Jaw Jigsaw

Met with my surgeon today. For like 7 whole minutes, haha. It was weird because there's usually like my surgeon in the room, the resident doc and like 2 or 3 students (it's at the Pitt dental school). But today there was just my surgeon. I have to say it was nice. Usually he just talks to them about me like I'm not there, lol. I asked him about all the problems I have been having. I only really had three issues. My stuffy nose, the bump on my incision and my jaw swelling/pain. He gave me a z-pack for my nose. Even though all of a sudden it's not as stuffy, but still not completely better. But he said that should clear it up. I'm glad I didn't have to bother my PCP with this. He said the bump on my incision is just extra tissue and it will smooth out no problem. So that's not really an issue. Lastly he said some days the pain & swelling will be worse than other days. Duh, Larissa. I feel a lot better than the weekend today. My left side is still s...

My appointment this morning wasn't too exciting. It was mainly to take out the sutures on my face & neck. My surgeon said everything was looking good. He asked me what I thought and then agreed with me that it's too hard to tell with the puffiness. Apparently I'm still 70% swollen. Not cool, man. Not cool. This swelling needs to get the f out of here. I got the stitches out, which didn't hurt despite having feeling there. Then I got some x-rays. I'm not able to put my teeth completely together because of the splint. It's in the way. The surgeon wasn't worried though so I'm not either. He also cleaned the back of my splint!! Food gets stuck in it like no joke. :( The splint has an arch in the back that supports the roof of my mouth that grabs everything. He said that sometimes they cut that part out after a week, but not for me unfortunately. :( He said I was doing an okay at cleaning though other than back part. I've not been trying very h...

I can't even discuss this appt schedule. It's too much to handle. Yes I've added another appt. I've been taking this antibiotic (for the probably sinus infection) and it gave me the worst side effect possible. Ladies- you know what I'm referring to. It downright sucks. February 20th- Regular cleaning (with my regs dentist) March 4th- Regular ortho appt March 6th- Pre-Op appt with surgeon March 10th- 2nd surgeon appt March 14th- Ob/gyn March 17th AM- Ortho is going to remove my wire for my dentist (at a different office, ugh.) March 17th PM- Cavity filling March 18th- Ortho to get wire back on and surgical hooks attached March 22nd- Eye doctor's appointment (yes- it was necessary) March 24th- JAW SURGERY So I'm off to walk across town to the Ob/gyn during my late lunch break in a few min. Funny story- I was trying to get an appt. at my regular office (which is east of the city), and they didn't have any openings today. I was kind of freaking ...

Well I made it through the long pre-op appointment. Even though it was long- it went by super quickly. SO MUCH information. My brain literally hurt afterwards. Be prepared for a long blog post.  One thing I knew for sure leaving the appointment- I could not have picked a better surgeon team. The chief resident (who I talked the most with) was super fantastic and answered all my questions and then some. He was so easy to talk to. Dr. Ochs- the main guy that is actually doing the surgery- was just as awesome as I remember him. I haven't actually talked face-to-face with him since August 2012! Crazy, I know. I just worked with him through my ortho. I had to sign my life away saying I know full-well all the risks, yada, yada. And sign-off on the procedures. We started with two procedures on the sheet.... and then added two more. HA. The one is pretty minor though. I took a pic because I knew I wouldn't be able to remember them! I can hardly pronounce them still, haha. One thi...

There's just not enough hours in the day anymore... Thankfully, our little one has been mostly sleeping through the night so I can go to bed at a normal hour... like 10 rather than 8:30... to get my precious sleep in. It's only March 4th and I have YET AGAIN added ANOTHER dental appointment. And an eye doctor appointment for kicks... Here's ANOTHER updated appt. schedule. Kill me now. February 20th- Regular cleaning (with my regs dentist) March 4th- Regular ortho appt March 11th 6th- Pre-Op appt with surgeon (Moved up for some reason related to the dental school where my surgeon is the Dean). March 17th AM- Ortho is going to remove my wire for my dentist (at a different office, ugh.) March 17th PM- Cavity filling March 18th- Ortho to get wire back on and surgical hooks attached March 21st- Call hospital to get exact surgery time March 22nd- Eye doctor's appointment (yes- it was necessary) March 24th- JAW SURGERY Shut the front door. Too much to handle. A...

Had my bi-annual dental cleaning yesterday with my regular dentist- and it was not such a great visit for several reasons. As luck would have it- he found a cavity. BAHHH. I haven't had one in over a year! And yes that's really good for my teeth.  My mouth is EXTREMELY acidic and I've had cavities ever since I can remember. So much drilling. Not from lack of brushing/flossing/rinsing! The acid has caused my enamel to erode and makes my teeth more prone to cavities. It sucks. Some people have more plaque, some have more cavities. I have like no plaque ever, but always cavities.  AND- the hygienist usually cleans my teeth with this power washer that shoots this salt-water solution, but for the second appointment in a row it was non-functional! She couldn't find a piece that she needed even though she just used the machine on Tuesday. I was livid. It's like my favorite thing. I hate salt-water but it makes my teeth feel awesome afterwards. It's basically a w...