A Smile Connects Us You And Me

Twelve days post-op and it feels the same as 10 and 11 for the most part. My swelling my have decreased a little, and I do have some feeling now in the left half of my bottom lip, but other than that I think everything is the same. Again, my pictures are not great because of the camera phone rather than a real camera, but they'll have to do. I am really excited about the lack of dark circles under my eyes. It is amazing what larger airways and solid sleep can do! I still have a lot of strain on my joints. I think it comes from the elastics. I am going to ask Dr.G tomorrow at my final post-op before flying home later in the afternoon. My ears are also still blocked up, I really wish they would "pop" before getting on the airplane tomorrow. I am worried if they don't it'll be really painful with the air pressure. I wonder how long I am going to have the swelling in my cheeks. I know it can last weeks or months...I hope it goes down sooner rather than later. I am anx...

So today, as I expected, I overdid it. I did try more potato-cheddar soup which was good and filling, BUT Sam and I also spent too much time walking on the beach and the wharf. It was really nice to get out for fresh air, I just maybe shouldn't have gotten so much of it. I am now completely spent. I don't have any regrets because I really enjoyed seeing the art show on the boardwalk, putting my feet in the ocean, and walking down the wharf. I just need to remember that I should break up these events, after all I am recovering from major surgery...sometimes I am too stubborn for my own good. My pain level is still the same- 6/10. My muscles in my joints just feel a bit more tense, and the rest of my body is letting me know it's going to be an early bed time tonight! My biggest complaint right now is the numbness in my chin (because it hurts/feels like burning) and the numbness on the right side of my nose/below my right eye (because it has a constant itching feeling). The it...

This morning we had to bring Mom to the airport at 4:30. I hope that she has a good flying day! Day 11 feels a lot like day 10. I get fatigued easily, pain level is at about a 6, and I feel like swelling is even about the same. Sam says he thinks the swelling went down from yesterday, but it feels the same to me. Today's pictures are as great as other days as I had to use my camera phone. Mom and Dad took their cameras with them, so the ' ol camera phone will have to do. I feel a lot of pressure or strain in my jaw joint areas, and I have a headache right behind my eyes. I am trying to up my calorie intake to help with the fatigue and maybe it'll help my headaches as well. Because my pain level has been stable for a couple of days I am lowering my Oxy by only 1/2 a tsp. from 3 to 2.5. It seems to be working just as well, so I feel good about it. My nose is still running quite a bit. Not bloody at all, just drainage. It's annoying because a lot of the time I can't...

Today is very exciting because Sam is finally coming!! It's been a long two weeks and I have missed him a lot! Mom and I pick him up from the airport at 4:30. Mom flies out very early tomorrow morning. Whoohooo it is 10 Day's Post-Op and I am amazed by how low my swelling is today! I thought that with the stress of yesterday I would have ballooned up even more, but I did the exact opposite! I think now the spots that are left most swollen are the grafting sites (which is a lot of area). I am beginning to feel like I look a little more "normal." I am still curious as to what I am going to look like at the end of all of this. My smile is still quite contrived. I just can't find a natural fit for it yet. Check out that profile!! Seriously! I am impressed with Dr. G's work! Well done Doctor!! I feel like I am also getting some natural color back in my face! I think maybe the exercises Dr.G had me do yesterday in the office helped with the blood flow. I am still su...

So at 1:30 I had my second post-op with Dr.G. He took off my rubber bands and had me practice opening my mouth, and shutting, and opening, and shutting...for about 10 minutes. He looked all inside and checked my bite to make sure it was perfect, and it is! Phew!! He then had to put the elastics back on, which hurt more because they are fresh ones, not stretched out from the week + of use. I also asked to be weighed since I hadn't been weighed since before surgery. Before surgery I was 172lbs @ 5'11". Today I weighed in at 160lbs. I put on 20lbs for surgery, so losing 12lbs is good! Dr. Gunson also checked my breathing because I told him I had started coughing up some mucus again. After listening to my lungs he decided it would be best to get a chest x-ray. Better to be safe than sorry! So Mom and I drove right from his office to the ER to get the chest x-ray done. At this point it had been 4 hours since my last pain med dose. I thought I would be okay waiting till the x-ra...

Overnight a headache has settled in right between my eyes, I think a little higher than where my Frankenstein stitch was. I also have more pain & muscle stiffness in my joints, and chin. I do not think the lower dose of Oxy every 4hrs with a dose of Tylenol at the 2hr. half mark is working. I'll have to ask Dr. G about it today. I woke up today at 7AM (an hour after taking 2tsp of Oxy ) and my pain level was at a 7-7.5. At 8AM I took the Tylenol as it was at the 2hr mark past when I last took the Oxy . I still feel the same. I think I just need more patience. The grafting sites are going to hurt. And compared to me this time last week, I am doing a heck of a lot better! (Ignore the 10 Day Post-Op...I guess it was wishful thinking...) I still feel like my face is lop-sided because of the swelling. This could have something to do with the fact that I woke up tilted over again. I don't know what's happened to my pillow system that used to hold me up all night, but it is f...

Today has been a pretty relaxing day for healing. There a couple things that have become more of an annoyance today, besides the usual pain and stiffness. (1) My ears are more clogged and (2) my skin is very dry itchy feeling all over. This just started yesterday, so I'm not sure what's going on. Yesterday the only thing that changed in my diet was that I added Liquid Tylenol. I took some Benadryl as a caution just in case I am allergic to something. It may just (I hope!) be that my skin is dried out from being in the Cali climate vs. being in Vermont. The new jaw here is quite stiff, my muscles are really tired, and I still feel like I have a huge pumpkin head. I know the swelling is going down, but i just can't feel it. I took a good 2 hour nap this afternoon, which did help with the pain, but I think it made me more stiff. I also woke up from my nap with me cheek resting on my shoulder! This is not cool with me. I always sleep elevated and have a neck pillow around my ne...