Pain- 0/10 Discomfort- 0/10 Weight- 119/122 Energy Level- 6/10 Today was my third appointment with my surgeon and I was only in there for about 15 minutes. He came in and looked at my bite and pushed hard on the incision sites and confirmed that they were completely closed. He said that the scar tissue is thick right now, but should thin out and not be so stiff in a couple of months. He then asked me questions about my numbness and took a sharp piece of wood and poked me with it to get an idea of the perimeters of the feeling. Basically, I have a circle about the size of a dollar coin the left side of my chin and lip. He said that each week the numb circle should become smaller and smaller. On the left side of my chin and lip, I could not feel the pokes at all. But on the right side I could. The surgeon said that I don't have as much feeling back as I think I do and it should be back in 2-3 months. He mentioned nerve repair surgery as something he sometimes has to do if the nerves did not heal properly or were too damaged, but he was hopeful that I would not need this. Whew! That was good to hear. That was basically it! He said he has spoken to my orthodontist and said that he is free to move my teeth and use whatever bands and wires as needed. I only have two more visits with my surgeon. One in one month and then he wants to see me one last time after my braces are removed. He told me not to start chewing until 6 weeks post-op and to start out with soft foods and work my way up. The bone will be fine. There is no chance of it breaking if I eat something too hard. The concern is the muscle and over working it. My jaw has a muscle that I have not used in 6 weeks by that point, so I have to rebuild the strength and endurance. If you can bench press 300 pounds, but break an arm in an accident, you cannot use that arm for 5-6 weeks. You lose muscle mass during that time and will be unable to go right back to 300 pound weights. You would have to start small and gradually work your way up. The jaw muscle is the exact same. He also said I should only be in braces for 3-6 months, but I think I will wait to see what the orthodontist says on Thursday before getting my hopes up. Yesterday and today were my first two days back into my original schedule of classes and running errands. I quickly became tired and my energy levels are definitely not where it was prior to surgery. Hopefully in a couple of weeks this will be back to normal.
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WelcomeThis blog documents my journey through lower jaw surgery in hope of providing help and insight involving the experience. Archives
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1 Year Post-Op 9 Months Post-Op 6 Months Post-Op Paying for Jaw Surgery 5 Months Post-Op Retainers Braces Off 4 Months Post-Op Fear vs. Reality 3 Months Post-Op 12 Weeks Day 81- Ortho. Apt. 2 11 Weeks 10 Weeks 9 Weeks Day 59: Surgeon Apt. 4 8 Weeks 7 Weeks 6 Weeks 1 Month Post-Op Day 27: Ortho. Apt. 1 Day 25: Surgeon Apt. 3 3 Weeks Day 17 Day 12: Surgeon Apt. 2 Day 10 Day 9 Day 8 Day 7 Day 6: Surgeon Apt. 1 Day 5 Day 4 Day 3 Day 2 Surgery Day (Day 1) Pretesting Appointment Surgical Hooks 1 Week Pre-Op Insurance is Complicated Caution with Insurance Pre-Op Appointment Planning and Preparing Orthodontist Apt. My Fears Pre-Op Date Surgery Date Phases of My Journey Life with Braces The Operation 3 Months Pre-Op |