Well it's day 5 today. My face stopped swelling up and I think it went down a little bit in my bottom lip. I noticed a little yellowish bruising on my left side. Got about 6 hours of sleep - so hard to sleep sitting up though - I am used to sleeping on my stomach/face so this is a huge change for me. My mom and dad are here today so just hanging out with them. Had rich protein shake for breakfast, took my vitamins and then had chicken broth with olive oil for lunch. Eating is definetly much easier -- takes like 10 minutes now. The only meds I'm taking is the anti-biotic and the codeine. No pain really, just drooling a lot and feeling a little bored. I was planning on taking a walk in the park but it's very windy today so I will probably pass on it..
Just wanted to ask, has anyone had trouble with bowel movements? I have not had a bowel movement since Monday (before surgery..) I am guessing it's the meds but just wondering if anyone else had this problem.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Friday, May 7, 2010
Day 4
Today is a good day =) I finally got some sleep - I slept for probably 4-5 hours straight and then another 1-2 hours with waking up in between. When I got up this morning my swelling felt worse but swallowing seemed to be better because I managed to get down a large cup of protein shake in like 20 minutes and then still took anti-biotic and liquid codeine AND some vitamins with 1/2 cup water.
I had to go in for a post-op visit today at 1pm. I met with the resident doctors there. They just looked in my mouth to make sure my bite was ok. They said my mouth looks clean and that bite looks good so they didnt do anything. They answered my questions and told me to stop icing because I most likely wont get any more swollen (thank god!) and to start using a heat pad on my face instead. They said it is OK to talk and actually encouraged it in order to exercise the muscles so I am trying to do that but sometimes it gets tiring. They told me I looked good for day 4 and said most people come in their pajamas. They asked me to come back on Monday for x-rays, etc.
The ride back home was very long - traffic - took 2 hours and I got tired. I drank a bottle of protein water while in traffic so that helped a little bit. I am able to use a spoon and drink from a cup but find that using the big syringe is the easiest and least messy so I use a syringe with almost everything I take in. When I got home, I had some chicken broth with 3 tablespoons of grapeseed oil for extra calories. I feel really good right now, aside from some faint achiness in my face and the swelling. My face doesnt feel as hot/tight as yesterday and it is much easier to breathe - my left nostril is all clear but the right one is still a bit stuffy. I don't know if I mentioned this before but my swelling is uneven - the right side is more swollen esp on the lower jaw/neck area.
Anyway, I am glad that things are not getting worse anymore and I feel like the worst is behind me. My focus now is on getting as much calories as possible. I also think that getting out of the house helps so I will continue to do that - probably go the the park tomorrow or something light like that.
I had to go in for a post-op visit today at 1pm. I met with the resident doctors there. They just looked in my mouth to make sure my bite was ok. They said my mouth looks clean and that bite looks good so they didnt do anything. They answered my questions and told me to stop icing because I most likely wont get any more swollen (thank god!) and to start using a heat pad on my face instead. They said it is OK to talk and actually encouraged it in order to exercise the muscles so I am trying to do that but sometimes it gets tiring. They told me I looked good for day 4 and said most people come in their pajamas. They asked me to come back on Monday for x-rays, etc.
The ride back home was very long - traffic - took 2 hours and I got tired. I drank a bottle of protein water while in traffic so that helped a little bit. I am able to use a spoon and drink from a cup but find that using the big syringe is the easiest and least messy so I use a syringe with almost everything I take in. When I got home, I had some chicken broth with 3 tablespoons of grapeseed oil for extra calories. I feel really good right now, aside from some faint achiness in my face and the swelling. My face doesnt feel as hot/tight as yesterday and it is much easier to breathe - my left nostril is all clear but the right one is still a bit stuffy. I don't know if I mentioned this before but my swelling is uneven - the right side is more swollen esp on the lower jaw/neck area.
Anyway, I am glad that things are not getting worse anymore and I feel like the worst is behind me. My focus now is on getting as much calories as possible. I also think that getting out of the house helps so I will continue to do that - probably go the the park tomorrow or something light like that.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
I made it!
I'm sorry for not posting sooner. But yeah, I made it to the other side!
I had surgery on Tuesday at 8am. I got to the hospital at 6am and got in my hospital attire, got weighed, etc and got iv in. The nurse that put my iv in asked me what type of surgery I'm having and when I told her, she said her daughter had her jaw operated on by my OS and his team some time ago. She had a tumor removed or something like that. She said my OS is top notch and I have nothing to worry about, which made me feel even more confidant in doing this. I wasnt really nervous and was trying to visualize a good experience during surgery (little bleeding, calmness) like my naturopath suggested.
Before I knew it another nurse was taking me to the operating room. In front of the OR, I was greeted by all these different doctors, residents, nurses, etc - at least 10. It felt reassuring that so many people would be participating and looking after me. They had me lay down on the table and covered me with a warm blanket. Then the anesthesiologist said he will soon start the anesthesia and i said "So i will soon be asleep?" and he said "yeah" and the next thing i know it was over.
Waking up was no problem - no pain in my jaw - just in my arm i guess from the position it was laying in - the nurses gave me a warm compress for it. I also received a shot in my behind for the swelling - i Think they called it the 'depo' shot but I could be getting it wrong - it was a bit uncomfortable. Anyway, surgery lasted 4 hours and everything went well. I was in the recovery room till 8pm because they didnt have a room available. I was having visitors and feeling pretty good - using my notepad the entire time. I didnt want to look at myself though because i didnt want to start getting negative thoughts in case i looked bad.
After they took me to a patient room, i started getting more uncomfortable. The catheter they put in my wrist during surgery was hurting. I told the nurse and after speaking with one of the doctors, they took it out which was a relief. At midnight they took out my foley catheter which wasnt nearly as bad as I thought it would be - i was really afraid of getting it out. Had a lot of trouble with congestion and breathing that first night and didnt sleep at all, but I had the most wonderful nurse that night and she tried to make me as comfortable as one can be after this type of surgery.
Felt a little better in the morning. They took me up to the oral surgery unit for x-rays and they also took out my cheek drains and all the head dressings. Cleaned me out a little so i felt a bit better/could breathe a little better at least for awhile. After that the nurse gave me some chicken broth to eat - I ate all of it with a plastic spoon. I made a terrible mess but the important thing is I ate it and it made me feel good/gave me energy.
Shortly after that they told me I can go home and i left the hospital at about 12pm. When I got home, things progressively got worse i think as i was coming off the drugs, liquids they had going into my IV. I had really bad congestion, blood started coming out from my right nostril which really scared me but it soon stopped. Swelling got worse. At night I didnt sleep -- maybe 1 hour - mostly because of the upright position and congestion it was very hard to breathe. I did take the decongestant they prescribed and also used the nasal spray but it was still hard to breathe anyway.
This morning, the swelling got even worse but congestion did improve a little as i cleaned out my nostrils with wet q-tips. I also took a shower/bath which made me feel better.
Right now, I am extremely swollen, even on my neck - and it is very hard to swallow. Took me 1 hour to get down 1 cup of protein shake. My face feels tight and tingles from time to time in certain spots. I get some pain, mostly in my teeth and pressure type pain in my face, but its not too bad. I took some Codeine so hopefully it helps.
I am worrying about weight loss as I was only about 98lbs going into the surgery. Weighing myself a few hours ago, I was down to about 95lbs =(
All I had today was 2 protein shakes (350 cal each) and some juice (about 150cal). I will probably have some chicken broth later. I am hoping I won't lose much more..
As far as numbness goes, I am completely numb on my chin and lower lip. My lips are very swollen and corners of mouth are very irritated/broken skin - i guess they really stretched my mouth out!
I have a splint wired to my top jaw and it feels really annoying and it's probably contributing to why its so hard to swallow. I have 2 rubber bands on now but they arent that tight because i can open my mouth a little and stick the tip of my tongue out a tiny bit. I was actually expecting to have my mouth completely shut after surgery but I could open it pretty much right after I woke up. It feels really disgusting and helpless to have all this mucus, blood, god knows what else in my mouth and not be able to swallow or spit all of it out. So it oozes down my numb chin a lot, which I am not aware of and looks very sexy! Lol... i had to change my shirt a few times.
I am really looking forward to things getting better - the swelling going down and being able to swallow better.
All in all, it has been up and down and like my oral surgeon said, I do feel like "dog meat" alot, but I imagined it to be much worse than what it actually was/is. I was expecting to throw up and be in pain and not be able to open my mouth at all, or not be able to breathe at all. I actually thought I won't be able to walk around and just lay in bed but laying in bed is the last thing I want to do right now. Walking around makes me feel better. Anyway, even though it's no picnic it's not as bad as I thought and I'm really glad I did this and it's finally behind me.
Here are some pics from the last 3 days:
Day 1 - out of surgery in recovery:
I had surgery on Tuesday at 8am. I got to the hospital at 6am and got in my hospital attire, got weighed, etc and got iv in. The nurse that put my iv in asked me what type of surgery I'm having and when I told her, she said her daughter had her jaw operated on by my OS and his team some time ago. She had a tumor removed or something like that. She said my OS is top notch and I have nothing to worry about, which made me feel even more confidant in doing this. I wasnt really nervous and was trying to visualize a good experience during surgery (little bleeding, calmness) like my naturopath suggested.
Before I knew it another nurse was taking me to the operating room. In front of the OR, I was greeted by all these different doctors, residents, nurses, etc - at least 10. It felt reassuring that so many people would be participating and looking after me. They had me lay down on the table and covered me with a warm blanket. Then the anesthesiologist said he will soon start the anesthesia and i said "So i will soon be asleep?" and he said "yeah" and the next thing i know it was over.
Waking up was no problem - no pain in my jaw - just in my arm i guess from the position it was laying in - the nurses gave me a warm compress for it. I also received a shot in my behind for the swelling - i Think they called it the 'depo' shot but I could be getting it wrong - it was a bit uncomfortable. Anyway, surgery lasted 4 hours and everything went well. I was in the recovery room till 8pm because they didnt have a room available. I was having visitors and feeling pretty good - using my notepad the entire time. I didnt want to look at myself though because i didnt want to start getting negative thoughts in case i looked bad.
After they took me to a patient room, i started getting more uncomfortable. The catheter they put in my wrist during surgery was hurting. I told the nurse and after speaking with one of the doctors, they took it out which was a relief. At midnight they took out my foley catheter which wasnt nearly as bad as I thought it would be - i was really afraid of getting it out. Had a lot of trouble with congestion and breathing that first night and didnt sleep at all, but I had the most wonderful nurse that night and she tried to make me as comfortable as one can be after this type of surgery.
Felt a little better in the morning. They took me up to the oral surgery unit for x-rays and they also took out my cheek drains and all the head dressings. Cleaned me out a little so i felt a bit better/could breathe a little better at least for awhile. After that the nurse gave me some chicken broth to eat - I ate all of it with a plastic spoon. I made a terrible mess but the important thing is I ate it and it made me feel good/gave me energy.
Shortly after that they told me I can go home and i left the hospital at about 12pm. When I got home, things progressively got worse i think as i was coming off the drugs, liquids they had going into my IV. I had really bad congestion, blood started coming out from my right nostril which really scared me but it soon stopped. Swelling got worse. At night I didnt sleep -- maybe 1 hour - mostly because of the upright position and congestion it was very hard to breathe. I did take the decongestant they prescribed and also used the nasal spray but it was still hard to breathe anyway.
This morning, the swelling got even worse but congestion did improve a little as i cleaned out my nostrils with wet q-tips. I also took a shower/bath which made me feel better.
Right now, I am extremely swollen, even on my neck - and it is very hard to swallow. Took me 1 hour to get down 1 cup of protein shake. My face feels tight and tingles from time to time in certain spots. I get some pain, mostly in my teeth and pressure type pain in my face, but its not too bad. I took some Codeine so hopefully it helps.
I am worrying about weight loss as I was only about 98lbs going into the surgery. Weighing myself a few hours ago, I was down to about 95lbs =(
All I had today was 2 protein shakes (350 cal each) and some juice (about 150cal). I will probably have some chicken broth later. I am hoping I won't lose much more..
As far as numbness goes, I am completely numb on my chin and lower lip. My lips are very swollen and corners of mouth are very irritated/broken skin - i guess they really stretched my mouth out!
I have a splint wired to my top jaw and it feels really annoying and it's probably contributing to why its so hard to swallow. I have 2 rubber bands on now but they arent that tight because i can open my mouth a little and stick the tip of my tongue out a tiny bit. I was actually expecting to have my mouth completely shut after surgery but I could open it pretty much right after I woke up. It feels really disgusting and helpless to have all this mucus, blood, god knows what else in my mouth and not be able to swallow or spit all of it out. So it oozes down my numb chin a lot, which I am not aware of and looks very sexy! Lol... i had to change my shirt a few times.
I am really looking forward to things getting better - the swelling going down and being able to swallow better.
All in all, it has been up and down and like my oral surgeon said, I do feel like "dog meat" alot, but I imagined it to be much worse than what it actually was/is. I was expecting to throw up and be in pain and not be able to open my mouth at all, or not be able to breathe at all. I actually thought I won't be able to walk around and just lay in bed but laying in bed is the last thing I want to do right now. Walking around makes me feel better. Anyway, even though it's no picnic it's not as bad as I thought and I'm really glad I did this and it's finally behind me.
Here are some pics from the last 3 days:
Day 1 - out of surgery in recovery:
Monday, May 3, 2010
Tomorrow is the day!
I can't believe it's already time. I am very anxious/nervous.
Going to the orthodontist today to put surgical hooks on.
Hopefully everything goes as planned and I will be back home Wednesday.
Wish me luck!
Going to the orthodontist today to put surgical hooks on.
Hopefully everything goes as planned and I will be back home Wednesday.
Wish me luck!
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Getting Closer & Closer...
I can't believe how fast time has been flying by. My surgery is approx a week and a half away!
Last week I had to go give blood at a blood donation center in case I will need a transfusion post op. Yesterday I was at the hospital for a checkup, medical history and more blood testing. The doctors also took new pictures and all these different types of molds of my teeth and other weird things involving metal headgear lol. I got my prescriptions already, just need to fill them. They gave me 6 - an anti-biotic (amoxicillan), peridex (mouthwash), afrin allergy & children's sudafed (for congestion), ibuprofen 100mg & acetaminophen/codeine (for pain). I don't know why they didn't prescribe something stronger for pain but my OS did mention a while back that there isn' that much pain involved in this so hopefully I will do fine with what they gave me.
I asked whether the breathing tube and urinary catheter will be out by the time I wake up and they told me that the breathing tube will most likely be out but the catheter will probably stay in -- eek, I was hoping all that stuff would be out so that I don't have to feel them taking it out =/ I am scared of that part...
I still have a dental cleaning next week and getting surgical hooks at my ortho the day before surgery and that's it... ready to go!
I am starting to feel a bit anxious about the whole process but trying to stay positive and think that everything will go smoothly.
My naturopath gave me a some supplements/vitamins (in powder form) to take before and after surgery to help with recovery.
I still need to go shopping to stock up on stuff I will need during recovery.
Last week I had to go give blood at a blood donation center in case I will need a transfusion post op. Yesterday I was at the hospital for a checkup, medical history and more blood testing. The doctors also took new pictures and all these different types of molds of my teeth and other weird things involving metal headgear lol. I got my prescriptions already, just need to fill them. They gave me 6 - an anti-biotic (amoxicillan), peridex (mouthwash), afrin allergy & children's sudafed (for congestion), ibuprofen 100mg & acetaminophen/codeine (for pain). I don't know why they didn't prescribe something stronger for pain but my OS did mention a while back that there isn' that much pain involved in this so hopefully I will do fine with what they gave me.
I asked whether the breathing tube and urinary catheter will be out by the time I wake up and they told me that the breathing tube will most likely be out but the catheter will probably stay in -- eek, I was hoping all that stuff would be out so that I don't have to feel them taking it out =/ I am scared of that part...
I still have a dental cleaning next week and getting surgical hooks at my ortho the day before surgery and that's it... ready to go!
I am starting to feel a bit anxious about the whole process but trying to stay positive and think that everything will go smoothly.
My naturopath gave me a some supplements/vitamins (in powder form) to take before and after surgery to help with recovery.
I still need to go shopping to stock up on stuff I will need during recovery.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Oral Surgeon Visit #2
I just came back from the Oral Surgeon's office to discuss the operation and answer any questions I had. I expressed my concerns about weight - as I'm only 96lbs and 5'2". He said he's operated on people who were skinnier than me and that he expects me to do fine. He said that most people lose 3-5lbs, more only if they want to. He told me I will be on a no-chew diet for 6 weeks and said that if I get a good blender I can blend pretty much anything and get it down.
I also asked the OS about supplements for bruising & swelling post surgery (I read that some people take bromelian, arnica montana, etc) and he said that some of his patients use arnica montana but he doesnt think it is necessary and is not convinced that it makes a difference. So I am thinking that I will probably not take it but I will still do some more research and see about that. I also asked about what medication I'll be on post-op and he said that he'll prescribe an antibiotic (I expressed concern about nausea with this and he said to take with food) and pain meds if I need them. My surgery is supposed to start around 8am and last 3-5 hours. I am required to stay 1 night.
I went so see a Naturopath - she suggested some vitamins/supplements for a better recovery and gave me some tips on diet.
Next week I have to go to the blood clinic to donate blood (just in case they need it post surgery for me). And I'll also need to get the surgical hooks on at my orthodontists office sometime between now and the surgery. On April 26th I am seeing the OS again for more molds of my bite and pictures.. and also medical history and complete physical, etc.
I asked him what things I should get for a good recovery and he said:
-good blender (i'll probably buy the bullet)
-humidifier (got it)
-baby toothbrush
-ice packs
-heat pad
I will look over the lists of what other people found useful and probably get that too. He said I should have someone with me for 1-2 weeks.
At this point I am both excited and a bit nervous, but trying not to think too much about the surgery and instead focus on gaining weight and getting all my stuff together.
I also asked the OS about supplements for bruising & swelling post surgery (I read that some people take bromelian, arnica montana, etc) and he said that some of his patients use arnica montana but he doesnt think it is necessary and is not convinced that it makes a difference. So I am thinking that I will probably not take it but I will still do some more research and see about that. I also asked about what medication I'll be on post-op and he said that he'll prescribe an antibiotic (I expressed concern about nausea with this and he said to take with food) and pain meds if I need them. My surgery is supposed to start around 8am and last 3-5 hours. I am required to stay 1 night.
I went so see a Naturopath - she suggested some vitamins/supplements for a better recovery and gave me some tips on diet.
Next week I have to go to the blood clinic to donate blood (just in case they need it post surgery for me). And I'll also need to get the surgical hooks on at my orthodontists office sometime between now and the surgery. On April 26th I am seeing the OS again for more molds of my bite and pictures.. and also medical history and complete physical, etc.
I asked him what things I should get for a good recovery and he said:
-good blender (i'll probably buy the bullet)
-humidifier (got it)
-baby toothbrush
-ice packs
-heat pad
I will look over the lists of what other people found useful and probably get that too. He said I should have someone with me for 1-2 weeks.
At this point I am both excited and a bit nervous, but trying not to think too much about the surgery and instead focus on gaining weight and getting all my stuff together.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Oral Surgeon Visit
I just came back from the OS. They basically just took new x-rays, new molds and pictures. I am supposed to see him in 2 weeks to go over the new x-rays, etc and finalize everything. He gave me a long list of people on which he performed the same or similar surgery to mine over the past 5 years. He said I can contact them and ask questions but I don't know if I will do that - he just provided phone numbers so I feel a bit weird just calling these strange people and bothering them. They gave me a written letter stating all my deformities and what needs to be done to correct it, etc. It states that I have apertognathia (open bite), maxillary cant and retrusion (top jaw assymetry and anterior under-growth) and mandibular prognathism and cant (bottom jaw anterior over-growth and assymetry)! I guess my case is a lot more complicated than I thought...
They are planning on doing a Lefort I - leveling the maxilla and advancing 3.5mm to correct the cant and retrusion and begin correction of the apertognathia. And the BSSO - moving the mandible 3mm back and 4mm up, with leveling, to correct the prognathism, complete correction of the apertognathia, and establish framework for a stable and functional occlusion.
I have started a probiotic and cleaned up my diet to nutritious, whole foods to prepare my body for surgery/recovery. I am disappointed that I still have not been able to put on any weight and I doubt that I will. I am praying that I don't lose too much weight during this whole process...
They are planning on doing a Lefort I - leveling the maxilla and advancing 3.5mm to correct the cant and retrusion and begin correction of the apertognathia. And the BSSO - moving the mandible 3mm back and 4mm up, with leveling, to correct the prognathism, complete correction of the apertognathia, and establish framework for a stable and functional occlusion.
I have started a probiotic and cleaned up my diet to nutritious, whole foods to prepare my body for surgery/recovery. I am disappointed that I still have not been able to put on any weight and I doubt that I will. I am praying that I don't lose too much weight during this whole process...
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