I’ll still respond just as quickly, and this will keep things nice and neat, so our exchange can help other people searching for answers too.

If you have any problems or questions about logging in or trouble with the forums, just contact me, and I’ll be glad to help you help others!

Do you mean that knob on your upper gum? Mine was huge for a few weeks, but it went down with the rest of the swelling. Has the rest of your swelling already gone down?

I know my surgeon said if that spot doesn’t go down (because again, it was huge!), then it’s just a simple shaving down that he can do, which sounds unpleasant, but he said it’s very quick, easy, and painless.

Second thoughts are definitely normal, I had thirds and fourths and fifths!

The numbness in my lips took nearly 6 months to return to 100%, but they were up to about 75% in only half that time. I can’t play the trumpet, but I would guess even at only 75%, it shouldn’t affect your playing too much, since I could feel everything by that point. It was really more of a tingling by then.

Of course, there’s always the risk of losing more, especially in your case, so it’s definitely worth bringing up your specific situation with your surgeon.

No problem, glad to help. I read the same thing about people having adjustment issues to their new appearance, but I’m assuming that’s in a very small percentage of cases in which the patients already had some issues to begin with.

I don’t know what the chances of nerve damage are, I’ll have to discuss with my surgeon. Just wondering if you had any issues with nerve damage or if you have lost any feeling in your face? How long did it take until you got feeling back in your lips again?

Not crazy at all, I was scared from the moment I first looked at the pamphlet, before even getting braces, haha. I don’t like needles either, but luckily, you’re completely unconscious during the whole surgery, so the only needle I encountered was when they ran a few pre-surgery blood tests about 2 weeks before the surgery.

Once you really begin the process, I think you’ll just push through like I did, then when surgery day comes, just get to the hospital and know that it will all be over in a few hours. I’ve said several times that I was terrified the morning of surgery, and my heart rate was through the roof in the last-minute pre-surgery tests, haha, but as soon as laid down in the surgery waiting room bed, they started feeding me the “happy gas” and next thing I knew, the surgery was over.

For the cheekbones, it depends on whether or not your surgeon feels the need to bring your upper jaw forward, which would also bring your cheekbones a little farther forward, making them more prominent. Some people only need one jaw moved though, depending on their specific bite.

The wired shut period is by far the most restrictive and frustrating, since it makes it harder to explain to people why you look like a swamp monster, haha.

So, once those 6 weeks are up, there will be a big improvement right away. That’s also around the time I started to get most of the feeling back around my lips, which takes care of the drooling dog syndrome that I definitely had too!

I hope that helps, and let me know how the un-wiring goes, or if you have any other questions.

Good luck!