This past Friday night I decided to test out my jaw by eating my first steak since my surgery. Actually I wasn't really trying to test the jaw out, but steak was the only thing on the menu that I could actually eat since I do not eat fish or pork. I actually was able to eat the steak and had very little pain or issue chewing. I was so excited about being able to eat steak that I ordered it again the next night at Restaurant Iris in Memphis. The food at Iris was really great and the chef Kelly English was recently named Food and Wine's Best New Chef. I had bread pudding to wash it down and left feeling really happy.
One thing I forgot to mention was that last week when I went to the surgeon I told him about the pain I had been having in my jaw. He examined me and said he suspected it was just a muscle strain that was causing the pain and soreness and he gave me some muscle relaxers to take at night before I go to bed. I have actually only taken it once since he prescribed it but it really did help to alleviate the pain I had been feeling.
In some other good news, I finally have a week where I have no doctors appointments. Last week was killer with the orthodontist appointment, my annual physical and my surgeon appointment. I am glad to finally have a break from having to sit in a doctors office.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Achy Breaky Jaw
Today marks the 5 week since surgery mark. This past Monday I had my first real orthodontist appointment since surgery (the first one was simply an appointment so they could take some new x-rays). They took one x-ray and changed the bottom wires on my braces, but more importantly they took over control of the rubber bands on my teeth. The rubber bands they gave me were much less rigid than the ones the surgeon had been using and so it is a bit easier to talk and even to eat a little with the bands still on my teeth. The only thing that is kind of annoying is that the bands are placed on different teeth than before and it makes my teeth really achy and uncomfortable.
The other thing that has been achy is my jaw. I do not know if it is the fact that I am becoming less numb or all of the running I have been doing, or maybe just a combination of both, but my jaw has been really sore over the past week. I get pain up high in my jaw and it radiates down to my chin. I have a surgeon appointment today so hopefully he can give me an idea of why this is happening and maybe some ways to alleviate it (I am under the impression, however, that he is just going to tell my not to run).
Here are the week 5 pictures. My jaw is a bit more swollen than usual and I still have no feeling in my lower lip, chin or the insides of my mouth. Also below are the September 2007 and September 2009 x-rays of my mouth.
The other thing that has been achy is my jaw. I do not know if it is the fact that I am becoming less numb or all of the running I have been doing, or maybe just a combination of both, but my jaw has been really sore over the past week. I get pain up high in my jaw and it radiates down to my chin. I have a surgeon appointment today so hopefully he can give me an idea of why this is happening and maybe some ways to alleviate it (I am under the impression, however, that he is just going to tell my not to run).
Here are the week 5 pictures. My jaw is a bit more swollen than usual and I still have no feeling in my lower lip, chin or the insides of my mouth. Also below are the September 2007 and September 2009 x-rays of my mouth.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
One month
Yesterday marked one month since my surgery. It was also the first week since I had surgery that I had no doctors appointments whatsoever. I will, however, more than make up for it with 3 next week.Not so much to report. The insides of my mouth are still getting irritated and really swollen from the braces and bands and it is has caused some noticeable swelling on along my jawline, particularly on the right-hand side. Still numb on the insides of my mouth, my bottom lip and chin and I have been having more frequent pins and needles feelings and warm sensations in my lip.
One thing that did occur in the past week was my orthodontist uploaded my original records to my online account so I have access to how things looked prior to even having braces. This should give people a pretty good idea of why I needed braces and then jaw surgery once the braces had done their job. As you can see from the first picture, I always had a pretty bad overbite so much so that my front teeth completely covered my bottom teeth when I bit down. For those who do not know any better, this should not happen. In addition to that my front teeth were not standing up straight, but instead were slanted back toward my bottom teeth as seen in the second picture. This slant combined with the overbite would have eventually cause erosion of my lower gums. The third picture is post iBraces. As you can see my teeth were straighter but my overbite had been accentuated by the fact that my top teeth no longer slanted back towards my lower teeth. And thus, the jaw surgery was needed to advance my lower jaw and teeth and correct my bite.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Sores
There have been few developments since I went to the surgeon last week. Since he okayed me to run I have been running/walking about an hour and a half everyday which has greatly improved my appetite but also caused my jaw to swell slightly. I haven't been so good about doing my heat compresses but hopefully being more diligent about that will cause the swelling to subside.
One thing that is new is sores inside my mouth from the rubbing of my bands and my braces against my lips. I have these sores on my lip and on the inside of my right cheek. It actually doesn't bother me too much because I am still numb in these areas but I do notice that much of my swelling is in the areas where I have these sores.
As I mentioned above, the return to more vigorous exercise has caused me to be constantly hungry. I can open my mouth pretty wide without the bands and can chew a bit too so I have been eating like a pig. I have gained a couple of pounds back and hopefully I can get a few more on in the coming weeks.
One thing that is new is sores inside my mouth from the rubbing of my bands and my braces against my lips. I have these sores on my lip and on the inside of my right cheek. It actually doesn't bother me too much because I am still numb in these areas but I do notice that much of my swelling is in the areas where I have these sores.
As I mentioned above, the return to more vigorous exercise has caused me to be constantly hungry. I can open my mouth pretty wide without the bands and can chew a bit too so I have been eating like a pig. I have gained a couple of pounds back and hopefully I can get a few more on in the coming weeks.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Post-Op Surgeon Visit #4
Today was my fourth post-op visit with the surgeon and three weeks and a day since my surgery. As you can see below the swelling is pretty much gone and I have been feeling really great. The surgeon gave me the okay to start running again (I had been running a little bit for the the past week on the sly, but not more than like 2-3 minutes at a time in the middle of my walks) which made me really excited. I think he could tell how psyched I was when he gave me the okay, and he made sure to quickly remind me not to overdue it and he warned me again that I may begin to swell again the first week or so when I begin running. This evening I went to the gym and ran and walked for an hour, getting in around 7 miles. It felt good to run again and two hours later I do not appear to be swollen at all. My next surgeon appointment is in 2 weeks.
I still have no feeling in my bottom lip, chin or on the insides of my mouth and gums. A few times in the past week I have accidentally chewed on my lip or the sides of my mouth when I am eating causing them to bleed so I have to be mindful of this when I start really eating again. I have been able to eat more soft foods lately but I can only open my mouth a few centimeters and I have to cut my food up so small to get it in my mouth which it really time consuming. It literally takes me about 4 times as long as normal to eat a meal. I also get very sore if I open my mouth too much and sometimes it is just easier to drink my meals, but I try to get in at least one non-liquid meal a day.
I still have no feeling in my bottom lip, chin or on the insides of my mouth and gums. A few times in the past week I have accidentally chewed on my lip or the sides of my mouth when I am eating causing them to bleed so I have to be mindful of this when I start really eating again. I have been able to eat more soft foods lately but I can only open my mouth a few centimeters and I have to cut my food up so small to get it in my mouth which it really time consuming. It literally takes me about 4 times as long as normal to eat a meal. I also get very sore if I open my mouth too much and sometimes it is just easier to drink my meals, but I try to get in at least one non-liquid meal a day.
Friday, August 28, 2009
So Gross
I kind of wish I had taken a picture of this, but it was so gross it might have made those with weak stomachs vomit. Last night after dinner we came back to the house we are renting and I went into the bathroom to brush my teeth. Since dinner was the first time I had taken my bands off this was to be the first time I was able to brush my tongue since I had surgery. Because I was only able to open my mouth a tiny bit even to eat I could not stick my tongue out very far to brush it but what I could get through my teeth contained one of the most disgusting things I have ever seen. I think the only way to describe it was to say that it looked like a very thick layer of mold was growing on my tongue. It took much scraping and a ton of brushing to remove it. Perhaps when I can finally open wide and brush the back of my tongue I will take a picture so you can see the nastiness that is a tongue that has not seen the light of day nor a toothbrush in weeks.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Post Op Surgeon Visit #3 and the Vineyard
Yesterday was my 3rd post-op visit with the surgeon. Overall he was really pleased. He said he was amazed that all of my swelling was almost gone only 2 weeks after surgery and everyone in the office was really shocked at how quickly I had healed. The surgeon said I could now begin to take the bands off when I ate and he taught me how to remove them. I thought that when I removed the bands I would be able to open fairly wide, however, I could barely open wide enough to get a spoon in. I asked the surgeon if he thought it would be okay for me to start running again and he said that because I had the infection last week he wanted to wait at least another week before he gave me the green light to resume running. Hopefully when I see him again next week he will give me the okay because I am getting a bit tired of walking for an hour and a half everyday to accomplish what I could with just 40 minutes of running.As part of our anniversary, Jonathan and I are spending a long weekend in Martha's Vineyard. We got to the island at 7PM last night and decided to go out to dinner to see what kinds of foods I could eat. We ended up driving to Edgartown and eating at an Italian place called Chesca's. I removed my bands and ordered polenta and was able to use a fork in order to put some of it into my mouth. The biggest problem is opening my mouth wide enough to get the fork in which is fairly painful and causes me to get most of my food on my lip (which can't feel and thus do not know is there). So basically I put some food on a fork, try to get it in my mouth and then quickly with my other hand run a napkin over my lip to make sure I do not have food everywhere. It is really time consuming and requires a good deal of effort to get even a little bit of food in my mouth and ensure I don't look like a hot mess.
After the polenta we ordered a chocolate cake with mocha buttercream and ice cream for dessert. It was still difficult to get the food in my mouth but we ended up finishing the whole thing together and I, for the first time in two weeks, felt full, happy and completely satisfied.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Anniversary
Today actually marks the anniversary of 2 events in my life, one much more important than the other, but an anniversary nonetheless. Lets save the important anniversary for last. Today is two weeks since my surgery. I am now back to going into the office and most of the swelling in my face is gone. I am down another pound since last week, so I have lost a total of 7 lbs since the surgery and my wedding and engagement rings are super loose on my finger. I still have no feeling in my lower lip or my chin and the side of my jaw that had the infection still feels lumpy compared to the other side of my jaw.
Today is also my and Jonathan's wedding anniversary. To celebrate I got some cupcakes from a great bakery in Boston called Sweet and was hoping to put them in the blender with some ice cream and milk and have a great shake. The only problem is that when I blended the cupcake it didn't taste any different than a normal vanilla shake and I was really disappointed. Since we couldn't go out to eat, Jonathan and I went to see 500 Days of Summer. On the ride home Jonathan asked if I was craving certain foods and I said I really wanted cheese and pizza but in general I just wanted to be able to not have to work for my food. I just wanted to pop one of the pieces of the mango I was cutting this evening right after I cut them, or lick the icing off those cupcakes instead of having to wait to add all the other ingredients and make a salsa I could drink. Maybe I am just impatient, but I like to taste the ingredients of things I am making as I make them and not being able to do that makes me unhappy.
Below are the two week pictures. Jaw is much less swollen.
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
X-rays-Pre and Post Op
My orthodontist finally loaded the x-rays taken last week to my online account so now you can see the difference in my bite that the surgery created. On the top is my x-ray one week before surgery. You can really see my overbite on that one. On the bottom is the x-ray from a week after the surgery. A few things to note: obviously the pins in my jaw. When I blew up the photo it looked like there were 6 pins in my jaw and I believe there are 3 on each side of the jaw. Another thing is that my bite is now aligned and if you look at the curve of my chin (not the bones but the soft tissue) you will see that the curve/depression is much less severe in the post-op x-ray. It is a subtle change that is probably not detectable by anyone but my surgeon, but an improvement nonetheless.
Back to work
One positive thing about the surgeon's visit yesterday was that he said I could go back to work. I am very excited about this because even though I was only working from home for about 6 days, I was starting to really get sick of having no interaction with any other human beings everyday save for the contractors working on the bathroom (them and my cats, of course). I hated being inside and having to communicate everything over email and using the remote desktop system our work has set up because it is painfully slow and tends to go down quite frequently. I had taken to emailing all the documents I needed to my personal account so I could avoid working on the remote desktop but it was really tedious and I was constantly having to flip back and forth between my home desktop and the remote desktop in order to find documents and files. I know a good deal of people who work from home, but I honestly cannot see how they do it without going absolutely insane. In the same way you sometimes get sick of your office or you dread going into work, I was starting to get kind of sick of my own house. By the time Jonathan came home every night I was climbing the walls wanting to just get out of the house, even if it was only to go to the gym. This was actually kind of a good thing for us because we started doing things we usually don't do during weekday evenings, like going out to the movies. In the past 2 weeks we have gone out to see 4 movies (Inglorious Basterds, Time Travelers Wife, In the Loop, and the Hurt Locker) and it has been really great and I hope it is something that we can keep up even though I am returning to work.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Post-op surgeon visit #2
Actually it is my third appointment with the surgeon since my surgery because I had to go in when I had that infection, but it was my second scheduled visit. During me first visit the surgeon told me that during this appointment they would teach me how to take the bands that are holding my jaw/teeth together. I was super excited about this because that would mean I would get to use a spoon and my tongue and could eat some soft foods. Wednesday night is Jonathan and my wedding anniversary and I was excited that we would be able to go out to eat. I had it all planned out, we would go to Al Forno and I would order gnocchi and soup and I would feel full and satisfied.
At the appointment the surgeon said everything looked great, but that he did not want me taking the bands off just yet. So now I have to wait until Thursday until I will be able to put a spoon in my mouth and try eating soft foods. I am really bummed and disappointed but I guess it is only 3 more days. Looks like on our anniversary I will be eating cake blenderized into a milkshake.
Even more than the food, however, I was looking forward to being able to brush the insides of my teeth and my tongue for the first time in 2 weeks. I can only imagine how good it is going to feel when I can finally open my mouth and put a tooth brush inside and get my mouth and teeth super clean.
At the appointment the surgeon said everything looked great, but that he did not want me taking the bands off just yet. So now I have to wait until Thursday until I will be able to put a spoon in my mouth and try eating soft foods. I am really bummed and disappointed but I guess it is only 3 more days. Looks like on our anniversary I will be eating cake blenderized into a milkshake.
Even more than the food, however, I was looking forward to being able to brush the insides of my teeth and my tongue for the first time in 2 weeks. I can only imagine how good it is going to feel when I can finally open my mouth and put a tooth brush inside and get my mouth and teeth super clean.
Food cravings
Not until this weekend had I really been craving any foods. As I mentioned earlier, my liquid diet is very flavorful (thanks in large part to the folks at Gracies) and I feel like I am getting the nutrients and calories I need to work, exercise (walking only) and be fairly productive. However I am starting to get sick of drinks with various combinations of ice cream, milk, peanut butter and chocolate and there is only so many strawberries, raspberries, mangoes and bananas I can take in one day. And even though the food is flavorful and makes me full, it does not make me all that satisfied. Even though a banana or a piece of cake or chips and salsa (one of my new favorites in the blender) taste the same in liquid form as they do in their 'real' form, it is much less satisfying to drink them than it is to eat them.
Case in point. Last evening after drinking a glass of salsa I decided to blenderize a piece of Italian Marscapone Torte from Pastiche, an awesome bakery and cafe in Providence, with some milk and vanilla ice cream. The result was a shake that tasted amazing, but left me feeling really unsatisfied. There is really something missing when you are drinking a piece of cake. You miss being able to taste cream and then vanilla cake and then espresso as opposed to all of those flavors blended together. Plus, and probably most importantly, you miss the textures. No spongy cake or smooth marscapone, just liquid. That for me is one of the worst things about the liquid diet.
The other terrible thing about having your jaw and teeth banded shut is the inability to use your tongue. One of my favorite things when I am cooking is licking the spoon or my fingers when I get food on them. There really is nothing better than running your finger along the edge of a mixing bowl after you have mixed up a batch of brownies and stealing a taste of the chocolaty batter. Your tongue is also very useful because it allows you to taste the things you are cooking while you are cooking them so that you can adjust the seasonings if need be. Not being able to open your mouth prevents you from engaging in this type of activity. You basically cook, blenderize and then taste and try to make adjustments from there. The most infuriating thing, however, is seeing cream, ice cream or yogurt right in front of your face and just wanting to put your finger in and taste them, but being unable to do so. Such is life, I guess.
Here are a few of the things I have been craving: popcorn, a baguette with butter on it, pizza bagels, a bagel with cream cheese, donuts and hot dogs. Almost all of these things my husband has eaten in front of me in the past week (excluding the hot dogs and donuts) and I have been really jealous when I watch him eat them. I have been trying hard not to watch when he eats so I won't crave those things as much and feel upset that I cannot eat them, but it is not always that easy.
Case in point. Last evening after drinking a glass of salsa I decided to blenderize a piece of Italian Marscapone Torte from Pastiche, an awesome bakery and cafe in Providence, with some milk and vanilla ice cream. The result was a shake that tasted amazing, but left me feeling really unsatisfied. There is really something missing when you are drinking a piece of cake. You miss being able to taste cream and then vanilla cake and then espresso as opposed to all of those flavors blended together. Plus, and probably most importantly, you miss the textures. No spongy cake or smooth marscapone, just liquid. That for me is one of the worst things about the liquid diet.
The other terrible thing about having your jaw and teeth banded shut is the inability to use your tongue. One of my favorite things when I am cooking is licking the spoon or my fingers when I get food on them. There really is nothing better than running your finger along the edge of a mixing bowl after you have mixed up a batch of brownies and stealing a taste of the chocolaty batter. Your tongue is also very useful because it allows you to taste the things you are cooking while you are cooking them so that you can adjust the seasonings if need be. Not being able to open your mouth prevents you from engaging in this type of activity. You basically cook, blenderize and then taste and try to make adjustments from there. The most infuriating thing, however, is seeing cream, ice cream or yogurt right in front of your face and just wanting to put your finger in and taste them, but being unable to do so. Such is life, I guess.
Here are a few of the things I have been craving: popcorn, a baguette with butter on it, pizza bagels, a bagel with cream cheese, donuts and hot dogs. Almost all of these things my husband has eaten in front of me in the past week (excluding the hot dogs and donuts) and I have been really jealous when I watch him eat them. I have been trying hard not to watch when he eats so I won't crave those things as much and feel upset that I cannot eat them, but it is not always that easy.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Post-op orthodontic appointment #1
Yesterday was my first post-op appointment with my orthodontist. They took some x-rays which I will post as soon as they are loaded into my online account, but other than that nothing really to report. My orthodontist (who actually had the same surgery herself 10 years ago) told me that the numbness in my lip and chin could take up to 6 months to subside and that she still has a tiny spot on her face that failed to regain feeling. She also told me that I should be eating solid food again in about 3 weeks. We took a look at the x-rays and did a side by side with the pre-surgery x-rays. My bite looks almost perfect and she showed me how repositioning the bones will end up giving me a much nicer shape to my chin in the long-term.
One thing I did not know is that there is actually more than 1 screw on each side of my jaw. There appear to be three on the right side and I can only imagine a similar number on the left. Someone asked me the other day what the actual surgery was and instead of trying to explain it I have put a picture above. (I had the mandibular saggital split only, not a lefort osteotomy or a genioplasty). They essentially split the lower jaw right near where your wisdom teeth are (or should be), advance the jaw and then fix the bone in the proper position with screws. The only cuts that are made are tiny incisions on the jawline.
Other than that, not much else. The infection seems to be clearing up and the swelling has gone way down. I have an appointment with the surgeon on Monday and am going to ask him if it will be okay for me to go back to work sometime this coming week.
One thing I did not know is that there is actually more than 1 screw on each side of my jaw. There appear to be three on the right side and I can only imagine a similar number on the left. Someone asked me the other day what the actual surgery was and instead of trying to explain it I have put a picture above. (I had the mandibular saggital split only, not a lefort osteotomy or a genioplasty). They essentially split the lower jaw right near where your wisdom teeth are (or should be), advance the jaw and then fix the bone in the proper position with screws. The only cuts that are made are tiny incisions on the jawline.
Other than that, not much else. The infection seems to be clearing up and the swelling has gone way down. I have an appointment with the surgeon on Monday and am going to ask him if it will be okay for me to go back to work sometime this coming week.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Infection and a needle to the jaw--Make that 2 needles to the jaw
If you looked closely at yesterday's pics you could probably see that the left hand side of my face was much more swollen than the right. Or perhaps it isn't as noticeable as I think and since the profile pictures are of the right hand side of my face it may have appeared that most of my swelling was gone. Regardless, I woke up this morning and the left hand side of my face was very swollen and the right was not swollen at all. The doctor had told my that asymmetric swelling is typically a sign of infection and coupled with the fact that I had those fevers the other night and pain in my jaw and cheekbone two evenings ago I suspected I had an infection. Additionally, that side of my face felt very hard and the doctor has said that the jaw area should be fairly soft. I was thinking I might wait till tomorrow when I went to the orthodontist to see what she thought before I called the surgeon, but the shooting pain in that side of my face returned and they told me to come in and have it checked out.
When I got to the surgeon they took me right in to one of the exam rooms. Since I had my surgery that do not make me wait in the waiting area when I arrive because they said they did not want me to feel uncomfortable about other patients staring at my face, but I also imagine it is to prevent other patients from seeing me, freaking out and thinking poorly of the surgeon. I made a joke to Jonathan that I should go in to the waiting area and when a person stares at me I should point to my face and say 'Botched botox job' because there are many patients there simply to get their botox injections.
Anyway, the surgeon came in to see me and agreed that this looked like an infection. Then he turned to the nurse and said 'You know what, I think we should drain it". I am no doctor but I knew that meant only one thing, needles to the face. Since we all know what a great fan of needles I am (you know, almost passing out from getting my blood drawn and all) I instantly felt sick to my stomach but tried to play it cool and keep a positive attitude. They cleaned my face and the doctor stuck a needle right into my jaw. It was excruciatingly painful but I did not cry or pass out or even make a noise and the surgeon kept asking me if I was in pain and I said a little but not too bad. I was so relieved when he finally took the needle which was filled with pus and blood out (more pus than blood) and congratulated myself on being such a hard-ass. Then he said "I am going to do that one more time" and I thought I was going to pass out right there. The second needle hurt so much more than the first but I took really deep breathes and closed my eyes and was able to stop the tears from coming.
He gave me a prescription of another antibacterial drug and told me to get it filled and begin taking it immediately. I don't know if I mentioned this earlier, but since I am allergic to penicillin, I was taking Cleocin after I had the surgery. Cleocin comes in liquid form, this is the one that smells and tastes like cat litter and that I had gotten so used to chasing with chocolate milkshakes. Apparently outside of cleocin and penicillin, there are not any other antibacterial medications that come in liquid form, so he wrote me a prescription for the drug Avelox and told me to crush the pills and mix them with my food. This sounded reasonable and a nice alternative to drinking that cat litter. Well, its not much better. Instead of cat litter, crushed Avelox, even in a milkshake tastes metallic but the worst part is that the taste stays in your mouth even after you eat and brush. 3 hours after I took the meds I could still taste them in my mouth. Luckily I only need to take it once a day so that is a plus.
The surgeon said to call over the weekend if the swelling got any worse, told me to come back on Monday and sent me on my way.
After I left the office I had pretty bad pain in my face, so bad that I started crying while driving home. I went and got my prescription filled, came home, crushed my pill and mixed it with milkshake, gave in and took some of the pain medication and got into bed. A little sleep (and the pain meds) helped a bit and now when I look in the mirror my face looks a little less swollen, but not much.
I was thinking that since I am now a week out, I would only do pictures on a weekly basis, but I think this warrants a picture so you can see what the swelling and infection look like.
When I got to the surgeon they took me right in to one of the exam rooms. Since I had my surgery that do not make me wait in the waiting area when I arrive because they said they did not want me to feel uncomfortable about other patients staring at my face, but I also imagine it is to prevent other patients from seeing me, freaking out and thinking poorly of the surgeon. I made a joke to Jonathan that I should go in to the waiting area and when a person stares at me I should point to my face and say 'Botched botox job' because there are many patients there simply to get their botox injections.
Anyway, the surgeon came in to see me and agreed that this looked like an infection. Then he turned to the nurse and said 'You know what, I think we should drain it". I am no doctor but I knew that meant only one thing, needles to the face. Since we all know what a great fan of needles I am (you know, almost passing out from getting my blood drawn and all) I instantly felt sick to my stomach but tried to play it cool and keep a positive attitude. They cleaned my face and the doctor stuck a needle right into my jaw. It was excruciatingly painful but I did not cry or pass out or even make a noise and the surgeon kept asking me if I was in pain and I said a little but not too bad. I was so relieved when he finally took the needle which was filled with pus and blood out (more pus than blood) and congratulated myself on being such a hard-ass. Then he said "I am going to do that one more time" and I thought I was going to pass out right there. The second needle hurt so much more than the first but I took really deep breathes and closed my eyes and was able to stop the tears from coming.
He gave me a prescription of another antibacterial drug and told me to get it filled and begin taking it immediately. I don't know if I mentioned this earlier, but since I am allergic to penicillin, I was taking Cleocin after I had the surgery. Cleocin comes in liquid form, this is the one that smells and tastes like cat litter and that I had gotten so used to chasing with chocolate milkshakes. Apparently outside of cleocin and penicillin, there are not any other antibacterial medications that come in liquid form, so he wrote me a prescription for the drug Avelox and told me to crush the pills and mix them with my food. This sounded reasonable and a nice alternative to drinking that cat litter. Well, its not much better. Instead of cat litter, crushed Avelox, even in a milkshake tastes metallic but the worst part is that the taste stays in your mouth even after you eat and brush. 3 hours after I took the meds I could still taste them in my mouth. Luckily I only need to take it once a day so that is a plus.
The surgeon said to call over the weekend if the swelling got any worse, told me to come back on Monday and sent me on my way.
After I left the office I had pretty bad pain in my face, so bad that I started crying while driving home. I went and got my prescription filled, came home, crushed my pill and mixed it with milkshake, gave in and took some of the pain medication and got into bed. A little sleep (and the pain meds) helped a bit and now when I look in the mirror my face looks a little less swollen, but not much.
I was thinking that since I am now a week out, I would only do pictures on a weekly basis, but I think this warrants a picture so you can see what the swelling and infection look like.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
I am in heaven
After a quick 2 mile walk on the treadmill this evening, Jonathan and I headed over to Gracies for dinner. I have been feeling bad about the fact that Jonathan hasn't been out to eat in over a week and knowing that is his favorite thing in the world to do, I suggested we have a little date night. When I was getting dressed I began to realize just how skinny I had gotten. We do not have a full length mirror in the house and since I have been wearing only running shorts or sweats around the house I had really been unable to really gauge what the weight loss had done to my body. I put my skinny jeans on and they were quite a bit baggy in the waist, the butt and in my thighs.
Luckily, this evening I really pigged out and should be regaining those pounds very shortly. I 'ate' cucumber soup, native corn soup and some strawberry lemonade. And the it was time for dessert. Joe sent out the most unreal and delicious liquid dessert. Essentially it looked like a huge milkshake and it had caramel on the bottom, a layer of creme brulee and was topped off by this chocolate milkshake tart concoction (with cream of course!). I think I polished it off in less than a minute. Needless to say I was in heaven. If my pants had fit like they were supposed to I may have had to unbutton my top button to prevent my stomach from hanging out over my pants.
Okay, here are the pics for today. The left hand side of my face is now more swollen than the right, but the bruising is going away. The chin is looking pretty good in the profile.
Luckily, this evening I really pigged out and should be regaining those pounds very shortly. I 'ate' cucumber soup, native corn soup and some strawberry lemonade. And the it was time for dessert. Joe sent out the most unreal and delicious liquid dessert. Essentially it looked like a huge milkshake and it had caramel on the bottom, a layer of creme brulee and was topped off by this chocolate milkshake tart concoction (with cream of course!). I think I polished it off in less than a minute. Needless to say I was in heaven. If my pants had fit like they were supposed to I may have had to unbutton my top button to prevent my stomach from hanging out over my pants.
Okay, here are the pics for today. The left hand side of my face is now more swollen than the right, but the bruising is going away. The chin is looking pretty good in the profile.
The pain arrives
It is finally here. After a week of being virtually pain free, the pain has finally arrived. It started last evening when Jonathan and I went out to take a walk. I have been walking about an hour or so in the mornings just to keep my legs moving and to give myself a reason to get out of the house. Typically I go out around 6:30AM or so while the sun is still coming up and it it is still cool out. I try to pick routes that have benches along the way in case I get tired and need to sit down and rest.
Last evening, however, Jonathan and I set out to walk and at only 10 minutes in I began to feel exhausted and my chin and jaw were tingling. Not only that but the sun was giving me a headache and I kept having to close my eyes when we walked so that I wouldn't be in so much pain. When we got home I sat down on the stairs to rest for a bit and then went inside and put the TV on. I don't know if it was the light from the TV or the combination of the light and the sound, but I began to get a shooting headache. I turned the TV and the lights off and lay down on my back on the couch. I tried to lay on my side, but then the sides of my face began to ache and the pain began running up the sides of my face from my jaw line all the way up toward my cheekbones (the left side much more than the right side). I think because the numbness is beginning to subside around my jawline I am finally beginning to feel this pain (still no feeling in my chin or lip, however). I went up to bed and had a very difficult time falling asleep even though my body was utterly exhausted. I woke up at around 3AM with a sharp pain in my left cheek and near my left ear. Jonathan wanted me to take some pain medication but I felt like I could do without. I woke up this morning with not too much pain, but just some dull aching in the sides of my face.
On my walk this morning (3.5 miles), I felt good and swung by the gym to weigh myself. Despite drinking like a pig yesterday I am down another lb. Looks like more ice cream and whipped cream are needed in the diet :).
Last evening, however, Jonathan and I set out to walk and at only 10 minutes in I began to feel exhausted and my chin and jaw were tingling. Not only that but the sun was giving me a headache and I kept having to close my eyes when we walked so that I wouldn't be in so much pain. When we got home I sat down on the stairs to rest for a bit and then went inside and put the TV on. I don't know if it was the light from the TV or the combination of the light and the sound, but I began to get a shooting headache. I turned the TV and the lights off and lay down on my back on the couch. I tried to lay on my side, but then the sides of my face began to ache and the pain began running up the sides of my face from my jaw line all the way up toward my cheekbones (the left side much more than the right side). I think because the numbness is beginning to subside around my jawline I am finally beginning to feel this pain (still no feeling in my chin or lip, however). I went up to bed and had a very difficult time falling asleep even though my body was utterly exhausted. I woke up at around 3AM with a sharp pain in my left cheek and near my left ear. Jonathan wanted me to take some pain medication but I felt like I could do without. I woke up this morning with not too much pain, but just some dull aching in the sides of my face.
On my walk this morning (3.5 miles), I felt good and swung by the gym to weigh myself. Despite drinking like a pig yesterday I am down another lb. Looks like more ice cream and whipped cream are needed in the diet :).
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Day 6 Pictures
Getting a little less swollen. You can't really see, but my entire neck is bruised and yellow. I can almost smile fully now, but still numb from my bottom lip down to my neck.
Fever and bleeding
Last evening Jonathan and I went to the movies because I again was about to go insane from being in the house all day. We saw the movie 'In the Loop' which was hysterical and not in that penis-joke kind of way but in that smart, intellectual way. I was completely exhausted by the time we got home and went right to bed. I woke up 2 hours later drenched in sweat. My t-shirt was saturated as were my sweat pants (we were sleeping with the air conditioning on). I am guessing I had been running a fever earlier in the evening and didn't know it. I changed my clothes and went back to sleep only to awaken a couple of hours later with this metallic taste in my mouth. Because my jaw is banded shut my only real choice is to swallow whatever it is that is in my mouth or on my tongue, or to try and thin it out with mouthwash or water and hope I can get it to seep through my front teeth so I can then spit it out or brush it away with a toothbrush. When I woke up this AM I still had that metallic taste so I went downstairs, gargled with mouthwash and saw blood coming through my front teeth. I am thinking that the area where they removed my wisdom teeth must have started bleeding during the night, but I was told to expect some bleeding the first couple of weeks so I am not too concerned yet.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Post-op visit and weight loss
I had my first post-op visit with the surgeon today. He said I looked great and that he was very happy with the way I was progressing. He said he would like to see the swelling go down a bit more, and that tomorrow I can stop taking that awful anti-bacterial medicine that tastes and smells like dirty cat litter. The one thing I liked about that medicine is that I had taken to chasing it with a chocolate creme mix which instantly made me feel great. He removed my stitches and scheduled me to come back in a week at which time he will teach me how to remove the bands so that I can begin to use a spoon to eat. That will mean I can add mashed potatoes and really soft pasta to my diet, however, that doesn't really excite me much cause those things are much more bland than the food I have been eating. I actually kind of like eating all sorts of fresh fruits and vegetables blended into soups and smoothies.
But then again there is the downside of all these veggies and fruits: the weight loss. They had indicated to me prior to the surgery that I should expect to lose anywhere between 5-8 lbs during my recovery. The surgeon suggested today that I weigh myself to be sure that I was getting enough calories so after I came home Jonathan drove me to the gym to check my weight. We had a little bet going about what my weight was going to be and since I have been winning quite a few bets with him these days (we bet on the PGA yesterday and on the men's 10K at the track and field championships today) I thought I would win this one for sure. Turns out we were both very wrong. He bet a 4 lb weight drop while I was a bit more conservative and bet 2 lbs. The actual loss: 5.5 lbs. That gives me a BMI of 18.6, just borderline underweight. So now I am trying to come up with ways to make milkshakes even more fattening for fear of dropping anymore lbs.
But then again there is the downside of all these veggies and fruits: the weight loss. They had indicated to me prior to the surgery that I should expect to lose anywhere between 5-8 lbs during my recovery. The surgeon suggested today that I weigh myself to be sure that I was getting enough calories so after I came home Jonathan drove me to the gym to check my weight. We had a little bet going about what my weight was going to be and since I have been winning quite a few bets with him these days (we bet on the PGA yesterday and on the men's 10K at the track and field championships today) I thought I would win this one for sure. Turns out we were both very wrong. He bet a 4 lb weight drop while I was a bit more conservative and bet 2 lbs. The actual loss: 5.5 lbs. That gives me a BMI of 18.6, just borderline underweight. So now I am trying to come up with ways to make milkshakes even more fattening for fear of dropping anymore lbs.
Day 5 Pictures
The swelling has really subsided, particularly on the right hand side of my face. From the side I do not look so bad, it is just the head on shots that make me look like a cabbage patch kid. Still numb in my chin and am beginning to bruise. The surgeon said I should expect that the bruising may extend down my neck and into my chest area in the coming days.
Bruising
I have begun to bruise on my neck right around where my stitches are. It actually isn't so bad and I think most people who see it will probably just think I did a poor job at putting on self-tanner.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Day 4 Pictures
Here are today's pictures. I am still very swollen, although not nearly as bad as yesterday. Interestingly, the right side of my face is more swollen than the left, something I attribute to the fact that I sleep on the right side of my body (and face).
Potholes, car crashes and the movies
By last evening I had begun to get a pretty bad case of cabin fever and so Jonathan and I decided to go out to the movies. We picked 'The Time Traveler's Wife' because we both really loved the book and despite the lukewarm reviews we thought it would still be entertaining. The movie was decent, I suppose, but Eric Bana's acting was really terrible. It was good, however, to be able to get out of the house.
There was one thing about going to the movies that made me a bit freaked out and it wasn't that I was nervous about people staring at my swollen face, but rather the car ride over there. I was petrified of us hitting a pothole or a bump in the road that would jar my jaw and cause me to be in pain and so I spent the entire car ride gripping the door handle praying for a smooth ride.
I slept well last night and felt great when I woke up this morning so Jonathan and I decided to go out for a longer walk. About a half mile in I could sense my face beginning to swell, I say sense because I am still numb from my lower lip to my chin so I tend to equate the tingling feeling I sometimes have in that area with swelling. It is bizarre to feel tingling or itching in a part of your body that is numb because scratching or itching it does nothing to relieve the feeling. I also can see when I look in the mirror that my lips are chapped, but because they are numb I do not feel the discomfort that comes with having dry, cracked lips. I read an interesting article a while back about the phenomenon of having itching on parts of the body that were numb or had been amputated. The lead in was a story of a woman who scratched through her skull right down to her brain but the theory behind how the brain works and why this happens was very interesting.
Also on the walk I felt the same sort of nervousness I did in the car last evening. I was scared I would twist an ankle on the sidewalk or a car would veer off the road and hit us and it would shatter my jaw. Luckily neither of those things occurred but I am beginning to wonder how long it will take before I feel comfortable driving/riding in cars and walking along the street (not to mention running) without the constant fear that something is going to injure my jaw.
There was one thing about going to the movies that made me a bit freaked out and it wasn't that I was nervous about people staring at my swollen face, but rather the car ride over there. I was petrified of us hitting a pothole or a bump in the road that would jar my jaw and cause me to be in pain and so I spent the entire car ride gripping the door handle praying for a smooth ride.
I slept well last night and felt great when I woke up this morning so Jonathan and I decided to go out for a longer walk. About a half mile in I could sense my face beginning to swell, I say sense because I am still numb from my lower lip to my chin so I tend to equate the tingling feeling I sometimes have in that area with swelling. It is bizarre to feel tingling or itching in a part of your body that is numb because scratching or itching it does nothing to relieve the feeling. I also can see when I look in the mirror that my lips are chapped, but because they are numb I do not feel the discomfort that comes with having dry, cracked lips. I read an interesting article a while back about the phenomenon of having itching on parts of the body that were numb or had been amputated. The lead in was a story of a woman who scratched through her skull right down to her brain but the theory behind how the brain works and why this happens was very interesting.
Also on the walk I felt the same sort of nervousness I did in the car last evening. I was scared I would twist an ankle on the sidewalk or a car would veer off the road and hit us and it would shatter my jaw. Luckily neither of those things occurred but I am beginning to wonder how long it will take before I feel comfortable driving/riding in cars and walking along the street (not to mention running) without the constant fear that something is going to injure my jaw.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Day 3 Pictures
I woke up this morning feeling pretty terrible. I think skipping the tylenol last night was a really bad move. I woke up every hour or so and had some pain this morning. My face is very swollen, although the swelling in my lower lip has gone down a bit. It hurts the most up by my ears where my jaw connects to the rest of my skull and light and sound are starting to give me headaches.
Jonathan and I took a short walk this morning so I could stretch my legs and enjoy the beautiful weather. It wasn't too far, perhaps a half mile, but it felt nice to be outside. When I came home I sat in the back yard and read the paper for a little while.
Here are the pics for today. I can now smile a little bit.
Jonathan and I took a short walk this morning so I could stretch my legs and enjoy the beautiful weather. It wasn't too far, perhaps a half mile, but it felt nice to be outside. When I came home I sat in the back yard and read the paper for a little while.
Here are the pics for today. I can now smile a little bit.
Food
Yesterday was my first real day of trying out food I made myself in the blender. I made a smoothie with Rice Krispies, milk, honey and peanut butter which was pretty good and then another one with banana, chocolate ice cream, milk and peanut butter which was really great. I get full really quickly these days and can only 'eat' about 6 ounces at a time.
Last night Jonathan went over to Gracies to get me some dinner. I was just expecting some of my favorite corn soup, but he came back with a ton of stuff including some home-made coffee ice cream, watermelon gazpacho, tomato gazpacho, cucumber soup and this chocolate mixture which I believe they use to make the Dark Chocolate Pot de Creme on the dessert menu. I ate some corn soup, and some of the chocolate mixture and felt a bit spoiled that the food I am eating in liquid form has so much more flavor than the food I eat on a regular basis (bagels, grapenuts, yogurt, sandwiches). I am so grateful to Ellen and Joe and everyone at Gracies for always being so kind and accommodating my very picky eating habits. Sadly, it will be many more weeks until I can eat Gracie's beer bread and gnocchi, but the food I have now will definitely hold me over till then.
This morning when I was having my first meal (strawberry banana vivanno from Starbucks) I saw a FedEx truck outside the house. The guy brought a large box up to the house which contained ice cream from my friend and former boss, Nicole. There were two different chocolate flavors and two vanilla and I am really looking forward to making some meals with them.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Day 2 pictures
Day 2 pics, including a full on shot and one to compare it with from 2 weeks ago. I am really swollen today and I do not mean to look so miserable, I just cannot smile yet.
Flowers
The folks at Gracies and Jonathan's parents sent me some gorgeous flowers, for which I am super grateful. Both have hydrangea which is my favorite flower.
My set-up
Before I was discharged yesterday morning, Jonathan went home and set my room up for me so that I would have a clean, comfortable, quiet place to relax and hang out. He put a stack of magazines, all of my medicines, all of the creams and sprays from the hospital to keep my lips from drying out and my glasses and iPod in case I wanted to watch TV or listen to music. It was a really awesome feeling to come home and have everything all clean and ready for me.
Last night I was able to sleep really well. I woke up once for about an hour, but not counting that I slept for a good 9.5 hours. The pain is probably the worst it has been so far, but even still it is not so bad, I would say on those pain scales I am between a 4-6 and would like to keep only taking the tylenol at night.
One thing that has been making me feel ill is the smell and taste of the antibacterial medicine I have to take. It literally smells like a cats litter box and tastes awful. I try and chase it with gatorade or something but the taste lingers.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Mission Accomplished
It is 11AM on the 13th and I am already back home. I am not in any pain right now and actually feel pretty good, I am just super swollen (particularly my upper lip). Here is a recap of what I can remember from yesterday.
Jonathan and I went over to the hospital at 7AM so they could check me in. They brought me up to the Pre-OP area and told me that Jonathan had to leave. They brought me to my curtained room, I got dressed into my gown and they started an IV. The anesthesiologist came by as did my surgeon and some nurses came by to check my vital signs. I am not sure what time they wheeled me into the OR, I think it was around 8:30 or so.
When I woke up at 11AM, I was numb and had a bit of pain but it was really nothing unbearable. The worst part of the pain was in my throat, presumably from the breathing tube. Luckily, they had already removed my breathing tube and they had put ice packs on the sides of my face by the time I was awake. I drifted in and out of sleep till around 1:30 when they allowed Jonathan to come and sit with me. The nurses kept coming by and offering me water and morphine but I did not feel much like drinking and I was scared to take the morphine. At around 6PM Jonathan left to go have dinner and run some errands I decided to give in and get the morphine mostly so I could sleep. Jonathan came back around 7:30 or so and we just sat around and read until the nurse told him he would have to leave because they did not think I would get a private room. At around 9:30 they told me I would indeed be moved to a private room and I called Jonathan who came over and spent the night with me. The nurse came in at 11 to give me some antibacterial medicine through my IV and to give me some steroids to help with the swelling. she asked if I wanted pain medication (liquid vicodin) but opted just for some tylenol. I slept pretty well but needed to get up and go the bathroom every couple of hours.
This morning the surgeon came by and said I looked really good and he was shocked because he said not many patients looked that good so quickly after surgery. They discharged me at 9:30 and Jonathan and I headed over to the surgeons office to get some x-rays taken. He said the x-rays looked great and the bite was well aligned.
So now I am home and still feeling good. My bottom lip is enormous and the bottom part of my face is numb but I do not have any pain and have been drinking water and ginger ale. The surgeon said the pain and swelling may get worse as the steroids work their way out of my system in the next few days. Hopefully the pain wont be too bad.
And now for the good part, the pics. The top one is a profile picture taken 2 days before surgery. The bottom one is me now.
Jonathan and I went over to the hospital at 7AM so they could check me in. They brought me up to the Pre-OP area and told me that Jonathan had to leave. They brought me to my curtained room, I got dressed into my gown and they started an IV. The anesthesiologist came by as did my surgeon and some nurses came by to check my vital signs. I am not sure what time they wheeled me into the OR, I think it was around 8:30 or so.
When I woke up at 11AM, I was numb and had a bit of pain but it was really nothing unbearable. The worst part of the pain was in my throat, presumably from the breathing tube. Luckily, they had already removed my breathing tube and they had put ice packs on the sides of my face by the time I was awake. I drifted in and out of sleep till around 1:30 when they allowed Jonathan to come and sit with me. The nurses kept coming by and offering me water and morphine but I did not feel much like drinking and I was scared to take the morphine. At around 6PM Jonathan left to go have dinner and run some errands I decided to give in and get the morphine mostly so I could sleep. Jonathan came back around 7:30 or so and we just sat around and read until the nurse told him he would have to leave because they did not think I would get a private room. At around 9:30 they told me I would indeed be moved to a private room and I called Jonathan who came over and spent the night with me. The nurse came in at 11 to give me some antibacterial medicine through my IV and to give me some steroids to help with the swelling. she asked if I wanted pain medication (liquid vicodin) but opted just for some tylenol. I slept pretty well but needed to get up and go the bathroom every couple of hours.
This morning the surgeon came by and said I looked really good and he was shocked because he said not many patients looked that good so quickly after surgery. They discharged me at 9:30 and Jonathan and I headed over to the surgeons office to get some x-rays taken. He said the x-rays looked great and the bite was well aligned.
So now I am home and still feeling good. My bottom lip is enormous and the bottom part of my face is numb but I do not have any pain and have been drinking water and ginger ale. The surgeon said the pain and swelling may get worse as the steroids work their way out of my system in the next few days. Hopefully the pain wont be too bad.
And now for the good part, the pics. The top one is a profile picture taken 2 days before surgery. The bottom one is me now.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
One hour
Just about an hour and I am off to the hospital. My last meal of Al Forno did not occur last night because when we got to Al Forno at 6:20PM, they already had about an hour wait. I was pretty bummed and we decided to go to Mills instead. Luckily the service was good and they cooked my steak perfectly. Unfortunately I forgot that when I eat steak it makes me super thirsty so now it is 6:00AM and my mouth is so dry because I am not able to drink any liquids.
Other than that, I feel okay. I slept well even though I am really nervous and now all I need to do is take another shower with the anteseptic they gave me (I had to shower with it last night too before I went to bed) before we head over to the hospital.
Other than that, I feel okay. I slept well even though I am really nervous and now all I need to do is take another shower with the anteseptic they gave me (I had to shower with it last night too before I went to bed) before we head over to the hospital.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
T minus 1 day
One more day to go. It just so happened that yesterday was the hottest day of the year. Jonathan and I have lived comfortably all summer without putting the air conditioning window units in, but yesterday's heat and humidity forced us to give in. Jonathan put a window unit in the guest bedroom where we have been sleeping (and where I will be staying during my recovery) while the bathroom off our bedroom is being redone. He also set up a nice big flat screen in there so I will be able to watch the Track and Field World Championships on TV when they start on the 12th. Normally I am adamantly opposed to TVs in the bedroom, but I think under these circumstances it is permissible.
Also, while I was out running last night, Jonathan was kind enough to go and pick up my prescriptions and some other things that may help to assist me with my eating/recovery. He got some turkey basters in order to help me squirt all of my meals into my mouth since I will be unable to create suction and therefore unable to use a straw for the first week. He also got me some ice cream, some small dixie cups and some chicken stock.
We also decided on a place for my last meal before surgery. At first I thought I wanted to eat a big steak, but my favorite steak place in Providence (XO) closed and the other place that has great steaks, Mills Tavern, has terrible service so I did not want to spend my last meal being irritated by the dining experience. I also wanted a place that had great desserts. I decided that Al Forno would be a good place to go. Normally I try my best to avoid that place because they do not take reservations and it is always jammed on the weekends and it is not unusual to wait upwards of 2-3 hours for a table, especially in the summertime, but since it is a Tuesday night, I think it should be okay. The food is Northern Italian and they are famous for their grilled pizza, but I am thinking I will skip the grilled pizza in favor of the corn fritters and fresh buffalo mozzarella and then have baked pasta in the pink and either the blueberry tart or the chocolate cake for dessert.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Lisa Needs Braces 2.0
Well, not technically my last orthodontist appointment ever, but my last orthodontist appointment before my surgery. They put some hooks on my braces so that the surgeon can use them to band my jaw together after the surgery. As you can see from the picture below they somehow make having braces on even worse. It looks like that episode from the Simpsons when Lisa had to get braces. Since Homer's union has given up their dental plan in exchange for a keg of beer the Simpson's have to now pay for Lisa's braces themselves they have to buy her the cheapest, most gigantic and ugly braces. If you do not remember the episode, I have put a picture above the one of my braces with the hooks so you can see the similarities.
Nothing much else of note. They took final x-rays and my orthodontists said to anticipate being in the braces for about another 6 months after surgery. That will mean this entire process will have taken 25 months. Is it worth it? I guess we will see.
Nothing much else of note. They took final x-rays and my orthodontists said to anticipate being in the braces for about another 6 months after surgery. That will mean this entire process will have taken 25 months. Is it worth it? I guess we will see.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
One week
One week from today I will be having my surgery. I am starting to get pretty nervous, not so much about the surgery itself but about the recovery and the inability to eat solid food. Luckily, a friend of ours who is a chef at our favorite restaurant in Providence said he would make me some food while I am recovering so I wont be stuck eating tomato soup and ice cream all day. With Joe making me things to eat, I may never want to go back to eating solid food again!
What I am most anxious about it not being able to run for 4 weeks. So far this year my running has been going pretty well. I had a few months where I hit 250 miles and have been consistently running around 45 miles for most of the year. Looking back through my training log there was a stretch of time where I ran everyday for almost 3 months straight. I have only raced once (the Miami Half Marathon in January) but was hoping to race a bunch in the fall and perhaps PR for a 5K and Half Marathon. I am worried about how much of my fitness I will lose taking an entire month off, and how effectively I will be able to train when I get back. I am hoping to run another half either in December (Memphis) or perhaps Miami again in January, but we will see how my recovery goes. My doctor said that after 4 weeks I should be fine to run, but that it may cause the swelling to increase in my jaw area until my body gets used to it. We shall see....But for now I will continue running as if I am training for something. Last night Jonathan and I went over the the East Bay bike path and ran a small workout. 2 mile wu, :30 (:30), 1:00 (1:00), 1:30 (1:30), 2:00 (2:00), 2:00 (2:00), 1:30 (1:30), 1:00 (1:00), :30 (:30), WD for a total of 5 miles. This morning I went 3.25 in 25:39.
What I am most anxious about it not being able to run for 4 weeks. So far this year my running has been going pretty well. I had a few months where I hit 250 miles and have been consistently running around 45 miles for most of the year. Looking back through my training log there was a stretch of time where I ran everyday for almost 3 months straight. I have only raced once (the Miami Half Marathon in January) but was hoping to race a bunch in the fall and perhaps PR for a 5K and Half Marathon. I am worried about how much of my fitness I will lose taking an entire month off, and how effectively I will be able to train when I get back. I am hoping to run another half either in December (Memphis) or perhaps Miami again in January, but we will see how my recovery goes. My doctor said that after 4 weeks I should be fine to run, but that it may cause the swelling to increase in my jaw area until my body gets used to it. We shall see....But for now I will continue running as if I am training for something. Last night Jonathan and I went over the the East Bay bike path and ran a small workout. 2 mile wu, :30 (:30), 1:00 (1:00), 1:30 (1:30), 2:00 (2:00), 2:00 (2:00), 1:30 (1:30), 1:00 (1:00), :30 (:30), WD for a total of 5 miles. This morning I went 3.25 in 25:39.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Last Surgeon Visit
Today was my last visit with the surgeon prior to my surgery. Basically it was the day I got to ask all of my final questions and pick up the prescriptions for the pain medications I will be on post-surgery. It was fairly uneventful, although he did say some things that conflicted with what I was told during the pre-admission tests. He told me he would not use a catheter (phew! for some reason this is the thing that has been making me the most nervous about the surgery) and that I did not need to take my patch off prior to surgery (they seemed very insistent about this during the tests).
The only funny thing about the meeting was he was telling me about some of the ridiculous things the hospital makes him do and forms they make him fill out. One form that needs to be filled out prior to them discharging me is one that asks him if I am allowed to have sex, and next to the 'yes' and 'no' boxes are boxes that say 'supervised' or 'unsupervised'.
The only funny thing about the meeting was he was telling me about some of the ridiculous things the hospital makes him do and forms they make him fill out. One form that needs to be filled out prior to them discharging me is one that asks him if I am allowed to have sex, and next to the 'yes' and 'no' boxes are boxes that say 'supervised' or 'unsupervised'.
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
A Bit of History
I have now been in braces for 19 months. Initially, I had i-braces which were cool because they are metal braces on the insides of your teeth. Essentially they are designed for people who feel self conscious about having braces, like adults and apparently people who play wind instruments. The i-braces were great except for the fact that my tongue would hit them when I tried to speak and I sounded like I had a lisp. Also, the wires on my bottom braces stuck right into my tongue so that everytime I swallowed my tongue would get cut up. The orthodontist solved this by putting a piece of composite on the ends of the bottom wires, however, the composite would fall off frequently and I was forced to spend a good deal of time traveling back and forth to the orthodontist office in order to have them repaired.
i-braces pic:
At the beginning of my treatment I was told that in order to correct my bite I was going to need to have lower jaw surgery and so we have been working towards that ever since. In April of this year they switched me over to regular clear porcelain braces in order to get me ready for surgery. As much of a pain as the i-braces were, the regular braces might be worse. Instead of being an adult with a slight lisp, I am now a 27-year old who looks like a 16 year old with braces.
When I first got the braces on I was horribly embarrassed and would try not to smile or laugh or try and talk without showing my teeth which simply resulted in people thinking there was something wrong with me and it probably drew more attention to the fact that I actually had braces in the first place.
So below is a picture of my teeth in April when they switched the braces from back to front. My teeth are pretty much straight but as you can see I have a pretty bad overbite which this surgery will attempt to correct (in addition to giving me the Jay Leno jaw I always wanted). My orthodontist switched her website recently so I do not have any pictures from when I started my treatment, but I will hopefully get some soon and be able to post them so you will be able to see how far I have already come.
i-braces pic:
At the beginning of my treatment I was told that in order to correct my bite I was going to need to have lower jaw surgery and so we have been working towards that ever since. In April of this year they switched me over to regular clear porcelain braces in order to get me ready for surgery. As much of a pain as the i-braces were, the regular braces might be worse. Instead of being an adult with a slight lisp, I am now a 27-year old who looks like a 16 year old with braces.When I first got the braces on I was horribly embarrassed and would try not to smile or laugh or try and talk without showing my teeth which simply resulted in people thinking there was something wrong with me and it probably drew more attention to the fact that I actually had braces in the first place.
So below is a picture of my teeth in April when they switched the braces from back to front. My teeth are pretty much straight but as you can see I have a pretty bad overbite which this surgery will attempt to correct (in addition to giving me the Jay Leno jaw I always wanted). My orthodontist switched her website recently so I do not have any pictures from when I started my treatment, but I will hopefully get some soon and be able to post them so you will be able to see how far I have already come.
