15 week (?) post op

It's so nice to get to a point where I've lost count of how many weeks it's been!  I think last week I did hit 100 days post op.

 I had an ortho appointment today.  It was pretty non-eventful.  He fixed some wires that were tearing my cheeks up, and tightened some things.  He estimated it will be 4 months before I'm out of braces.  Yahoo!  I just have to be really good about wearing my rubber bands.

 As I was leaving for my appointment today, I told Lydia I was going to the doctor so he could fix my braces.  She then asked, "Is he going to take your braces off?" to which I responded "Not yet, but soon!".  I smiled as I walked to the car thinking she's just as excited as I am to have my braces off.  

In other news, I've eaten my first salad, and am starting to get a little more feeling back in my chin.  Dr. W. told me today, that the lower lip is the last place to get feeling back after surgery.  That was encouraging as most of my lower lip is still numb!

Worth noting - the good and the bad

I've been losing a lot of hair lately.(I notice when I comb after a shower). I researched it and sure enough, losing hair three months after major surgery (with general anesthesia) is normal! Though the general population might not want to know about that, those who undergo this surgery might want to have the heads up. Thankfully it's only temporary. My psoriasis isn't helping and I'm going to try to (start to) tackle that tonight.

On a happy note, I went for a jog tonight. I'm totally out of shape, but it felt so good!

12 weeks post op

Wow! I can't believe it's been 12 weeks!

Yesterday I saw my orthodontist, Dr. W. They removed a ton of stuff from my mouth. I was able to floss for the first time in months! He said I look like a normal orthodontia patient again. I no longer have the huge surgical hooks all over. Yay!

I also no longer have to wear the rubber bands in the front of my mouth. I still have to wear two (tighter!) rubber bands but they are a little off to the side.

He estimated I'll be in braces another six months

He also said I can start biting into things like sandwiches (nothing really hard or crunchy). AND I can jog if I want to. All of these things were very exciting to hear!

As far as numbness, I still have a fair amount. Hoping as time goes on it continues to wear off more and more.

And here's my pic:

11 weeks post op

There hasn't been much new at all, which is why I waited until I had another appointment to update.  I saw my surgeon yesterday, and he finally took my splint out, yay!  It was connected to my teeth by all sorts of screws and wires.  A lot of them were digging into my gums, so not only is it much less annoying to have it in, but also much less painful!  As far as splints go though, I'm not totally out of the woods.  He wanted me to keep the splint he took out in (without the extra wires), until my next ortho visit in a week, where they could fit me for a new splint.  Normally it should pop back in and stay pretty well. Mine didn't stick at all, so I went straight from my surgeon's office to my orthodontist's office.  There they fit me for a new splint that is supposed to be more comfortable.  I didn't get there until the end of the day so they just did the impression, and then I can pick up and try the splint today.

My next visit with Dr. K, my surgeon, is in November!  Can't believe I won't see him again for 3 months!  But I guess Dr. W, my orthodontist, kinda takes over things for now.

I've been getting more feeling back in chin.  It's always such a weird sensation.

I was soo tired yesterday and went to bed at 9 which is why I'm updating this morning.  I will not be posting a pic for that reason!

9 weeks post op

I'm continuing to eat foods.  I've had about 3 hamburgers in the past week(thank you Wendy's and Smashburger)!  I can't bite into them yet so I have to cut them into small bite-size pieces, but that's ok!  I still do some liquid meals as it's just easier, but it's nice to eat (chew) when I can.  Marc and I went camping with the kids this past weekend.  It was a little annoying to be away from modern conveniences (like my waterpik!), but next camping trip, I may just bring it with. 

I saw my orthodontist yesterday.  He shifted my elastics around a little bit.  He still can't do much since I have the splint in.  I'm really hoping that it can come out in two weeks, but I guess it's really holding my palate in place right now (it was expanded during surgery) and there's a high rebound chance, and they just want to allow it to heal properly and nicely.  He said I will still have a fair amount of orthodontic adjustments once the splint comes out.  I was afraid to ask what that meant, and hoping "fair amount" is still within the 6-9 months they expected.  We'll see. 

I haven't done any real exercising since surgery, but I decided I need to start somewhere so I'm doing a couple sets of push-ups a day now.  Baby steps.  :) 

During our camping trip I noticed a little more feeling coming back in my chin.  It felt tickly.  Sometimes it feels like small needles, other times tingly, but this time it was tickly. 

Besides the numbness and the splint, and just being out of shape, I feel pretty normal.  I've gotten pretty use to the elastics in my mouth, though at times I will forget they are there and try to stick a piece of food in and it will bounce back out.  But that's an easy fix ( I just take them out to eat and put new ones back in). 

Here's my pic for this week.  I actually took it yesterday.  My hair looks good (unlike right now!) though my chin kind of blends into my neck/chest due to the lighting. 

8 weeks post op

Not much new to report.....

I have been using the non-drowsy muscle relaxer (skelaxin) and it has been working pretty well.  It will be more expensive(but only by comparison to the previous medication I was taking).  We were paying pennies for the previous medication, and now we'll have to shell out about $10 a month until I get a mouth guard.  I wake up less drowsy, but find I am a little nauseous at times throughout the day (and no I'm not pregnant!) ;)  I am enjoying not feeling like a zombie in the morning! 

I have been chewing more, but it is very weird as I'm used to only chewing with my back teeth.  I've heard that takes a while to get used to.   I've been enjoying lots of pancakes and had some salmon last week as well. 

I have no pic for today.  It is a bad hair day by choice.  I'm actually getting my hair cut tonight, so I will try to post a pic next week. 

7 Week Post Op

Today was a busy day for the whole family.  We left here at about 7:30 am.  Both Lydia and I had our annual physicals in Hinsdale at 8:30.  (For the last year, all of our medical appointments have been in Hinsdale due to having to be on an HMO in Hinsdale for surgery to be covered).  Since Lydia completely dislkes going to the doctor, and needed shots, I was a little nervous.  I also knew we had a new doctor.  Most of the doctors at the practice we have to go to, are residents, as was the Dr. we had been seeing for the last year.  He has moved on, and we had a new resident.  I'm happy to report he was great and Lydia did great too (besides the crying when she knew it was "shot" time)  My physicals are usually pretty uneventful, but it turns out I have two moles that need to get removed, so I'll be back in Hinsdale in a couple weeks.  Apparently it's a really simple process.  It has been a pain and a nuisance make the trek down to Hinsdale for every appt, but I'm thankful to God, that none of us have been really sick!

We enjoyed lunch with some of Marc's old co-workers, and then I had an afternoon appt with Dr. K(my surgeon).  I expected him to attempt removing my splint, but I think when he saw how far I could open (not far enough), he knew it would not be possible.  So the splint stays for now.  When they said my next appointment would be in 8 weeks, I asked if we could make it earlier.  It pays to be a little assertive, because I now go back in 4 weeks! I just couldn't imagine waiting another 2 months before getting the splint out.   I'd like to get the splint out so I can A)talk easier B)not get food stuck under it, and C)move on with the ortho treatment (my orthodontist can only do so much until the splint comes out).  Dr. K did give the okay to chew soft things today (pasta, ground beef, etc.), so hopefully the chewing works my jaw muscles and allows me to open further.  Dr. K also added another elastic but said from here on out the orthodontist can be in charge of elastic placing. 
There were no x-rays today which kind of surprised me.  My appt with Dr. K. turned out to be quite uneventful, but the news that I could chew softer stuff was nice.  Dr. K. also gave me a script for a non-drowsy muscle relaxer.  I'm going to try that tomorrow night and see if it works.