8 Months Post-Op - Removal of Braces?! + Hospital Vid

So it's been a very long time and I'll just start off by saying...yes...I am still in my braces. And yes I feel as though my teeth are basically perfect underneath them but I'M NOT THE EXPERT. Yet. Sigh.

Fantastic news is at my last ortho appointment, I was told they could come off not at the next appointment but the one after that, which means early June hopefully. Happy happy times. I have pledged not to make another vlog until that time comes BUT! I did remember this little gem. It's the last pre-surgery video footage of me ever and it was taken on my mom's phone in the pre-op room about an hour before they wheeled me off. My head is even wrapped for surgery already. It's very brief and relatively frightening seeing as I still have that underbite and am wearing zero makeup along with that glamorous surgical gown but I wanted to share it anyway because it's kind of special to me.

If I seem overtly calm, it's because I miraculously was as far as I can remember. There is also this photo of my profile taken the day after surgery I believe and as you can see, I was hardly swollen at all for it being less than 24 hours post-op. Keep in mind, I'd been up the night before vomiting blood through wired-shut teeth and also hadn't taken a shower or received any sustenance aside from the IV fluids, so I wasn't exactly in a presentable state.

My face is red because of the constant wearing of the ice packs, but see...no swollen lips and my cheeks aren't bulging all that much. Based on results of people I had researched beforehand, I was expecting WAY WORSE than this. This photo was also my first opportunity to see the newly-adjusted profile which is what makes it very special indeed.
I'll post this again just so the before surgery/after recovery comparison is also here:

I'm overall still sooooooo thankful for the entire journey and finally being able to enjoy the fruits of a perfect bite. Now if I could just get these braces off so the bite would be somewhat more visually appealing...I mean I've had them since the week before my senior year of high school and here I am less than a month away from completing my first year in college.


Can't go without saying a huge congratulations to my Louisville Cardinal men's basketball team for making it to the NCAA Final Four. I can honestly say I've never been so proud of a group of individuals. And though we fell short in the game yesterday, I'd venture to say we exemplified the most tenacity and endurance of any team in the country this season after the neverending string of injuries and setbacks. Proud era to be a Cardinal, that's for sure.
And to any family members reading, I do not desire your pity or sympathy because I know you're only trying to reach out because your precious NBA-primed team - who has been expected to advance to the championship all along and therefore does not impress me in the slightest - actually made it through and you have nothing to mourn yet. The fact that we tied the game in the second half should be enough to warrant your chagrin given that everyone and their second cousin twice removed in the sports world picked your team to stomp us, no questions asked. And no, I still will not root for them tomorrow. Go Kansas.


Bitterness aside, this semester and a half since I last updated the blog has been crazy and mostly in a positive way. With the exception of one or two, every professor I've had so far has been placed in my "lifelong heroes" category and I could not be more certain that I made the perfect choice in university.


Last time I said I was going to post my top 10 "current" favorite songs on every following post, and that I shall.


1. "The Flood" - Take That → blame Liam Payne's twitcams
2. "If You're Not the One" - Daniel Bedingfield → I know it's kind of old, but it started playing when I was on hold with a Kroger pharmacy the other day at work so my love for it has been rekindled. hahahaha
3. "Wild Ones" - Flo Rida → because Harry Styles.
4. "Climax" - Usher
5. "Be Here" - Parachute
6. "Under Control" - Parachute
7. "The Remedy" - Jason Mraz → because of the fan fic I'm writing...don't judge
8. "Autumn Leaves" - Ed Sheeran (seeing him in concert April 4th)
9. "Ready to Go" - Panic! At The Disco → I listened to this a lot in the weeks leading up to surgery
10. "Fields of Gold" - Sting → blame my mother


Thanks for reading and please don't have nightmares about my pre-op video. haha
xo Peyton


PS - I survived the One Direction VIP ticket apocalypse and came out victorious. Come at me, June 26th.