1 week to go.

I think the reality of my surgery finally hit me today. For almost two years I have been saying that I will be getting jaw surgery, but sometime in the future because the date of that surgery wasn't set so it didn't feel real. This whole month has been flying by and I don't feel as prepared as I should be; that is one of the reasons that I'm starting to get anxious.

When I started my current job in mid-November I told my families that I won't be able to do any home visits during the month of March due to my surgery, but now that we've had time to get to know each other and get used to seeing each other every week, it's hard to imagine not seeing them for 5 weeks. I work with kids under age 3 and they grow so fast, I feel like I'm going to be missing out on so much. My previous job was just a desk job as a program assistant for the same agency, but back then I would have loved to have that much time off.

Even just writing this post and thinking about all the unknown that comes with this surgery is getting to me and I'm not an emotional person....well I don't like to be anyways. Today I had this urge to just run away and not think about it. With my surgery being so close it's all I think about and I need a break from it. Whenever I'm stressed I find myself driving around. I went to a couple stores trying to find a freakin' squeeze bottle to help me drink water and slippers for my surgery and finally I found them. I took more then a few stores, but I found some.

After all that shopping I ended up at the beach. I live in a very rural area of Northern California where we have many, many redwood trees, plenty of beaches and rivers. Nature calms me. It was a windy day at the beach. It was exactly what I needed. The roads are windy that are fun to drive and it was actually sunny. This week is going to fly by and I leave Saturday morning to head to Washington and won't be coming home until Thursday. Not being home during the first part of my recovery will be an interesting twist, I hope I can do it.

Well, until next time. Below are some pictures from today.

Pre-op appointment: Check

My mom took these pictures on Tuesday when we were on our way to Seattle. The first one is the one that bothers me the most and I know it shouldn't because it's how I actually look....but still. Makes me more and more excited to see my post-op profile.

I had my pre-op appointment on Wednesday at 8:00 a.m. and it lasted about an hour. When I had talked to them about the records appointment they had told me to expect to be there for an hour not three! In the end it all worked out though. I was able to talk to my surgeon and he was really cool and answered all my questions. I hadn't seen him since my consultation in July of 2010 and him being so cool reaffirmed that I made the right decision to have him do my surgery and not the the jerk of a surgeon at UCSF.

I did find out that I will not be able to have my dental implants put in during my surgery, but he will be able to do the bone grafts doing the surgery and then after 6 months I will be able to get my dental implants. As long as I'm able to get my dental implants in the end I'll be happy. When we were going over the surgery plan we talked about doing my upper jaw. Technically it's not necessary for me to have my upper jaw done, but since my surgeon was able to get both jaws approved by my insurance, why not?! He is going to take a few millimeters from my upper jaw so that when I smile I won't show much gum. My surgeon pointed out that my upper jaw is a little crooked, that will be fixed with the surgery. He will also be moving my lower jaw forward about ten millimeters.

I have two more weeks to go from Monday and I am finally starting to buy my supplies for after my surgery. I know time will start to fly by even faster. I can't wait!! 

Started my list of questions for my surgeon.

I finally started writing down some questions I have for my surgeon about my surgery and I thought I would share them with you guys and if there is anything you think I should add to my list please let me know!

1. Will I have drainage tubes?
2. Will/How the surgery effect my nose?
3. Will my airway increase as a result of the surgery?
4. What's the timeline regarding numbness?
5. What will be my diet restrictions? Will I have to be on a clear liquid diet at first?
6. What medications will I be prescribed?
7. Will I only be staying in the hospital for one night?
8. Will I only be rubber banded shut for the first night?
9. What are my after care instructions? Saline rinses, mouth washes and tooth brushing.
10. Will I be given any syringes?
11. What are the measurements of my jaw movements?
12. Will I be needing to get a bone graft or will I be able to get my implants installed?
13. If I need to have a bone graft, where will it be coming from? From my upper jaw or maybe my hip?
14. How many plates and screws will I have in my face?
15. Can you go over the risks of the surgery again?
16. How long to I have to be off work?
17. Since I am only coming back for a 4 week post-op check, what do I do if I have a problem before that appointment?
18. Are there any special skin care instructions?
19. Will my stitches be dissolvable? If so, how long do they take to dissolve?
20. Will my top jaw be widened and result in needing to have a splint after surgery?
21. What are the restrictions with exercise? Running vs Walking.
22. How long does residual swelling take to go down?
23. At what point in the recovery would I start doing jaw exercises? What about jaw massage?
24. How long does nerve regeneration take? What parts take longer?
25. How long after surgery do people typically drool in excess? Weird question I know.
26. Will I have a screw put between my eyebrows or whatever that thing is called?
27. My orthodontist asked if I'm getting my chin done, is that a possibility?
28. Is it possible to result in a deviated septum? Can that be prevented?