6 months post surgery - Braces off!!! All done!!!

Well after 31 months I have my braces off. What a transition! I had forgotten what my teeth felt like. I'm not brave enough to bite into an apple because my teeth still feel a little fragile to me. I'm happy to wait a little bit longer but so happy with the finished result. It has been a long road and many times I have thought I had made the wrong decision and regretted it but now it' all over, I'm very happy.
All the swelling has gone and I can open my mouth up completely. I still have the occassional twinge of pain in my jaw when i yawn but its constantly improving.
I now wear a brace behind my teeth that can't be seen. It will keep them in place and stop them from moving again. I also have a retainer to wear at night for the next 2 years.

I feel like a new person and achieved everything I set out to do. Very happy.

9 Weeks - WOW!! Before & After

WOW!! What an amazing difference. 

I'm close to getting my braces off now. Only a few months to go. I have to wear bands for a couple more weeks to pull my teeth closer together.

You can see I now have a jaw line now and my neck is firmer as a consequence.

It's funny. I didn't recognise myself in the mirror just after my operation. Now I don't recognise myself in these before photos:)

Week 7 - Back to work.

I started my new job this week, answering phones and talking to people all day. By the end of the day my lips were all tingly and my mouth had a few new ulcers from the movement of my teeth settling in their new position. 

I stopped taking Panadol daily and only took it a couple off times at night so I could go to sleep. 

My mouth is so much better now. I still have a few teeth that feel loose to me when I eat. Apparently they are not loose, it's just that my teeth are not yet aligned properly, so the teeth that actually touch are quite sore. When I bite down the root of the tooth hurts my gum and because of this I am still avoiding foods that are a bit hard. It's hard work trying to gently chew food twice as long as you would normally because it hurts to much to bite down with your full force. I have become a bit lazy and avoid anything harder than a banana or a sandwich.

Speaking of sandwiches........I had a ham, cheese and tomato sandwich the other day and I couldn't stop smiling. I must have looked like an idiot, sitting by myself smiling at my sandwich, but my teeth had cut through the ham and the tomato like a cookie cutter. I had never seen my own bite mark before. 

I think it's all up and up from here.

Good luck with your operation:)

Week 6 - Check Up

I have just been to see the Orthodontist. My teeth still don't join up properly. I will need a few more months of adjustments.

I now have a rubber band running along the top row of back teeth and down to the bottom jaw to pull them together. I can take it off to eat and clean my teeth but it is supposed to be on all the time. I will be taking it off if I get a job interview because it looks like a piece of dental floss stuck in my teeth. It does help line my jaws up properly. 

A  couple of times while I've been talking I've had a shooting pain go from my jaw through my face as if my jaw is going to pop out of place. The orthodontist said it could be a pinched nerve but we will wait and see. It may just be in need of healing properly.

It is such a waiting game. I also saw my doctor today and he said if I was 18 years old I would have completely recovered by now but being older it will take a while longer.

My teeth still hurt like they did when I first got the braces but the doctor said I should be chewing by now.  I can use my front teeth which is great. I haven't been able to bite properly before so I'm enjoying taking little bites although my mouth doesn't open very wide yet.

I have a lot more feeling now. Still numb in some spots but it's much better.

I've seen a few people that I haven't seen  since before the operation and they have noticed a big difference.  People that are close to me say it's not much different. I just look younger. 

So glad I did it! As time goes on I'm forgetting about the first 2 weeks and just focusing on the now. Very happy:)

Week 5 - Better day today

I have to keep reminding myself that it's only week 5 and my recovery is going well. It feels like the opreration was so long ago. 

I usually work on a reception desk and have given up my job to have this operation, giving myself plenty of time to recover. I'm feeling more confident in my speech now and my smile has progressed a little which is important so I can start looking for a new job. It still feels like I have a way to go but I'm sure I will get by and most people wouldn't notice.

I'm so happy with the results so far. I realise there is still some swelling but it's minimal now. I've noticed the skin on my neck and jaw line is now much tighter than before. It's like I've had a mini facelift as well.

My teeth are still too sore to use. I'm just chopping my food very fine. I have tried to bite into sandwiches and soft bananas but it just doesn't work yet. I cant open my mouth wide enough to take a good bite and I'm not sure if it's the numbness in my bottom lip or the lack of feeling in my bottom teeth but it feels like I'm trying to bite using Lego blocks. I'm looking forward to seeing what it's like to eat a hamburger and being able to bite all the way through, but that might be a while away.

I've also cut down my pain medication. I'm only on Panadol now although I still wake each night having to take it to get back to sleep. All in all, a good week.

 I wouldn't recommend it for everyone and I was seriously doubting my decision on some days, but now I'm really glad I went through with it. I know I would have always regretted not doing it.

Week 4 - It's wearing me down

Another week has gone by and it feels like my progress has been very slow.

Each morning I wake up and the lower part of my face is very stiff. Firstly I reach for the painkillers and sit in bed waiting for them to kick in. I am still taking Panadol & Brufen. Once they've dulled the pain I can start my mouth stretches. It takes a few minutes, but my mouth and cheeks loosen up and I feel like I can face another day.

I am getting more and more feeling back each day but with the new feeling comes new pain. I get little twinges here and there. It is mostly the back teeth and gums. The roof of my mouth still feels very bruised and I still can't open my mouth wide enough to see inside. I also have a sore throat some days. It comes and goes. I still have a bit of swelling along my jaw and across my cheeks. 

I have been having afternoon naps each day. I tend to wear out after lunch. I was expected to loose about 5kg but I still weigh the same. I need to eat something each time I take the painkillers otherwise I get pains in the stomach so I'm actually eating more than I would normally.

The doctor said after week 4 I could start eating what ever I was comfortable with but I think I will stay with mush for a while longer. 

You can see in my photo that one side is still recovering quicker than the other.

I thought I would make a bit of an effort a wear a little bit of make-up for today's photo. I really couldn't be bothered over the past month but now I'm pushing myself to stay up beat.

I have good days and bad days. I'm sorry today is a bad day but I'm getting there :)

Week 3 - So happy

Well after 3 weeks I'm back in the land of  living and so happy with the way it's coming along.

I saw my Orthodontist and he explained that now we had joined the front teeth, the back teeth are no longer touching. So in 3 weeks time, when everything has settled down, he will put elastics on my back teeth to pull them down from my gum.

I also saw my doctor and he is very happy with the progress I'm making. I have to stay on soft foods for 1 more week and then eat whatever I can manage. He also gave me exercises to do. Basically I need to retrain my face muscles, so lots of mouth stretching.

One side of my face has bounced back quicker than the other but it shouldn't take to long to even out. I have another check up in 3 weeks after the elastics go on.

Day 18 - Coming along in leaps & bounds

 

What a difference a couple of days can make. I feel so much better now.

I still tire very easily but I'm more active now. I spent several days just lying around, but now I can do a bit of housework and go for a walk. My appetite is back. Ive put the weight back on that I lost in the initial few days and I can now sleep slightly on my side rather than virtualy sitting up in bed. It just keeps getting better everyday.

The pinkish color has now returned to my gums. I have to say I was getting worried looking in the mirror each morning to see that they were still dead white, but over the recent days I have noticed the feeling coming back to the roof of my mouth although my top gum is still completely numb. The stitches are still there, all along the top gum and all along the bottom. It's quite odd to look at something that you would think was quite painful but in fact doesn't hurt at all. The part that hurts is where the jaws meet, just in front of my ears, but this is getting better each day too. I can only open my mouth enough to fit in a spoon. The swelling around the jaws is stopping it from opening any wider.

I have a lot more feeling in my face now so I'm able to give a little smile or a big smile instead of just trying for anything.

My lips and chin are a bit tingly and numb just the same as they feel after a needle from the dentist. I just need to make sure I check the mirror after Ive eaten or had something to drink.

It's funny to wake up each morning with the thought, "I wonder what I will look like today"

Day 15 - Finally on the mend

I'm still having problems sleeping. I may have a bit of a cold and after everything I went through last week, I'm very nervous. There is no sign of a blood nose. Last week I had brown gunk coming out of my nose continuously. I do feel a bit of a runny nose that honestly, keeps freaking me out, but I'm doing my best not be concerned about it.

I also have a foul taste in the back of my throat. Not sure why. I did swallow what I suspect was a blood clot this morning and the horrible taste went away for a while. Hopefully the clots are now just going straight down my throat instead of coming out of my nose. Sounds disgusting doesn't it but unfortunately true.

There is still quite a bit of swelling but I can see that my face is now shorter than it used to be and the tip of my nose is now turned up. My nose actually looks a bit smaller to me but most likely due to all the swelling around it.

The color hasn't returned to my upper gum yet although I am starting to feel the nerves in my teeth. It still has a lot of white areas. I'm assuming that is due to blood supply.

I don't see the doctor for another week and I have so many questions.

Day 14 / Week 2 - Now I can move my face

2 weeks post-op today. Thank God the worst is over. It was amazing to wake up this morning and feel such a contrast to the past few days. No more bleeding, pain under control and a good appetite.

I finally feel like I have turned a corner. I looked in the mirror this morning and it's as though a lot of the bruising disappeared overnight. I feel like the healing process has accelerated all of a sudden. I'm really happy with the way it's all taking shape.

I still have some very firm swelling across my sinus area and along my jaw bone. A layer of skin is starting to peel from my nose and there are also some numb areas around my nose and my chin. Embarrassingly I have been sitting with food on my chin after lunch and not been aware of it until someone told me.

My lips are still sore and very heat sensitive. Food and drink can only be luke warm otherwise it feels like my lips are being scolded.

I also have more movement in my face now. For a while only one side of my face would move when I smiled. It now feels more even. My jaws are still very stiff and I can constantly feel the muscles underneath trying to pull the lower jaw back.

It's great to be in good spirits and hopefully have the worst behind me.

Day 13 - Going home

Felt so much better today. It's all going well. No more bleeds so the doctors decided to test the situation before sending me home. I had to try anything that might trigger a nose bleed. I walked around the ward a few times to raise my heart rate, had a hot shower for 15 minutes, drank a warm cup of tea had a hot lunch. Still no bleeds. Last on the list...bowel motion. My biggest challenge. The last 2 times I had been to the toilet it triggered a bleed but not this time. Good to go home.

I was a bit nervous going home. I had felt so protected in hospital. My thinking was if it happened, it happened (more nose bleeds), no big deal it all has to come out eventually but now going home it was totally different. I was just hoping the cause was as the doctors described and not something that had been overlooked.

I had a lot more energy instead of just laying there feeling half dead. Still taking it very easy.The doctor put me back on the purée diet for the moment but at least I had the choice of hot or cold foods again.

I did learn one thing today that concerned me. You can actually overdose on Panadol. I had always thought of it as a very mild pain control but as explained to me, if you take more than the recommended dose it can do serious damage and can shut down your liver, then kidneys and possibly death. It's a very painful scenario so you're best off taking a stronger medication than thinking you can just pop a couple extra Panadol each day.

Day 12 - Bleeding tears.

Well, well, well, what a turn. Massive nose bleed last night with several clots. It was running out of my eye and a little difficult to contain. Probably the worst one I've had, yet I felt reasonably calm having been through it before. I ended up back in emergency again. I'm familiar with a few staff members now which made it easier. It was a relatively quick admission procedure to get me back to the ward.

Several people in emergency thought id been in a car accident and others thought I had been bashed. It was a little embarrassing to admit that it was elective surgery. I wasn't nervous but I felt I needed to be at the hospital just in case.

The doctors agreed with me and decided to keep me in under observation. They still believe that it is old blood from my sinuses just being released particularly now there are a lot more clots and I find it smelly and such a bad taste. The bleeding through the eye duct poses no threat to my sight, it's just an overflow.

So here I am again, in good spirits, feeling quite well and being taken care of with no guilt. I felt a bit of a burden at home continuously asking for a drink or something to eat, tissues, glasses etc. I think I wore everyone out being confined to bed so it's all worked out for the best.

Can't believe it's only been 12 days.

Day 11 - Staying cool

I survived the night without a major nosebleed. There were several minor bleeds throughout the day but nothing to be concerned about. The doctor had told me to lean forward during a nosebleed to stop a lot of it going down my throat. This helped immensely as I had previously thought I should have my head back.

I was forced to take it easy and have my mum and husband do everything for me. Every time I walked over to go the toilet or went to pick something up my nose would bleed. There were a lot more clots coming out which I assumed was a good thing.

My sinuses started to feel so clear with a slight burning sensation. It felt like I just took a big sniff of pepper. I was still feeling weak and tired but the worst was behind me now and I could focus on getting better.

I noticed my lower jaw muscles getting quite stiff and hurting. It's almost like they were constantly trying to pull my jaw back to its old position. It felt very tight after the muscles had rested while I was sleeping. At this stage the rest of my face wasn't too bad.

I am missing cuddles from my husband but he is too scared of hurting me if he gets too close. It would be nice just to be held for a little while.

The cold/soft diet has bumped up the texture. See below and it probably doesn't sound very different but believe me, a slightly larger lump in your food makes a huge difference when your trying to swallow it. I'm breaking the bread and cake into the smallest pieces possible and washing them down with a little bit of water. It is difficult to keep food interesting, particularly at the moment while I'm on a cold diet. Still having at least 6 meals/snacks a day although I have dropped another 2kg

Breakfast was a raw egg, milk, nutmeg, banana & honey shake
Morning tea - diced peaches & yoghurt
Lunch - egg sandwich
Afternoon tea - Piece of cake and ice tea
Dinner - mashed salmon, mashed avocado & mashed tomato
After dinner - rice pudding
Midnight snack - mashed banana

Day 10 - Exhusted

Another hard night with 2 bleeds to contend with. The nurses told me not to eat or drink anything until the doctor arrived which made me think I was having surgery. I am under a team of specialists so they consult each other but I have 4 different doctors, being in the public system. Different doctor today but he agreed with what had been done so far although he believes I will just go home.

All my pain medication has been cut except for Paracetamol & Ibuprofen. The doctor said I shouldn't need it any more. That's probably true. Now I feel like I've been hit in the face with a football rather than a sledge hammer. I was getting used to tripping on OxyContin and sleeping all day on Endone.

I found out that my red cell count is down a little. This is causing me to be a little unsteady on my feet and exhausted after the smallest task like showering and getting dressed, so I am still confined to bed and also cold food & drink and cool showers but I can go home.

Day 9 - Damn blood clots!

Today was a better day. I spent all day in bed sleeping on and off but no more bleeds since 4am. I had coughed up a couple of blood clots but I felt like I had a stringy blood clot stuck in the back of my throat. I couldn't shift it. It was so annoying. It stopped me from eating. Previously I had broken up little bits of bread and swallowed them to scrape the blood off the inside of my throat as it went down but this clot wouldn't let anything pass.

The doctor decided to use a nebuliser with saline in it every 4 hours to try and dislodge the clot. Success!! No more clots and no more bleeding.

With everything that has gone on I have neglected to tell you how happy I am with my new jaw. The swelling has gone down substantially and it looks fantastic. Even my daughter said I look amazing. Not that I intended, but it looks like I've had a bit of a facelift. I have no wrinkles and look 10 years younger. I realise there is still a lot of swelling to subside but I love it so far. As I said to the doctor, "I'm so happy with the outcome so far and really glad that I went through with the surgery but if it needed to be re-done for any reason, I don't think I could go through it all again."

I still can't see much of my teeth but I am able to swallow a lot more. The bread is great to keep the throat clear of gunk. I've tried soft stewed fruit but I struggle to swallow it so I've taken it off the menu. I'm loving the custards and yogurts. They are nice and cool going down my sore throat and easily eaten from a desert spoon.

Day 8 - Never ending nose bleeds

This morning I was moved back to the Surgical Specialist Ward that I had just left 2 days ago.

The doctor came to visit and said it's not uncommon for this to happen in the first few days, although a little unusual this far along. He decided it best to keep me under observation for another night and see if the bleeding would get better or worse. We had 2 scenarios. Apparently when they cut along your top jaw, your sinuses fill up with blood and have to eventually drain. At this stage, the doctor is not sure if that's what is happening. A more serious reason could be a bleeding nose artery that needs to surgically closed off.They can do a scan to see where the blood is coming from but it has such high levels of radiation and is very expensive the doctors will only do it in extreme emergency. So we just had to wait and see which way we were going.

I was told to stay in bed with my head elevated, only to get out to go to the toilet. To eat only cold /soft food & cold drinks and keep ice behind my neck as warmth tends to make blood run more. We were hoping that this would stop the bleeding from happening again. I was thinking perhaps I had done too much and not rested enough.

Well it happened again, and again. Another 4 times to be exact, although I was prepared now and it wasn't so scary anymore; each time was shorter and shorter. Down to around 15 minutes now. The last 2 times I was bleeding a little out the corner of my eye as well which seem to surprise the doctor.

Day 7 / Week 1 - Panic stations with blood everywhere!

Woohoo! It's been 1 week and the plaster is off. It's so much better. My face was getting itchy underneath the plaster. The doctor said everything was going well. He was a little shocked at the amount of bruising I have. Some people bruise, some don't. Unfortunately I bruise badly. Now I have the plaster off, I just look like I have been beaten up.

It was fascinating watching in the mirror while the plaster was pulled off. It was like an unveiling. I couldn't stop smiling, well, trying to anyway. I love my jaw line. I just kept touching it. The doctor says now I have a power jaw. I look like a business woman.Even-though there is still a lot of swelling and bruising I can see it is just as I wanted.

They didn't need to remove my wisdom teeth but said when they cut along the top gum, the nose can become wider. They have pinned mine so it will stay where it is. At the moment it looks smaller and a little turned up on the end but again we can't really tell until the swelling goes down.

Today did take its toll. The journey to the hospital and back really shook me up. Every bump and turn went right through my head. By the time I got home I was exhausted and emotional from the pain. I couldn't even think straight but nothing a big sleep couldn't fix.

I still only have control over a few facial muscles. I can manage half a smile but the right side still doesn't move. The colour is good in my lower jaw but my top jaw is still white. It's a little bit of a concern to me but I'm so happy right now, I'm not worrying.

I asked the doctor for stronger pain killers. I wasn't coping with the pain. It hurts all the time but now I can concentrate on other things as well. I still look at myself in the mirror with disbelief at what I've done, but at the same time, excited with the results.

And just when you thought it was going to get boring....

As I said, today took its toll. I was having trouble concentrating to put a sentence together so I decided to have an early night.

I got up to go to the toilet around 9pm and my nose just started dripping blood onto the floor. It wasn't a real surprise but I thought I had been lucky enough to escape the blood noses. It stopped after about half an hour so I took my painkillers and went back to bed.

Half an hour after that, I awoke swallowing something warm running down the back of my throat. Within seconds the flow was getting faster and faster. I sat up and the next thing blood was streaming into my lap from my nose and running down inside my throat like a warm thick shake. I wasn't expecting this!

We drove to the hospital in a bit of a panic not knowing what was happening. I had 2 hands of tissues with blood running down my wrists just concentrating on breathing while my husband ran red lights and doubled the speed limit to get back to emergency.

The staff in emergency managed to stop the bleeding, which had gone on for about 45 minutes. They weren't really familiar with the operation I had so decided to and keep me in ICU for the night and transfer me tomorrow.

Day 6 - What to eat?

My lips are so sore I can't stand anything touching them. My Orthodontist has always said that I have a small mouth. I imagine they stretched it so far during the surgery it's a little worse for wear. I am supposed to be eating from a spoon as exercise but against "doctors orders" I have decided to give my lips a break. Im seeing him tomorrow anyway and I'm talking enough for exercise.

What a wonderful invention the Nutribullet is. I can put anything in it to make a shake and sip it from the rim. The baby food tubes are also good. You can just squeeze them into the smallest of gaps.

Breakfast was a Weetbix with honey and enough milk to make a shake consistency.
Morning tea - raw egg, milk, nutmeg, banana &honey shake
Lunch - peaches, cream, milk & nutmeg shake
Afternoon tea - cold coffee shake
Dinner - homemade vegetable soup, puréed
After dinner - puréed broccoli with hollandaise sauce.
Midnight snack - yoghurt

I'm basically eating every 3 hours with the pain medication otherwise I get a pain in the stomach. I'm yet to sleep more than 2 hours at a time. The pain usually wakes me on the dot if not before.

The doctors told me to expect to lose about 5 kilo over the next few weeks. I've already lost 2 kilo this week, so I'm eating when I'm not hungry now. I just have to stick to a schedule. I don't want to lose too much weight. I'm trying to eat nutritiously with a little bit of fat and sugars to keep up my energy.

I'm not feeling too bad. I've been for my daily walk. Time to rest again.

Day 5 - Bruising at its best

Crashed today. I thought I was doing really well but today I have no energy and my mouth is so sore from talking and particularly when eating with a spoon. The doctor told me talking was a good exercise for my jaw but right now I don't want to say a single word. My lips are all split even though I keep using Vaseline to protect them.

On to some exciting news. My surgeons' office called and scheduled an appointment for 2 days time. I'm still wearing my sticking plaster so I'm hoping this will come off and I can see my new face. My family said the surgery took longer than expected so I'm looking forward to finding out a few more details too.

I have the ability to move my tongue around now and can feel stitches in the inside of my cheeks. Of course I can't open my mouth to see what's going on so I'm curious as to why.I wonder if it's from my wisdom teeth. There is a little bit of numbness and tingling in the lips but it's difficult to tell what's really happening until this plaster comes off.

The bruising has peaked and is starting to subside a little from my chest although now I can see yellow bruising under my eyes and a little bit more bruising creeping out from under the plaster. Can't wait till Friday.

Day 4 - Feeling like a freak

I was allowed to go home today. Pain under control? Check. Drinking plenty of fluids? Check. Eating sufficient amount of food? Check. Emptying bowels? Oh dear. That wasn't going to happen anytime soon. The pain medication binds you up and my anxiety issues weren't helping. We had to come up with a plan of attack. Amongst other things I wasn't allowed to rest very much, just walk, walk, walk to get everything moving.

What I did notice walking around for those few hours was the reaction of others. At this point I had severe bruising down my neck and chest, sticking plaster across my chin and excessive swelling busting out from behind the plaster. It wasn't a pretty sight. I couldn't smile or barely say anything so probably, no definitely, a bit confronting for some. Most people looked down when walking past. Some stared from a distance and a minor few enquired how I was. It was an insight to me.

I felt so lucky that I was getting better. What if I was unfortunate and had a permanent disfigurement like others bear every day? To be treated like a freak was just horrible. I actually used this time to do a little experiment and to keep my self occupied. I just wanted to see different reactions. In 4 hours of walking around the hospital, out of all of the people passing, I had 4 conversations or communications if you like, in the biggest hospital on The Gold Coast. Amazing!

One was a patient that was also walking laps, another was a patient in a wheelchair that was analysing my laps, yelling out "your on a roll now love! You've lost your walking frame!" He made me laugh, which at that point was unfortunately quite painful. A cleaner and tea lady stopped several times to chat but I could see how uncomfortable everyone else was. It didn't hurt me, I just found human behaviour fascinating.

Anyway a few hours later, success. I could go home. I felt fantastic, well compared to the previous days. I stopped to pick up some groceries, with no heavy lifting as instructed by the hospital.

After a long rest, I thought I would really study my face again in the mirror. I opened my lips a little and could see my teeth resting together. I really wanted to smile but it hurt too much. I just kept opening and closing my jaw ever so slightly so I could see my teeth lining up. That's when I thought, " This is going to be great! I love it! I will look amazing!