The surgeon was surprised to find that it has taken 6 years (and 3 months) to be ready for surgery. But I couldn't answer his question as to why it has taken so long, because I'm not an orthodontist.
But anyways, we are now just 7 days away from surgery, well actually, this time next Friday it should all be over with.
My false tooth will be removed on Monday 1st September :( The orthodontist was going to take it out yesterday but I fought for it to be kept in until I was back for another appointment on Monday anyway.
I will be admitted to hospital on Thursday 4th September. I had asked if I would be able to go home that night after all the checking in work had been done but apparently they will be giving me an injection of some kind of drug to thin my blood. I'm not sure that's wise but hey ho. I also have to sign a consent form for a blood transfusion if it is required.
So my last meal will be hospital food bleurgh!
My surgery will take place on the morning of Friday 5th September. It should take 1.5 - 2 hours.
I will be having my lower right wisdom tooth removed and then my jaw will be cut on both sides like in this picture:
My jaw will be moved backwards and to the right. It will be moved 5mm which will naturally move my chin 4mm so it will be more in the centre of my face.
I have been told to expect my bottom lip and chin to be numb, and could be for months afterwards. If they cut the nerve(s) that supply my lower lip and chin, then new nervous tissue grows at a rate of 1mm per week so it could be a very long time before feeling comes back. Hopefully they won't cut the nerve(s).
My midlines will not be perfect, they will be about 1-2mm out but it will give me a better bite position than if they were lined up exactly.
After surgery I will be moved to the high dependency unit for the first 24 hours; this is routine because of the swelling being so close to the airway. It actually made me feel better to know I'd be going to HDU and won't be left in a bed pressing a buzzer for a nurse that doesn't come whilst I bleed out all over the place.
I will have pca morphine so I imagine I'm going to be well out of it. Last time I had a morphine injection for a migraine I was hallucinating LOL.
I should get home on Sunday all being well.
I may sound very calm but believe me, I am very scared. I keep waking up at 4am in sweating panics about it. Although I feel a little better knowing more information now.
I'm scared, especially scared of just how awful I'm going to feel, how swollen I'll be, how sore I'll be and how I'm not going to be able to eat proper food.
I'm also feeling tearful at the thought of having to say goodbye to my husband and kids and not see them immediately before I go to theatre or once I come out of recovery. They will be visiting of course but it's in those moments, I'm missing them already.
Then I have other times where I think, well Fay, you were the one who decided to have the operation, you decided so you'll just have to get on with it.
I'll try and update as soon as I can. If I remember, I'll post some day before surgery pictures. They won't be pretty but they will be better than immediate post op ones :)
