Wow....this has been a tough 4 weeks of recovery. I am 34 and female from Denver, CO. I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea about 2 years ago. In my diagnosis, I was unwilling to wear a CPAP and did not qualify (due to severity) of the dental appliances. In my quest of seeing multiple specialists, found the answer in having the MMA surgery for both upper and lower jaws. This was not an easy decision to make, but due to my age and the fact I have not had children yet, I felt this needed to be done for me to live a normal life.
I found a surgeon who specialized in this type of surgery and who actually consistently does this type of surgery more than 5 times each week. I just recently had my surgery on Oct. 11, 2010. My total movement forward was 14mm, and what a difference it made. The first week of recovery was awful. I spent 3 nights in the hospital, and than was brought home. I would say the first 2 weeks were bad, just getting the pain under control, and enough to eat was difficult. The swelling was enormous, as expected, but gradually has come down. I had a splint in for the first 3 weeks. They took it out early because I was losing too much weight. (I started at 130 pounds). So I could move to soft foods sooner. Just having to be very careful in not chewing.
I was very scared pre-op in what all to expect, etc. I feel now that was the worst part of this process....the couple weeks leading up to the date. Now it is all behind me and I am on my road to recovery.
What I feel now is: feels like my soft palate is burnt (like eating food that is too hot), numbness on my right side of my mouth and nose. Smile is not back yet, but can see more muscles starting to work as they wake up from the numbness. Each day I see something more coming back to life. I still have some swelling close to my mouth, chin, and nose area. But people who do not know me, probably would not notice anything strange about me. I still wear my bands on my braces when I am not eating. And have my last meeting with my surgeon on Tuesday, before I drive back to Colorado.
Feel so far this surgery has totally been worth it for me. I feel it has corrected my sleep apnea. I am no longer snoring, or awoken at night due to not breathing. I will know for sure in 3 months, when I do another sleep study. My airway size was tripled!!!
If anyone who is doing this for sleep apnea reasons, and has questions, let me know. I would be more than happy to help! Christina :)
