Hello all,
My name is Courtney, and I am 3.5 weeks post op after having double jaw surgery, as well as genioplasty to correct my underbite. I just wanted to share my story in hopes that if someone is planning on having this surgery they can take away something helpful from it.
My story started 11 years ago when I was 14 and got my first set of braces. I went thorough about a year and a half of treatment, and ended up having to switch orthodontists. My new ortho informed us that my treatment was being done all wrong, and that I was in need of jaw surgery. I won't go through all the dramatics, but my parents ended up not having it done. So as I got older, and my receding jaw became more noticeable, I started having more serious symptoms. I woke up with headaches everyday, which would turn into horrible migraines. I couldn't talk very much, sing in the car, chew bubble gum, or eat some of my favorite foods without ending up with a headache that would stem from my sore jaw. I also developed a self esteem issue because of it, and I hated to get my picture taken, especially of my profile.
So finally, two years ago after I had graduated from college, I received a job with benefits. I FINALLY had health insurance, and could start the process to have the surgery I had waited years for. I had to wait until I had enough time off built up, and in the meantime also saved up the money. Then in June 2011 I got on my second set of braces, and was told that in about 6 months I would be ready for surgery. So on December 28th, 2011 at 2 p.m. when I was wheeled into the operating room the only thing I felt was a sense of achievement and excitement. That feeling didn't last long however...
I will say I was prepared to be in pain, but I wasn't as prepared as I thought I was. During surgery I lost 700 liters of blood, and most of that was swallowed, so lets just say it wasn't a very easy night. Because of all my blood loss they kept me in the hospital for 2 nights, instead of just the usual 1 night. During my stay in the hospital they kept me pretty comfortable, aside from the one day nurse who apparently thought it was fine to make me wait 8 hours past the time that I was able to receive my pain meds. When they finally sent me home I was more than ready for my own bed, and a full nights rest. The surgeon sent me home with percocet for pain, an antibiotic, and steroids. The rest I was hoping for did not happen, because apparently percocet gives me nightmares. So I ended up being switched to vicoden, but the sandman still did not grace me with his presence. To this day, I am still having troubles falling asleep. The surgeon claims this is a side effect of the anesthesia. I started back to work full time last Monday, and it was a rough one, but I made it through. The recovery has been a slow one, and I still have quite a ways to go before I am back to normal. I am happy to say that I am finally over the "poor me, why the heck did I do this to myself" stage, and onto the "oh yeah, finally results" stage. LOL. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask. Sorry for such a long post, and if you made it this far, thanks for reading my story. =)
Pics to come soon!
