Exactly one month from today is my lower jaw surgery to correct my overbite. My diet will be significantly different for the first month and I will need to make adjustments in my day-to-day life for a short period of time. So, how am I preparing for something that I am not sure what exactly to expect? I have broken that question into the following categories: Food, Mentally, Financially. Food I have bought enough Ensures, V8 Juices, and soups to last me 2 weeks. Why not more? Because I am hopeful that I will be able to eat some soft (no chew) foods after week one. I would rather buy the liquid food as I need it instead of buying four weeks worth and not needing it. Soft foods I plan to eat for 2-4 weeks: Potatoes, pasta, rice, cheese cake, pudding, boiled vegetables, fish, fried chicken (the meat not the skin), and hamburger dishes. I said I bought Ensures, but I really bought the off brand at Wal-Mart. For the same price as the name brand, I get six drinks instead of four. I also sampled the three flavors (chocolate, strawberry, vanilla) to make sure I like them before buying too many of one and here is my personal ranking: 1-Chocolate. 2-Strawberry. 3-Vanilla. I also plan to buy a gallon jug of chocolate milk and vitamin d milk as well. A tip I got from someone who went through upper jaw surgery said that she bought "baby pasta" (Ditalini Pasta) that was small enough to be sucked through a straw. So, I will definitely be giving that a try. Mentally I went through denial by telling myself that such a procedure is unnecessary and not worth the pain and inconvenience. I honestly became angry about the fact that I needed to have such a surgery when everyone else around me seemed to have "perfect jaws." It seemed like, at the time, that this is was unfair and it would of course happen to me. Thankfully, this only lasted a few days and was probably due to the fact that I was in shock about the news. I dealt with a lot of fear for quite awhile. Most of this fear is caused by the unknown. Sure, I can read other people's blogs and watch videos, but what is going to be my experience? So, what am I doing to mentally prepare? I keep reminding myself over and over of changes I will have to make during recovery. When I lay down for bed (I hate sleeping on my back), I remind myself that for two weeks I will have to sleep on my back propped up. When I am eating my favorited foods (fried chicken, bacon, sandwiches) that I will have to go a period of time without not only these foods, but foods I cannot chew and will have to drink. As I talk and laugh I remind myself that there will be a period of time I won't be able to do those things easily. BUT! I also remind myself that it is only temporary and will be over before I know it. Financially I'm in graduate school with loans from undergrad. This sort of surgery is the last thing that I can afford right now. I am banking on my insurance to pull through for me and not knowing what my hospital bill will be yet or how much will officially be covered is causing me a lot of stress. Once surgery is over, I will get either a bill or refund check from my surgeon. I will get who knows how many bills from the hospital. These bills are stressing me out and they aren't even here yet! So, what am I doing about money woes? I have saved enough over the past year and a half to cover what I think will cover all the bills after insurance. This is something I don't have control over and I am just having faith that it will come together and work out in the end.
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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 |