Here's a couple pictures of me 2.5 years post-op. I don't even think about my surgery anymore. In fact, the only time I think about it is when somebody posts on my blog. I'm still happy I did the surgery. I'm turning 40 this month!! Happy Birthday to me!! :)
Good luck to everybody who is getting ready to have surgery. It'll be worth it.
On a side note, I finally graduated from nursing school in June 2011!! Aimee Pickens, RN.
I doubt anyone is still reading this blog, but in case you are...it's been six and a half months since my jaw surgery so I thought I would put some pictures up. I still have my braces on and no idea when I will be getting them off, but everything is going great. I'm very happy I had the surgery done.
Last night I kept waking up to two of my teeth sliding off each other and my bite settling with a big CLICK. I looked at those teeth this morning and it totally looks like the top one just wore the bottom one down and has fit itself into place. Does that make sense? This doesn't seem right. Has anyone else experienced this? My whole bite just feels completely weird. And does anyone know exactly what the rubber bands are doing? I didn't even ask. I have one on my left side on 3 upper teeth and one on the right side on 2 upper teeth. Are they moving teeth or moving jaws? I hope my teeth aren't getting ruined with all this rubbing and grinding. I'm so fed up with all of this.
My face is still swollen and looking like a "stone face." I'm not too thrilled about any of this right now. The ortho said that it takes 3-6 months for the swelling from upper jaw surgery to go away. It seems like most everyone's swelling is gone by 6 weeks though. At least most of it. I'm definitely not at the point where I'm super glad I had this done. My smile is weird too. It looks forced and stoney. Grrrr.....
Yesterday I went to the orthodontist for an adjustment. They put new wires on the top and bottom and gave me new rubber band configurations. My ortho was looking in my mouth and checking out my bite and said to himself, "That man is a genius." (Referring to Dr. Relle) I guess my bite was pretty messed up, especially the top jaw. So the ortho is happy with the way things are looking.
I'm still trying to get used to my new face. The swelling is still there. It is pretty bad today. Advil helps to bring it down, but it's only temporary. Some days I think I am happy with the results (cosmetically) and other days I'm not. Some days I just feel like it's not me and this chubby face is just weird looking. :)
P.S. I ate some pasta today and tried to chew a little just to see what it felt like, and it felt so WRONG. Teeth on the bottom were hitting teeth on the top in all the wrong ways. It felt so unnatural. Dr. Paz mentioned that I have a crossbite (the reason for the rubberbands). I hope this can be fixed because it feels really bad.
Today is 5 weeks and 3 days post-op. My swelling is slowing going down. And I do mean slowly. My bottom lip is still pretty numb and so is my chin. I can tell the feeling is starting to come back though ~ it's not dead numb like it was. I'm still getting used to my face, especially when I accidentally catch my reflection in a mirror or a window. It's weird. I'm still waiting to see the final result.
I am sick of rice and beans and don't know if I will ever eat them again. Lately I have been eating Indian food. It's just a matter of time before I get sick of that too, I'm sure. I've also been mashing up avocado and eating that. And I've been eating lots of pancakes. Lots and lots of pancakes. I can't wait until I can bite into a big fat slice of pizza with tomato, garlic, and basil. Yum.
I'm actually kind of nervous to chew. I can imagine it is going to feel very weird.
I'll post a picture soon. I haven't taken any lately. (My chin is tingling like crazy right now) Goodnite!
I think I'll start with the pain first. Last night I had the worst pain so far. It almost brought me to tears. The roof of my mouth and all my teeth and jaws were aching like crazy. I'm guessing it's because the nerves are waking up and I'm not as numb. I'll take the numbness over the pain any day. I took 2 Advils and the pain went away and I feel fine today.
So last night I was starving as usual. I cannot get myself to eat blender food or smoothies. It just doesn't appeal to me. We had gotten a pizza for the kids and I couldn't resist. Did you know you can eat pizza without chewing it? I broke it in little pieces and was able to eat it. It was delicious. Today I thought I would try pancakes. Yum. No chewing required.
I'm still swollen. I'm trying to be patient, but it's frustrating. I find that when I take Advil, the swelling goes down for a bit, but
then it comes back.
You can see in this picture how my chin used to veer to the left (and how long it was). 
Once I can smile normally, I will post a picture. I still have a lot of stitches that pull when I smile. I'm wondering if they are going to fall out by themselves or if they will have to be removed.
