Saturday, November 15, 2008

Soft Chew!!!

Sorry that I haven't posted and left you all hanging ... I am in Argentina right now and going to Brazil tomorrow ... so I haven't had much time to post. I did get the ok for soft chew on week 8 as I was hoping, and I have been really enjoying it! I was upgraded on my flight here, and they give you mixed nuts before your meal. I was shocked that I could actually eat the cashews! The biggest pain is getting them out of the braces. I actually think I can eat about anything right now if I have the patience to chew it. The most limiting factor for me is my range of motion, I can only open about a finger and a half, so it is not like I can just bite into things and start chomping. I also have to try to just chew on my right side so I don't get a ton of food stuck in the gap where my exposed plate is. I have my next appointment with my OS this Thursday, so I have a feeling we will be discussing at that time when we will take the plate out. At my last appoinment, my OS held my forhead firmly and torqued on my maxila and then on my mandible. No mobility what-so-ever, so it looks like thinks are pretty solid at this point. When I go through airports and crowded areas, though, I am still a little gun-shy, afraid that someone is going to elbow me in the jaw and knock something out of place.

I am almost at 10 weeks right now, and still have some residual swelling. On my right side along my jaw line, I can feel a lump there, I am not sure if it is just more swollen there than on the other side, or if it is scar tissue, but it definately feels different. It is also a little tender in that area when I touch it. Strange, since I would have expected that to happen more on the side where the plate is exposed.

Still no migraines ... I just can't tell you how happy I am about that. Over ten years of suffering from them ... I don't want to speak prematurely because who knows what could happen once I get my range of motion back, but if they are truley a part of my past I will be more grateful than you can ever imagine for having this surgery. I still get the occasional ear pains, but they usually go away and don't last too long.

I can't wait until I can stop using the Peridex. My teeth are now very dingy looking and I am looking forward to getting them cleaned, even if the hygienist can only get the outsides and can't get inside my mouth.

I don't think I mentioned this before, but my cheek is basically healing over my lower left bracket. It is almost completely covered now. My OS told me last week that the same thing happened to him. It is like that on the right side, too, but not nearly as bad as the left. Not too fun, unless you like chewing on your own cheek.

Well, that is about it for now, I will post more after my appointment Thursday.

6 comments:

Katherine (Kate) said...

I was starting to worry that something horrible had happened (yah - I'm a mom - I worry, lol) So great news all the way around on jet-setting, nut chewing, bone (withstanding) torquing and migraine's still being a thing of the past!

What do they do about healing over your brackets? Besides the constant pain of chewing on your own fleshy bits, what happens when you eventually get those brackets removed? Does the grow-over receed or does it need to be snipped?

I'll not hound you with questions with the exposed plate, as I'm sure you'll have more to tell us about this after Thursday :)

Enjoy the rest of your trip (business or pleasure?) and will catch the latest when you're able.
Cheers!

Stephanie said...

Katherine - I'm really not sure what they do about the healing over your bracket. I think my OS said he could do something when I get my plate removed, but otherwise I'm guessing it just kind of gets better eventually on its own.

My trip is business, but since I am in Argentina over the weekend, I had some time to be a tourist too. This trip is definately better than my trip to Paris gastrinomically ... at least I am not on liquids only. Mmmmm ... empanadas ... they definately fit into the category of soft chew!

laura said...

Awesome about the nuts and all. Nuts sound so impossible right now.

How does the healing over the brackets happen? The inside of my cheeks kind of puffed out into my mouth a bit after the surgery, does the puffed out bit grow around the bracket? It'd be incredibly painful if the brackets were actually sticking into the incisions.

Katherine (Kate) said...

Empanadas...Yum! Thank goodness you're getting to do some touristy things. Heck of a long way to go and not be able to enjoy some of it on a personal level.

In all ignorance (literally speaking) getting it delt with during plate removal definately sounds like the best approach. Things are already numb... kill the preoverbial two birds with one stone approach. (buggering off on it's own would be nice, too) :)

Jen said...

OMG, I just checked my mouth out and a bit of my cheek is attached to the bracket too (Last bracket and cheek skin adjcent to it). I was tempted to tear it appart but I think I'll wait until Thusday when I see my orthodontist. I had wisdom teeth removed and want to wait until that area has healed a bit more. I have also finally lost 2kg. Yay!
I also have the exact lump as you have described. Not sure what it is but it's hard muscle like and tender on touch. I know it shouldn't be there because it will put my face out of balance.
Sounds like we are having similar experiences except my bracket is not exposed.

Stephanie said...

Laura, I am not sure exactly how the over growth happens, but I think that since things inside there are so swollen and irritated, if something is in their way when they start to heal, they just do what they can and encapsulate it if necessary. I wish that would have happened with my plate. But I don't think it's so uncommon for it to happen. My husband has braces as well and his back brackets ripped up his cheeks so bad, a similar thing happened to him, although not to the extent mine did. Normally, I don't think the OS intervenes, but I guess he might as well as long as he is in there.