An update - sans update?

Hello again fellow jaw blog buddies :)

I recently saw some pics of me clowning around down at the beach (to test out Mum's new camera) and rather than feeling revolted and depressed about what I saw (which I would normally be, and make her delete them immediately), I was actually quite, um, I don't know - maybe critical, but with a bit of peace of mind as I know its all about to change.  Does that make sense? 

I really noticed how I obviously 'hold' my jaw, and purse my lips to hold them closed - which I didn't realise I did before now.  I think that this 'look' is potentially much worse than the slack-jawed look I have if I relax, and stopped trying so hard to look 'normal'.  Note to self - stop being so bloody critical,  take a deep breath, relax & have FUN! 

Earlier this week (yes, this week - how efficient am I this time??) I had another adjustment appointment with the very knowledgable and informative Dr O.  I was pretty excited about this, hoping that I would get some more of an idea about a possible surgery date. And I did, but I didn't.....

So my expansion has partially re-lapsed (not sure that is technically correct but close enough for me) and this is a good thing, as I was over expanded and the re-lapse was expected and necessary; and my gaps are all closed nicely.  The rubber bands I have been wearing 24/7 for the last three months have done a great job, and for now - I only have to wear them at night (I just have to remember to put them in.....thank you iPhone reminders). 

I went up a wire size both top and bottom, although the top is a bigger size than the bottom - and these are likely to be the ones I will go to surgery with, whenever that may be. 

I had been wondering for a while, but had forgotten to ask the difference between an overbite and an overjet.  Dr O explained that I have both.  The overjet is the horizontal difference between the position of my top teeth and my bottom teeth - this will be fixed by bringing the lower jaw forward, and thus bringing my bottom teeth out to meet my top ones.   

Overjet (horizontal difference)

The overbite is the vertical difference between the position of my top teeth and my bottom teeth - this will be fixed by cutting a chunk (although I am sure it will be much more precise than that - lol) out of my top jaw. So while now when I bite down my front teeth obscure the view of my bottom teeth almost completely, once surgery is done and dusted, we should be able to see a good portion of my bottom teeth.

Overbite (vertical difference)

Keeping with my colourful theme, I asked my eldest daughter for her colour pick for my bands this time.  She chose sparkly purple, but as they don't come as a power-chain, we had to go with dark purple.  Good choice, I love it!!

We had to take wax bite moulds (no dramas) & impressions this appointment also, and while the impressions are never a pleasant experience, it wasn't too bad.  The lovely dental assistant (bugger - forgot her name - but she is SO lovely) apologised for hurting me all the way through, but since she did such a great job of it the first time, we didn't have any repeats - YAAAY.  How else to explain it other than it feels like they are trying to pull all your teeth out at the same time. 

So the plan from here, is that Dr O will talk to my surgeon Dr D in the next couple of weeks, and show him my impressions and wax bite moulds - and they will decide then if I am ready or not.......and I have to wait......... for a call........I hate waiting :)   But I keep thinking - I have now completed 11 months in braces, so I am much farther along than I was and am hopefully at the halfway point (or less). 

Oh, and when Dr O told me that Dr D is THE BEST surgeon he has worked with (and he has worked with several in Capital cities and larger centres) it puts me at ease.  I am in safe and expert hands - both with my Orthodontics and Surgery. 

Luckily I have lots to keep me busy while I wait - birthdays galore; a work conference and a snow holiday to pack for :))))))))  Nothing like time flying when you're having fun!!

My next appointment is scheduled for the end of August, and could very well be the one where my surgical hooks go on (good grief). 

  

I love SEEING progress :)

Hello again my blogging friends!!

I recently went for another braces adjustment with my Orthodontist, and everything went pretty well. 

There was a good amount of excess wire behind my back molars, so we’ve had a lot of movement since my last adjustment.   The extraction gap on my right side was basically closed, with the gap on my left only a mm or so left to go – not long after the adjustment that final gap closed also – yay!  Dr O said that closing the gaps is normally a fairly long process (and we expected that this may not happen until June) – so double yay!!

The black triangle between my two front teeth is virtually non-existent; however I have one of these between one of my front teeth and the one beside it – which we are working on now.  Same procedure as last time, file a little of the roundness off the side, and put a kink in the wire to tip the root. 

There has been a pesky tooth (front bottom) which hasn’t wanted to play this straightening game all along, so Dr O removed the bracket, and put a new one on in a slightly different spot, and then wired that to my wire – that hurt (not excruciating, but pretty ouchy) – enough for me to feel like he was actually rotating my tooth with the pliers as he tightened the wire.   But – I had to be brave – my little girl was watching on…. J

We took new x-rays today, and O.M.G – the difference is AMAZING!  My teeth have moved SO MUCH, and in ways I could not have imagined when I saw my original x-ray.  I just about cried when I saw these side by side.... 

Original: Dec 11 vs New: Apr 13

Perhaps they have moved a little too much –in that I now have to wear rubber bands in order to pull my bottom teeth back; and push my top teeth forward (at least that is how I understand it) to create a bigger – erm overbite gap. I can take my bands out to eat and brush –but they don’t really worry me – so that’s good. 

I expected that any width movement (re-lapse perhaps?) following the removal of my expander would happen fairly quickly, and so I queried how we fix the difference between the width of my top teeth arch and bottom teeth arch (with my top arch being wider).  Dr O explained that we should expect to see more re-lapse over the coming months, so the fact that I was slightly over expanded is not likely to be an issue. 

Dr O thinks that surgery is likely to be about six months away – which suits me, although obviously I want to be able to lock in a date – so I know where I am.  Maybe we’ll have a better idea at the next appointment in June.    

Best news of the day is that my little girl does not have as issues as severe as mine, and although likely to need perhaps a couple of extractions, and braces – she shouldn’t need anything as invasive as surgery.  YAY! 

Til next time friends, hope that your mouths and dental professionals are being nice to youJ

Ellie xx

Wireless and Bluetooth

Just recently.. (ok two and a half weeks ago - slack busy blogger).. I had another braces adjustment (3rd); and I was still as excited as ever to have this done (despite my slackness at posting about it). 

The first exiting thing to happen at this appointment, was that Dr O took my expansion support out - YAY.  It's kind of only a half-assed YAY because even though I have had this thing across the roof of my mouth to support my expansion for the last seven (7 - yes, count them - SEVEN) months, it wasn't really as bad/annoying/uncomfortable/and generally irritating as it could have been. 

The expansion device that was originally fitted to: a) move my two pieces of 'floating' bone apart a teeny tiny bit at a time (to allow the new bone growth to keep up); and b) to lock and support my new wider mouth until the bone fused properly - broke about six weeks into wearing it; and I was blessed with a much less invasive support (just a squiggly thin wire) for the remainder of the time.  Thanking my lucky stars really..... and am now officially WIRELESS (well that one anyway).

Original Expander - at full width

 

Replacement expansion support

 

We (well Dr O - I just layed back obviously) removed the thin round wire on my bottom teeth (had that one since I got my braces on); and replaced it with a thicker flat wire.  This was also done to my top wire at the last adjustment (can't remember if I wrote that on my last post, or not).  We (ok he) also trimmed a bit off the top wire, which is good news - the gaps left by the extraction of two of my top teeth are gradually closing.  Dr O says that this movement is generally about 1mm per month, so hopefully the gaps will be completely closed by about June.  YAY.

My bite is a bit ridiculous after the expansion (I was told it would be "We have to make it worse to make it better"....) Only four teeth touch - in total: two top & two bottom - right at the back.  And they only just overlap - that is the inner side of the top teeth just touch the outer side of the bottom teeth - so chewing is um interesting.  I am managing to eat ok (although sometimes I feel the need to cover my mouth because I am sure I am pulling weird faces just trying to eat).  Family just has to put up with that - gotta love em :)

Biting down - overbite

Biting down

 

Only two very back teeth touch

I have always had a bit of a gap (AKA black triangle) between my two front teeth, and even after the opening of the HUGE gap created by the expansion; and the application of braces which closed said gap - I still have a black triangle because my teeth are wider at the bottom than the top.  So since we are aiming to fix all things toothy for me, we  he set about the first step in correcting this which involved the tiniest little file I have ever seen.  Basically with my top wire removed, he used this little file to take about half a mm off my teeth/tooth (kinda like filing your nails) and then made a little kink in my wire which will tell the roots of my front teeth to tilt toward each other a little.  How a little kink does that is way beyond me - but whatever - he is the expert!  Amazing stuff this Orthodontics.  We are likely to have to repeat this a couple more times.  No problem. 

I found out what a power chain is on this day also & I'm pretty sure "I Don't Like It!"  (haha Pauline Hansen eat your heart out).  Top teeth - 12 link power chain; bottom teeth - 10 link power chain.  OUCHY-WAWA!!  On the plus side, they're a pretty blue; on the negative side, my teeth are were pretty blue :( too.   HA - BLUETOOTH - get it?

Bluetooth!

Powerchains & the dreaded Black Triangle - AAARGH - sounds like a good Pirate Movie

Good grief - this is probably the most pain I have had from an adjustment.  Pain probably isn't the right word though - more like uncomfortable/tender/achey, but when it is ALL of my teeth ALL at the same time; and for extended periods - not nice.  I am pleased to report that by the end of the first week I was much more comfortable, and not long after that me and my teeth were happy chappies once again. 
 
I did notice that about a week after this adjustment that when I made S sounds that it sounded kinda weird; and I also felt like I had to make much more of an effort to close my lips around my braces than before.  I know my teeth are supposed to move, but I had not noticed them move like this before, and it was just weird.  Must have gotten used to it, cause I don't notice it now. 

So Dr O says that basically once my gaps are completely closed, that will be when we take new moulds, pics, measurements etc and start to discuss a surgery date (and whether or not I will require just lower jaw surgery; or upper and lower).  He thinks that double is likely - so I am trying to prepare myself for that & if it is just lower, than that will be a bonus I guess. We should be ready to have this discussion about June-ish. 

That was great news to hear because a) June isn't really very far away; and b) I didn't want to be ready earlier than that and not be able to schedule my surgery until later in the year.  My whole family (my partner & kids; my Mum; sisters & their families) and I are going to New Zealand to visit my Grandma (and go skiing - Natasha - not quite skiing in France, but good enough for my first time :)) in late Winter; and there is no way I wanted to take that holiday with a broken face. 

If everything goes to plan (and why shouldn't it??) then my gaps will be closed, we'll have the surgery discussion & book a date; we will go on our wonderful holiday; and then (hopefully) not too long after that I will have THE SURGERY.  For me, that (THE SURGERY) is hump day - you know - middle of the week & not long til the weekend.  Just focusing on getting hump day out of the way (ok, so maybe it'll be more like hump-couple-of-weeks but you get the general idea).  After that it's gotta be all downhill from there right????

YES IT WILL BE (thank you self).

So now, me and my wireless & bluetoothy mouth are just cruising along, getting ready to be excited about the next adjustment (April).  That one is likely to be interesting for different reasons - my eight year old will be coming with me, to have an assessment of her own and she will be seeing Dr O too.  She thinks she is prepared to be told she'll need braces (not so scary when Mum & other friends have them); but I just hope that when we discuss the issues, and find out all the options, that she doesn't get too scared by the possibilities.  My kids don't know the extent of my pending surgery because I don't want to scare them (I have two little worriers).  Anyway - we'll just have to deal with it as it comes.

Thanks for reading/following; and thanks to all those fellow bloggers documenting and sharing their journeys.  It really does make a huge difference knowing there is a whole community of people in the same boat. 

Shout out to Dr O - hope everything went well with the birth of your second baby.  Look forward to seeing some pics at my next visit....

Cheers - Ellie xx 

 

 





  

 

Busier than a Blue-arsed Fly

Good Grief!

I think I have had just about the busiest December on record (for me anyway) - so I haven't had time to update my blog until now.  What with School concerts, excursions, Birthday parties, Christmas parties, dentist appointments and trips to the emergency department (mid birthday party) - I have been busier than a Blue-arsed Fly - and they are apparently really busy! 

On Dec 5 I went for my second braces adjustment, and I had a pretty great day!  My Orthodontist group travel down to another town once a month - and it just happens to be half way between their usual office, and my home town - YAY! 

I'm pleased to say that I did get just as excited about this adjustment as my last, and it has not become a mundane task yet.  Even though there has not been as much noticeable movement, there has been some - which is comforting. 

My bottom canines had both overlapped the teeth beside them, and while I had been keeping an eye on their movement, and could see subtle changes, about two weeks before my appointment I was having dinner at my Mum's and had felt something differernt during dinner.  When I got home, I checked out these teeth in the mirror, and to my great excitement I found that one of those canines was now sitting nicely BESIDE it's neighbour!  I actually did a little jig in the bathroom, and jumped up and down like a crazy person......but it felt SO GOOD to see it sitting where it should be.  One down, one to go. 

Canine on my right (your left) is now behaving nicely

The offending canines before treatment

   

 

 

 

I was in and out in about 10 minutes, so I am really glad that I didn't have to drive a round trip of 4 hours just for that!  I didn't get to have my expansion support taken out, but I hardly notice it, so really it is no biggy. Next adjustment, though - definately.  Dr O says that my teeth are moving as they should be, and are looking good; and he also said that he thinks about April/May next year they will need to take a whole new set of records (impressions, photos, and measurements) so that he, and my surgeon Dr D can review and discuss whether I will need just lower jaw surgery, or upper and lower. 

Say what?  Do you mean to say that there is a possibility that I may be ready for surgery then???? Yes. Possibility.  :)

I was SO EXCITED!!  I know that April/May are (well they were then anyway) only like 5 months away - but that eqates to (possibly) only two more adjustment appointments!!!!  PROGRESS!!! I love progress. 

So they whipped off the lovely Pink bands, and since it is December, and the time to be Merry and celebratte all things festive, I decided on Christmas colours (and specifically chose a Green that doesn't look too much like Spinach). 

I brought my Mum along for the day, and after my very speedy appointment, we hit the shops and then went out for lunch.  I was a bit worried that my teeth would be really sore (like last time), but they were only a little tender, and were back to normal the next day.  Woohoo!

About a week after my first adjustment my braces cut up the insides of my cheeks, and I was using the wax for a week or so.  Since then I have had the odd day here or there where my cheeks are tender, but generally, the braces are back to being nice to me, and I haven't had any issues since my last adjustment - yay. 

My next adjustment is scheduled for the end of January; and then the one after that is in early April.  My youngest daughter is set to accompany me to that one, for an assessment of her own.  Poor little thing (only 8) and referred to the Orthodontist for a similar problem to mine.....at least we will  have the same Dr, and hopefully her treatment will not need to be as drastic as mine.....hopefully......

Wishing everyone out there in blogging world a very Merry Christmas & an Awesome New Year!!

Adjusting

Well the last 10 weeks haven't exactly flown by; by they are gone nonetheless - and I have made it to the next leg of this process.  After the 'excitement' of my palate expansion surgery, and then fitting of my braces - there has been relatively little going on with all this mouth business for me. 

Not that that isn't a good thing - no news is good news right?  My braces have generally continued to be nice to me (thank you; thank you; thank you), so I haven't felt the need to share my lack of interesting braced tidbits to the blogging world.   

But!  Today I went back to see Dr O for my first braces adjustment - AND I was excited about it.  I have been excited about it for the last two weeks; and counting down; and jumping up and down singing "I get my braces adjusted tomorrow".  I don't know whether this excitement will wear off before the next adjustment - and turn into "braces adjustment - yada yada"; but I have tried to think of these as little milestones that bring me closer to a surgery date (the BIG one); and closer to the day when my mouth is free of metal & my beautiful new smile is revealed.  I think that is something to be excited about & if I don't break this whole process into little chunks, then it just seems so long and daunting! 

Started the day with another long drive.  My appointment was for 9.30am & was all over before 10.  I have read in so many blogs that the adjustments are painful - but I didn't really have anything to compare this to since I didn't have any pain when my braces were fitted.  I now realize that this was most probably due to the fact that most of my top jaw (gums & teeth) was numb from the teeny tiny little nerves being severed during my palate expansion surgery (all according to plan).

So, some good news, and some not so good.  My nerves seem to have grown back - YAY!  However this means that I was in a bit of pain today.  Nothing too dramatic - but now I understand what everyone writes about.  My bottom front teeth really hurt when Dr O put the new bands on - but then over the course of the day, all of my teeth started to object & ache.  Panadol seems to do the trick though.

And I am reminding myself that this is really nothing compared to what Terra and Sarah are going through at the moment; and what Ellie, Erin & Rosa have not long been through.  Think I need to toughen up a bit!

I walked in to the Orthodontist rooms this morning with a gap between my front teeth of around 2mm & Dr O said that this will close up fairly quickly with these new bands on. Again, underestimated "fairly quickly" - 2 hours later it was half that size; and by 2pm it was completely closed. Holy! Crap!

Left to Right - Yesterday; About 4 hrs after my adjustment!!!!

The gaps left by my extracted teeth (bottom) had closed up quite a bit over the last 10 weeks (I hadn't really paid much attention to this bit); and today I had brackets fitted to my top back molars - so this will start to close up the extraction gaps at the top.  I am amazed at how much my teeth have moved already, and what a huge improvement it is (even though technically we are making my bite much worse than it was).  I am just so happy at how straight they are looking - and when I look back at my before pictures, I feel like such a hillbilly.  It is good to look back though, as it just reinforces that I have made the right decision. 
 

Left to Right above - Pre braces; Expansion completed; Braces Fitted

Left to Right - Pre braces; Expansion complete; Yesterday :)



Left to Right - Pre braces; Braces Fitted; Yesterday

This whole process continues to fascinate me - and would like to think that if I had've had this done when I was younger that I may have pursued a career in dentistry in some form or another.  Then again, I probably would have been full of teenage hormones and would not have paid any attention to the actual process at all. 

Since I liked my blue coloured bands so much last time; I decided to continue with this theme on this colourful process & we fitted hot pink bands today.  My kids love them. 

Seven weeks until my next adjustment & on one hand I am looking forward to it (I get to have my expansion support wire removed); but on the other I am not - so close to Christmas, and I refuse to believe that we are almost upon that time of year! 

Again - no news is good news, so I hope to not update my posts again until then. 

Cheers - Ellie x

 

 

Braced

So much has happened since my last post - so slack at posting :(  

Well I went for my check up with my Orthodontist in mid July as planned, and as I had suspected - my expansion wasn't big enough.  I was so bummed by that news. 

I was supposed to have turned the little key once a day for 24 days @ 1/4mm each turn to achieve an expansion of 6mm.  And I did turn it that much; and more - a whole extra 1mm - yet when the Orthodontist measured my expansion it was a measly 5.5mm.  How does that happen????

It wasn't all bad though, I think this Orthodontist (Dr Hanrahan - I kinda have two that I see regularly) took pity on me (since I live so far away and can't just pop in whenever I like).  So rather than re-schedule my braces on appointment for sometime in the next millenium; he said that I should continue to turn my little key once a day for the next 10 days which should give me more than enough expansion by my braces on appointment.  YAY.

I was unsure whether my regular Dr would agree, because it had been explained to me that normally they would take moulds and then measure and plan where to put the braces from my moulds; but because my mouth/teeth hadn't stopped moving - they couldn't do moulds yet.  And since my regular Dr would be the guy to put my braces on - I really needed to hear it from him.  Thankfully he was ok with this (I love these guys!). 

So on 30 July I GOT MY BRACES ON :).  I was so excited; my kids were excited - they told EVERYONE at their school what I was doing, and they were just itching for the end of the day so they could see.  How gorgeous is that? 

Did another 400km round trip, and the appointment went off without a hitch.  The assistants had everything ready (as you would expect) but while we were waiting for the Dr, we got chatting about the coloured elastics that were available.  Now I love colour, and since I had a whole array of colour to choose from - I decided why the hell not!  It's not like having clear elastics were going to make my braces any less visible, so I figured that I might as well embrace (pardon the pun) this opportunity.  And since I was off to the races that coming weekend, and had my outfit all planned - I decided that my elastics would match also.     

The whole process was pretty smooth and uneventful except for a few horrid moments with the UV light that they use to set the glue.  I'm not sure if anyone else has experienced similar to me, or if I am just a little strange - but that light really hurt my teeth!  Not all of them - but the ones that did nearly had me in tears - if you imagine the feeling when a nerve is exposed; or for those who have sensitive teeth - imagine eating something really really really cold.  Thankfully it was only a few teeth (front bottom) - I don't think I could have gone through it if it was all of my teeth. 

It was definately a different sort of feeling once the brackets were all in, and although I was worried beforehand how my mouth/lips would manage to stretch around my new hardware - it wasn't too bad at all.  My Dr had warned me that I would likely need Panadol for the first week, so I popped a couple for the drive home; but these were the only ones I took.  I grabbed some easy-to-eat food (thank you KFC for popcorn chicken) and headed for home. 

My back teeth were a little tender for probably the first week, but nothing like I had expected; and to date (touch wood), I have had no nastiness (in the form of rubbing/ulcers etc) on the inside of my mouth.  My teeth actually ached more BEFORE my braces - almost like they needed something to be pushing against them.  I know - weird.    

The first thing my girls wanted to do was see my braces, and they LOVED that I had some colour too!  Here are a couple of pics of me just-before braces and just-after braces.

And one of me in my races outfit with my matching mouth bling. The gap in my front teeth had closed heaps in just five days! Woohoo!! 

  
Well I was thinking that everything was going along a little too smoothly - and hey presto - DRAMA. 

Two days after getting my braces on, my expander broke.  So this is the device that has been creating the extra space across my palate; and this same device is supposed to support my broken jaw while it heals - AND. IT. BREAKS!!  To say that I was a little stressed is a bit of an understatement - especially when it is at night; I am 200km from my Dr; and I can't get hold of him for advice.  Thankfully I was able to get hold of my Surgeon, who assured me that although it needed to be fixed ASAP - it wasn't all going to crumble overnight.  Phew!

And no, I hadn't had anything I shouldn't have had in my mouth.  One of the welds failed. 

I was in quite a bit of pain that night - my palate was aching; and the expander had slumped on the broken side, so was sitting weirdly in my mouth.  I called the Dr's rooms the next morning - and was able to talk to my Dr which was a relief.  We organized an appointment for the following day (big thanks to my Boss for being so understanding) and I jumped on a bus at 4am with my fingers crossed. 

Because it had only been 6 weeks since my surgery, and 4 days since I had stopped expanding; my other Dr (Hanrahan again) decided that I still needed support until the bone healed properly.  They took my molar bands off (yay) and removed the expander - it was quite a weird feeling without that support.  Then they took a mould of my new mouth shape in order to make up a new device. 

The taking of this mould was the WORST pain I have felt through this whole experience to date!!!  I am not sure whether it was because my braces gave the plaster something extra to stick to, or what - but OMG - I thought he was going to pull my teeth out with the plaster.  I was hanging on to the chair for dear life, and had tears streaming down my face.  Ouch does not even begin to cover it. 

I had to amuse myself for a few hours after that, and find something squishy to eat; before heading back in to have the new device installed. This part was not so bad - new molar bands; and a new device which is basically just a wire for support.  I really don't even know it is there, and it is so much easier to pronounce my sounds now that there is nothing stopping my tongue from reaching the roof of my mouth.  It is also much harder for food to get stuck; and much easier to remove said stuck food :) 

All fixed, and going nice and smooth now :)  Next appointment is about 10 weeks away - for my first adjustment (and new and different coloured bands); and hopefully the removal of my palate support. 

Hopefully that time will fly!

   





   

I can't whistle

Oh how time flies!  It is quite bizare to think that it was just over three weeks ago that I had my top jaw broken into two kinda floating pieces. 

I say bizare because when you think broken jaw, you think pain, you think metal plates and screws, you think wired or banded shut, and you think basically liquid diet.  But that is not what I think of looking back over the last three weeks - and that is AWESOME!

SWELLING:  The bulk of the swelling went down over a couple of days after my last post, so by the time I went back to work (six days after surgery) I felt more like a normal human being instead of half human half chipmunk.  I was pretty tired on my first day back, but after that - no worries. 

BRUISING:  My top lip was still mostly purple when I went back to work, and my lovely moustache bruise started coming out then, but really that was nothing to complain about.  The bruising has now just about completely disappeared - so for me that was the thing that I noticed most.  My Aunty and Uncle visited from New Zealand, and they told me that they thought I had been beat up (but didn't want to say anything) - so they were kinda relieved when I told them what actually happened.   

JUST BIZARRE:  I have noticed some funny, some weird, some strange things about my mouth.  In the first week after surgery I noticed that from time to time I would feel like a tiny little rubber band had just flicked loose inside or close to, my front teeth (not sure if that makes sense to anyone else).  Almost as if tiny little 'strings' were letting go to allow my gap to form.  It didn't hurt at all, it was just strange - and describing that really grossed my sister out, which was funny. 

I have also noticed that as my mouth moves, my speech is different.  That sounds obvious I know, but I am talking about being able to speak fairly clearly one minute, and then the next, speaking like I have a lisp; or like someone who has not put their false teeth in.  My workmates notice it as well - but they are all very supportive which is great!  It generally doesn't take too long to adjust to the new configuration in my mouth, and my speech returns to my new 'normal' before too long; only to change again just a quickly.  Interesting times.....

We have the radio playing in our office, and one of the most played songs at the moment is "Blow My Whistle" by Flo-rida.  I find the tune quite addictive, and had become used to whistling through the song; however last week to my dismay - I found that I could no longer whistle!  What?  Oh that's right - I have a big gap between my front teeth - of course I can't whistle!  It is also quite strange when I say Fs - now I feel a big rush of air through my gap - something to get used to for a while I guess.   

I had also found it hard to lick my lips, put my tongue anywhere near the front of my teeth, or rub my lips together (like you would to smear lip gloss).  Actually I still can't rub my lips together very well, but at least I can lick my lips and feel the front of my teeth with my tongue now.  Must have been from all the swelling I guess. 

GROWING GAP: The gap between my front teeth has continued to grow day by day, which is quite exciting for me. From having the bottom of my two front teeth overlap to having about a 4mm gap (today - 14/07/12) is great! I do get some strange looks from people who have not seen me for a while - I can almost see their minds ticking - thinking - how is it that I never noticed that gap in her teeth before now - because logically, adult's teeth don't move like that. No-one has actually asked, although I would not mind if they did.

Turning the key to engage my expander every day has been relatively easy, and relatively comfortable up until the last couple of days.  The last few times that I have turned it (once a day) it has felt quite tight, and I feel pressure across my cheeks (logical since my top jaw is being expanded).  I also feel like some of the swelling has returned across my cheeks, and I have not noticed as much of a difference in my gap day to day like I did last week. 

My surgeon told me that during surgery when my palate split (all according to plan) he saw a nice big gap between my front teeth, which is exactly what he wanted to see.  It makes me wonder though whether the expansion process so far has been relatively easy for me because I have just been winding my jaw out to where it was when my gap appeared during surgery; and now there is more resistance because I am pushing it further than that.  Who knows?  I guess that is a question for my doctors next time I see them. 

I have been watching the changing shape of my upper  teeth with great delight.  If you imagine that their shape used to look like a U shape that had been squished in on each side; and that it now looks pretty much like a normal U, pretty exciting stuff. 

I know this is really long, but I want to make sure that I capture as much as possible, both for me to look back on, and also for general info if anyone else is going through this process. 

EATING:  This has been pretty good, and yes it has been real food.  I did have mash (or mush) for a couple of days, but that got boring really quick (not the taste, but the texture).  So, I figured I would try to chew softish stuff, with great success - yay!  I started off with things like fish, peas and mashed potato - all easy to 'chew' and not likely to get stuck under my expander.  I upped the ante to steak after the success of the fish, and am pleased to report that it went pretty well.  So the steak was cooked medium - so fairly soft all the way through, and I cut it into thin ribbons - and then into smaller pieces again - and I was able to eat that no problems. 

Anything stringy like spinach or cabbage tends to get tangled around my expander - and it is the most annoying feeling. Occasionally I have had a pea stuck underneath the expander, and if sucking it out has not worked, then I have had to resort to gently poking it out with a cotton bud.

When I say chew, it is not as a regular person would chew - it is more like exerting just enough pressure to just squish the food slightly so that it is easy to swallow.  I am pleased to say though that although this process was quite gentle in the first two weeks due to tender teeth, I am building up the pressure, and feel like I am almost chewing kinda normally now. 

Again 'normal' is different also.  Where my back teeth (all of them) used to touch nicely, with the expansion of my top jaw, all of my top teeth have moved out, and so now I really only have two teeth on each side at the back that touch.  And that touching is only about half of the tooth, but that is just another of the little challenges of this process. 

It takes me longer to eat that it did previously (not necessarily a bad thing), but I have also added yoghurt and custard with soft fruits like raspberries and peaches (yum) to my diet, so any weight that I lost in the beginning is back on. 

DISCOMFORT: I don't really notice the hooks (don't know what they are actually called - and they don't look like hooks) that jut out from the molar bands that are holding my expander in anymore.  To begin with it was uncomfortable to smile, but now although I feel them, they don't bother me.  These hooks will be what my braces are attached to when I get them on - so I hope that I adjust as quickly when the rest of them are added then also. 

NUMBNESS:  Really the only place that I feel numb is my gums, but not quite all the way to the back; and my front eight teeth.  I can feel everything else - the roof of my mouth, my lips, cheeks (inside & out).  I asked my surgeon about the numbness and he basically confirmed that since they sliced clean through my bone - that they also sliced clean through the tiny nerves that feed these areas.  He says that they should grow back on their own over time (hope it's not just before they get sliced for a second time (well maybe)). 

BLOWING MY NOSE:  I thought that not being able to blow my nose for two weeks would be harder than it was.  For the first few days I basically had a tissue shoved up each  nostril to catch the constant drip which seemed to be a combination of blood and just really watery er snot.  This dissapated gradually, and I only had a couple of occasions where I really wanted to blow my nose, and had to fight the erge.  Most of the time I would just fold a tissue up small, and twist it into my nostril to clear it.  (Sorry perhaps too many details here).  After my two weeks were up, I could blow my nose, but have only done so a few times - this is unusual for me because before this, I would blow my nose a couple of times each morning at least!  I wonder how what they did to my jaw affected my sinuses - but it seems to have made a positive difference.

SERVICE:  I had a call from my orthodontic treatment coordinator (Shona) about a week after my surgery - which was lovely.  She called to check up on me, see how I was going with everything, and make sure I was coping ok.  I really did appreciate it, and it was great that she could understand me on the other end of the phone.  It was only a small thing, but it really made my day.  They also sent me a card in the mail to wish me a speedy recovery after the surgery. 

WHERE TO FROM HERE:  I have been back to see my surgeon for a check up, and he says that all is going well.  The wounds from my teeth extraction are healing well, the stitches at the back of my mouth have all come out, and the ones at the front that remain won't be there for long.  So now, I won't see him for at least 12 to 18 months - until I go back for round two.

So, the next step for me is a check up with my Orthodontist at the end of next week, where he will check on the progress of my gap - and if all goes well then my braces will go on about a week later.  I am really looking forward to it, because that means that things are moving forward nicely, but I am also a bit worried that things won't have moved as much as they should, which will delay my braces.  I think that I need to not worry so much and try to have a bit more patience - easier said than done sometimes. 

I have taken photos everyday, and will continue to do so until my expansion is complete, and my gap is as big as it is going to get.  So far this has helped to see just how much my jaw is moving day to day.  Have uploaded some of these to show my progress. 

23/06/12 - Nice Purple Lip 

Looking like death warmed up - 26/06/12

First day back at work & feeling almost like normal.  Amazing what a little make-up an a pair of straighteners can do!

First day back at work (27/06/12) - the bottom of my two front teeth is just touching - yay some movement already!!

A week later (04/07/12) only my moustache bruise left

04/07/12 - Gap is still growing

04/07/12 Close up

Another week later (11/7/12) still growing :)

11/7/12 Close up

Today 15/7/12 close up