6 Months Post-op!!

Helloo again!

It seems like so so long ago since I wrote my last blog post at just 9 weeks post op, and I cant believe I’m now a massive 6 months on since surgery! I can honestly say that these 6 months have flown by and surgery (and its lovely aftermath) feel like a distant memory! Currently, I still have my braces on and at the moment I’m not confident that they will be taken off any time soon. This is because my back teeth were being super stubborn and have only just started to come together, so my bite isn’t in the correct position just yet. I am still having to wear two elastic bands on my right back teeth to try and bring my jaws together as my teeth aren’t meeting on this side, but this is unusual and most people have their braces removed anytime between 3-6 months after surgery… so it is a little frustrating but having had them on for so long now a few months really doesn’t make a difference!

I am super pleased with my results! I cannot express how worthwhile surgery was and how much it has boosted my confidence! I wasn’t shy before but I honestly do feel like a different person and I am way happier in myself which is pretty amazing. My only regret is not going through with it all sooner!!

I am pretty much 100% back to normal in terms of eating and even had my first steak 2 weeks ago (how did  I survive 6 months without it?!). My lower lip and chin are still tingly and super sensitive on the right side of my face but it is definitely less numb than it was and I am adamant that the feeling IS going to come back eventually…and I’ll no longer be walking around oblivious to the coffee froth all over my face! I get the occasional bout of jaw ache here and there but this is mainly when I talk too much and so far it has always faded away on its own.

First steak @ 5.3 months! 

Soo I’ve made a little video to show the transition from pre-surgery to 6 months post-op. These videos are what I searched and searched for on youtube when I was contemplating surgery so I am hoping that others thinking about/waiting for surgery will find mine useful too. This is basically a montage of me looking horrendous and hating life in the first few weeks after surgery (yes, ruining life for future me) but from my experience, seeing what is really involved is the best way to prepare for the process. You can see from my video how quickly the swelling disappeared and how any lopsidedness/squinty eyes corrected with time- I used to freak out daily about how uneven everything looked but it does sort its self out as the swelling goes down so try not to panic in those first few weeks! Honest!

Link to my 6 Month video: Watch my 6 month video here!

That is all I wanted to say really, hopefully my journey will have been useful for fellow jaw surgery patients to follow and it has been great to have received messages from people all over the world having read my blog. I doubt I will need to post again -apart from maybe a cheeky selfie once I get my braces off.. but I’m not getting excited yet. Its been a long haul but without a doubt the best thing I’ve ever done.

As always thanks to all of my fabulous friends and family who have been there for me throughout this whole process!

B
xoxoxo

Pre-surgery vs 6 months 

9 weeks post op!

Hello again! I haven’t updated my blog in a few weeks because I really haven’t had that much to say but thought I would post a few things 9 weeks post-op.

I went to see my surgeon again on the 23rd of December and the team were really pleased with my results! They checked my mouth for any signs of infection and removed some of the stitches that still hadn’t dissolved. Apart from that, we just discussed how I was feeling/ any problems I was having- yay no tears this time!

I won’t be back at the maxiolliofacial clinic now until next year (!!!!!!) when I will have my annual review to check everything is still looking ok. So from now on,  I will just be visiting the orthodontic department whilst my braces continue to move my teeth in the right direction and make my bite correct.

At the moment, I still have two elastic bands on each side of my mouth to keep everything in place. I am able to take these on and off to eat and when I brush my teeth and I’m hoping I won’t need to wear them for much longer! (Next orthodontic appointment tomorrow so fingers crossed they come off!).

In terms of pain, I am managing ok- my teeth are moving so this can cause a lot of aching but once you have had braces for a while you get used to these random bursts of pain and its manageable with painkillers. A few of my teeth feel extremely sensitive, especially if I am out in the cold/wind-I think this might be nerve endings coming back to life as I’m getting more feeling in my gums but I’m not sure. It’s not causing me too much bother though and I’m getting used to it.

I still have numbness on the right side of my chin and bottom lip but I definitely think the feeling is starting to come back and I can feel it more that I could a few weeks ago. I get a lot of tingling in this area which is a good sign…BUT it is also VERY annoying as it makes the area itchy and scratching it does nothing! (Drives me CraZy!) I would rather have this and hope that the feeling is coming back than be numb forever though so I am trying my best to ignore it!

 

Still numb in this area!

 

I am beginning to eat “normally” again but still quite restricted to soft foods and can’t manage anything that involves a lot of chewing. My surgeon advised me to just try different things and see what feels comfortable so I am experimenting with loads of different foods and giving things a go- definitely not complaining about that! Nothing is stopping me going out for food and I am no longer really worrying about whether I can eat anything now which is great!

I also started to drink alcohol after 5/6 weeks which coincided nicely with the festive period! I had to be quite careful though as not drinking in a while + lack of food…meant my first glass of wine left me feeling like I had had a bottle not a glass.. but I thought this might be the case and I just made sure I didn’t go overboard the first few times I drank. I was worried about going out clubbing incase I got an accidental knock to the face but my brilliant friends were on “jaw watch” all night and made sure no one danced too close to me (thanks guys <3) and I had no other problems. (I would say to anyone worried about this type of thing after surgery to just be sensible and do what you feel up to!).

I’m feeling really good in general and I am still super pleased with my results! At this point, I can honestly say its all been worth it and although I wouldn’t jump at the chance, I would deffintely go through it all again if I had to.

9 week comparisons!

I won’t be updating my blog as regularly now as there isn’t likely to be anymore dramatic changes. My swelling (although it may not be visible to everyone) will hopefully continue to decrease steadily. I will be seeing my orthodontist regularly to get my braces tightened and check that my bite is coming together correctly. Fingers crossed my teeth move quickly so I can get these braces off!

As always thanks for everyones great support!
Beckie xxx

ONE MONTH POST-OP!!

Yay I am officially 1 month post-op this week!

Last week (Day 22) I had another appointment with my surgeon to discuss progress. Thankfully they were really pleased with the position of my bite and how everything was looking. Sometimes this op can apparently lead to a deviated septum but he checked my nose and my breathing is now fine from both nostrils and I am no longer having nose bleeds 247 which I am extremely happy about!

Day 22 (excuse my strong eyebrow game and monobrow)

On Friday (day 24) I went to see my orthodontist and eventually got my splint off!!! It was really quite painful having it unwired due to the expanders they had to put in my mouth to open it wide enough but after a lot of tugging it eventually came out. And it was disgusting…… my teeth literally looked green because they hadn’t been touched with a toothbrush for over three weeks! It was also so so painful to bite together because the teeth aren’t yet in the final position so some are banging together when my teeth meet.

I will be honest.. I was really excited to get the splint off and finally see my new bite and be able to smile properly..but I was pretty disappointed and upset after it had been taken off. I didn’t anticipate how grey my teeth would look after not being able to brush them for so long and I half-expected my teeth to meet in the right position. I think that was just a bit of naivety on my part! I know that braces are kept on after surgery for  6months+ in order to guide the teeth into the right position where they meet correctly so expecting them to be perfect after 4 weeks was silly of me. I am so happy to have the splint off and my mouth is much less painful with it out but I definitely still have a long way to go until my teeth will be meeting/looking perfect. My orthodontist tells me I am “gorgeous but too impatient” so I am now trying my best to not criticise half finished work! I am still wearing elastics but I am allowed to change these ones in order to eat (soft food now!!!!!!) and brush my teeth properly.

Day 24 (Splint removed)

 

Day 27

 

 

All in all feeling good! Still got swelling that needs to go down but that is just going to take time. I am experimenting with soft foods now and managing to eat anything that I can swallow whole (rice, pasta shapes, mash etc) and have also discovered that giant chocolate buttons fit conveniently through the gap!!

 

New found respect for buttons!

 

 

 

Three weeks and counting!

So I am now three weeks post-op and I can honestly say the time has flown by and that surgery and that difficult first week are distant memories!

In terms of updates.. I don’t have that much to share!

Swelling is going down nicely and I am even starting to get my cheekbones back, little by little, but still crazily exciting! The reduced swelling also means I have more movement in my lips and mouth so I am able to smile more easily and my speech is improving everyday, despite the inevitable lisp which is caused by the splint (Yes..the bloody thing is still in!).

I am now able to swallow tablets too so have moved onto tablet painkillers rather than syringing liquid paracetamol in and I am only taking them when I really need to; when my mouth becomes tight and sore. I am able to feel most of my face which is a huge relief but the right half of my bottom lip and chin are numb as well as my gums and an area towards the back of my throat on the roof of my mouth. I am getting tingles and spasms in these areas though (apart from gums) which is a positive sign the nerves may be waking up and I am hopeful that some feeling will return eventually. I am still using a wedge pillow to sleep upright to try and help the swelling but I have been sleeping fine and no longer need to take painkillers through the night. The skin on my face and neck became super dry and scaly last week but this looks like it is eventually starting to disappear after regular moisturising! I am getting quite regular headaches and some ear pain but I’ve heard this can be expected after the surgery so hopefully this is something that will sort its self out in time.

The only other thing that is bothering me at three weeks post-op is my body temperature fluctuations.. I keep going from being freezing cold to boiling hot and sweating bizarre amounts! I have read that this can happen due to the anaesthetic affecting the homeostasis of you body so I am not really worried about it.. its just not very pleasant! I am still pretty much on a liquid diet but managing to drink from a cup now and eat soup from a spoon! I am also managing thicker soups, smoothies, yoghurt and pureed pouches of fruit and vegetables (how thrilling!)

All in all, I am feeling great! I am much more active and back wearing make up again which always makes you feel better! I am still pretty tired but this is getting better and I am no longer needing to take naps all the time.

Day 18

 

Day 20

      

Three weeks!!

My face is still a little lopsided due to the swelling which is more prominent on the left side of my face but I am really please with how everything is looking at the moment. I have another hospital appointment tomorrow and then an orthodontic appointment on Friday. I am realllllllly hoping that my bite is looking good enough for the splint to come off but trying not to get my hopes up too much as it could be another three weeks or more if my surgeon isn’t happy with how things are looking.. but fingers and toes are crossed!

Very much on the road to being one happy girl 🙂

 

Two weeks down!

Two weeks post-op… still a long way to go until I will see my “forever face” but time for some comparisons me thinks!

Before surgery and two week post-op comparisons:

 

I still have a lot of swelling that will hopefully continue to decrease steadily but starting to see the outline of my new face shape..and it is no where near as scary as I imagined it would be!!

But the BEST news is…my pooch is finally speaking to me again and no longer thinks I am an imposter! Horrray!

 

Regaining Human-ness

Wooo I am just two days away from the two week mark which feels fabulous! This week has gone far quicker than last week and I am definitely feeling “more human” every day!

I went back to the hospital to see my surgeon on Wednesday (8 days post-op) and they were really pleased with how my bite and everything is looking so thats great. I was hoping they were going to remove my splint but unfortunately they have said this needs to stay in for up to 6 weeks..booooo. They did however remove the tight elastic power chain that was wiring my jaws together… this felt SO weird as I was actually able to open and close my mouth for the first time since surgery. It was painful to begin with as my jaws have obviously never been in this position so it does feel strange but this should get better as the muscles around the jaws get stronger with more movement. They also cleaned out my mouth which felt amazing after a week of what I can only describe as a “furry mouth” (rank).

Instead of the tight power chain, I now have two elastic bands holding my bite in its new position. These are a lot looser (thank god) and mean I can open my mouth to a certain extent and speak!!!!…even though I do sound like I’m speaking underwater!

Day 8

Getting the bands loosened made me feel 10 times better in my self and more confident leaving the house as I can actually speak to people now! I am getting out and about pretty much every day which is definitely helping me feel somewhat normal again.. although I am still super tired when I do anything so still taking lots of naps!

Day 9

 

Day 10

My swelling is continuing to go down slowly but unsymmetrically which makes my face look slightly lopsided (grrr) but I’ve read that this is often the case with swelling so I am trying to be patient and not criticise half finished work (can’t help it!). The left side is more swollen/harder and more painful than the right side but the bruising has gone down LOADS so at least I am no longer getting stared at by strangers!

Day 11

The pain comes and goes but I am managing with only 2/3 doses of paracetamol/ibuprofen every day and trying to only take it when it gets really sore…calpol is definitely my new best friend!

This is how wide I can open my mouth with the new bands on but because of the splint I am still on a liquid diet..fair to say I am getting fed up of soup but I’m not really hungry yet so it’s not too bad (not sure whether I will feel the same way after another week!).

If only it was wine instead of soup!

I am so pleased with the results so far and I am excited to get to two weeks post op and hopefully lose even more of the swelling! As always thanks to my gorgeous friends and family for being fab!

1 week post-op!!

6 days post-op

Day 6

Wowwwee.. I have officially made it to one week and my first “milestone”. I am so so so glad this week is finally over and I can look forward to being “two weeks post-op”. Thinking about this time last week seems like ages ago and this week has been really challenging and probably the longest of my life so definitely glad its behind me now.

In terms of me, myself and I… I am feeling better every single day. My swelling is going down steadily (hence why my face looks lopsided) and my appetite is increasing again which means I have more energy. I am slowly trying to reduce the number of painkillers I take each day but I am still in some pain. I think this is because the numbness in my gums and face is lessening which means I can feel more and as the swelling reduces everything feels tighter which is more uncomfortable. The inside of my mouth is dark purple with bruising and feels almost raw (?)…the stitches in my gums have become really sore as well as the numbness has decreased.

Having my jaws banded together is becoming more and more frustrating- all I want to do is speak and shout and sing!! I normally never shut up so I am finding not talking hard, especially when my friends have been round to visit… even my dog doesn’t know who I am because I am being so quiet! Yawning is also really strange and uncomfortable. It’s such a natural behaviour so when you physically can’t open your mouth it does feel pretty weird but I am getting used to it now. Apart from that though, the bands aren’t bothering me too much, I just really want to brush my teeth properly! (and sing christmas songs)

Feeling more active!

(Feeling more active at 1 week on)

As far as eating goes, I am managing to drink pretty much everything through a straw now as long as it is very very thin. I am basically living off my grandmas homemade soup and weetabix drinks! I have an appointment with my surgeon tomorrow and I am really hoping I can get my splint taken out, which should give me a bigger gap in my mouth for thicker liquids! This all depends on whether my bite is holding together correctly so it could be out tomorrow or in six weeks time.. praying it is tomorrow!!

I have only had one “sad” day so far where I was really fed up with everything but apart from that I have been fine! I have no regrets about surgery at this point and can’t wait until I no longer look like a hamster and can get my make up back on!

Thanks for the support!

SMILING!!….ish!

I survived!!

Well….I made it through the surgery and I am now 5 days post op!! I haven’t been able to update my blog because I have been so exhausted since the surgery but having had a bath today and a good nights sleep I feel 1 million x more human!!  There may be some pretty grim pictures on this post but I want to be truthful in whats involved in an operation like this- I think being prepared for it definitely helps!

Day of surgery 

Everything went according to plan in terms of timings etc for my op and I was taken down to theatre at around 9:30 on Tuesday morning. I honestly thought I would be hysterical and freaking out whilst I got anaesthetised etc but I was really calm and just remember having a wierd conversation about drinking and the Otley run!

                   
    
The surgery took around 3/4 hours and I was in recovery for a while before being transferred to a high dependency ward. Both my jaws had been broken; my top jaw set forward (approx. 4mm) and my bottom jaw set back (approx 4.5mm). A small screw had been placed in my forehead during surgery to give the surgeons a reference to use whilst moving everything about. Whilst in recovery, I had a plastic splint wired to my top set of teeth and then both of my jaws were wired shut with elastic bands. I had a lot of bleeding during the surgery so two “packs” had been placed up my nose to try and stop it (almost like odd-shaped tampons… don’t know how else to describe them!). All in all though the operation went to plan!

Afternoon of surgery 

 

I can’t really remember much of the afternoon, its all a little blurry. I just remember waking up and being happy it was all over… and then how weird it was not being able to open my mouth. My whole face felt huge and was all numb so the pain itself wasn’t too bad initially, just uncomfortable. I had to wear a cooling mask for 24 hours- this pumps cold water around the face and is meant to help with pain and swelling. It does help with the pain because it makes your face more numb but it is pretty awful to wear and I felt like hannibal! One of the hardest things I found was breathing.. because my nose was so clogged up with blood and the packs it made it really hard to breathe and it can make you feel panicky but I had oxygen to help me at first and gradually was able to get enough air in through my mouth. It is also really hard to swallow at first.. its like you have to learn how to do it again which is strange but I was able to get a syringe of water down one side of my mouth to drink which was a relief.

The night of surgery was without a doubt the worst night or my entire life. I didn’t get regular painkillers like I should have done because the ward was understaffed so the pain through the night was unbearable. My nose also continually bled throughout the entire night which made it so hard for me to breathe. I then started getting bleeding from my left eye which made my sight go blurry.. safe to say this freaked me out so so much it was absolutely horrible.. I genuinely thought I was going blind. The nurses also didn’t know what to do which made me panic more! Basically my first night was just horrific and I don’t think I was prepared for how painful and hard it was going to be.

Day after surgery

The next morning I had x-rays taken and then went to the maxillofacial clinic to get my mouth washed out and my elastic bands tightened to make sure my bite was being held in the correct position. This was so painful and I was so drained, I just remember crying my eyes out as they moved everything about. I then got transferred back to a normal ward and got the cooling mask put back on. I managed a little bit of soup and some milkshake and even managed to get some sleep!

          

    

Day 3  

I had a much better night back on the normal ward and although I was still finding it hard to breathe, the bleeding from my nose and eye had started to reduce which was a relief and I no longer looked like the villain from James bond!! I got discharged in the afternoon and although getting to the car park from the ward was bit hairy as I felt so dizzy and faint, I made it home without being sick in the car! I literally walked in the door and passed out on the sofa-so exhausted!

 

Hard night moving from the hospital to home!

Day 4 

SOOO much happier to be back at home sleeping in my own bed! My swelling is going down slowly and the pain is manageable with regular painkillers.

Day 5! 

Feeling more human every day! I washed my hair    My mum washed my hair this morning which made me feel so much better and my swelling is looking better every day. I am still numb in my mouth and have an area on my bottom lip/chin which I can’t feel at all but I am getting tingles/spasms in that area which is hopefully a good sign that I will regain feeling eventually. I’m feeling good at the moment and I don’t regret having the surgery at all so far. The first few days were really hard but I can’t believe how fast the time has gone already and how much better I feel so hopefully things will just keep getting better. All of my friends and family have been amazing and so encouraging which really helps when you are feeling low so thank you!!

  

 

Zero days until surgery!

All admitted into hospital for my jaw surgery tomorrow and very lucky to have my own room on the ward! I am down on the list to go into theatre in the morning and the only reason for a delay or (worst case senario) cancelation will be if there are no high dependency beds available for me to go into after surgery. So fingers crossed there are! I am feeling quite calm about it all and more excited than nervous at the moment.. which means I will probably freak out a little bit in the morning instead, hopefully not! 

See you on the other side with my new bite! 

   
 

Pre-surgery video

I am going to be mainly posting pictures and writing about how I am feeling after surgery but thought I would upload a video of me before I go in for surgery to show what I look like pre-op!

Watch my pre-op video HERE!