6 Weeks Post-Op with Some Good News!

As you may have inferred from my previous post, as of this past Friday I am now free of both skeletal wires which (if you didn't know) were going into my gums at the front of my upper and lower jaws.  Now, they may not have hurt while they were in, but the removal........OUCH.  Not only did the 7ish numbing shots burn/sting/pinch/kill my gums, but I could STILL feel when she (yes, she -- it was a girl resident this time........OH, SAD OCCASION!) finagled the lower one out. Imagine someone stirring the inside of your gums up with a fork. Yeah. Removal of the top one, however, didn't hurt as much since some of that gum tissue is still numb from surgery - fine by me! My other grandma went with me this time and she actually had to turn away from my chair while they carried out the removal - LOL I thought she was going to pass out!  Apparently I didn't inherit my strong stomach from her.

So once my gums were all bloody and skeletal wire-free AND my lips looked like they'd received some heavy-duty botox injections, I got to see my surgeon.  My bite still looks great and I actually remembered to ask him about measurements. My top jaw was moved forward 5 millimeters and lower was moved back about 4 millimeters, which means there was almost an entire centimeter of discrepancy to begin with! I'll never understand how I functioned like that.

And here is the fabulous news. The phrase I had been waiting to hear since the July 31st, 2011 (the day before surgery.) I have official surgeon-recommended permission to resume a normal diet now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:)

Hearing those words was like hearing angels sing, I kid you not. I had anticipated having to wait another couple of weeks before I'd be given permission for that. So after the appointment, we celebrated with a meal at Cracker Barrel - meatloaf (I see you turning your nose up, but CB has the best meatloaf in the entire universe), biscuits, baked apples, dumplins, and green beans. DELISH! And since I was back in my home town, we of course saw 80 billion people we knew there. Such aspects of small-town life I am definitely already missing.

I am still wearing elastics, but it's a new configuration that isn't anywhere near as tight as the old one. Small steps!!!!! (Seems to be my motto throughout this process. haha) Also, now that I am eating like a human being again, pudding has gone back to being the most disgusting item in my fridge. I don't know if I'll ever finish my last 6 cups.

I also posted a new video a few days ago, so check it out here: Double Jaw Surgery: 37 Days Post-Op

Thank you for the nice feedback if you've been one of the contributors. :) Every encouraging comment means a lot!

Peyton

One Month & Two Days Post-Op

Absolutely nothing new happened at my appointment 2 days ago, which is why I haven't made a post this week. I have, however, started chewing again. :O At previous appointments, they have made a point of telling me to NOT chew yet, but at this one nothing was mentioned about my diet. I took that as my cue to just experiment with what I feel comfortable eating, which is probably not completely within the rules but...I'm a lover of food. VERY soft foods only though, so I'm not causing any harm. Macaroni & cheese, ravioli, powdered donuts, eggs/omelets, SOFT french fries, mashed potatoes, green beans, cheesecake, dumplins from Cracker Barrel (mmmmmm!), and even some soft breads. Nothing too extravagant, but it feels like I've climbed Mount Everest on my way to this point in recovery. For some of you who've been through or are going through recovery, it may seem a little early for me to experiment with actual foods already but I'm being slow and cautious with my chewing. Still feeling a bit guilty since I didn't technically ask for permission to do this, but my bite hasn't been affected and I'm still wearing elastics like I'm supposed to. It's not like I'm about to go bite into an apple or anything. Small steps.

First college football game as a student! :)

The final major step in this whole process will be the removal of my skeletal wires, which are the ones that are apparently going into my gums in 2 places, yet managing to not be painful. I don't understand it but I'm thankful they haven't really bothered me. They will be removed one week from today! After that, I'm free to go to the orthodontist and hopefully hear an estimate of how much longer I'll be in braces.

Another weird factoid I feel like I should mention is that I've been waking up randomly in the middle of the night (almost every single night), and I can feel myself trying to open and stretch my jaws while still in elastics and half-asleep. It's not comfortable to work against the tension of the elastics, so I have no idea why I do it. Just thought I should throw it out there in case someone else has done this too during recovery. I hope it stops soon. :/

That's all I have for now. I'm home now to enjoy Labor Day weekend with the fam. Here's a pic of me with my 2 full siblings, Ty (15) and Camdyn (12).