So long 2015... see you next year!

Since my last post, things have turned around. The swelling in my lip has vanished and I'm pretty much back to normal. I finished my last round of antibiotics on Saturday. I still feel kinda 'blah' which I think accounts to the antibiotics coming out of my system. Since I wasn't feeling my best on my birthday we decided to post-pone part of my birthday celebration until this weekend. I really wanted to go ice skating so we are hopefully going to go sometime this weekend.

This infection, thankfully, didn't set me back at all. I was practically almost finished healing anyway. And since I caught it so quickly, I don't have to delay or reschedule any of my future appointments which is a relief.

I've been wearing the elastics constantly. They are a pain in the butt so I'm ready to stop wearing them. It's such a nuisance since I take them out and put them back in at least 6 times a day. Also, since I've been wearing them in my current configuration, I've felt like my upper jaw has moved very far forward. Almost to the point where I may have a slight overbite. I'm going to mention it to Dr. Klein when I see her in a few weeks but I'm not nervous. I've discovered that sometimes things get worse before they get better.

Other than the infection, things are going well! I finally ate a piece of pizza! And today, I ate my first sandwich. It was a chicken salad sandwich so it was pretty soft but I did have to do a lot of chewing.

Christmas was wonderful. We spent Christmas Eve with Don's family and did our family tradition of going to the movies. We typically always go on Christmas day but Don's parents wanted to go back home to western mass early and we had already promised to spend Christmas morning with my family up on the north shore. I made a great brunch Christmas day. We had a ham, onion, and pepper quiche and a cinnamon bun french toast bake. Everything was to die for. I wish I had made 2 quiches because it went fast!

My next major braces appointment is with Dr. Klein on January 15th so I probably won't post again until after that. See you all in 2016!

Infection pt. 2 and my birthday!

I woke up this morning and my lip was still swollen. Not as bad as Monday afternoon but still sensitive to the touch and a tad uncomfortable. I went and saw Dr, Keith and he confirmed my pcp's diagnosis. I had an infection inside along my upper jaw incision. Fortunately, it was not to bad. He said that the area is slightly open which is allowing everything to drain out. GROSS. That's good because it means that he doesn't have to drain the area manually. I didn't ask what draining it manually would entail, didn't really want to know. He said that I'll have a gross taste in my mouth until everything drains out and begins healing. It'll probably take about 7 days.

He advised me to continue taking the antibiotics until the bottle was completed, use a hot compress on the outside of the infected area, do salt water rinses every 2 hours for the next 48 hours, and use chlorhexidine mouthwash for the next 7 days. He said that I was lucky I caught it so quickly because it could have been worse. Worse meaning that the area around the implants would become infected. That's super bad so I'm glad it didn't come to that!

He thinks it might have started due to one of my stitches not falling out. Those little bastards are terrible! I hate hate hate those stupid dissolving stitches. They are the worst! Thankfully, it's only superficial so it should clear up pretty quickly.

Since I started the antibiotics last night, he said I should be good to return to work tomorrow. I really don't want to use up all my earned time so that was a bit of relief. I'm not contagious but he thought it was a good idea to sit back, relax and let the meds do their thing for the rest of today.

I was nervous about what he was going to say so I didn't eat much of anything before my appointment. Just a bottle of chocolate ensure. If I had to have something done in their office, at least I didn't have much in my stomach to cause any delays.

I was told to go home, relax and to enjoy my birthday. Don and I had originally planned to go ice skating and then out to dinner but not sure if that's happening or not. I think I'll take a nap and see how I feel when I wake up. We also have to see what the weather is like since it's been raining on and off all morning. We'll make a decision based on that. 

This post is gross. Don't read if you have a sensitive stomach.

Everything was going great. I was healing really well and felt practically normal. I was fine until Saturday. My lip got super swollen and now my  upper lip and nose are very sensitive. Almost painful to the touch. I just thought it was a cold sore since I've gotten them frequently in the past. But cold sores get better after taking medication and mine seemed to get worse. I went to work this morning and my swelling was even worse. After breakfast, I thought that some ice would help with the swelling so I went to the emergency room to grab some and ran into the charge nurse. She saw my lip and asked me what was wrong so I explained everything to her. She told me that from what I was describing, it didn't sound like a simple cold sore. She told me that my lip might be infected. I told her that I had a routine physical later this afternoon and that made her feel better.

After I had the ice on my face for a little while, it got me worried. My face hadn't been swollen like this in awhile and for it to suddenly come back made me a little nervous. I decided to call my surgeon's office to see if they thought it was in my best interests to be seen or not. I called, described my symptoms and the office secretary told me that she needed to page Dr. Keith and find out what he wanted her to do. Paging a surgeon is typically a last resort, especially when he has lots of people working under him. For her to directly page him meant that my symptoms were serious. Within 10 minutes, she had called me back and told me that I needed to be seen tomorrow. I told her that I was going to my pcp this afternoon for a routine checkup and she said to definitely keep my appointment. In the very least, my pcp could prescribe me something to help bring down my swelling to a comfortable level. 

After lunch time, my swelling became even worse. I grabbed some more ice and was sitting with the ice on my face. I soon realized that I needed to go home. I wasn't capable of working if I had ice constantly held to my face. My boss saw me and agreed that I needed to leave. So I went home for a few hours before my doctor's appointment. I went back a few hours later, saw my pcp and described my symptoms to her. After some gentle prodding, she touched the area and quickly told me that it was infected. 

What happened next was the nastiest thing that has happened to me yet. (Hint: Here's where you skip to the last paragraph since it's gross) Even worse, I think, than vomiting with the palate expander in. She touched the area and liquid puss came out. It came out and went right down my throat (since I was lying down so she could see the area better). I almost vomited on her it was that nasty. And it tasted horrible (which I'm sure isn't a surprise). I rinsed out my mouth but the memories are still there. And it's disgusting. She put me on a dose of liquid amoxicillin at least to start me on some kind of antibiotic. She didn't want me to have to wait for my appointment tomorrow. At least I can start some kind of medication to begin the healing process. Then, tomorrow, Dr. Keith can make the decision on how to continue my care. If he feels the need, he can change me to a different medication. 

So, tomorrow is my 29th birthday. And I have a puss infected lip.This ranks up there with getting kidney stones on my birthday 10 years ago. What a great birthday present to me. I'll post again tomorrow with an update after my appointment. 

An update! And some grumbling...

Yesterday was my 7 week check up with Dr. Keith. It doesn't feel like 7 weeks have past by! Everything seemed to just happen with lightning speed. My original back to work date is coming up on Monday which is exciting. I've already been back to work for 3 weeks so it'll be nice to really get back into the groove of things.

As I said, yesterday was the 7 week check up which went very well. Everyone at the office knows who I am so when they see me they always ask me how i'm doing and tell me how great I look. Dr. Keith had a resident with him when he saw me and he was taking notes so I'm assuming he's newly out of school or doing a rotation in maxillofacial surgery. He was very quiet. They asked me to take out my elastics since they wanted to accurately measure my open bite range. Dr. Keith and the resident were very impressed with how fast I took the elastics out! He said that it's amazing how good some people get at it so I must be one of those people.

We chatted for a few minutes, nothing crazy. I wasn't in too much pain, just generally sore. These elastics make me sore more often than not. It's nothing that tylenol or advil won't cure. It usually happens after eating. Dr. Keith recommended heat, he said it would soothe the joint area and help to promote healing. He gave me the go ahead to eat normally again, which means that I can officially come off a soft food diet! Yay! VERY exciting! I'm not sure if my jaw could handle really hard food just yet but he said the more I use it, the easier it'll become. Since I'll be eating harder foods, I'm going to start using the heat after meals. He didn't want to recommend heat until now because my swelling is finally starting to settle down. I can also use a straw again full time and was completely taken off of nasal precautions. WAHOO.

However, I did get a small amount of bad news. I complained to Dr. Keith about my right nostril. It's difficult to blow my nose on that side and I still have a hard time breathing fully through that side. It's also sensitive enough that it's started to bother me a bit. I showed Dr. Keith and he said that the right nostril opening is smaller than the left side. He said that it looks like the cartilage must have slipped either during surgery or sometime after. Either way, he said that it would need to be addressed. There is a chance that I may need to have another surgery in order to fix this issue. (-_-) To be honest, it made me extremely depressed. Here I am thinking that I'm completely finished with this whole surgery business and then he tells me that I'm maybe/probably going to need another one to fix this new issue. Luckily, since it happened because of the last surgery, it would be covered as a continuation of care. And the recovery time this time around is a lot shorter, around 1 week. And it would be a quick day surgery procedure. I still have a small amount of swelling on my right side so he wants to wait until that goes away before he makes any recommendations. I just hope I don't get sick or anything cause that would make this whole nose breathing thing even worse, hahaha.

Since I'm finished with the oral portion of my surgery, I've updated the tabs at the top to include before and after photos. I received my before photos from Dr. Keith yesterday and was able to easily upload them here for people to view. I haven't taken any professional after photos yet because Dr. Klein is waiting to take those for when I am closer to finishing. I will post them as soon as I receive them. Feel free to check out the before and after tab above. There are x-ray images up there so please check them out if you are interested.

Is this week over yet?

Happy Monday! And by happy, I mean "happy that this day is over." Today wasn't bad just another tiring day. I added the 2nd elastic to my already elastic-tastic face. This 2nd elastic is a different size than my other ones. They are a bit smaller which makes it that much harder to take on and off. These elastics are such a pain because I feel like I constantly have my fingers in my mouth. I'm still supposed to do jaw exercises and have not been doing them as much as I probably should. I've only gotten around to doing the exercises 2-3 times a day instead of the 4-5 times that Dr. Keith told me to. It's just such a pain because I have to take the elastics out in order to do the PT. Ugh. I'll just have to be better about doing them after I eat and before going to bed.

Teeth are still sore but I'm chalking that up to the elastics doing their thing.  My nose has been extremely dry and wet at the same time. I can feel that it's dry (sorta) but then I notice that it's dripping, It's almost as if I have a perpetual head cold... My lips have gotten more chapped too but I think all this is due to the semi-weird weather we have going on here. 50s and 60s in Boston during December is kinda unheard of... And I work in a hospital so who knows, I could be coming down with a small head cold.

We put together our tree over the weekend. I love the holidays. I really wish I could go all out a little bit more but we definitely don't have the space for it at our current house. The tree came out pretty good though.

As promised, I finally got around to scanning my x-rays! They are pretty cool looking. I hope to ask Dr. Keith or Dr. Klein if I can have a copy of my original x-rays so that I can compare once I'm completely done.

You can see the pins on the lower jaws and the plate in the upper center

Frontal View - The pins in the bottom look like nails! Kinda funny!

Side Profile - Plate on top, pins in the bottom

Our Xmas Tree - My smile just keeps getting better! 

I forgot what pain felt like...

Holy shit. I knew that getting the wires replaced would make me a little sore but I had no idea that it would be like this! I'm definitely in quite a bit of pain. I went out for a girl's evening with my sister and niece and by the time I got home, my mouth was just SO sore. I ended up going to bed as soon as I got home. Don was good enough to give me some ibuprofen and tuck me into bed.

My right side seems to be affected a little bit more and that is the side that has been slower in healing. Sometimes, it feels like I have a wad of gauze in my cheek.

Even though I'm sore now, I'm really glad I pushed my appointment up. My family and I are going to a cousin's wedding next Saturday and I can't imagine that I'd be up to dancing, eating and chatting with friends and other family. So, I'm glad I got it over with so that I can get accustomed to these elastics.

Advice: Take ibuprofen/tylenol before 1st orthodontist appointment after surgery. Take it throughout the day so that it's fully in your system before your appointment. I just took some right before my appointment and it really didn't cut it for me.

Recovery Day 39

Well, today was a big day for me! After talking to Dr. Klein on Wednesday, she said that it didn't matter if I waited or pushed my appointment up a week. She said it was totally up to me and how I felt. Since I've been feeling OK, I decided to just get it over with.

Dr. Klein was super excited to see my progress. We chatted and had a nice long conversation about my recovery. She told me that I looked great which was nice to hear. I still don't feel 100% but it's still nice nonetheless.

Happily, after taking a peak, Dr. Klein said that I was good to get the surgical wire and hooks removed today!! Very exciting! After they were removed, it was discovered that I had 2 broken brackets. Apparently, it's very common for 1-2 brackets to come off during the surgery which is what Dr. Klein thinks happened.

I was fitted with a regular wire again and standard o-rings which felt nice. The hooks had started to bother me so I'm glad that they were removed.

My surgical wires with attached hooks

I've been wearing elastics very religiously since my surgery and today I got a new configuration of elastics. I was wearing them diagonally upper front to lower back. Now, Dr, Klein wants me to wear them in a triangle pattern upper incisor to lower incisor to lower back molar. I can already feel it and I have a feeling I'm going to be sore tomorrow. After I get used to the elastics, I'm to add a 2nd elastic from my upper back molar to my lower back molar. This is to ensure that my bite is completely level. Dr. Klein explained that]when people with open bites get them fixed, sometimes they can develop an open bite but in the back. Wearing the 2nd elastic will keep my bite touching from front to back. 

As I was leaving, I finally remembered to ask about my x-rays. Dr. Klein did have access to them and even printed them out for me. I have copies of them but I just have to edit them since they have some personal information on them. When I get them copied onto my computer, I will definitely post them here. 

My next appointment is in about 6 or 7 weeks, so after the holidays. Dr. Klein mentioned that if I am good about wearing my elastics, I may be looking at getting my braces off in time for the spring! Wow, I can't wait! This has been such a crazy journey that it feels like I'll be wearing these things forever. It's awesome to know that the end is in sight and is almost here. 

Recovery Day 36

This past week has been a bit of a blur for me. The holidays were good! Since I was told to take it easy and focus on recovery, Don took a few days off work and we were able to spend the whole week of Thanksgiving with his family out in the Berkshires. It was very nice and relaxing. On Thanksgiving, I was able to eat the whole Thanksgiving meal! It was wonderful not having to "fend for myself" or make something that I actually could eat. I was very thankful for that and for not having to cook much on Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving for us is pretty traditional/tame. We had turkey, gravy, cranberry sauce (had to do the can since I couldn't chew the real stuff), squash, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing and dinner rolls. We came home Friday evening since we didn't want to have to deal with any traffic and I think we timed it perfectly. We didn't go out for any black Friday shopping, we were lucky enough to find plenty of good deals online. 

Today marks 5 weeks since surgery which is crazy! I returned to work today which is also crazy. I didn't work a full day due to an issue with my return to work letter. They called me after it was clarified and I went in right after that. I only worked about 6 hours but it felt good. I'm very tired mostly from talking to everyone. Everyone at work was super sweet because they all wanted to check in on me which was nice. I'll be working full time but I'll be on light duty for awhile. I'm not scheduled to work in the OR until January so I've got a month to really transition back to my schedule again.

Nothing much has happened with the braces except... I'm pretty sure that I broke one of my brackets. Not sure when it happened but I noticed it tonight when I was brushing my teeth. I'm going to shoot Dr Klein an email tomorrow and find out if I need to get it looked at before my appointment next week. Don't want to ruin my progress so hopefully I'll find out tomorrow if it needs to be fixed immediately.

Week 5 Progress Photo

Week 5 Progress Photo

I took these photos last night since I'm pretty tired today. I can now smile without it looking super fake or looking super painful (smiling hasn't really hurt so much since I couldn't feel my face much but the stretching felt VERY weird). I still have stitches inside my gums which is a pain. But it looks like I only have about 3 left which is pretty awesome.

I've been kinda lame with not posting as often and I think I'll blame the holidays. Hopefully should get a little better from now on.

Recovery day 22 - post op #2

Today was my 2nd post op appointment. Dr Keith was indeed impressed. He couldn't get over how well I looked. I guess the majority of his patients don't heal as fast as I currently am. I may look like I'm 5-6 weeks healed but I feel like I'm 3 weeks into my recovery. I still get tired very easily which is completely normal. My body is still healing and trying to figure out what to do with its new everything. He was a little concerned about the dizzy spells I've been having. He decided that I should stay out of work another two weeks and then be on light duty for 2 weeks once I go back to work (maybe more if I feel I need it). For the next two weeks in supposed to relax, drink more water and not lift anything over 5-10lbs. Hopefully the dizziness week pass with some TLC.

He changed my elastics around so now I'm wearing them differently. You can see the difference in the photos below. I was wearing them vertical but now they are top-center to bottom-middle. Wearing them this way has made my jaw a little sore so that's probably why I'm tired so early.

He also wanted me to see Dr Klein earlier than my original appointment which is nice. Hopefully I'll get this surgical wire removed but if not, oh well. I'm interested to see what she thinks of my new bite. I have a couple of teeth that have shifted slightly so hopefully she'll address those tiny issues in the next few months. Again, nothing major but I happened to notice them. The only appointment she had available was 4 days earlier but I took it anyway. I'm going to see if I can fit in another doctor appointment that day so I'll probably need the day off. My work is flexible though so it shouldn't be a problem.

I totally forgot to ask about x-rays and if I still had to be on nasal precautions. I've sneezed and haven't had any bloody noses so I think I'm OK to blow my nose. I've been doing it very gently so I think I'll just continue normally unless it starts to hurt and bother me. I'll see if Dr Klein has access to the x-rays since I'll see her first.

I am still on soft food which is a bummer. But he told me I could enjoy thanksgiving dinner which is nice. Then I realized that thanksgiving is pretty much all soft food so it's a win-win. Stuffing, turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, squash, cranberry sauce, pretty much my diet now haha. Well, everything except the turkey.

I had fish tonight and that was a nice treat. Just pan fried haddock with garlic and lemon. Made me feel like I was eating a semi normal meal!

My face is still partially numb, no changes there. The upper stitches are also still there and those suck. Whenever I smile, they move a tiny bit and I get twinges of pain along my upper jaw. But sometimes, I can't help but smile! Smiling is awesome and shitty at the same time.

Dr Keith wants to see me back in a month so I have another appointment in December a few days after my visit with Dr Klein.

All in all, today was a good day!

Recovery Day 20

Today, Don and I went to brunch at a friend's house. Breakfast is the easiest meal for me to eat even though eating still takes forever. My jaw can only open up a little less than half an inch which is not large enough to eat anything solid like a normal person. We had a breakfast egg scramble, some hash browns, fruit (which I couldn't eat unfortunately), and cinnamon buns. The cinnamon buns were a little hard but I wasn't going to not try at least part of them. I cut one in half and shared it with another friend. It took forever but was delicious and worth it. (Thanks Meaghan and Jim for hosting and cooking!)

After brunch and food, we spent the rest of the morning playing some board games which was a lot of fun. I haven't played any games in awhile (even before my surgery, too much to do and to plan) so it was nice and relaxing. We played two new games that were easy for me to play with my limited jaw ability. We played a game called Concept which is like charades for lazy people. It was nice because I didn't have to talk much. The other game we played was called Slash. It's like a dating game with non-fictional and fictional characters. I laughed so much and smiled a lot that my jaw got a pretty good workout today. Smiling and laughing causes my stitches to stretch which is slightly uncomfortable 

Earlier today, everything felt like it has for the past couple days. However, after dinner tonight, I washed out my mouth and felt something strange. A few tingles and suddenly the right half of my upper lip has slight feeling in it! Hell yea! I can also sorta twitch my nose but that also bothers my stitches in my upper lip. The right side of my face is definitely more active than the left side which apparently makes me look even more like a stroke patient than before. I just have to be patient. The other side will wake up eventually. 

Recently, I've been experiencing weird dizzy spells. Like, usually at least 1-2 a day. When I have one, I usually sit down and drink a whole cup of water but they still freak me out a little. I might be overdoing it so I'm going to talk to my surgeon about it on Tuesday when I see him for my second post-op. If I keep having these, not sure if I'll be able to go back to work as early as I'd like. We shall see. 

Recovery Day 18

Time for a quick update! I've been doing pretty well. Still battling feeling tired all the time but it's gotten better. My nose is still numb. I have a feeling that I may not feel my nose for awhile. My face is very oily so I've been working on keeping my skin clean and acne clear. It's very difficult to not scratch my face off since I still have pins and needles everywhere, especially my chin and cheeks. 

My lips are very sore and chapped. I read online that vasoline is not the best ointment to use for chapped lips. Apparently, A&D ointment (the stuff for baby bums) can also be used to help and prevent chapped lips! I never would have guessed it. I bought the new ointment at the grocery store for about $2 so we will see if it helps. 

I've been generally feeling pretty ok that I think I'm going to be able to go back to work earlier than I originally thought. My second post op appointment is on Tuesday so I'm sure my surgeon will talk to me about going back to work. I may have to work on a limited basis for awhile since my job description involves a lot of standing, walking, talking and lifting. I'm not sure with my current energy level if I'll be able to perform all those tasks. 

Here are some progress photos! Look for a more in depth progress update on Tuesday after my post-op.

I can sorta smile! My nose looks fake though.

Relaxed face

Recovery day 14 - 2 week update!

It's been 2 weeks since my surgery and I feel sorta OK. I woke up this morning and felt a significant amount of pain for the first time in awhile. I'm not sure if it has to do with the way I was sleeping last night or if my facial nerves are slowly waking up. I was given the OK to take ibuprofen again so that's what I've started taking. After I took the ibuprofen and ate something, I felt a lot better. 

While I was at the store, something happened to me that I was not expecting! I FINALLY SNEEZED. It felt SO weird. I half felt it, half didn't since half my face is still numb. I thought it would be scary but it wasn't too bad. Most people who've had my surgery typically end up with a lot of bloody noses so I was warned what could happen if I sneezed soon after my surgery. Fortunately for me, I didn't experience a single bloody nose during my recovery. Not even the first 2 days after surgery when they are super common. I've never been one to be prone to stuff like that so I guess I'm just lucky. I was so surprised at the sneeze that it literally stopped me in my tracks. I had to double check that a giant booger wasn't hanging from my face (there wasn't, thank god!) or blood rushing out of my nose but I lucked out.

The other thing I discovered today is that I can feel the plate they installed in my face when they worked on my upper jaw. The left side of my face has started to get some feeling back and when I press above my upper lip next to my nose I can feel the plate. Again, SO WEIRD. But kinda cool at the same time. It doesn't hurt, it just feels very firm when I press on it. I tried getting Don to press my face in order to feel it too but I think he was grossed out by it so he refused. He's no fun. Hahaha.

I've been brushing my teeth pretty much after eating anything. Stitches seem to be falling out every time I brush which is nice. They are pretty annoying. I've been exercising my facial muscles by trying to smile and trying to purse my lips. I can't do either really well. As you can see, my smile needs some work. It looks semi painful but it isn't. Everything just feels tight. That's the only word that I think really describes how I'm feeling. I'm also still drooling constantly. 

Tomorrow should be interesting. Our neighborhood has been doing a lot of construction which includes replacing all plumbing lines and all utility lines. The gas utility line for our house needs to be updated and they are coming tomorrow to do the work. Hopefully they don't have too many questions for me since I'll be home alone and won't be able to talk much. 

Recovery day 13

Nothing much to say, just a few progress photos. Swelling is almost completely gone on left side, still partially swollen on right side. I am still numb on my upper lip and underneath my eyes. I've started to yawn which is super weird. I can only open my jaw so much and holding it back hurts more than if I just let it happen. Haven't sneezed yet. Another issue I've come across is that I now have acne on my chin. These annoying, painful little white heads on my chin. I guess that a lot of people experience acne after surgery which I never knew. The skin on my face is very dry so I've started using lotion to hopefully bring it back to normal. 

Attempting to smile. Still hard but getting there.

Normal frontal view with closed lips.

Close up of teeth. No Gap! Still feels very weird.

Recovery day 11

Nothing much to report. Most areas of my face are still numb which is OK. I can now feel the top of my nose but that's the only thing that has come back.

I woke up this morning with a wad of stitches floating around in my mouth. They are supposed to be those dissolvable stitches but they don't really dissolve completely. Waking up with a bunch of them in my mouth was super gross but I guess that means they were ready. Part of the healing process I guess.

From the photos you can still see that I'm still swollen on one side. Mostly been eating the same stuff, scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, apple sauce, pudding, and soup.

I still get random bouts of sleepiness. Took almost a 4 hour nap today and I'm still tired. Will probably still sleep through the night. My energy level is definitely not back to normal but I guess I should get as much sleep while I can.

Recovery Day 10

Wow, I can't believe it's already Thursday. Sorry for the lack of updates, I've been doing a lot of sleeping recently. Last night was particularly bad, we were watching wheel of fortune and I fell asleep before the end of the episode. Don woke me up and brought me upstairs a few hours later and I still slept through the night. The past couple days I've been taking naps during the day and then still sleeping 10+ hours at night. My body must obviously still need lots of rest so I'm not too concerned.

I had my post-op appointment on Tuesday which went very well! Dr Keith was very impressed with how I looked and even more impressed with my jaw movement. I told him that I only took narcotics until Friday and he was astounded. Astounded but very pleased. I honestly didn't really need them. He switched out my elastics for larger ones that give a wider range of motion. He also took off the two elastics in the back and told me I wouldn't need to wear those anymore. He also gave me the good news that I can now slowly introduce softer foods into my diet. I am allowed to take the elastics out while eating but must brush my teeth and then replace them. I've started with mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, really mushy mac and cheese, and applesauce which is great. I'm still on nasal precautions which kinda sucks. At least another 2-3 weeks without blowing my nose and having to use nasal decongestants sprays. I still have a pretty large bruise on my right side that sorta extends down to my throat. It's more yellow green than blue black. Don says that at first look if people didn't know me, they'd think I had jaundice which sounds funny to me haha.

After Tuesday, I started soft foods pretty much immediately. I soon realized that it's a lot harder than I thought it'd be. My jaw can only open so far and my lips are still very numb. I can't really feel the food trying to get into my mouth so I ended up making a HUGE mess all over myself. I figured out a way to not make as much of a mess and that is eating with a mirror. Sounds kind of weird but it actually works. I'm not fully off a blenderized diet, so this is only really a problem when eating soft foods.

My face is still very numb but not as badly. My upper lip and cheekbones have  pins and needles which has been driving me crazy. I haven't sneezed yet which is a blessing. I've heard that the first sneeze can be a little freaky. Not sure if I'm ready for that yet. I have yawned a few times and it feels very strange. Hurts a little but not bad. I can also smile a little without it looking like i'm in pain! It's the little things.

Movies I've watch so far: Edge of Tomorrow, Wall-E, Big Hero 6, A League of their Own, Guardians of the Galaxy

Since today is November 5th, Don and I will watch V for Vendetta tonight (Guy  Fawkes Day tradition). I'm a little excited because it's a tradition we've upheld every year since we started dating. I've been getting a little better each day so I may not continue to write so many updates. I will definitely write up a little something if and when things change. :)

Lastly, some photos! Sorry for the crappy lighting, lol.

Recovery Day 9

I know it's only 1 photo but I've been a slacker with taking pictures. Can sorta smile?? It looks sorta painful but it's not. 

Recovery 1 week! I've made it!

This update is going to be a little short mostly because I'm tired and there isn't much to report. I do have my post op appointment tomorrow morning so there's that too look forward to.
Things are just getting better and better. I can't believe how hard this first week was. It's unreal how difficult the first 4 days were.
I've begun to start changing out the elastics myself which is a little terrifying and exciting at the same time. They get stained pretty badly and looking at them in the mirror after eating with them in all day grosses me out. I haven't been able to change out the back ones yet so hopefully Dr Keith will be able to help me out there tomorrow.
I hardly took any drugs today! Just used the nasal sprays and that's it! I can't stand the taste of the Tylenol so I have decided to forgo it. Maybe Dr Keith will allow me to switch back to ibuprofen tomorrow, doubtful but maybe.
Still looking like a chipmunk haha but swelling is definitely going down, just very slowly.
I discovered this evening that my whole face is sorta peeling? Not painfully, just like the dead skin after a sunburn which is weird. I haven't been washing my face in the shower because I can't get my stitches wet but I have been using facial cleansing wipes instead. Maybe they just don't do the same job as me in the shower. Can't wait to get these stitches out and I can shower using my regular routine again.
Went on another walk this morning with don and Bailey. The fresh air felt nice but I couldn't tell if my face was legit cold or numb due to the surgery. Also, I think I spent the whole walk with drool down my face so I'm glad we didn't run into anyone in our neighborhood.
I did also sleep through the night last night and was able to drink exclusively out of a cup today which was great. I only spilled on myself a little bit which was great.
I finally weighed myself this morning and was shocked, already lost 10 pounds. I couldn't believe that it came off this fast. You can't really tell though since my face is like a balloon. I'm not a super small girl in the first place so the ten pounds was easy for me lose. Hopefully I can keep the weight off permanently.
Anyway, here are the pics! Enjoy!

Recovery Day 6

The days keep getting better and better. Thankfully, I think its safe to say that the worst is definitely over. Man, they weren't kidding when they said the first week was going to be tough. Definitely the hardest thing I've had to do so far.

I finally took my first full shower which felt amazing. I've been taking showers since coming home but I was given strict instructions to not get my facial stitches wet so I've been avoiding washing above the neck. Well, my hair was so nasty I just couldn't take it anymore and decided I needed to wash my hair or else I would go insane. Don helped me by covering up my exposed stitches with a makeshift pad and then he helped me to wash my hair (what a guy!). Don also attempted to dry my hair with the blow dryer which was an utter failure. It was cute that he tried but it was by far an epic fail. If we ever have girls when we have kids, we know who's going to be doing their hair, hahaha. I was able to dry my hair myself if I sat down which worked perfectly fine. Now that I know he's sorta competent in hair washing, he'll have to help me again to wash my hair on Tuesday before my first post-op appointment. 

I also sorta figured out how to drink from a cup without completely soaking myself today so I'm going to count today as a success. 

I haven't had much pain, just discomfort from being swollen. My swelling goes up as far as my upper cheekbones so my eyes are partially numb? Trust me, it sounds as weird as it feels. The only other thing that bothers me are the stitches I have on each side. They are starting to get itchy so I'm hoping that those will be removed on Tuesday.

Today, I spent most of the day watching football which is very nice. I've been so busy that today was the first day I actually was able to sit down and just watch as much football as I wanted. I'm probably going to lose this week fantasy-wise but I don't really care at this point.
EDIT: I totally forgot to add that I went on a walk this morning! Don and I have our dog bailey and I felt good enough to walk around the block this morning. I didn't hold the leash because I'm not allowed to yet but I was able to be the poop-carrier which was better than sitting on the couch doing nothing. The fresh air really helped a lot so hopefully I'm going to go on as many walks as I feel up to from now on!

Don took some photos of me post-shower today so here they are! It's amazing how different I looked before I took a shower. I looked so much worse and it showed quite a bit. I seem to be in better spirits today though so I'm just happy to be done with the worst part of recovery. 

Side profile - That little mark near my ear are the 2 stitches I have. Very swollen cheeks and I have a chin!

This is my natural look. Yea... I look like I'm on narcotics but I'm in fact not! 

And this is me attempting to smile. Unfortunately I look more like sloth from the Goonies than myself. 

Recovery Day 5

Ok, I think the worst is behind me. Hallelujah! I don't think I could survive another night like I had from Day 3 to Day 4. Today has been the best day so far. I haven't taken any pain narcotics in the past 24 hours and I feel OK. I've been taking tylenol instead and it seems to do the trick. I don't really like how I feel on the narcotics, it makes me very queasy. But since I've been off the liquid narcotic pain killer for a full day, I can feel my body starting to go back to the way it was before but very slowly. I only wish the tylenol could taste better.

I have begun to start bruising. It's not anything super hideous but there's this yellowish greenish hue on the right side of my face. The one thing that is still bothering me is the nasal swelling. It was definitely the one thing I did not expect. And it's very bizarre to have feeling in some parts of my face and none in others. I've been alternating with an ice wrap that I have but sometimes feel like it's choking me.

So, I have 4 elastics holding my jaws together. 2 in the front and one on each side. One of my elastics broke this morning so I had my first elastic change today. It wasn't bad at all! I had to wear an elastic before so it wasn't completely foreign to me.

I had my first bowel movement since surgery! TMI? Oh well, I was excited when it happened since that's a good indication of healing.

I'm glad I made the decision to not watch the newest season of project runway and to keep it in the dvr until now. It's been a good show to watch on binge and if I pass out and miss stuff, oh well. Not a big deal.

I really really really REALLY want to blow my nose. And I can't for another 3-4 weeks. ;( The countdown is on! Today is Halloween and I won't be able to eat any halloween candy! Oh well, hope everyone has a fun night!

Recovery Day 4

Well, here I am on Day 4 after surgery. I'm not going to lie, I feel terrible. My nose is completely blocked even though I'm taking tons of nasal decongestants. I am a champion drooler right now. And the meds are making me very nauseous. Not much I can do except drink ginger ale, keep hydrated and eat whatever I can get down my throat. I'm still very swollen, especially in my upper jaw. I would have thought that my swelling would mostly be in my lower jaw but I was totally wrong with that. The swelling goes all the way up into my upper cheekbones towards my eyes and there's not a whole lot I can do to bring the swelling down except for ice. Unfortunately, my face can only handle so much ice at one time. Everything is very tingly.

Last night was the worst night so far I think. I woke up super nauseous and felt like I was going to pass out. I took a shower this morning and it helped me feel better. I just can't wash above my neck due to some minor stitches I have on my face. I really just want to wash my hair. I hate the taste of all my medications, especially the cherry flavored tylenol. I wish I could take ibuprofen liquid instead but Dr. Keith probably won't allow me to for awhile. Bummer. Man, I really want to pick my nose right now. So gross. Hahahaha.

I'm hoping that my swelling will start to diminish tomorrow or the day after. Don says that my swelling has gone down a lot but to me it feels worse.

No photos mostly because I feel like the loch ness monster. Depending on how I feel, I may post some photos after this weekend or after my post-op appointment.

Also, to my friends who sent me flowers, you all are amazing. It totally lifted my spirits when I felt terrible. Thank you cards should be on their way to you soon! 

Update Jaw Surgery Day #2

Hello everyone! Things are going ok with me and my recovery so far. Didn't post anything yesterday because it was a very busy day.

I came home yesterday around 4pm which was great. Didn't get stuck in rush hour this time around. Got home yesterday and just kept hydrated and took some pain meds. My face is pretty jacked and very swollen. Was told that yesterday and today would be the worst of the swelling and they weren't kidding. I may post a picture later tonight. My jaw doesn't really bother me so much but my lips and nose bother me the most. The nose is very swollen and a little hard to breathe out of. They have me on a lot of meds. 2 different nasal sprays, pseudofed, 2 different pain medication, and the chlorhexidine mouthwash (my favorite... NOT).

Yesterday was pretty ok. Not sure why but I was just SO HOT in my room. Not sure if they kept it warm on purpose but I didn't sleep with any blankets which is very bizarre for me. My overnight nurse was awesome. She was attentive but not overly so. After she realized I was sorta kinda good, she left me to push some fluids on my own. I did have a catheter and was hooked up to IV fluids. I had to get 3 different IVs though. 1st one didn't take, and the 2nd one I had was good until I woke up and it was really bothering me. My nurse overnight called for my IV to be changed and it was such a difference. So I'm sure my arms are going to be all bruised and stuff. My left hand is very sore from the 2nd IV.

My parents came and visited me but I honestly don't remember much of the visit. I couldn't really talk since I was tightly banded shut. Thank goodness for my dry erase board. If you are having jaw surgery like mine, bring a dry erase board with you to the hospital. The dry erase board was a life saver. It allowed me to communicate with my nurse (who again, was awesome) and family. I wasn't my nurse's only patient so if I needed something, a PCA would come to help me. PCA's are essentially nurse's assistants but they often help every single nurse on the unit. They sometimes aren't as familiar with a specific patient since they help out with all patients on the unit. When I first arrived at my room, a PCA offered to put my bed down to a fully lying down position. She had a hard time understanding what I wanted because I couldn't talk. Not knowing what procedure I even had, she probably didn't realize that lying down flat would cause major swelling in my face. I declined and used the dry erase board after that.

Catheter was fine, I was sorta nervous about that since I've never had one before but it was actually ok. After that was taken out, I got up a little more and became a bit more mobile. I did have these things on my legs for blood circulation and man, I hated them! I was already so hot and they just made it worse. My nurse took them off part way through the night and I was much more comfortable.

When I woke up the next day, I looked and realized I had a pretty awesome view! I was on the 14th Floor in the Ellison building. I guess, most oral surgery patients go to that floor if they have space up there. Apparently, Don told me that I had a nice view but I was still very groggy and don't remember it much at all.

My view from Ellison Room # 1438

I did have a roommate but she was not an oral surgery patient. From the sounds of it, I think she had a double mastectomy procedure probably due to breast cancer, I couldn't really talk so I didn't get to know her at all. She was very quiet and by the time I got back from my tests and x-rays on Tuesday, she had already been discharged. The floor I was on was a plastic surgery floor so not everyone was an oral surgery patient (hence my roommate having breast surgery). I was in bed B so I got the window view which was nice.

At 10am, I had to go and get some final x-rays done. My teeth were banded together with these SUPER tight elastics. I wasn't wired shut, but it was almost the same. Couldn't move my teeth or jaws at all for the first 24 hours. At that appointment, they removed those super tight bands and replaced them with slightly larger ones. The nurse replacing them was a complete idiot and took forever to replace the bands. She was showing me how to replace the bands should they break and she had no idea what she was doing at all. After awhile, my pain meds started to wear off and it became painful. She finally just took some clamps and replaced them.

Once I was back in my room, I told my nurse what happened and she felt really bad. She told me that she'd give me a dose of pain meds a little early. After that, I relaxed in my chair near the window. Soon after, the nutritionist came to visit me and give me some advice on how to eat once I was discharged. After she left, my nurse and doctor came and spoke to me about beginning my discharge. I was off IV meds, could go the bathroom alone and was able to push fluids by myself. Since I could do all those things, I was allowed to go home. Before I left, my nurse told us we could take anything we wanted home since everything left in the room would be thrown away. She gave us extra syringes and even offered us free Ensure. Don't be afraid to ask for extra stuff cause once you go home, it'll probably be difficult to obtain stuff like syringes. And when you need them, you'll really need them. The free ensure was really nice since it allowed me to try various flavors without having to spend a lot of money on flavors I may not even like.

Don came by the hospital visit me around noon yesterday. It took him a long time because someone drove out of one of the MGH garages and crashed through another garage brick wall. The street was blocked off due to them trying to extract the car and person inside. But it took don almost 40 minutes to get to MGH from the exit at Storrow Drive (which normally takes 2 minutes). Since I was able to do some key things by myself, I ended up getting discharged around 2:30pm.

Since coming home, I've mostly pushed fluids and slept. I woke up last night to catch the end of the Royals v. Mets game 1 of the world series which was surprising. The mets lost in the 14th inning so poor don was not happy this morning. But it's only the first game, there will be plenty of other opportunities for them to win.

My nose keeps tingling, feels like water is dripping down it so I think the feeling will start to come back to that soon. Ok, I'm starting to get hungry and tired again so time to eat and sleep some more. Will have Don help me post some photos later tonight.

Surgery Update from Don

This is Nikki's husband Don updating for Nikki.

Surgery is all done and went great. I'm with her in recovery. She's pretty groggy and a bit nauseous but in good spirits!

Thank you to everyone for all the support!

Let's get this party started!

Today is the day!

First of all, thank you so much to everyone who has texted, messaged me through Facebook, and sent good luck vibes my way. I appreciate each and every message. Feel free to message me with a joke or something funny to keep my spirits up. I may not respond to all of them at first but I'll definitely look at them.

Just wanted to post 2 final pictures taken last night. One is a profile, the other is a frontal image of me. Excuse how tired I look in the photo. Haven't gotten much sleep the past few days.

Anyway, see everyone on the other side!

ONE MORE DAY AAAHH!

So this is it! Last day before surgery. Can't believe it came up so quickly. I'm sure there's a bunch of stuff I forgot to do but oh well, too late now. Maybe the boys can do some stuff around here while I'm gone.
Today we went to watch my niece and nephew cheer and play football. Then, we went out to lunch at Wahlburgers. I've never been before so it was fun to do it before my surgery. I got one of the smaller burgers mostly cause my stomach has been full of butterflies the past few days. Although, the fluffernutter banana nutella looked amazing. Next time!
Then this evening we went out to a steak house for my last meal (so sad!). I ended up getting print Rob and mashed potatoes and they were delicious. The prime Rib was tender and very flavorful. I haven't had beef that wasn't a burger in forever. It was a nice treat.
Then we came home and did some cleaning. Hopefully, everything will be OK! My stomach is so full of anxiety, I can't wait till this is all over.

2 days before surgery

Today was pretty busy. I had a few errands to do (a hair cut, returning some stuff, and last minute food shopping). Then we went to our friends' house warming party. I ended bringing cannoli dip (if you don't know what it is, Google a recipe. It's amazing, trust me. This may have turned into one of my go to party recipes.) Our friends have a smoker so we had a whole array of smoked meat (ribs, pulled pork, etc.) It was nice to catch up and chat with a bunch of people we haven't seen in awhile.
Sorry but the only photo I took was of the book ribs. They were sooooo good though! I'm going to miss ribs. 
We finished off the night with hanging around a fire pit roasting marshmallows. All in all, a great and memorable night!

3 days til surgery

Today was my last day of work. Felt kind of bittersweet. I'd rather work than have surgery but oh well. I called and gave my last notice to my short term disability so long as everything goes to plan, I'll be getting STD starting in 2 weeks. 

Don and I spent the evening together and just chilled out. I really wanted wings and our go-to place here in Waltham closed (RIP Wings Express). So we did some searching and found a place close to us. They were pretty good so it seems we found another good place for wings in our area, yay! I got honey mustard, don got medium buffalo. They have a bunch of other sauces in their menu but we figured for a first time that we'd go basic.
We also got jalepano poppers which were really good!
We finished the evening off with watching Edge of tomorrow with Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt. Omg what a great movie. I might even watch it again, it was that good.

Final Pre-op time!

Tuesday was my final pre-op with Dr. Keith. At that appointment we went over general expectations, looked at all my xrays and photos together, and Dr Keith answered any final questions I had. The meeting went well! I had many of my questions answered which was reassuring. I will be updating the questions and answers section with the completed version of everything I had wanted to know.

When I first got there, we went over my x-rays and looked at all the photos. Apparently, there was a miscommunication between a few people and myself. I was originally told that my lower jaw would be moved in a way that would diminish my chin. However, that is not the case anymore! After going through my photos, it became very obvious to the surgeon and his staff that I would require advancement of both the upper and lower jaws. I thought my lower jaw would be pushed back but the x-rays show that neither jaws really advanced forward like they should have. It's not apparent when you look at me face on but my profile is kinda funky. My jaw and chin almost taper away into my neck. I'm hoping that I'll be able to grab copies of the images cause it's hard to visualize properly without photos. When they told me I'd pretty much lose my chin (unless I opted for the genioplasty) my first thought was "but I don't really have much of a chin to lose... oh well." It was nice to hear that after this surgery, I'll actually have more of a defined chin! Yay? Better than losing it, that's for sure!

After looking through some photos, I was presented with some options on how far to advance my jaw. All 3 options would help alleviate TMJ issues, give me a proper bite and help with reducing snoring and airway issues. The reason for the choice is purely aesthetic. The options were movement of 5mm, 7mm, and 9mm. It was difficult to make a decision mostly because I hardly look at myself. I mean, I see myself in the mirror everyday but I don't stand there inspecting my features. And I have a hard time visualizing anything. Thank god my hubby came with me to the appointment. I asked for his opinion. After all, he's the one who's stuck with looking at me every day! HAHA. After talking it out and going through all the options, we decided that 7mm was the right way to go for me. 5mm was just not enough, and 9mm was a little too much. Just like Goldilocks, I went with the option that felt "just right."

Then we went into the questions portion of the meeting. I came with my list prepared (cause i'm crazy) and Dr. Keith seemed impressed. I'm the kind of person who does not like surprises. I want to be informed on everything that is going on and have some kind of awareness that certain things are happening. One thing that I was not aware of would be sleeping restrictions. I figured I would need to be propped up somewhat but only for a few days. I will need to sleep sitting up for at a minimum of 2 weeks (YIKES). My head can't go below my heart due to bleeding risks so that's why he told me no sleeping lying down. He recommended a recliner or sleeping on a couch propped up against the arm of the couch. So now we have to slightly modify our living room to make room for our recliner that has been living in another part of our house for the past 6 months.

After everything was done, I was directed to his insurance coordinator (NOT MARY, YAY). She was very nice. We went over logistics for surgery day. More good news, my surgery was bumped up from 7:30am to 9:00am. I have to be at the hospital 2 hours before for prep so now I need to be at the hospital at 7:00am. I was originally going to have to wake up at 4am and get to the hospital for 5:30am. But now I'll be able to sleep in until 5:30ish or 6. Extra sleep is always good. I'll probably wake up at 3am due to nerves but whatever!

We are down to the final days before surgery and my nerves are just making me a little frazzled. Can't wait for this to be done and to start recovering.

4 days left! O.O!!!

Well, I have 4 days left. I'm starting to get  really get sick of unhealthy food, is that sad? I ate sushi at the hospital for lunch and almost burned my sinuses off, I added way to much wasabi! Normally it's a little more on the mild side but not this time! Holy cow!
For dinner, I shared a burger with a friend at a local restaurant. The burger was so big! It's called the breakfast burger and is topped with a fried egg. We ordered alcoholic drinks with it (cause why not?!) And they were pretty bad. We ended up leaving, going next door and grabbing drinks at the restaurant across the way. All the food looked so good at this other place, we should have just gone there but oh well! Next time!
Then the hubby and I went to trivia with some other friends. We had a great time but ate no food there.

5 days to go!

Wow, we are down to the final 5. Yikes, getting more and more nervous as each day goes on.

I'm slowly becoming sick of junk food and sweets. That's good, right? Anyway, people at work were very nice and bought a cake to wish me good luck for my surgery. I was not expecting anything so it was a very nice gesture. The cake was very yummy and it made me a little sad that this will probably be the last slice of cake I eat in awhile.

Anyway, I started working on my pre-op thing and just got so tired. It'll have to wait until tomorrow!

Also met up with someone local who reads the blog! Very exciting and kinda cool. We both have the same orthodontist. It was nice to be able to talk to someone who legitimately understands everything I'm going through since she's dealing with similar things. It was really nice to be able to sit down and have a nice chat with her. Can't wait to do it again after I've recovered somewhat.

OK photos and bedtime!

6 days til surgery!

A whole lot happened today but I don't have a lot of time to sit down and write everything down. Just wanted to be consistent with the food porn haha lol.

I will write out a more comprehensive accounting of what happened today at my pre-op appointment tomorrow sometime.

For now, here's the food I enjoyed today! Nachos, slutty pumpkin (for those unawares, it's a shipyard pumpkin head with a shot of vanilla stoli, soooo good!), and cannoli from Mike's pastry in the north end. I also had pulled pork Mac and cheese but I forgot to take a photo, whoops. We went to trivia and had a great time with some friends. 

7 days til surgery - butterflies have begun

Well, we are down to the one week mark. I'm trying to make plans with as many people as possible this week and my schedule is so packed! So much things going on, it's crazy.
Dinner tonight wasnt exciting, just grilled chicken and rice pilaf. But I did have a falafel wrap at work for lunch and it wasn't terrible. The hummus spread they used was quite good. Falafel could have been better but it wasn't bad.
Due to some schedule changes at work my work schedule is now different. And I was originally supposed to have my final dental cleaning in Wednesday. Well, now I have to work in the morning. I called today on the off chance they could fit me in somewhere this week and they had a cancellation for today at 3pm! I couldn't believe how lucky I was. I must have called at just the right time. But now my teeth are clean and its one less thing I have to worry about! Score!
Tomorrow is my pre op and trivia for the first time in awhile. Can't wait!

8 days til surgery - more food

Well, more food was eaten today. Notable foods were the chicken parmesan panini and French fries, cupcakes, tortilla chips and salsa, gummy worms and a whole lot of peanut butter cups. Yea... no shits were given today in terms of diet.

I went and did more food shopping and food prep for myself. Bought more chicken broth, carnation instant breakfast, oatmeal and Gatorade. Also bought pumpkin puree, might attempt to make some kind of meal with that. Or maybe just mix it into pudding or something. I'll probably never want to eat pumpkin ever again after this surgery.

My mother in law gave me coupons for baby food. Not looking forward to eating that but it's better than the alternative which is cook a chicken breast and blend the crap out of it until it is a puree. Thanks but no thanks. The baby food is much better. So that's the next thing to buy.

We also have plans for my last meal which will be Sunday. I'm very excited because it's looking like it'll be an all day thing (breakfast lunch and dinner are all planned). Look for my post on the 25th!