Post-op visit #3

Today was post-op visit number three. My aunt was kind enough to drive down and give me a ride to Dr T's office. I'm thinking that I feel strong enough to attempt walking there now, so perhaps I'll do a trial walk on the weekend. I'll take it slow but I think I'll make it.

My appointment was at 11:55am but I didn't actually see him until 12:35pm, seems the whole office was running behind today, but thankfully the waiting room wasn't jam packed. So after all that waiting he looked at me for maybe 4 minutes and said my bite looks great. I told him that I was experiencing more pain towards the end of each day and he just said to take Advil, which I have been doing, but he also offered me some more codeine so I accepted that. I'm only taking 2.5ml at a time but it seems to help and I can always take a little more if I need it. The prescribed amount is 5-10ml every 3-4 hours as needed, so that tells you what my level of pain is. It's more an annoyance than pain. I go back again in two weeks on December 4th. After that I think I don't see him for a month! I'll have to remember to ask him about being able to open wider and if I should be doing any stretching exercises.

I'm feeling pretty good today. Having an extra protein shake before I left might have helped. I didn't want to be feeling hungry while I was out. I tried eating a scoop of sweet potatoes last night too. It was messy but it felt a bit easier than trying to eat apple sauce last week, so that's encouraging. I think I'll try some oatmeal soon. Still have to use a baby spoon; whatever works!

The right side of my face is perhaps a tiny bit less numb except for the right side of my nose which feels about the same. My chin still has that throbbing numbness off and on several times per day. I can't feel much of my chin or lower lip yet. I also cannot feel my teeth or gums when I brush and the lower part of the insides of my cheeks feel like I have a wad of gum or something in there.

Someone left a comment asking what all I had done: my maxilla was moved forward and widened at the back left molar area as well as reduced vertically for less of a gummy smile, my mandible was made shorter and bone from that was grafted to my maxilla to help fill in the gap left from moving it forward. I also had genioplasty to re-contour my chin and move it slightly forward to maintain overall facial balance. I meant to ask him what the measurements were, but I know that my OD recommended moving my maxilla forward about 6-8mm.

I posted week 3 photos yesterday so check them out if you haven't already. The front view shows a decent reduction in swelling compared with week two. I hope that repeats again next week!

Thanks again to everyone for your support!