about it. The A-line and catheter hurt a little coming out, but I was getting the morphine regularly so it was aight. That's interesting about your surgeon deciding in the OR about whether or not to do the chin... He should know the movement for the mandible after the 3D sim and should be able to make the decision from there, I would think. I wonder if he just wants to see if he has enough time left in the OR If you feel strongly one way or the other, I'd press it with him pre-op. If you're ok with whatever he decides, I understand that too. I was a fairly vocal patient about my treatment plan. More so than most

Btw, I think they talk a lot about the possibility of a blood transfusion because this is a high blood loss operation (according to my surgeon). Apparently it's often pretty borderline on whether or not you need a transfusion. I didn't get one, but lots of patients do. I felt pretty weak for days after the operation and the blood loss may have been related to that. Be happy you're getting the blood suction tube! Some patients don't get that and have serious nausea issues. Btw I had to quite smoking too and it's still going well post-op! I cheated once like 7 weeks post-op but that was it, so I think I did pretty good. You'll be nervous and stressed as heck the days leading up to the operation and if you're like me you'll be a total wreck the day before, but you'll be fine!!! Good luck!!!

[slewsmissy]

Snapdresser- I don't really feel strongly one way or the other when it comes to the chin. I guess I figure he is the expert so I will trust his opinion on wether I truly need it or not. He said it will only add 45 minutes on to my surgery if he decides to do it. He is doing a 3D computer simulation and also printing an actual 3D model of my skull so maybe he will have an idea going in what he's leaning towards. They know one of my big fears is having tube pulled out of my nose while I'm awake so maybe that's why he said he will be sure they are out before I wake up. I didn't really realize that this is a high blood loss surgery but I'm not worried about it. I know how well blood and donors are screened so it's not like I'm afraid of catching anything. For a woman I actually have a pretty high hemoglobin that is usually a little over 14 so I'm sure that helps out a little. I was pretty proud of myself about the whole quitting smoking thing and that doctor just had to try to burst my bubble. I have slipped up here and there but overall I think I'm doing very well with it and it's not like I can cheat right after surgery because I wont be able to feel lips to take a drink let alone suck on anything! I ordered some zip-n-squeeze bags and a jaw bra so I feel a little more prepared but I'm still getting more nervous the closer it gets. I haven't been sleeping well worrying about about surgery and how I'm going to pay bills while I'm out of work.

[snapdresser]

slewsmissy - Yeah, I'd think he's probably already leaning one way or the other about your chin. For my chin my surgeon suggested I might not really need a genio to still get good results. I ended up getting the whole package but with fairly conservative movements. So maybe that's something your surgeon is considering too? Additional risk for what may be only a slight difference? Btw, the tube in my nose to remove the blood in my stomach didn't hurt at all coming out. I was in a haze still just a couple hours post-op. I didn't even realize I had anything up my nose until they told me lol. I think you'll be fine either way. Get ready for that nervousness to ratchet up over the next couple weeks! And then bam, you'll be in the recovery group

[adorkable8605]

How is everyone doing during their recovery?

It's all been kind of a blur so far! I didn't want to wallow and I have to get back to school next week, so I forced myself out and about. The first two days I hid at home and iced nonstop. I had a terrible time eating the first day, but I used the syringe and started using cups after like day 2 or 3. I started running errands on day 3 and 4 with my boyfriend and ventured to target on my own on day 4. I think trying to fall a sleep and the feeling in my face in the morning is the worst things about this whole process. I'm a notorious stomach sleeper and sleeping upright is no fun. And when I wake up my nose and lips are so dry and my face is just sore. Other than that I have minimal swelling (all that awesome ice and activity) and my bruises are fading quickly. I went to see the surgeon yesterday, he says everything is looking good and he was amazed by my insignificant amount of swelling. He said I can use a straw on Tuesday and start using the water pik (I've been doing this since day 3....I couldn't stand how dirty the splint would get...so that'll be our secret). I won't see him again until September 4th. This morning I used nasal saline spray to clean out my nasal cavity and I think I finally dislodged the clot (not pretty) and I feel so much better. I kind of blew my nose and now I'm worried I might have messed something up because my check near my nose is so tingling. I have basically all my feeling in my face which is awesome, but sucks because of the pain. My lower lip and chin are iffy, but they tingle and scream at me all day.

Last night before bed, I googled the surgery and procedures and watched them on youtube. Ick...The things I put myself through to fix my overbite. Overall, I'm happy so far and can only imagine that it'll get better from here.

Hope everyone is doing well!

[slewsmissy]

A week from today I will be in the hospital recovering from surgery!!

[uncleezno]

Hi Guys,

It's been two and a half weeks since I had my LeFort 1 on the upper jaw. Got the front piece of my splint off last Friday, and five more weeks to go until they take off the back piece. Everything looks good, and it is very unusual to have my teeth fitting together the way they do - the correct way! The first five days were pretty miserable, but after that, it quickly got better. I stopped taking painkillers at the one week park - I had been on 4 vicodin during the day, oxycodone before bed, and another vicodin in the middle of the night - I wasn't sleeping due to pain.

Foodwise, I wasn't on a liquid diet. I was eating oatmeal and soup and mushy stuff right when I got home, and drinking ensure. Not tasty, but I was happy to not be using the syringes to eat. Now I'm eating pizza, hamburgers, tacos, etc - anything that's not super chewy or hard is fair game for me.

Lessons learned - if you've taken painkillers before and know how they affect your digestion, TAKE YOUR LAXATIVES. Ugh. Trust me on this one. And if you've never taken narcotics, TAKE YOUR LAXATIVES JUST TO BE SURE. Rinse like a madman after every meal - it will make your mouth feel less gross. If you're a man, be prepared for shaving weirdness. It just doesn't go the same way when your face is numb!

What else? I've still got swelling in my sinuses, so I've got chipmunk cheeks, and one side of my face still has some numbness. It took until the two week mark to be able to really smile, as I was having pain on one side at the sutures when I tried to really grin.

Hope everyone else is having a speedy recovery, and that everyone having surgery soon has an easy go of it!

[kelse]

Hey August/September peeps

Sorry for the radio silence - going back to work really takes it out of you!

I'm struggling at the mo with the altered sensation - it's really from my eye sockets down to my chin. If I drool I can't feel it til it reaches under my chin. My face doesn't look puffy, but it feels really tight. My lips are really thin & feel tight too.

I'm still banded - diagonal at the sides & box at the front. I am able to open my mouth the width of my thumb. And my stitches have dissolved.

Food wise, I'm eating pretty much anything I don't need to chew - anything mashed, or cut up small!

Sorry that this is a bit of a moany post, but I suppose the long-haul recovery is hitting home. I really hope my sensation comes back a bit - I know it can take a long time.

Hope you're all recovering well & feeling good x

[JMP75]

6 days post op double jaw surgery. I think the worst part is the congestion in my sinuses and pressure in my ears (hearing feels like I'm underwater). I flushed out my nostrils with saline spray which helped a bit.

Face is still tickly and tingling in some spots and still swollen.

[slewsmissy]

I have to check in tomorrow morning at 6:30 for surgery. I can't believe the day is actually here!! I didn't sleep at all last night and so far it's looking like I will get any sleep tonight either. I have no idea what to bring with to the hospital. I have some pajamas to wear home, a small mirror to help with eating, note book and pen to communicate and my cellphone to text people. I was considering bringing my laptop so I have something to entertain myself with but I'm not sure if I will be awake long enough to get bored while I'm there. I don't know if I should bring my zip-n-squeeze bags or like a baby spoon or something like that. I feel so scared and overwhelmed!

[snapdresser]

GOOD LUCK SLEWSMISSY!!!!! Don't worry about what to bring. Some pajamas with a big neck hole or a button-down is all you'll need. You might want to bring a couple things of Gatorade too so you can drink that to get fluids in rather than just water. Everything else you might need will be supplied by the hospital. Good luck!!!!!! I'm sure you'll do great!