Hey guys, so it’s been about a year (September 15, 2010) since I originally had my lower jaw broken and pulled forward, and had been meaning to share my story with those curious as to my experience with the recovery, and day to day life. First off let me apologise for the long read; a lot of stuff to cover.
Little about me, I originally had braces growing up, and ultimately the first orthodontist dropped the ball on fixing my massive over bite. Over the course of six years, he had managed to reduce it from 18mm to 12mm, and managed to straighten my teeth. However over the years my bite eventually reverted back to the 18mm and I once again looked like Goofy from Disney once more. I had spoken with my dentist about it and he recommended me to another orthodontist. After following up on his referral, I was given the game plan that included the removal of 8 teeth and breaking the jaw to completely fix my bite, thus began my great big adventure!
Fast forward 3 years, I had 8 teeth removed, and had my teeth aligned properly in my mouth, I just had to wait for the Operating Room to be open for the doctor. Being in Canada definetly made the wait time seem like it was never going to happen. After months on the waitlist, I was finally given a date, September 15! (I remember thinking “Oh great, right at the beginning of my final school year!”)
I remember the morning before the surgery was full of mixed feelings. I had plenty of time to psyche myself up, but as the minutes got closer and closer, I began to realize how surreal things were getting. I remember putting on a “tough face” for my mother, but I was still shaky. Luckily she managed to keep good humor and keep my mind preoccupied from the ever present “they are completely changing the way I look!”, “What if they screw up!?!”, and “What if I die?!?” thoughts that were running rampant through my head. The Nurse that walked me to the operating room kept up the humor, and thankfully the doctor, anesthesiologist, and other nurses present all had a good sense of humor too, made me feel more at ease. I remember joking and sharing a few laughs before they eventually knocked me out.
During the procedure they moved my lower jaw forward 18mm inserted two plates, and 14 screws to hold it in place, and four stiches (two on each side of the face). Needless to say when I woke up, I was not going to win any beauty contest. My chin and tongue were extremely swollen, and my mouth felt extremely dry due to me not being able to close it. I remember begging the nurses to get me a sponge, or wet paper towel to keep my tongue moist because it was so unbearable.
I only stayed one night in the hospital, and I was hooked up to an IV. I was getting pain killers injected every four hours, It was totally like clockwork; I would wake up, take the shot, and pass right out again. It was not bad until they wanted me to start drinking and swallowing liquids and pills. This was the most awkward thing I had to do. I had to attach a rubber tube to the end of a syringe, look up and struggle to swallow 1 CC of liquid at a time (this did last for about a week). My favourite part had to be when they brought in breakfast, and had a feast of pancakes, oatmeal, cereal, and pudding in front of me, looked at my face and then was like “Oh… maybe not”, picked it up and walked out.
After getting released from the hospital, they sent me home with Tylenol 3, and Zithromax (a pink goo that still haunts my dreams). The one thing I did learn is DO NOT under any circumstances grind up T3 into powder and try to ingest it with water, the taste alone will make you want to vomit. Later on I develop an infection called Thrush, and had to add another more terrible prescription to the mix. I would have to say that I was recovering quite well; walking around, talking with family and friends, before I did come down with Thrush, it was a major setback.
In terms of food, I really was not that hungry. Infections will really diminish your hunger. I tried things like soup in a blender, baked beans in a blender, and lots of liquids. But ultimately the colour and texture were very revolting (Mind you after weeks of starving, you will eventually start to eat anything, no matter how gross it looks and how slimy the texture; face it you get hungry). I had my Thanks giving meal in a blender; Turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and stuffing. I was told I could not drink it at the table because it looked so revolting. I did end up losing 20 lbs. in 6 weeks, I recommend getting the meal replacement drinks. I found a high calorie (400), high protein (35g) per drink that I drank 6 times a day for weeks that managed to keep me somewhat satisfied.
After two weeks of healing I headed off the orthodontist, where I was instructed to wear elastics on my braces. As bad as elastics seem I loved them. After sitting there for two weeks with your lower jaw just hanging there, the elastics allowed it to rest in the closed position. The first few days you do get easily tired from talking to people. I remember sitting there just nodding, because jumping in the conversations was just too taxing. At this point I was going back to class, and learnt that the 2 things to fear most were; 1- Yawning. 2- Sneezing. Long lectures and allergies were not going to help me avoid them at all.
It took about 6 weeks before I was given the go ahead to start eating solid foods again, and let me tell you! That first meal... WAY better then sex! My family made me ribs, and man oh man… those poor critters didn’t know what they had coming to them. I ended up eating 2 and ½ racks to myself, and don’t think I have taken solid food for granted since then. Don’t expect to be able to eat really crunchy or chewy foods for a while either, was a few weeks before I could eat salad, or chips, or bite into apples, however things like burgers, sandwiches, and lunch meats are very much doable. Just from a personal stand point, be cautious not to eat too much right away… I did notice I started to put on a little extra size in the gut. It took maybe 3 weeks before I was back at my normal weight, and people were no longer able to tell I had just undergone surgery unless I informed them.
Because of the time I had the surgery done, the time I felt I was able to shave Mo-vember had rolled around, and I opted to just let the facial hair keep growing for a charitable cause. However once it ended, I had to shave off the bad boy I had growing for a few months. Let me tell you, this will be the weirdest feeling of your life! I was terrified it was going to be hyper sensitive, or painful but it was not. The only way to describe it was “freaky”. It was kind of like a tickly pins and needles feeling, but not where the razor was. It wasn’t the best feeling; it was just “different”. I had doctors tell me to shave every day, and rub the eraser tip on the pencil where ever it felt numb, to help get the feeling back quicker. All in all the numbness was not really that bad, there were times where it would drive me mental having pins and needles throughout the entire lower half of your face, but it would go away fairly quickly. After about 6 months the feeling had completely returned, except for 2 spots witch are still a little numb, but I only notice it when it’s cold outside.
After the numbness goes away, there was really nothing else I noticed change from day to day life, you can eat, play sports, speak properly, and enjoy life!! Just the small adjustments with the braces now and again, but that’s a drop in the bucket compared to the earlier parts of the procedure. When family and friends as me “was it worth it?” I answer yes. When they ask “So would you do it again?” I’m quick to respond with “F*#% NO!” It is one of those things that you only want to do once! I do have some pictures I took from the before and during, I still have a little bit of time with the braces, so no after just yet!
To those who are undergoing the surgery, I wish you the best of luck. It’s a big step to improving your life, it’s not the easiest recovery, but just remember “The things worth doing are never easy!”.
