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! 

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!

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.