Pre-op news

Hi everyone! I hope you all are enjoying spring as much as I am. I have lots to tell so I'll get started. First, last week (18th) I had my ortho appt and am sorry to say that the doc didn't have results for me. I was in and out of there in ten minutes. All they did was change my bands and left the wires in the way they were. This week on Tuesday I had my pre-op with the oral surgeon. The appt. took two and a half hours. They did more molds and yes they got very stuck again; I gotta warn the people who have tmj issues that it really hurts when they start yanking. I'm sure that when they are pulling on the molds it would hurt anyone for that matter. Prior to this I had told the assistant that the molds got stuck at the ortho appt and she said, "oh our molds rarely get stuck because we use a different material than the orthodontist". They did two sets for the top and bottom so I had to go through that four times. They also took their pictures, lots of measurements, and more molds with what looked like what can only be described as a caulking gun. My husband asked the doctor where he could get one and the doctor said well we could probably order one for you but it would be pretty expensive. By the end of the appt. they were pals and talking about carpentry work. Oh yeah, was wondering if anyone who has already had surgery had measurements taken with the thing that looks like a stethoscope with a compass on it? I was wondering if you knew what they were measuring with it? I didn't get a chance to ask because I had molds in my mouth at the time and forgot to ask after that. I thought maybe it was used to measure my upper jaw width and maybe my nose and cheekbones. After all of that I got to ask a lot of questions about the surgery. I asked him to describe to me exactly what he thought he was going to do. He told me he was going to do the BSSO (bilateral saggital split osteotomy) and the Le Fort 1 with possible multiple cuts. He will remove bone and push the upper jaw up to close the open bite and reduce my gummy smile. He said he won't know until he gets in there whether he's going to have to widen the upper jaw or not. He will move my upper jaw forward as well but he didn't say how much. He will remove bone from the right lower jaw due to asymmetry (the right side is longer than the left) and then move both sides back. He said the surgery would take about 3-4 hours depending on what he finds while he's operating. He told me my nose and chin are proportionate so nothing needs to be done there. I asked how long I would be in the hospital and he said some people go home the afternoon following surgery and some stay an extra day depending how they feel. We talked about the blood donation and he said he didn't think it would be necessary because in 20 years of doing this he's only had to transfuse one person. I explained my fears of receiving someone else's blood (HIV and Hepatitis) and he said the blood is very well screened and my risks were very low. He seemed very confident about this so I decided not to donate my own blood. He's also very confident that the surgery will eliminate my tmj pain (YAY!!!) but he can't promise anything (they say that to cover their butts). He also said I wouldn't notice if the tmj is better for 3-4 months (it might actually feel worse at first) but he thinks after that I'll notice a significant difference. I think that is very positive news and I am very hopeful. I'm not looking forward to more tmj pain than what I have now but I'm prepared and that's all that matters to me. I am really anxious about getting this over with; I only have 20 days left. I have almost everything I'm going to need for after the surgery. I am wondering though if it's possible for a dog to know that something is up because my dog Lucy has been extremely anxious and following me everywhere. She won't let me out of her sight. I feel bad for her because I can't help her understand. I'm sure she's feeling my anxiety and that's why she's acting like this. She's going to be heartbroken when I'm gone for a couple of days. The last time I left her she didn't eat the whole time I was gone (three days) and my daughter was there with her; I thought that with someone familiar with her the transition wouldn't be so bad. So, needless to say I am a little worried about Lucy. She will be with my son at my mother's and it will only be for about two days; so that's not too bad I guess. My kids are fine with everything although I don't think they realize how serious the surgery is; which is probably a good thing so they don't worry about it anyway. So anyway, that's it for now. Enjoy spring everyone!

Pre-surgery jitters

Only 29 days left 'til surgery and I'm starting to get really nervous. I am also anxious to hear what my orthodontist says about the mock surgery he and the OS performed. I have an appointment with him on Friday. I spoke to my OS office last Friday about the blood donation thing and the girl I spoke with said the doctor wanted to speak to me about that. I'm guessing he's going to tell me it's not necessary to do the donation. He was supposed to call me last Friday but never did so I'll call him again today. I will keep you posted about what he says.
Yesterday I had my teeth cleaned and the assistant said I was doing a very good job keeping everything clean. I guess being obsessed with keeping my teeth clean is really paying off lol.
The weather here is really shaping up; we are expecting to be hitting 70 degrees by the end of the week. My flowers are coming up like crazy, the leaves are budding, and the snow is almost gone. I plan on working outside all week to get the lawn cleaned up and looking nice again. So, gotta go so I can start the clean up. Will post again at the end of the week to let you know the results of the mock surgery. Have a good week everyone.

It's been awhile since I last posted. Just not a lot of changes to report. I have noticed slight changes in my bite but nothing significant. The snow is finally melting...WHOO HOO!!!!! We can see the ground again! I am so freaking happy to see the snow go. We went to Connecticut this weekend to see my husbands kids and to go to my step-granddaughter's first birthday party. She is the cutest little thing. It was nice seeing the kids again though. They're all grown up (24 and married with a child, 21 and 18) and do their own things now so we don't see too much of them while we're there. We did get to see the baby for a few hours before we left and spend some time with his daughter and her husband which was very nice. We always want to see them more but it's hard because it gets expensive. We did get to go to Cabella's to get a new fish finder for the boat. But, we have to take it back because it's missing parts. So, we have 30 days to take it back and we will get to visit the kids again. We are planning a camping trip for Memorial day weekend (9 days after my surgery) because my 21 yr old step-daughter and her friends are coming up to see us and want to go camping that weekend. We always start our camping season on Memorial day weekend with my family. Unfortunately, I don't know if I will be able to go. The campground we are going to is only a few miles away so if I'm not feeling well at that point I'm not going with them. Plus, we always bring the karaoke equipment and provide the entertainment for the campground; they will be very disappointed this year because I won't be able to sing and my husband doesn't sing so doesn't want to do it by himself. But, there are plenty of other things to keep them occupied. The campground has a paintball course, mini-golf, a pool, and go-karts. The kids love it there and I see no reason for us to change our plans. Who knows maybe I'll be feeling just fine and will be able to go. I'll just have to prepare myself for the looks I'll get from the people who don't know me when they see my swollen face; and probably the looks my husband will get lol. Poor guy. Hopefully I'll be able to talk clearly at that point so I can explain why I look beat up. My surgery is only 38 days away now. Hard to believe it's only a little over a month away; time is flying now. I have so many appointments coming up; 4/18 with orthodontist, 4/22 pre-op with OS, 5/6 pre-op with primary, 5/7 pre-op with tmj doc, and 5/13 surgical hooks. I have arranged for my kids to stay with family while I'm in the hospital because my husband is going to stay in Burlington so he doesn't have to travel so far. I don't know if they'll let him stay in my room with me. Probably not but I'll ask anyway. Luckily, my mom and my aunt live in the same area as me so the kids will be able to go to school as usual. My 16 year old thought they were staying home by themselves and I think he was a little excited about that idea because he was disappointed when I told him he and the dog are staying with his grandmother. My daughter will stay with my aunt. I will soon start buying my food for after the surgery. I think I am pretty well prepared for the whole thing. I just hope I don't get too nervous as the big day gets closer. There is just so much to do before. My biggest fear right now is that they will change the surgery date. Well that's it for now. Take care everyone.