More metal anyone?

Hi there,  yesterday I went to see Dr O & he fitted my surgical hooks.  

Good grief!! Not too bad an appointment in the scheme of things.  Not painful & thankfully he had to remove the wires to attach the surgical hooks - as a pair of the crimpers broke (handle snapped clean off!!) & my wire went flying across the room.  All good, we laughed about it.  

Hooks will stay on for about six weeks in my case.  Obviously they need to go on as close to surgery as possible, then will come off when they can easily access them & not cause too much pain.  Each tooth is wired individually also (rather than the pretty plastic colours I'm used to).

So it feels like the first day I had my braces on again, with all this extra metal that sticks out oddly.  And I feel like I may scare small children (or even big ones) if I smile at them :)

Today all my teeth are a little tender, but nothing out of the ordinary.  

13 days and counting until surgery.  I'm looking forward to the point where I wake up from surgery and know 'YES!  I did it - it's over' (at least the waiting for surgery part anyway).  I clearly remember THAT moment from my last surgery.  

The nerves and doubts are trying to creep into my thoughts, but I refuse to allow it.  I need to go into this with a clear head, thinking positively & full of healthy healing vibes.  I CAN do this!!

T minus 22 days and counting 😁

Well whirlwind doesn't quite seem to cut it, but we'll go with that anyway!  

Just back from 17 beautiful magic unforgettable days in stunning  New Zealand where we celebrated my Grandmother's 90th birthday; participated in a HUGE family reunion on many levels; paraglided off mountains; went snowboarding for the first time; explored in a Campervan; and I got engaged to my wonderful partner Bernie.  An unbeatable holiday really, and who has time to think about jaw surgery with all of THAT going on????

Ok back to jaw surgery......

Yesterday I had my work-up appointment with my surgeon, which went pretty well.  

He took moulds (that didn't hurt when he pulled them out - bless him) and measured my head with a weird contraption that sits in your ears and balances on your nose.  

I only had a few questions, and other than that just clarified my understanding of what's what.  

Dr D says that my midline is off by about 3mm (which he'll fix); and he's likely to take about 4mm from my top jaw.  Not sure on the likely movement forward for my bottom jaw yet, and movement of my chin (if required) will be decided by the whole surgical team on the day.  

If all goes to plan, I'll spend two nights in hospital and will not have a splint or bands.  While this did seen a little strange as it does not seem to be the norm in blogging world, I have read other blogs where this is the case, and I do trust Dr D completely.  I'm pretty stoked that I might be able to 'eat' squishy things that will fit on a spoon pretty much straight away.  We'll see.  

Made my first purchase for surgery yesterday (a sit up pillow thingy) to help me sleep upright-ish.  I think that it will probably be my only purchase out of the ordinary.   

I started a Nutritional Cleansing program back in April with a view to get my body healthy and prepare myself for surgery.  At this system's core is a nutrition packed shake, and I'll be able to continue feeding my body properly even though I may not be able to 'eat' which conveniently will be perfect for jaw surgery recovery.  

I firmly believe that the quality of the vitamins, minerals and core nutrients contained within this system will help me heal and recover faster.  For anyone who'd like more information feel free to email me (reeawa@yahoo.com.au)

We already have a stash of lip balm and itty-bitty toothbrushes here at home; and I plan to use little zip lock bags of frozen peas as ice-packs.  I can't think of anything else that I'll need (apart from some big hugs & the support of my family, friends & of course my blog buddies) to help me through.  

I have an appointment next week with Dr O to have my surgical hooks fitted, then a final pre-surgery appt on the 9th.  

Double jaw surgery here I come - I'm gunna kick your arse!!!