another adjustment=1 step closer

So today I had another adjustment. I always look forward to them, because it means another step closer to being DONE!!! Of course the girl next to me was gettin her braces off....lucky duck, but i know my day will come soon enough!

So today i got the wires changed. Lower is just regular but goes all the way to the back, where as last time it went to my 2nd back molar. Upper it a little funny, right side is same as last time where it goes to my 2nd last molar, but left side it only goes to my molar. The wire ends there and then theres just bracket. Im assuming he is trying to get my teeth from the molar back to move themselves as they are a good 3-4 mm wider than the lowers, hopefully this will work a tad becasue the word "buttons" was used today....and i have read horror stories from other people that have buttons. But im at the point now that whatever has to be done has to be done...i will not settle for less than 101%. My ortho mentioned how not many of my teeth are touching in the back and hed like to get them at 90%.....90% WHAT, are you kidding me, there will be NO 90% in my mouth, i will not settle for less than 101%...so we are definitely gona have to discuss that, even if it means wearing the braces longer.

I have another new elastic configuration that i can tell my teeth already dont like. I was so nice for the last 4 weeks to just wear then 10 hrs a day, but i shoulda guessed that wouldnt have lasted, lol. Now i have Fred on the left from my 2nd last molar to the molar beside the eye, so over 3 teeth, and lower is the 2nd back molar and the 3rd. That has to be worn 24/7. This is to pull the teeth together more as they arent touching like they are on the right. Im looking forward to this as my right side is getting alot of exercise as im only chewing with it. Right side is just 10 hrs again, so it gets a break and its 2nd last molar to 2nd last molar....or wait a minute, man i think i forgot, i better call the office tomorrow, woops, lol. I knew that was gona happen when they didnt put it on for me, lol.

Anyways everything else is good, next surgeon and ortho are in the new year...hopefully ill have more feeling and eating progress before the new year to update on!

Happy Birthday to me, the big 27!

So im finally 27!!! and so glad im lookin younger, care of a great surgery!!!

So things are doing well...i have posted some pics i am at 10 weeks tomorrow...wow time flies. You probably cant note in the pics but there is still a tad of swelling. Seems its down when i wake up but by night i guess after using my jaw all day for eating and talking the swelling returns. Hopefully this will stop into 3 months cuz its a bit annoying.

Eating is GREAT, getting easier day by day. I still cant open too wide, but its getting better the more i practice. I can still only chew on the right side as the left side teeth dont touch, but im sure that will happen soon with braces adjustments. I can say im happy where i am in recovery so far, lets hope it stays this way!!!

I have an ortho appt next monday, well see if hes gona keep trying to get my left eye teeth to touch more or if he will work on closing the back molars...always a thrill to see what's next on the ageda. I dont see the surgeon until the new year so thats good as well.

Talking is getting easier as well, but i still am having problems with R's...did you other fellow post op bloggers experience this? How long did it last. i find like the swelling talking is easiest when i first wake up but by night my words are slurred. Since im over 2 months now i thought this would be normal again but still quite hard.

Dont mind the pics i took i was being a superstar for my b-day and doing my poses, lol.

Happy birthday no Shontell as well, we have the exact same b-days, kewl eh!!!

2 months post op!!

So im officially 2 months post op today, yipee! I got to celebrate by seeing the surgeon who said im right on track and everything looks great! I asked about eating, and he said i could eat whatever i could tollerate, but honestly i wouldnt be able to eat everything i want due to things being crunchy and not being able to open wide...but all in time right. I have to see him in 3 weeks again, so just after the new year.

Things are good overall, still a bit of swelling lingering, hopefully by 3 months it will be mainly gone. i took some pics again at 2 months, see if u notice a difference. Honestly i cant wait until the swelling goes away to see the new me, soooo excited.

I also got my results from bloodwork i had done today. I had a little scare there a week ago as my platelets were very low, at 62,000 where they should be 150,000-400,000, so my dr was worried about bleeding not clotting and bruising. The results today found me to be at 141, 000 so better but still not where i should be. I got back in another 2 weeks for another test, hopefully we can figure out whats causing this.

Tomorrow is my cardiologist appt to see about my murmur and racing heart. Will be nice to get that sorted out as well.

So thats about it now, swelling is the same, numbness is the same, lol...cant wait for that to end. Ill post more pics from this weekend, im going out to PARTY for my b-day next week!!!! Should be good times to get out drinking and dancing and back into civilization, wish me luck!

weekly news

So Im officialy back at work, Im actually here now...work 7pm-7am, and its rough. luckily its only 3 days in a row then 2 off, but it has been quite hard. Im still very tired, and around 2am im beat, and just struggle to make it the rest of the way. Its also hard getting proper food etc at work, but im managing so far. Swelling seems to puff up by the end of my shift, probably cuz im so tired and trying to fight the sandman, but at least when i sleep it seems to be gone again then re-occurs.

Movement in my face is getting better, however speech is still hard...i dont know if im not trying to pronounce things enough, or if im stuck with sounding like Elmer Fudd...you wascally wabbits...lol. Everyone thinks its cute...but i dont really want to be almost 27 and cute, lol.

The few people i have seen on night shifts seem to think i look very different, which is odd becasue i dont. I have been comparing before and after and think there are very minimal differences. Its more a bite difference for me rather than cosmetic and how i look. I think they just see that im still swollen and thats why they think i look different. I will be nice to see what they think in a few months from now.

Jaw wise im in a little pain, well more of a constant ache and stiffness in my jaw from it being used. I also am still quite swollen inside on the left where it has been bugging me for a while. I had a peek in with a flashlight and theres so much bubbly scar tissue and its really rubbing on my braces. I counted 3 canker sores in there...luckily i still dont feel too much, but i feel enough to know they are there and hurting. I have been using salt water rince, this numbing ointment and wax. Seems to be helping a bit, hopefully they will be gone by next week.

I will try to take another picture soon, i have been slacking on taking a weekly picture, so ill try to keep doing that.

Also just wanted to say how jelous i am of Brandy who got her braces off...doenst she look amazing...i can only HOPE my teeth look that great and WHITE when my braces come off!!!!

Pampering yourself

Now this is something that is definitely needed after surgery, a pamper fest. So with that i got my hair trimmed, dyed it myself and to top it off got a massage today on my back! Man did it feel good. My back, neck and shoulders have been through a lot lately. I have to go back in another 2 weeks because my back was in that rough a shape.

Things are going well recovery wise. Feels weird not always wearing elastics though. It still feels like they are in when they aren't because i still cant open that wide. But its also nice not having them at the front rubbing and looking icky when talking to people.

I have taken some good pictures of my bite, got as close as i could without it getting blurry, u can compare and see how my bite aligns now and is close. U can see my mid lines are off a tad, but that will be fixed in the upcoming ortho adjustments. Thats it for now folks, hope all the American bloggers out there are having a happy thanksgiving weekend!

Finally some movement!

So i had my surgeon's appt yesterday, it was quick and simple...teeth are extra clean, really? Hm and i havent even been able to floss or brush at the back properly, but if you say so. Bite looks good, see you in 2 weeks again...I mentioned quickly that the left side inside is hurting a lot, feels like the gums are pulling to the max and the braces are almost embedded in my gums, as there is less room than the right side. The surgeon said its just from swelling and scar tissue, not to worry....but i left somewhat unsatisfied as it HURT, and i was hoping he could offer a solution.

So today was my first adjustment post op and let me tell u i was like a kid in a candy store, i was so excited i hardly slept last night, imagine that. So he said my bite is amazing, a little work to do at the back, but i shouldnt need the braces on for more than 6 months....which he had estimated previously, he even said it should be less than 6 months, woooooooooooooooooohooooooooooooo.

So today he replaced the wires, and i removed the surgical hooks, which was great, finally get rid of unwanted excess hardware thats not serving a purpose anymore. So the top wire has a bend at my front teeth as one is slightly more forward and one seems longer, however my roof was expanded caused this, but not to fret, since my adjustment at 10:40am they are aligned, however ones still longer.
He also didnt put the wires all the way to the back bracket, he left the last molar free, which will help the left side to heal inside, and no more rubbing. Again this has eased the pain 10000% since i have left and my mouth is happy on that side.
Lastly he changed my elastics configuration...now im wearing the strongest elastic on the left side from the first 2 brackets so eye and molar to the lwoer 2 first brackets, again eye and molar. (Fred, heavy 6oz) This is to pull the teeth down a bit on the top as there is a slight space. And in order for the there side not to relapse, i have the lightest band from eye to eye tooth. (Elliot, medium 4oz) I was wearing Bear (4.5oz) since surgery so Fred and me arent the greatest of friends as of yet, lol. Best part of this configuration is that i only have to wear it 10 hours each day!!!! So i think ill prefer that to be when im sleeping....is that great news!!!!!!!!!!!!

So im a bit sore now, more of an overall pressure feeling and my joints are definitely feelin it. Its not the usual soreness since i dont feel anything, which im almost thankful for cuz that one elastic on the left is sooooooooooo strong and thick.

So Surgeon is 2 weeks again and ortho is 4 weeks, im glad things are moving along and theres more progress!

quick update

Things are going well in the healing, recovery department. First I'm going back to work next Monday, yes its about time, but I'm still slightly worried as i still talk a little funny and my face doesn't move that much, so I'm bound to be asked questions, ah well good exercise for the jaw right.

On other notes, feeling is coming back but man is it sensitive. My teeth ache when i brush them now, its a hard feeling to describe, somewhat like having a million cavities and the toothpaste is like chocolate being smeared all over the cavities...also i feel this when i moisturize in the am, i could touch my chin and my teeth go crazy, very weird feeling, but promising that the nerves are doing their thing, oh how the body works mysteriously.

I have an appt with my surgeon tomorrow will be good to see how things are going. The most exciting day this week will be wed, when i get my first ortho adjustment post-op!!!! I have tons of questions to ask....hows it looking? How much longer will all this last, etc etc. So I'm defo looking forward to that.

Other than that, just trecking along, doing my exercises and all. Eating had gotten somewhat easier, hardest part is getting the food in there, has to still be cut small, and it will take some time before my bite is used to its new location for chewing...but its looking promising!