So, I am now not sure if today should be Day 7 or Day 6 (I am not sure if surgery day, Tue, should be day 1 or if Wed really should have been), but I guess it really doesn't matter much. I guess I'll stick with Day 7 to be consistent. So, anyway, today I went to see the surgeon for my first real post-op visit (I did see him a few times in the hospital after the surgery as well) and it was really nice to finally get out of the house (even though it was rainy and miserable). So, I don't think I mentioned that on Days 5 and 6 three of my four rubberbands snapped. I didn't bother trying to put them back on since I was seeing the Dr today, but mainly b/c it felt so nice to have them off. Well, the surgeon said everything was looking really good, but I was still not fitting into my splint properly. :( So, he once again pushed on my jaw like crazy and I had felt like I had to push my jaw so far forward to get it to fit. He put so many rubberbands on and they are sooo tight that now I cannot open my mouth at all. I am extremely frustrated and actually got upset once the doctor left the office. And trust me, its just not good to get upset, everything starts to get swollen and congested. So, I am glad I was able to calm myself down pretty quickly. But, I did talk to him about how I have been kinda panicky at night. I have been able to breathe thru my nose (have gotten a tiny bit congested) but I think I am just so scared that I am going to wake up in a panic b/c I can't breathe. This leads me to not sleeping much thru the night (in addition to not being able to get comfortable). He prescribed me some valium to take at night. I am hoping this will really help, especially now that I really can't breathe thru my mouth hardly at all.
I guess my biggest question is did anyone else have a splint and their mouth banded shut this tight? I know I shouldn't second guess and they know what they are doing (I mean this is all they do), but I just can't help it. I am also feeling like my swelling looks so bad. I looked back at a lot of peoples pictures and I feel like I am not making as much progress. And at first I thought I wasn't as bad as most were. I also just feel like my bottom jaw area looks too far forward. I guess I just need to calm myself down and realize that they know what they are doing. For god's sake, they are cosmetic surgeons as well. And I am still very swollen on the bottom whereas my top jaw is not swollen at all (b/c i only had the bottom jaw done) so I think this is making it look VERY out of balance. But, it is hard to not worry. I mean, this is my face! Well, with all that said, I am not going to post pictures just yet of how I am looking with the bandages off. Maybe I will feel more up to it later.
Oh, I guess the one good thing is that it sounds like it is a very strong possibility that the splint will come out when I see the Dr in one week. I think that hope is what will get me thru this next week. In addition, I just like seeing the Dr really often b/c it just makes me feel better when they say everything looks good and everything is just as it should be.
Well, I think I will leave it at that for now. Hoping to feel a little less depressed tomorrow.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Could Definitely Feel Better (Day 7?)
Posted by Kelly at 3:01 PM
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5 comments:
Hey,
Sounds like it's been a tough week of dealing with the splint. On the positive side of things, you've come through an entire week of recovery.
I'm having my surgery in just two weeks.The issue of feeling panicked about sleeping/breathing is something I'm afraid of as well. Keep us posted on how a night's sleep turns out with the valium.
You're doing great....one whole week behind you!
I know this doesn't help, but it's totally normal to feel panicky about all the swelling. I was freakishly swollen for a while and had secret panic attacks that it was goin to stay that way... and then, two months after surgery when everything was pretty much back to normal I was still freaking out that I didn't like my face. So.... it's normal. And I'm sure it's just the swelling pushing that lower jaw in.
Now, I didn't have a splint (lucky me!) but I was banded TIGHTLY shut for the first month - and actually banded SHUT for the first weekish. I had lots of problems breathing through my nose, and would wake up thinking I was suffocating - so that's normal too. Hopefully the valium works out for you - never thought of asking for something like that :)
You sound like you're well on your way to recovery. The worst is over - now it's just a patience game until you're home free.
I hope you will let your mind control situation, because it's obvious you have good reasoning - stick with it :).
On the other hand, your post totally scared me. I have surgery in 23days and slowly starting to freak out. The only good thing (and kind of worrying in a same time) is that my dr. said I won't be wired shot, and maybe not even have rubber bands - how is that possible?!
Well, I will wish you speedy recovery! You are already past week 1 - celebrate girl :)
Keep us posted...
Those rubber bands are awful, aren't they? The good news is I got mine off this week at two weeks, so you probably just have a little time left to go! I don't know if this helped, but I've been really conscious of where I'm setting my teeth, trying to make them fit the splint perfectly.
I think it's hard to tell how swollen people are in pictures. I've been looking back at other people's pictures from this time and thinking the same thing- that I'm much more swollen than they were, but they've said the same thing. So I wouldn't worry- it's annoying, but I think the swelling is going to stick around for a while. I'm working on getting my pictures working again, then you can compare some to mine.
Good luck at next week's appointment- it'll be great if you get to ditch the splint! Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanks once again guys for all your encouragement. It's always nice to know that the way I am feeling and the fears about how I look are the same feelings and fears that everyone has had. To answer your question Carrie, I took the valium two or three times (at night before I went to bed). It did seem to help me calm down, but then I realized that I was better off just taking the pain pills. It really knocks me out pretty good. And I haven't been feeling panicky anymore. I think once I realized that Yes, I can breathe thru my nose, then I was fine. I did get liquid Sudafed which my surgeon said was fine to take and I take that a little before bedtime along with using my Afrin nose spray. I have been able to breathe great thru my nose. I hope I didn't scare anyone too much b/c I think it's just a matter of fact that you just can't sleep thru the night the first week or so after the surgery, between not being able to get comfortable in bed and just feeling icky, it's hard to sleep. But, it's really nothing to feel panicky or nervous about. To those who have not had the surgery yet, I honestly didn't think the pain was bad at all, it's more the discomfort and you WILL get thru that. I used the pain medicine to help with that as well (and it did). But, now like Steph said it's just a matter of being patient (very hard for me to do! lol) and calming down about the swelling. Thanks again guys!!
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