Jennifer

Day 21: Guess What? {Good News}

April 16, 2014 by Jennifer 3 Comments

This moment three weeks ago I was kissing my husband and being wheeled into surgery. At times, it is hard to believe that is has been three weeks. Other times, it feels like only three weeks?

I traveled to UNC Chapel Hill for my three-week check-up yesterday. My two favorite Chief Resident Doctors came in first and could not believe my progress. Dr. Turvey came in and he was smiling. He could not believe that most of my swelling is gone! The Resident Doctors and Dr. Turvey both agreed that they are very pleased with the progress and outcome. The decision was made that I would get my splint out in TWO weeks instead of three weeks! This is huge news. I was so happy. In two weeks, I will be able to chew soft food and talk. Happy. Happy. Happy. God has been so good to me through this entire recovery. I am a fighter too and really push myself which can be good in some ways.

Three times a day I will start my home physical therapy. Right before the therapy exercises, I will need to put warm compresses on my face for 7 to 8 minutes. I need to try and start moving my jaw side to side. At this point, I cannot do that but I will push through. Also, massaging my joints, my incision at my left ear and cheeks. It will feel weird at first but this will help for movement, muscles and nerves.

I have to go back on my iron pills. This is one reason that I have been so tired and get so cold. I was not suppose to go off of them at surgery but I was not told to continue to take them. OOPS. Hopefully, it will help and I can get my energy back. Dr. Turvey did say not to be super mom though as I did have major surgery so it is fine to be weak.

April 29th is the day for my next check-up and the removal of the splint. Dr. Turvey signed my papers to return to work on April 30th.

My husband and I both were thrilled with the appointment. I really do have the best surgical team. I couldn’t be in better hands!

Two more weeks… I got this!

Day 9 – 19: Recovery is going awesome!

April 14, 2014 by Jennifer 2 Comments

Each day gets better. After the emotional blues on Day 7 and 8, days began to get so much more brighter. There are not huge changes like Day 1 through 8, but the small steps lead to big changes.

On day 10, pain began around the surgical incision of where they took out the condyle bone. It lasted for about two days. I realized that I was probably trying to talk too much. Once I scaled back on the talking, the pain was gone and has not been back. That was really the only pain that I have experienced. I am now off all of my pain medicines and antibiotic. The only medicine I am taking now is my nose spray two times a day.

Day 15:

I am still numb in my cheeks, my chin and bottom lip. I keep feeling tingling in my bottom chin so I think that is a good sign? Finally on Day 15, the drooling stopped. I was so happy. This was one big key that was making me feel depressed. It was so embarrassing. The towel is no longer my sidekick.

Pureed foods and smoothies are getting old very fast. I have moved on to oatmeal, coleslaw, crab salad, potato salad. I just make sure that it is all mashed and cut up pretty good so I will not get chocked since I am still not able to chew. Also, I prepared one of my Grandma’s favorite desserts and have been eating it each day.

1 16 oz. cup of cottage cheese
1 small tub of cool whip
1 small box of favorite jello

Mix altogether and keep in fridge. It is so good and goes down so easy. I used a mango flavored box of jello.

The bruising is now gone. It was so great that I didn’t really bruise that much. Most of the swelling is gone except on the right-side.

Day 19: Big difference 🙂

Amazing transformation. I smile so big each time that I look at this picture. Jaw surgery has been so worth it for sure.

My favorite gadget right now is the water pik. I’m not sure what I would do without it. Every time I eat, food gets caught in my braces and splint. I use the water pik and brush my teeth. The water pik is such a faithful friend to help remove all the food.

Tomorrow is my 3-week check-up with Dr. Turvey. I am looking forward to the appointment. I will do a blog post to update you. I have a feeling he is going to be impressed. My only complaint right now is that I still get really tired. Two naps a day have been a must-have. Going to see if this is normal.

My jaw surgery recover collage. One great journey!

Day 7 and 8 – Recovery Blues Are Here

April 2, 2014 by Jennifer 4 Comments

It is hard to believe this time last week that I was finishing up in surgery. The last week has definitely been a roller coaster of emotions.

Yesterday, my husband and I were on the road early to make the three hour trip to see my surgeon for my one week check-up. The appointment went great. Dr. Turvey thought I was doing great but did want me to watch my weight loss. I am down six pounds. Actually, I didn’t think that was bad but as we headed home, I did have Hubby to stop and get me a frosty from Wendy’s. I was able to eat it!

Dr. Turvey is really pleased with how the surgery turned out, especially with having four surgeries. He was able to clean out my nose and mouth at yesterday’s appointment. The nose felt all kinds of weird, but I was able to breathe so much better afterwards. The jaw bandage was able to be taken away and I just have to keep my elastics on my teeth. This helps keep the jaw in place. Starting next week, he wants me to only use two elastics during the day and try to do some small exercises.

I asked him when I would stop drooling and he said he could not answer that question. It differs with everyone. This is one of my biggest complaints right now. I drool so much. I mean I fill two towels a day and the reason that I will not leave the house right now unless riding to store with my husband and I sit in the car. It is so embarrassing and makes me feel so self-conscious. Another reason, why I do not really want to talk to visitors right now except close family and friends.

Also, I can’t talk of course. I have to write down lots of things but my family is finally getting to understand me a bit. Another thing, I get really tired. I am a pretty go-getter and usually do not stop, so not being able to get up and do as I want, has really dampened my mood. My husband has been so awesome about giving me lots of attention and hugs. For some reason, I think I should be able to just jump right back to normal routine after such major surgery. My mind just doesn’t understand.

Day 8:

Sunshine can do so much for your attitude. As I had a meltdown today, my husband said let’s go outside. We watched the girls play outside and all was awesome in my world. It got my mind off of my recovery. That is the main key, keeping myself from not thinking about recovery so much.

After I helped Hubby get the girls off to school, I stacked lots of pillows around me in our king-sized bed and slept for two great hours. Best sleep I had had since surgery, so I think I am going to give up the recliner tonight and try the bed. Let’s pray it works :).

Overall, each passing day gets so much better. I’m just being so inpatient about recovery and need to realize that my body needs time to bounce back after such a major surgery. It’s hard.

Eating is getting better. It is still so sloppy to eat and drink, but I am managing each day more and more. Today, I made my first protein shake in the blender. It was wonderfully delicious! I still can’t eat too much as it tires me out to eat. Again, with more time. My face is still so numb.

Honestly, I think one week post-op, I’m doing pretty good right?

Day 5 and Day 6: Worse to Better

March 31, 2014 by Jennifer 2 Comments

Day 5: I am going to be brutally honest. Day 5 was miserable. I shed quite a few tears and questioned my decision to go through this surgery? Just be prepared for the emotions on Day 5. It all goes up from there though! 🙂

My husband has been so loving and caring during this journey. He hugs me right when I need a hug, he grabs my hand when I need his touch and he reassures me that I am beautiful. I wrote this note to him last night and he replied right under it. Love him!

The swelling was obviously at peak on Day 5. I couldn’t hardly even mutter a word and my face felt like an elephant was sitting on it. I felt claustrophobic and could hardly swallow. Concern was weighing heavy on my heart whether I should go to the ER or not.

Thankfully my wonderful orthodontist text and reassured me that Day 5 is usually the worst. She said tomorrow will be better. I fell asleep praying that she would be right.

My sleep at night is not too good. I can’t quite get comfortable since I am use to sleeping on my stomach and side. Hoping I will readjust so I can get some decent sleep. My mouth gets really dry too, so my orthodontist suggested Biotene. My husband went to Walgreens at 10:00 at night to get me some. He is such a trooper. It helped with my dry mouth. I am going to continue to use it.

Day 6: Praise the Lord. MUCH better day. I woke up less swollen and just a better overall attitude.

Isn’t that picture amazing? I am so happy with the outcome of my jaw already! It’s going to help alleviate so many pain problems, sleep problems and eating issues once recovery is complete.

I feel like Jen once again. The light has been noticed at the end of the tunnel. Eating is getting somewhat easier today even though it is very hard to eat. It tires me out but I push through because I know my body needs the calories for healing. Here is a snapshot of what my table looks like when I sit down to eat.

This happens every six hours as I have to take all my medicines every six hours. Hubby graciously is there with me every step making sure I get the right dosages, prepares my warm salt water rinse, prepares my peroxide solution for my nose, washes my jaw wrap, and puts the ointment on the incision at my ear. It is usually a 45 minute routine but does it so graciously for me every time. He has been a blessing for sure.

I still do not have any feeling in my chin so I am still drooling a lot. Thank goodness for towels. One is toting around with me 24/7. Drinking is still a challenge but thankfully my oldest daughter M fixed a sippy cup for me so I can get smaller drinks. It really is helping. My left ear has been very painful since the feeling has came back there where they cut out the condyle bone. I’m going to ask the surgeon tomorrow if that is normal?

Yes, speaking of surgeon, we head three hours to Raleigh tomorrow for my one-week check-up. Can’t wait to let you know how it goes.

Thank you ALL for praying and your encouraging words. It truly makes this journey so much more tolerable. Today has just been a wonderful day. I hope each day continues to be better like this :).

Surgery Update Day 1 to 4

Orthognathic Surgery Updates Day 1 to Day 4

March 30, 2014 by Jennifer 4 Comments

I am finally going to start my updates. I am almost 96 hours out from surgery. I had read many other surgery stories, but I still didn’t think recovery would be like this, sadly.

I like to be up providing care for my family and they are the ones that are taking care of me.

As we were driving to the hospital Wednesday morning (26th), my phone rang. It was the hospital and they wanted me to come on in as they were ready for me. I let them know we were in the parking lot and would be in there ASAP. I really do think this was a total God sign, as I did not have to wait at the hospital at all. I told my Mom, Dad, and my brother that I loved them very much. The girls were with one of my bestie’s. My husband Scott, walked with me and I hugged him so tight. He took this picture of me:

They put my IV in and wheeled me to the operating room. The last thing I remember is breathe through this mask. The next thing I remember is waking up in recovery. I kept hearing my name. Jen, Jen, Jen, you need to wake up. I guess it took me a really long time to wake-up. Surgery started around 1 and I was finished around 7:15. I was finally able to get to my room around 9:30 where my family greeted me. So much happiness when I was able to see them. I kept saying, God is good…God is good! As soon as I saw my Dad, I said I did it!!

M did so great with seeing me. I kept hugging on her. L was so scared because I had a hard time with my oxygen so I had all these tubes coming out and blood was everywhere. No pictures! I don’t want to remember that scene. My step-daughter, M and my husband all did great with settling down L. I remember my brother crying too. I’m sure it was a scary sight.

Around midnight, Dr. Turvey’s residents came in to see me. I was still so sleepy. He was helping me learn how to take my elastics off and on. This is not an easy feat. Hopefully when the swelling goes down, it will be better. This suction became my best friend in the hospital.

I miss this so much at home. I drool everywhere and I cannot feel it, so it is quite embarrassing.

The morning after surgery, the Residents came in and had me transported over to the clinic. They were able to clean me up and do x-rays. As I looked at myself, I couldn’t believe it. Hardly no swelling and such a straight jaw.

Check out this x-ray. You can see the screws and plates that were placed during surgery.

Day 2, I tried to eat and it just wasn’t feasible. They did keep bringing me chicken broth and it would go down but no pureed food. The swelling was really getting bigger on Day 2. I was able to walk around the hospital with my family several times that day. The pain wasn’t too bad either.

On Day 3, I was determined to go home. I somehow got down some pureed eggs and a bit of mashed potatoes. The Residents all said I was doing great and they would let me go home.

We had about a three hour drive home and fortunately, I slept most of the way with the help of pain medicine. Came home and was greeted by my wonderful Bestie Cindy and her Husband. They had delivered dinner for Hubby and the girls, and also brought me lots of BOOST. That is what I had for supper. We settled in for the night. I was able to sleep about 3 hour stretches at a time.

Day 4, I woke up so swollen. Do I even look like Jen? The pressure is so intense. I will not lie. To drink or eat, it takes so much effort and I get so tired.

It is so hard to swallow but I try so hard because my mouth keeps getting so dry. Applesauce has been my friend to get my pain medicine down. All other medications are liquids. I am on an antiobiotic, sinus congestion medicine, nasal spray and two kinds of pain medications.

I did get up and do some walking and take a sponge bath since I can’t wash my hair till Tuesday when I go back for my 1 week check-up. Amazing what a sponge bath can do for your attitude. The pain where they took my condyle bone out at my ear is more intense this day that it has been in the previous days.

Ice packs are very frequent as it feels like it takes some pressure off of my face. My face feels like it weighs about 100 pounds.

M and my Hubby are doing great by providing care for me. Hoping for a better day 5!

Jennifer

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