I've started a Facebook page for those who are considering jaw surgery or who are already going through the jaw surgery process. You can Click Here to Like the Page.
Right now the fan following is very small, but my hope is that eventually this page will be a place for people to ask questions about jaw surgery, share their blogs and videos, offer advice, etc.
I have been fortunate to meet people from all over the world who are going through jaw surgery, and their friendship and support has been a lifesaver to me. I want this Facebook page to be a real community - a safe place for people to meet friends and get the support they need.
What are you waiting for?! Get on over there and LIKE the Page!
My upper and lower jaw surgeries are only 35 days away! I'm feeling a mixture of excitement and dread as the big day approaches. Excited because this has been a very long journey, and dread because I'm nervous about the four-hour surgery.
Basically, in a perfect world, today would be June 13th and I would be in bed recovering.
The last time I wrote about my braces was on February 23rd when I had just gone in for my SureSmile appointment. The photos below show the result of that appointment - this is a computer generated model of what my new bite will look like!
I cannot stop looking at these pictures! They're on my iPhone and I look at them at least 3 times a day. I'm mesmorized by these photos because it's hard to believe that in the near future this new bite will be a reality. For the very first time in my life my teeth will fit together like matching puzzle pieces.
But, these pictures actually don't show the whole story. My orthodontist, Dr. Timothy Scanlan, is only responsible for making my teeth fit together properly. My surgeon, Dr. Raymond Fonseca, is responsible for the actual moving of my upper jaw and my chin - so the second picture, that shows my profile, doesn't accurately show where my chin will be after the surgery.
In March, using the data collected from the SureSmile technology and my x-rays, Dr. Scanlan placed a wire on my braces to get me to 50% of where my teeth need to be before surgery, and in April he fitted me with the 100% wire.
I try my best to be positive about this whole experience, but I have nothing good to say about the last two months in regards to my poor, poor teeth. (and yes, that did merit two poors!) I was in round-the-clock pain for much of March and April and was on a mostly liquid / mashed potato consistency diet. Thank the gods of Creole food that I was pain-free for my trip down to Louisiana last week - more on that in another post.
I saw Dr. Scanlan yesterday, and he placed the surgical wire on my lower braces. He showed me the wire, which is rigid and similar to a paper clip in its flexibility.
I have lots of appointments coming up with Dr. Fonseca and I'll be sure to post about them here.
Well, it's official. I just got word from Becky at Dr. Fonseca's office - Exactly three months from today
This photo shows off my new hedgy t-shirt, but it also shows off my braces and how far my smile has come
on June 12th I will be having my final jaw surgery! Hurray!
Actually, it is 3:35 p.m. as I am writing this, so by this time in three months, the jaw surgery will be OVER and I will be in recovery!!!!! Major celebration time! (Doing a dance at my desk - not easy while typing, but what the hell.)
I feel like the real countdown has finally begun now that I have an actual date. May the next 3 months fly by!
I can't wait until I have a normal bite - (I'm going to be able to bite into an apple for the very first time soon! For those of you with normal bites you totally take this for granted, but for people with bites like mine, this is a BIG DEAL!) and I really can't wait until I'm pain-free.
Thanks to everyone who follows this blog - your support, comments, emails, etc. are very much appreciated.
I recently had back-to-back appointments at my orthodontist (TS Orthodontics) on February 11th and February 14th.
On February 11th, Tina, a Certified Ortodontic Assistant, took my pre-op molds. Basically, she filled molds with raspberry flavored goo (I chose the flavor - there were a bunch to choose from) and then wiggled the mold into my mouth until my upper palate was fully encased in goo. She then told me to breath through my nose, and entertained/distracted me with stories for a few minutes while the goo hardened. She then pulled/popped it out of my mouth and I was left with weird little white bits of a hardened cement-like substance all around my teeth. She repeated the entire process on my lower teeth.
This was the result:
(Hellooooooo new underbite.)
Next I had to bite into a thin cake of wax in order to see exactly where my bite is. Unfortunately, biting down hard is extremely uncomfortable for me right now and I botched the first try. Tina was a sweetheart and warmed the wax a little so it was softer and easier to bite into. The result was this:
Dr. Scanlan then had a look at my bite and said that he thought I would be ready for surgery in about 2 months (!). He said he would take a look at the molds that were created from my bite and schedule my SureSmile appointment soon (more on that later).
Well, soon was soon-er than I thought it would be, because I was back in the orthodontist chair just a few days later, for what was by far my favorite appointment so far. Dr. Scanlan broke out the big guns in terms of orthodontic technology, and other than the weird ways I had to hold my mouth open in order to get good pictures, I loved it.
Full disclosure: I am a technology geek.
Dr. Scanlan is obviously also a technology geek, because as of the date of this posting, he is the only orthodontist in Western North Carolina to have SureSmile technology. He was laughing at me taking pictures of everything with my iPhone during the appointment, but I know deep down in his tech-geek heart he was getting a kick out me having so much fun with the computer models, etc.
This is what happened at my SureSmile appointment:
Terri, another Certified Ortodontic Assistant, worked with me. She updated my photographs first (I hope to get copies of these photos for my blog) by taking a profile picture, a picture of me facing forward smiling and not smiling. (For photos that I took of my profile on the same day, Click Here.) Then the real fun came (insert sarcasm). She had to get pictures of the inside of my mouth, which bascially involved my stretching my cheeks out until they felt numb. The best thing that could be said about this part of the process is that it was over quickly.
Next, Terri removed my wires and set me up for a 360 degree x-ray of my skull - so cool. I cannot wait to see the x-rays of this. How often do you get to see exactly what your skull looks like? Not often
enough, I say. Not often enough.
Then, the real magic began. Terri scanned my teeth with the SureSmile OraScanner. She painted my teeth with a white substance that burned ever-so-slightly so that she could get the best possible pictures of my teeth. The OraScanner looks like a thick wand/tube with a mirror attached to the end. The mirror is warm so that it doesn't fog up when it is inserted into your mouth. The tiny camera is on the end of the tube and it takes photos of what is reflected on the mirror - genius. Terri took hundreds of photos (the camera in the OraScanner is very rapid fire so this only took a few minutes).
The next step is to send my records to SureSmile where they will make a 3-D model of my teeth (again, cannot wait to see the 3-D model - geek dance!). And then Dr. Scanlan will know exactly what steps to take in order to prepare me for surgery.
Here is the preliminary photo from my appointment:
The SureSmile website is the best possible place to visit if you want to learn more, but here is a nice synopsis of the technology:
Instead of bending an archwire by hand, a SureSmile doctor uses advanced 3-D imaging, virtual simulations and robotically bent archwires customized for your treatment. When the SureSmile wire is inserted into your brackets, each tooth moves more directly to the prescribed position. Your teeth don't move faster with SureSmile - they move with precision that was never before possible.
I think that covers it. I'm excited about my appointment in March when I will get to see the 3-D model and x-ray of my skull. I will, of course, be sharing it all with you, so stay tuned.
Here's my video on my recent visits to Dr. Scanlan's office:
I can sum up my feelings for Gishy Goo in these few words: Gishy Goo, I love you.
The inside of my mouth, particularly the very back of my mouth where the wire from my braces ends and pokes out slightly, was being completely torn up. Wax adheres to the brackets of braces fairly well, but it does nothing to protect you from the horrible poking of the wire. Enter Gishy Goo.
I cannot stress how much better Gishy Goo is than wax. It stays on all day, even while eating, it completely protects the inside of my mouth, and it tastes ever-so-slightly of bubble gum. What's not to like?
Gishy Goo is a soft, squishy material you can put on your
braces to keep them from poking and rubbing your mouth. It's made of the same
material dentists use to take impressions of your teeth. To use Gishy Goo just squeeze a little bit out of each
dispenser. Mix the two parts together for 10 seconds and then put it on your
wire or bracket.
The only drawback to the Goo is that it is much more expensive than wax, but it lasts a lot longer and actually works on wire ends, so in my book it's totally worth it. I use wax for minor issues and Gishy Goo for the more challenging areas of my braces.
Check out my video to see how to mix and apply Gishy Goo to your braces:
I saw my orthodontist on December 21st and he confirmed what I've been thinking - my gap isn't
My smile on December 21st - edge to edge and gap still there!
closing quickly enough. The gap closed up a little and then basically stayed the same for weeks.
Turns out that the culprit is, once again, my bite. (Why am I not surprised?)
I have an edge to edge bite. Because my teeth meet exactly, the impact when I chew, talk - well, do just about anything - causes my upper teeth to flare out - which is the opposite of what they should be doing. The orthodontist will now have to bring my upper teeth backward and my lower teeth forward creating an underbite.
The dreaded underbite!
Creating an underbite is the only way to bring the gap together and move forward with the surgery process. I'm really nervous about how the underbite will feel as well as how I will look (bulldog?!?), but the sooner this happens the sooner I will be able to undergo the final surgery.
Which brings me to the most unfortunate news of all - my surgery is now pushed back. Dr. Scanlan thought I would be ready in February or March, but now it is looking like March or April - probably April.
I thought that this whole process had taught me all I needed to know about patience and waiting, but obviously I have more to learn as I haven't handled this news cheerfully. I thought I was resigned to a 'it'll happen when it happens' attitude, but as I was nearing what I thought was the finish line I moved into anticipation - and now I'm disappointed.
Dr. Scanlan replaced my flimsier lower wire with a much stronger wire that will be able to withstand the impact of my teeth. It will begin to bring my lower teeth forward. I will see him again in 4 weeks, instead of the usual 6, when he will make more adjustments. He assures me that my gap will be closed in 8 weeks.
June 15 smile after surgery, little gap, still some swelling in my face
July 4th - Braces are on, and smile is a bit wonky!
October 12 smile - I think this picture really shows how much wider my upper palate is
By Nicole Hand
I'm really glad that I have taken the time to take photos of my progress before, during, and after my SARPE jaw surgery. The changes have been very gradual. I don't think the changes, other than the gap, would have been obvious to me at all had I not take the photos. Because I have the photos, I can really appreciate the changes and see that I am making progress.
These next two photos really show the difference between my upper palate before the SARPE surgery, and now. Before, my palate was almost a triangle, and now it is a true arch:
Here are my April 12 photo and Oct 12 photo side-by-side:
My teeth are definitely spreading out!
I will continue to take photos throughout this process. The photos from the second jaw surgery will really show some changes that I am now, more than ever, interested to track.
My orthodontist is currently working on closing my gap, which should take roughly 2 months. So by the new year, my gap should be gone! Hooray!
As of now, the orthodontist is predicting I should be ready for surgery sometime in February or March of next year.
On October 1st, the expander was removed! Oh, happy day!
Removal of the expander wasn't painful, but I did experience a lot of pain for a few days after because the removal site was sharp - it scraped and scratched my tongue and caused a lot of bleeding. I finally called my orthodontist and he and his team fixed me right up.
Now there is no pain whatsoever and I can fully enjoy having the expander out. Life with the expander wasn't the most fun I have ever had - to put it very mildly. In general, it was an ever present nuisance, like a gnat that just won't leave you alone. I am so pleased that this part of my jaw journey is over.
Here's my latest vlog about the expander and braces:
I went to see my orthodontist, Dr. Scanlan, on August 6th hoping that he would take the expander out. No such luck. In fact, it has to stay in for another 8 weeks. Boo. Well, it's more like 6 weeks now. I've been such a grouch about this that I haven't written on my blog in ages. (I'm done with the moping and grumbling now and will be writing regularly again.)
Dr. Scanlan explained that the expander is the only thing keeping my palate widened at the moment; my cheek bones and other forces in my mouth are working to narrow my palate again. My upper palate is still unstable and a bit wobbly, so it is absolutely the right thing to do, but I'm not exactly in love with having this thing in my mouth until October 1. (The palatal expander was put in on May 15th.)
I had an appointment with Dr. Fonseca, my oral surgeon, on August 13th. There is a small evil part of me that wanted him to say, "Eight weeks! That's preposterous! Let's take it out now." - but of course that didn't happen. Dr. Fonseca fully supported my orthodontist's decision and actually said while examining my mouth that Dr. Scanlan was doing a 'terrific job' and was being 'very meticulous.' Then Dr. Fonseca looked me in the eye and said, "Both your doctors are going for perfection, and perfection takes time."
Well, you can't argue with that can you?
I certainly don't want to go through all of this and come out with a bite that isn't quite right. And, in the end, I trust both my doctors and it's great that they are on the same page. It would actually be awful if one said the expander needed to stay in and the other said it was ready to come out, because then I wouldn't know what to do. It's nice that both of the experts advising me agree on what should be done.
I've had to make peace with all of this, and I've basically made the decision to not think about the second surgery in terms of time. It will happen when it happens, and my doctors will tell me when I am ready - and that will be the best time for it all to happen.
Now for a laugh - here's the video I did when I first found out that the expander was staying in. Jump to minute 1:38 if you want to skip all the explanation and just see me 'expressing my feelings' over the expander staying in for an additional 8 weeks. Hope this makes you smile :)
