Preparing for the Big Day (or at least trying)

So, I went out to Target with my Mom and my sis last night, trying to start buying some of the things I know I will need. I used a list Stephanie created (as it just seemed so thorough). Thanks Stephanie!! (Oh and thanks to the other Stephanie - from Kentucky- for attaching the link on her blog!) Here is the link to this list if anyone else might want to check it out. http://mycorrectivejawsurgery.blogspot.com/2008/09/t-minus-8-days.html On a side note, about a week and a half ago, I bought and started taking the following Vitamins: 1,000 mg Vitamin C (twice daily), Vitamin B12 with Folic Acid (once daily), and 30 mg Zinc (once daily). Hopefully at the very least all that Vitamin C will keep me from getting sick or the swine flu (knock on wood).

So anyway, I feel like I spent a lot of time in the store and did not buy much. I got Aquaphor for my lips (which I found some not only in the lotion section, but also the baby section), baby spoons (one with long skinny handles), baby toothbrush (the littlest and skinniest one I could find, as I have heard it is very difficult to brush your teeth at first), sippy cups, hydrogen peroxide (for cleaning mouth and nose), Biotene mouthwash and Afrin. I did not buy any of the medication that was on the list because I felt I should speak with the surgeon before doing this. I will be seeing him on Monday for the pre-surgical visit and I will ask him about the medications then (I would REALLY like to have some sort of decongestant to take, like Sudafed, as I take that a lot now for all my sinus problems and I can only imagine how much worse the congestion will be after the surgery).

Also, I am really frustrated to hear about all the issues with the Zip-n-Squeeze company. I never even bothered ordering anything from them b/c I have heard they went out of business or something and nobody is getting their money back from them. I am dissapointed b/c I wanted to get the Zip-n-Squeeze bags and jaw wrap. Did most of you (who have already had the surgery) get a syringe from the hospital? I am thinking about getting a baster, as Stephanie mentioned, if I am not going to get a syringe. Also, do you know of a good substitute for the jaw wrap?

And finally, the most important question. I was thinking about getting the Magic Bullet as I have seen that some people have gotten this and I like that you can just make one serving at a time. But, then I was reading reveiws on this product and a lot of them were pretty bad. If you guys could give me some opinions on this or make any suggestions as to better food processors that you might have gotten, please let me know. I have been doing a lot of research and I am still not sure what to get. Also, if there are any other items that you really used a lot that are not on my list, please let me know. I just want to be prepared as possible! Although I know if necessary, my Mom would run out in the middle of the night to get me something if I really needed it and didn't have it. I am just so glad she is going to be here to take care of me 24/7. Love you Mom!! No offense to Dave, my boyfriend (or should I say husband - we've been together almost 8 years and have had a house together for 5 years - common law marriage, anyone? lol) but it's just not the same as Mom!! I think all you girls know what I mean. :) I love him too though and I am sure his humor will help me get thru a lot of this. Here's a couple pics of me and him (from a few years back - pre-braces). First one - cute, second one - making me laugh like usual. :)

Well, I will probably post another update after I see the surgeon on Monday. I can't believe it's only a little over 2 weeks away!!

Some Pictures

Ok, I am finally adding some photos so you guys can at least have an idea of what I look like. My camera is currently not working so they are not close up braces photos. I am adding some recent ones and then some from before braces (when I was skinnier and looked better - ha!!)

The first one is me and my sis at Ocean City, MD this past summer. Next me and a friend from last summer. Third one is me and a friend about two years back. And me and some girlfriends at the same event a couple years back.

Sorry, I am new to adding pictures. Not sure if these are big enough to really see very well.. Although I feel like you can see "the chin" in all of them. haha

So much to talk about!!

It has been a while and a lot has happened since my last post. There were times that I really wanted to post but was so afraid I would jinx myself (stupid, I know) so I waited. Well, to start at the beginning of all that has happened in the last couple months.. in August (I believe), I was told by my ortho that I was getting close to being ready for surgery and that I could make an appointment with the surgeon so that he could check things out and look at the progress and see if he thought I was just about ready as well. So, I call up the University of Maryland (this is where my surgeon works) and come to find out, he no longer works there. He had just left and started his own practice. Ok, no reason to panic. I just got the new telephone number, called him and set up an appt. Of course they told me I would have to have all my medical records transferred so I paid to have them delivered to me. So, long story short, I took a half a day off of work and went down to see him to find out that he does not accept my insurance. I was devastated and almost broke into tears right in the middle of the waiting room. I was told I could still see him that day, but I would have to pay out of pocket and it could be hundreds of dollars. Not to mention, if I switched insurances (Dec 1st, when my company renews insurance), I was afraid that seeing him that day might screw up my insurance approval. And yes, I had already gotten the authorization from my insurance co. to have my surgery with him when he was at UMD. So, I basically decided even though I wasted all that time to drive down there that I would not see him that day. And after talking it over with my insurance person at work and speaking with my ortho, I decided it would be best to just go with another surgeon at UMD. My ortho reassured me that any surgeon there would be excellent. It took me a while to get over this (I mean I had been planning this and believing he would be my surgeon for over a year and a half at this point!!), but after a few days of calming down, I was finally ok with the switch.
So I spoke with the insurance person at UMD (I mentioned this in a previous post, but just have to say again that she is amazing and has basically guided me thru most of this process) and I told her I wanted to set up an appt with one of the other surgeons there. She said this was not a problem, but I wouldn't be able to see him for a consult until mid to late October!! This was not good since i wanted to have my surgery by late Oct/early November. She said if I scheduled the surgery with her right then, I could schedule it by mid November. So, I took both appts right then. I thought it seemed a little odd to schedule the surgery when I hadn't even met the doctor. It made me quite nervous actually. But, I knew if I didn't schedule it then, I had no chance of getting the surgery before tax season which would mean I'd have to wait till next May!!! um, I don't think so. ha!!
So, anyway, I finally, today, had my long awaited appt (and very first meeting) with my surgeon. I really did like him a lot and he seemed to only need a few minutes of looking at my teeth and the x-rays and molds that I brought in order to tell me exactly what I will need done. One thing in particular I really like about him is that he is also a cosmetic surgeon. I mean his focus is on orthognathic surgery, but he is a cosmetic surgeon as well. Can't hurt, right? :) So, he took molds of my teeth (which i had already endured two of these in the last two months) and honestly I have never had so much trouble with them. I gagged sooo bad on the top one. :( And they used that weird tool (I forget the name) that they stick in both your ears and it wraps around the front of your face. It's really strange, but it's used for all their measurements. And the best news of all, he says there should not be any problem to have everything ready to go for my surgery which is scheduled on November 17th!! I have to come back in two weeks for the pre-op appt and I will have the surgical hooks put on 6 days prior to the surgery. So, it sounds like things are all set.
Honestly, I think now that I know that things are set in stone (or as much as they will be), I am getting really nervous. I have calmed down at this point some, but earlier today I kinda freaked out. It's really happening in 4 weeks! AHHHH!!! Well, I have let this post drag on too long.. so I will save all my nerves and other feelings and more details of today for the next post. I will probably be updating much more frequently now. But please feel free to comment me with calming thoughts!! :)

Trying not to get to Excited (or Nervous)

As I seem to be saying in every single post now, I am so sorry it has been so long. I guess I get caught up in work, vacationing, going out and it seems like nothing is ever changing on the braces front, so I just end up forgetting to get on here or post. Sorry!

But finally!!! It seems that things may be changing. :) As I mentioned in the title, I am trying my best to not get too excited. I may have misunderstood after all. But, I am hoping that is not the case. Long story short, I went to the ortho this past week (as I do every three weeks) and she takes a look at my teeth and tells the assistant "One more time with the powerchain". So, I am thinking "Is this it?!". I mean, they pretty much have closed up at this point, but from my understanding there was plenty more they still had to do. So I asked the ortho what the next step will be. And she said as soon as they are 100% closed (which they basically are now - 4 days after my appt), they will then refer me back to my surgeon!!! So, unless I completely misunderstood, I am thinking that will happen at my next appt (less than 2 weeks now). I am soooo hesitant to get excited though. I had all but convinced myself that this surgery would not be happening before the end of the year which meant I would have to wait until after next tax season (April 15 2010). So this just came out of nowhere.

So even with my my overall strong self-control, I am still obviously feeling excited. However, with that excitement came a lot of nervous feelings and doubts, suprisingly. I mean, I have known about this and have been committed to this for 1 1/2 years now. Which brings me to my question. Did all of you have these feelings of nervousness and what the hell am I doing? I mean, I know my jaws do not come together correctly and I know I want to fix this once and for all (with this being the third and FINAL time I've been in braces) and I even know that these issues may be the cause or partial cause of my headaches and definitely the cause of my having trouble chewing and speaking, however, at the same time, I have dealt with this my whole life and have survived. Sometimes it just seems so crazy that I am voluntarily having surgery and major surgery at that. I guess I am nervous and worried that I am ALREADY starting to freak out a little and I haven't even come close to setting a date yet. Ugh. But, I am thining that this is just something that comes with the territory. Please let me know what you guys think and how you felt/feel.

Well, thank you all for your comments so far and for sharing all your experiences with me. I know this will really help me when it is my turn. And Stephanie, I see that your turn finally arrived. I just read all your posts since the surgery and am so excited for you. You are doing great. Thanks again everyone and I will try to post soon. Maybe after my next visit so I can hopefully confirm this post!! :)

Feeling Frustrated

Well, I went to the orthodontist on Thursday and I knew it was going to be a longer visit (probably about 30 mins) as they were putting brackets on my last four teeth. Well, it turned into over an hour! It just seemed like everything was taking forever (which is not fun when they have that huge-ass plastic thing in your mouth stretching it out so I look like a big mouth bass or something). Ha! They ended up taking another bracket off (and I swear it felt like they were going to actually pull my tooth out with it) and repositioning it. And with the new wires in, the ortho said they would only put the powerchain on my front six bottom teeth. This worked out nicely in closing the very large gap that had formed between my front two teeth from the rubberbands I had been wearing (from upper back teeth to lower front teeth), but let me tell you, that space closed in less than 24 hours and boy did it feel like it. Very sore!! But, I kinda like the pain. Means it's working faster. :) But, anyway, the space basically moved back to where it had been originally: between my 3rd and 4th tooth on the bottom. Very annoying.. But onto the frustrating part..
I had originally thought that it was extremely likely that I would be getting the surgery after this past tax season. And lately, I have been told another 3 mos or so.. Ok, I could deal with that.. So this most recent visit, I asked the ortho again and now he is saying it will definitely be "more than a few months". Which I responded (in hopefully a not-too-bitchy tone!! hey, I did smile when I said it! ) that I am starting to get very impatient! He said it comes with the territory and he understands, but that they can only move my teeth as fast as my body will allow (or something like that). So I explained to him that I really want to have this done by November b/c I don't want to have to wait until after NEXT tax season. To which he proclaimed "November is a definite possibility". Ok, don't like the use of the term "possibility". But, I guess I'll take what I can get at this point.
The thing is, I know I don't want to rush something like this. And I can deal with the waiting (although I am an extremely impatient person - always have been). It's just, as I explained in my last post, I will be so upset if it's not until next year b/c I could have gotten the short-term disability insurance. In other words, I would have not had to use any of my own vacation or sick time. Well, I guess I should just stop bitching and realize there is absolutely nothing I can do about it. Hopefully everything will start moving a little faster now with the new brackets and wires. We shall see.
I have to say, even though I am jealous, it has been exciting that everyone and their mother seems to have gotten the surgery in the past week or two. Everyone's looking great and I can't wait to see the final outcome. I do feel for them though.. Man, it just sounds like the first week is so hard.
Well, it's now been close to a year and a half with these braces on. Hopefully I will have the surgery before the 2 year mark or things could get ugly. :) I will keep you posted as I find out more. Will be following along closely to all you "lucky" ones on the other side. Sending prayers your way!!

Back from the Dead (aka Tax Season)

Ok, this time it really has been an eternity. But the hell that is tax season has finally ended and I am back to having a life again (Man is that nice!). In fact, I have one very good piece of news... I passed the CPA exam! What a nightmare all that studying was, but it is finally over and I NEVER have to deal with that again (thank god!).

So, anyway, more importantly, how are the braces going you ask.. It has been quite frustrating for some time now. The gaps on top closed up pretty quickly and I have not been wearing a power chain on top for quite some time now (several months at least). In fact, I am not wearing any bands on top at all. Instead of the bands the ortho decided to put thin metal wires around all my brackets and I have to say, I love it. Those damn bands would get so dirty and gross no matter how good I was about brushing and rinsing etc. I think they decided to do that since I would call in like every two weeks and ask to have them replaced since they were not clean anymore. In other words, I think I may have gotten a tad bit annoying. :-) (hehe I know, not me, right?)

But these freakin bottom teeth are being such a pain in my ass. They STILL have not closed and it just feels like it is taking an eternity. I asked the ortho this past Thu how much longer till I can see the surgeon (which will mean I am basically ready for surgery) and she said 3 - 4 months. That will be fine with me if that is actually the case. But, I had thought that I would be ready for surgery right after tax season so I am getting a little frustrated to say the least. All I know is I better be ready by November at the latest b/c otherwise I will have to wait till after next tax season. Not only would the waiting be unbearable but I would be beyond pissed since that would mean I could have gotten the short term disability insurance (or whatever it's called) from Aflac (you have to have it for at least a year before you can use it apparently).

Well, I guess it's best not to think about those things. There is absolutely nothing I can do about it and it really does seem that my bottom teeth have moved quite a bit just since just this last Thu so I am starting to get a little more hopeful now. Maybe they are past that slow-moving stage and are finally on a roll now. :) Anyway, I would like to say I am really happy for Aimee (? I think that is right - full name Ananda) who will be having surgery in less than a week. I have followed her since I started on here b/c she got her braces on only a few days before me. So rather than being jealous :) I am foremost happy for her and also, hopefully that can only mean that maybe my day isn't too far off!! hehe

Since this has turned into a book, I will wrap it up now, but I promise, now that I actually have free time, I will try to update more frequently. Hope to hear from all of you fellow brace bloggers! :)

It's been a while, I know

I can't believe how long it's been since I have been on. I guess I have really gotten caught up with being super busy at work and I am still studying for the exam. (Man, I cannot wait till I am done with that). I also just got over having strep throat from which I was really sick (and had to miss three days of work). Not cool.

But anyway, the teeth are moving along pretty nicely. I don't really know why, but the gaps on the t0p are closing up so much faster than the ones on the bottom. I just wish they'd hurry up and close already. But, I guess I need to be patient. (Not easy for me, I am an extremely impatient person).

One thing that happened in the past week that was really cool is the surgeon's office (Kate, to be specific, who works with Insurance) informed me that my surgery has been authorized. I was sort of in shock. I have heard so many horror stories on here about insurance that I was expecting some sort of a fight, even if just a little one. The ease with which this all happened (Kate just submitted my x-rays, molds and a questionnaire I had filled out and I got the authorization about 6 weeks later) makes me nervous still. Did any of you have a similar situation or was it all horror stories? I am very happy but don't want to get overexcited just in case. However, I also know that Kate deals with this every single day and she should know.

Well, I guess I should stop worrying and just be excited!! I actually don't have a clue when I'll have surgery yet, but my orthodontist really wanted to be reassured that I am approved for surgery. If I had to guess it will probably not be until after next tax season. :-( The problem is, I doubt I will be ready in December (and even then that's a busy time for us accountants). But come Jan 15th, it is not possible for me to "voluntarily" miss any work. So, I am guessing it will probably not be until at least the end of April 2009. But, in all honesty, in some ways the time has flown by. I mean, it's been almost a year already. So, I can make it a little longer. :-)

Well, I hope all is well with all my braces and surgery buddies out there. I am going to try to catch up on all your posts since I have been MIA for so long. Talk to you soon!