Since I was about seven/eight years old I found out then later in my life I will need a jaw surgery, this did not really bother me as I was so young I didn't really understand why I needed it. Growing older, it became more clear that I had an under bite.
I met my surgeon when I was 15 years old so I would have been in year 10 at school, my surgeon explained what the surgery would consist of and used a model of a skull too demonstrate the surgery. Being so early for the surgery they could not predict what age I would be when it would be done and gave me the mark of me being 18 years old when the process will go through as my jaw could still grow and I still had not had braces and the braces would move my jaw out more.
I eventually got my top brace in November 2013, and got my bottom brace is May 2014. I also needed two teeth removed from my top jaw as it was too crowded to keep these two teeth in my mouth.
I got the impression that my brace would be off for the operation but turned out it would stay on whilst the process would go through (I still have it on now).
After waiting so long to know when this surgery would happen I finally got a date confirmed for the surgery to be on the 7th July 2015. The nerves kicked in as I realized it was actually reality and it was definitely going to happen. I was given an appointment card which consisted off just under ten appointments of which i had three before my surgery and a few after the surgery too and the first one was on June 4th. I also had to have a pre op which was to make sure I am 100% healthy for the surgery.
DAY BEFORE SURGERY:
Of course I was really nervous and it had not kicked in that it was the next day, I had friends around me which helped me keep my mind off it. My last proper meal of solid food was pizza and I was only allowed to eat up until midnight but I stopped eating at 9pm, I was allowed to drink tea/coffee/water until 6am.
SURGERY DAY & DAY AFTER:
I had to be at the hospital for 7am so I could be admitted, I had to fill in a form and was told I was first on the list and I would be seen from 8:30am and after that, this made me incredibly nervous and I kept panicking about it as I have wanted it for so long and I realized that this day will change me completely.
I went in about 9:45 am and I was out of the surgery by 13:15 pm. I felt very sick, my face was so numb and all I could taste was blood. They also took out all four of my wisdom teeth. At this point I wasn't extremely swollen and pain had not kicked in but I did feel very hungry. I had to spend one night in hospital and was on morphine which made me feel very sick and tired. I tried to get up to go toilet but got very dizzy and ended up throwing up blood three times and the elastic that kept my jaw shut together snapped but I was told this was normal. Eventually I got some sleep and was a lot more swollen the next morning and attempted eating some milky porridge which was difficult, I was then taken for an x-ray and then to my orthodontist downstairs, she put two elastics on my brace to keep my jaw mostly shut but I can open it if need be. I had some mash and ice cream for lunch which was a lot more manageable and also managed to walk to the toilet without feeling sick or faint. I was given pain killers and then discharged later that day.
FIRST NIGHT HOME:
My nose was incredibly blocked and swollen filled with dry blood this made it very difficult to breathe and irritating. Sleeping was also very difficult as I had to be sitting up to reduce bleeding and swelling. I very much had to be 'babied' by my family as it was difficult to do a lot of stuff on my own. I woke up about 9:30 am but had woke up a few times in the night as I needed to change my ice packs around my face as they got so warm, I also had hot and cold flushes but only had the window open as using fans dried out my skin and lips.
TWO DAYS AFTER SURGERY:
The swelling was so much worse, I had a bath and felt more refreshed but more pain kicked in which made it more difficult to handle. My nose was still blocked with dry blood (not allowed to blow). Sleeping was still such a task and being comfortable in general. I tried to drink as much water as possible and constantly put vaseline on my lips. I could start to feel the stitches in my mouth and the gaps from my wisdom teeth. I also decided to sit outside for about 20 minutes to get some fresh air.
DAY THREE:
I was told this would be the worst day for pain/swelling and discomfort, it was difficult but had no idea what to really expect. I kept getting hot and cold flushes and tried to distract myself by watching films, I started to get fed up by the routine of pain, medication, swelling, sitting there doing nothing and so on.
DAY FOUR:
The sleep from the night before was horrific as it was so painful, I also woke up extremely early and was in so much pain. I felt very sick and felt so boiling hot and just wanted to give up there and then as I started getting sick of it all. I realized that my 'day four' was what the doctors told me 'day three' would be. I did not talk as much on day four as I noticed that is probably what affected it so much with the pain, I also avoided eating as much as I really could not be bothered with the pain. I had been told by my family that the swelling had gone down a lot and I noticed bruising on my cheeks.
DAY 5:
Coming up to the one week mark! still so long to go though! On day 5, quite a lot of swelling had come down but bruising showed up on my cheeks a lot more and almost started on one cheek, flowed down onto my chin and neck and then up onto the other cheek. I slept a lot more on this day too. I woke up about 8am from noisy neighbors - typical! and I took my meds. I then fell back asleep till about 10:30 am, I walked around a little and felt a little sick so I went back to bed and fell back asleep till 12 pm noon. When I went downstairs my mum said that I looked a lot more brighter and better as I had more sleep and the swelling went down a lot more. I had chicken noodle soup (pretty much the only soup I like) and later around 2pm my dad took me out for a drive for a change of scenery and to get some fresh air which was nice to get out of 'staring at the same four walls' scene. I had an hour nap when I returned home as I felt so worn out - so unfit since this surgery! I stayed in bed and had 'dinner' in bed, I had pastina which is literally tiny pastina and it was put in the blender to make it a little more easier. I tried eating with a big spoon (stupid mistake) and found I was opening my jaw too much and although it didn't hurt at the time I knew I would pay for it the next morning so I decided to get a small spoon and a small plastic spoon to help, it just dried up by the time I did this which made it harder to eat the food so I left it. I did not eat much this day at all which was stupid. This day my lips were also extremely dry. I kept trying to put on vaseline but it would dry out really quick. I was reading a website seeing some tips for recovery and saw 'Dry skin and vitamin A+D original ointment' I have kept this in mind but am currently using baby oil which helps slightly and does not make my lips as dry in my sleep.
DAY 6:
In one day it would have been a week since I had my surgery. This has been an incredibly tough week, anyone who has already gone through this process I cannot wait till I can say the recovery is over! So on day 6, I had a rubbish sleep the night before coming onto day 6 and I woke up at 8 am -again! & I did not manage to get back to sleep because of my noisy neighbors - AGAIN?! some of them can be so inconsiderate drilling and building at these early hours! I had chicken noodle soup also again (living life on the edge), and had my meds as soon as I woke up. With the amount of water I have been drinking, I constantly need to wee but I am trying to keep myself as hydrated as possible. Also, when I sleep my nose becomes blocked from the blood and have to breathe through my mouth - (I've always preferred breathing through my nose) which is irritating as it majorly dries out my mouth. Also with still having to sleep sitting up does not make it anymore comfortable! I miss laying down :( I cannot wait for the day when my doctor says it is okay for me to lay down completely. Ever tried sleeping whilst sitting up? try it. Ever been told it's impossible to sleep sitting up? I once thought this, it is not impossible but it's not comfortable i'll warn you on that! For my lips my mum came home and bought me 'Blistex Relief Cream' it's good for dry lips! When I put it on it made my lips feel cooler which was nice and refreshing! - speaking of refreshing I am missing brushing my teeth! Using mouthwash everyday does not completely help and it is not the same feeling!
On day 6, my teeth felt very weak particularly my bottom set of teeth. It was like a very annoying feeling as if my braces had been tightened - have not missed that. My top lip also felt like it kept sticking to my brace and it was really hurting the stitches. All I wanted to do at this point was to just sleep.
DAY 7: ONE WEEK!
I would say 'it has gone so fast' but that would be lying. The one who is in pain or going through the process feels like it takes ages where as it is so fast for everybody around them. Anyways, so I had a bit of a better sleep night 6 to day 7, I woke up once in the night to adjust my head and have some water, then I woke up about 7:30 am and fell back asleep till 9 am, mum then came in and had my morning meds for me, I did feel a bit 'crappy' this morning, I decided it was a good idea to talk a lot of the evening of day 6 and payed for it this morning. After I took my meds, I sat there on my phone and chilled out. Eventually the sleepy mode came back on me (as my meds make me incredibly sleepy) I fell asleep about 11 am woke up a few times but eventually fully woke up at 1 pm, I still felt so tired but I had some soup as I had not had anything to 'eat' (I say eat but its more drinking I guess if it's liquid haha) yet. So I had soup - no surprise there. I had the television off and have tried not to talk loads as I do not really want to have the same pain I had yesterday. Talking takes up a lot of energy and makes you very tired after a while, it will just hit you randomly. When I have baths, I feel so much better afterwards even though I do not do much as it is. I tend not to have showers as I have been advised not too as of the pressure of the water going near my jaw, also I can still be dizzy when I stand up which would not be handy in a shower.
Numbness:
Chin: Middle of my chin is completely numb but if I tap it, I know I'm tapping my chin, Sometimes the right side of my chin across my jawline does not feel as numb but today it does, my left side always feels numb. My bottom lip is numb in a way but I feel it a lot more if I touch it and gives a tingly sensation when I do touch it. My actual top lip is the same sensation as the bottom lip but just on top of my lips,under my nose is more numb on the right side and feels more bruised on the left side. My right cheek is numb in places but I get this weird tingly sensation if I stroke my fingers across my cheek (maybe I might be lucky and get feeling back quicker), the left cheek is kind of the same but not as much feeling. My nose is numb and I hate this feeling of a numb nose and dry nostrils, it feels tight on my nose. Under my left eye is not so numb to be honest but under my right eye is still fairly numb and it feels horrible.
Sore lips:
So as the day went on by, my lips was just so swollen and dry. Remember that Vitamin A+D ointment I was recommended? My mum ordered it the day before and it came on day 7, it works a treat, I will leave a link so you can find it. It is great and I would definitely recommend it. It stays on your lips longer unlike the vaseline.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B005OUTLI8?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00 - this the the link to ointment above.
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