Hi all, long await for all those who have been waiting for my post on the actual jaw surgery day!! Here I pen down all my thoughts, emotions, struggles and hope to get encourgements to push through each day🤘
The purpose of this jaw surgery: To make teeth meet, jaws aligned to give a proper bite. You’ll get ALOT of negativity from people, but you know what is good for you.
I’ve not been posting recently due that I’m feeling all so jittery from getting nearer and nearer to surgery date. I’ve researched so much, read so much blogs and took the courage to watch one YouTube video to know how it’s done (stupid me to scare myself) 😩😩
I think I’ll summery the days all in one post? You guys can come back to this post to read up more updates day by day as I do not want to flood my baking posts with surgery details. Here comes ALL ungalm photos!
22nd Nov 2017 – Wednesday
Day 1 : 4 pre-molar teeth were removed, upper jaw about 6mm backwards, lower jaws about 4mm backwards and chin 5mm forward to give me a proper profile. (I’ll confirm the details again after I’m getting better) It was really traumatic and horrible day out of the surgical theater, when they woke me up right after the surgery. The pain was intense, 8/10 I would say, I could feel the pain of the bones broken and my face is so hot and burning that I’m sweating so much because blood were gushing in my face, the cells are trying to heal…. I’m drifting in and out of conscious and they keep calling my name! I was transferred to the ICU, I couldn’t really breathe and they gave me oxygen (Lucky no bubble tea straw inside my nose luh).
I vomited 3 bags of blood, (the effects from general anesthesia, the smell of blood is so raw and disgusting! ) they then injected anti-vomiting medicine through my IV drips and that got me better immediately. Bear with it. The worst is always at day 1 (That’s what everyone says). The doctors came and told me everything went well without complications! Oh~ ice packs!! They are very good relieve, keep asking for them if you feel pain and hot in your face!
Day 2 : Today is the day where I should be out of ICU but they couldn’t get me a A class ward so I downgraded. I hate staying in the ICU where there’s no tv and I can’t use the phone, awakening by noises of the machines and nurses every now and then, starring into blank spaces 😡. I agreed to downgrade to a B class ward.
Seeing all messages of encouragements brightens my day and the will to move on. These are people from all over the world who needs or have a jaw surgery. Join their Facebook page, share experiences and ask questions.
When everyone doesn’t understands why I’m going through this and keeps relating to cosmetic surgery, there are so many who understands why we have to go through this. Of cos, and my husband who has been there for all my medicinal appointments and hospital stays 😄
Lots of drooling because my mouth is too swollen to close up… I tried drinking with a straw for the first time after transferring to the B ward. I can’t drink well because my face muscles are all so swollen that I couldn’t sip. So I used a tubing syringe. I was on drips and medications was injected in drips, it became so painful on the 2nd day that the nurses say they had to poke another vein otherwise it might cause infection in that vein. I told her to gave me oral medications instead, and the doctor approved! Now, introducing “food” into your stomach after 2 days without food is tough, i thought i could drink but my throat is just starting to “reopen” and my stomach trying to re-accept food into it. Just keeps practicing! You need food and plenty of rest to recover!
Looking like some freako with splint and a wired shut mouth
Day 3 : i couldn’t believe how well I slept (2 and 4 hours) in my B1 ward (luckily, reading the post of others experience, they could only sleep 2 hours each time on Week 1), there weren’t much disturbance and my breathing is getting ALOT better! Very much progress for a day 3 I guess? Pain has became very much non existence other than some throbbing/pressure headaches. I felt some soreness from the stitches and I drank more fluid today, hoping they’ll remove my drips today. If all is well, they will discharge me on Friday. I want to sleep and recover comfortably at home.
Day 4 : Back at home for recovery. Slept from 10.30pm to 4.30am. My face is super oily, keeps oozing out oil. Felt pins and needles on my lips on and off, and I could feel the soreness of the stitches in my mouth now. Recovery was painful.
Day 5: Felt some pain from the stitches in the middle of the night, and hungry as well. Woke up this morning, made myself a glass of milk and cook some cauliflower potato soup, hoping I’ll get more nutrients and better appetite. I looked so HORRIBLE with blood stains on my mouth that i can’t clean.
Day 6: Sleep deprived… 4.30am and this is my 3rd waking up since my sleep from 11pm. I dreamt that I was so hungry, walked passed cheers and went in to look for food. Grab a bag of super thin chips and started munching them, amazed at how I able to chew them, then I suddenly realized I have wired teeth and a splint (how the hell am I able to chew?) I woke up choking in real life and coughing on my saliva. Each time I wake up, I’m feeling stinging pain in my stitches and a super uncomfortable stomach from all those medications.
I cried really bad again today. I skipped the painkillers thinking I should be ok without them, now the pain is super intense that my tears just keeps dropping uncontrollably 😢 I’m back to painkillers…
Day 7 : Found an information site on jaw surgery, I recommend for all who plans to do this to read about it.
http://blog.profilosurgical.com.au/blog/jaw-surgery-your-questions-answered
My first appointment back at the clinic, Dr Lye tried cleaning my teeth today, stretching my mouth little to clean the inner part off the teeth. The sides of my lips CRACKED! OMG~ that was painful…. When you thought the worst was over, there is more to come 😥 my worst fear are the braces and bands again.
Dr Tan says he love profile and that it’s a job beautifully done! He kept telling Dr Lye “Jin Sui hor?” Wells, at least he’s pouring all the positive sprinkles into my brains during this tough recovery period.
They took my X- trays today and I finally get to see what’s inside me. I think there’s 6 cuts on my bones with 8 sets of plates. Now I feel like I’m Ironman 🤣🤣
~”~
16 days post op
Visited the Dr Winston Tan today because Dr Lye is not around. He released more rubber bands from my mouth, but cannot release my wires yet. He says my surgery is more complicated than others as there are more broken bones compared to a normal jaw surgery (urgh~~ I hate the thought of how badly deformed my bones are.) One part of the bones which is held only with 1 plate is still shaky, and not healing yet, therefore he doesn’t want to risk removing the extra wires. The reason for one my 1 plate is that he didn’t want to damage my nerves over that area as there are much more nerves around there.
Removal of splint somewhere around after week 1
Here’s some detailed explanation of what they had done to me on one of the broken bones.
Im still not allowed to chew and still on liquid diet, maybe soft with I can try to open mny mouth a little… (Sigh…..)
He asked me to start practicing to open my mouth and practice my bite. I tried, but my mouth wouldn’t open! The muscles around my cheeks are so tight and yet I wouldn’t want to force it in case I damage part of my face muscle and get permant numbness. I tried warm towel massages and all, but nothing seems to work! Doctor Tan says it well take a while and that I have to be patience.
~”~
24 days post op
Time flies…. It’s nearly a month to my recovery process. Friends who saw me said I looked so different. I felt I looked the same other than losing that double chin and chubby cheeks. (I had 4 teeth removed lor)
My top wire band has been removed on week 3 (goodness! It’s eating into my gums all the time!)
As my rubbers get loosen, and cleared to eat soft food (that can be mashed with your tongue, no actual biting yet, just practice with soft food), my jaw joints and head hurts at night when I try to sleep. It was so bad that I had to constantly take painkillers but still it did not ease that headache. Doctor says my muscles are not ready to support yet therefore he added 2 more rubber bands to ease that jaw muscles.
I found that i’m constantly admiring my side profile pictures and starting to fall in love over it 😍😍, the symmetrical profile that I had always longed for.
Flipping back my old photos, I made some comparisions..
The clinic has taken photos of me before surgery (non edited and non angled). I realised after braces, my face muscles proportion has changed!) How bad are my slated jaws duh…!!
Before pic:
I looked more fierce and totally non approachable when I don’t smile (but I’m not!).
I looked like an auntie (even people says it’s not)
I looked tired no matter how much eyelash and make up I try to put. Duh!!
My lips just WOULDN’T close and thus causing crack and dry lips.
I’ve got a “double chin” because of the receding chin.
My side profile is not symmetrical.
Next moving on .. to recovery tips on my next post!
JUDY BAKES 