Post Op: Day 44

It's now six weeks post op! Time has flown by. Things are now pretty much back to normal as I have gone back to work which is nice because by the time October comes and I am back at university, I'll be feeling perfect (fingers crossed).

This week I went to see the surgeon and the orthodontist and here's how they said progress was:

Orthadontist: Bite is improving quickly! Just need to carry on with the elastics for a few more weeks because my overjet has nearly gone and it will bring my right teeth together more (they still don't touch much). Once they are together, I will have a perfect bite apparently.

Surgeon: Teeth are slowly settling. Looking good and I don't have to see him for three months!

I can't believe how much my overjet has decreased. Below you can see my progress pictures. The first photo was taken just before surgery, the second about two weeks post-op and the last one six weeks.

Sorry, the photos aren't the most flattering, but you can just see how much has been done.

Swelling has nearly gone now, pain isn't really there at all and numbness is now only on the right side of my chin and bottom lip and roof of my mouth. Can't open my mouth much still, but that will come with time.

Also, another note, I'm starting to chew a bit more, but only on the left side of  mouth where my teeth are meeting properly. Still taking it slowly though and won't be eating anything chewy or too meaty yet.

Not much else to update on at the moment, but I will post again soon with more progress. If you have any questions, feel free to ask me!

Thanks for reading.

Post Op: Day 29

It's been four weeks and one day since my surgery! It really does feel like a lifetime ago now. I have recovered so much since then, but I think it will take me a bit longer to have fully recovered.

I am still visiting the hospital every week for my orthodontics just to fine-tune my bite. I go again today and hopefully they'll tell me it's nearly perfect.

Here are my ratings!

Pain - 2/10, there isn't really any pain from my jaw and throughout the whole process pain has not really been a problem for me. The biggest problem is just how awkward the surgery is and not being able to eat properly! At the moment, the pain is mostly coming from an ulcer inside my cheek from where part of my brace has been rubbing.

Stiffness - 7/10, I can fit the toothbrush into my mouth now (just). I can only open my mouth a few cm though. It's definitely worse in the morning, but gets better during the day when I limber up a bit. I think this is quite normal though. My surgeon and orthodontists tell me that this is nothing to worry about.

Numbness -  5/10, the numbness on my cheeks has definitely gone down. It almost feels back to normal now! The only problem I have is with the right side of my chin and lower lip. I can feel slight pressure, but not temperature. I am hoping that it comes back. It's just a bit slow. Inside of my mouth, my lower gums are a little bit numb and I can't really feel anything on the roof of mouth which I discovered when I got the toothbrush in there.

I can smile better now though and it gets better every day. Overall, I'm really happy with my progress so far.

Thanks for reading!