11 weeks and 2 days

Firstly, apologies to those of you who have been sat watching this blog frantically pressing "refresh".  I know it has been a while but other things have been taking priority recently.

11 weeks have passed since my operation and if I'm being honest, things haven't exactly gone as I'd anticipated.  Yes I knew it would be a slow process and I knew that it would be uncomfortable for a while.  I knew I would be struggling to eat certain things for a while and I knew that psychologically, this was going to be a fairly tough journey.  I didn't anticipate such a prolonged infection though which has really hampered progress both mentally and physically.  In total I have been on seven courses of antibiotics (some of them simultaneously) and none of them have worked.

Since I first raised my concerns about the apparent hole in the back of my gum, I have seen a number of different consultants including my surgeon who have all alluded to the same problem but not actually been able to resolve it.  About 2-3 weeks ago, I pulled out a piece of bone about 8mm square which had obviously been left in my gum as part of the operation.  This had started working it's way to and through the surface of my gum until I was able to pull it out.  (Felt like a kid pulling out a wobbly tooth!)  When I took the piece of bone to the dental hospital, they were quite dismissive of it and just threw it away.  I was hoping to keep it as a souvenir.  I thought that this may have been the cause of the infection but, alas, here I am, still with infection.

At one point they were intending on replacing the titanium plate on the left side which they thought was the most obvious source of the infection.  However, they have decided to wait until the 3 month milestone for the jaw bone to heal fully and as such, I am now on a waiting list for a second operation to remove the plate and screws on that side completely.  I'm told that this is likely to be sometime after Christmas which is a bit shite if you ask me.  Oh and any hope I harboured of the braces being removed before Christmas has evaporated as well as I still have an open bite at the back which requires continued use of the tight elastic bands to pull the teeth together.

In terms of how all this looks... internally you can see that the gum has receded from my lower back left molar and has exposed the root of the tooth and some of the jawbone.  As part of the second operation, they will chisel off the exposed (now dead) jaw bone and reseal the gum as far up as possible.  Externally there is obvious swelling on my left hand side which I'm assuming will remain until such time that the plate is removed.  I just hope that all this is resolved sooner rather than later as it is quite uncomfortable and the asymmetry of my face is just...well... frustrating.  I can also still feel the swelling on either side of my nose and along the right side of my jaw although it is hardly noticeable now and I assume that this will gradually disappear over the coming months.  My chin and lower lip are still numb although the feeling is returning to the left side and I am just living in hope that this improvement will work its way round to the right hand side over time.

That's about it really.  Not much progress but at least I'm on the waiting list.  After all the antibiotics I am now able to enjoy a beer or (and) a glass of wine and I have now contained the dribbling to pre-operation levels. ;-)  I am eating pretty much anything now, except steak and other thickly cut meats although chewing is still a chore and doesn't feel natural.  My speech has improved but with the bands in place, it is quite tiring to talk for any length of time.  I can't say that I'm glad I had this done at the moment... apart from the discomfort, I still think that I look more like a chipmunk than a Chippendale!  Time will tell I suppose.  Regardless, I am one of the luckiest blokes alive and I'm not as manic a depressive as this post might suggest.  I just wanted to be honest for the benefit of anybody reading this who has had or is having the same operation.

Cheers for now...

Thoughts to two little babies who are having to go through more than they should at their age.  Love to Reuben (my son) and Izzy (my friend's little girl).

8 weeks and counting

This infection is really annoying me.  None of the antibiotics have worked and it is now giving me a fair bit of grief.  It's not painful but it aches a bit and has just slowed the whole healing process right down.  I thought I would be through the worst of it by now, instead, I get a warning from the consultant last Wednesday saying it is likely I'll need a further operation to replace the titanium plates on my left side.

I'm hoping that it's not a major deal but it will require a general anaesthetic and further recovery time. The consultant I spoke to seemed fairly confident it was straightforward which is reassuring but I see the guy who performed my op on Friday and he will make the final call as to what needs to happen.

The orthdontist had the all clear to carry on with her work though and so they changed the wire at the top to a more flexible one.  They are trying to bring the top teeth down a bit as I still have a bit of an open bite at the back.  With that in mind, I am still heavily banded up which is a bloody nuisance when trying to talk and eat. The open bite thing is nothing that they cannot sort out through the orthodontics though.

I am getting some feeling back in my chin and lower lip.  At the moment it is a tingling and intense itching feeling on the left hand side.  Nothing on the right hand side yet and so I'm not counting my chickens quite yet that it will all revert to normal.

None of this is a priority at the moment... all thoughts to my little man and his progress.  

7 weeks on

Another week on and still struggling with infection on the left side.  It has been pretty uncomfortable and the lack of any visual progress has been a bit demoralising.  I finished my course of antibiotics just over a week ago and over the past weekend I felt as though it was starting to flare up again... so I took a look as to what might be causing the infection.  (By the way, holding a torch, a dental mirror and a pick whilst trying to get a view of the back of your mouth is not easy!).  I was a little bit freaked out when I saw what appeared to be a hole at the back of my gum on the outer 7th molar on my bottom jaw.  On even closer inspection, I could see the root of the molar and I'm fairly sure I could even see a small part of the jaw bone.

So today I managed to get an appointment at the dental hospital so that they could check it out.  One of the MaxFacs (maxillofacial) team was there along with my regular consultant orthodontist and they had a good root around but I'm not convinced they rooted round enough to see what I was seeing.  They were concerned about the infection enough to send me for some immediate post op xrays which looked amazing!  Aside from the teeth and jaws being all in the right places, I was impressed with the number of plates and screws holding my face together!  From the xrays, they seemed confident that the infection was not due to an infected plate (which would have meant another op to remove it!) but I'm not sure any root cause (excuse the pun) was established, they just said the lack of gum and soft tissue in that area was due to the infection.  So, they have given me another 5 day course of antibiotics, an official post op review appointment for 2 days time and a further ortho appointment to change the wires on the brace.  Gotta be grateful that they are doing all they can I suppose.

So having sorted the appointments I put my hand in my jacket pocket to get the car park ticket and guess what.... no car park ticket.  Shite.  That feeling when you know you are going to have to pay for a full days parking to get your car back, is not a nice feeling.  A better feeling is when you find out that somebody has handed your ticket in to the receptionist.  Maybe things are starting to look up a bit after all. 

6wks

So here I am, 6 weeks down the road of recovery.  I was just having my anaesthetic this time 6 weeks ago, time seems to have passed quite quickly.  I'm starting to feel a bit more human now and the gimp mask like pressure around my face is starting to fade a little.  I have spent the past week on a course of strong antibiotics in a bid to shake off an infection on my left side.  It is certainly better than i was but remains significantly more swollen than the right side.  This swelling thing is hard to take, I have to say that it is the hardest part of the whole process, purely because progress is ridiculously slow.  There are days when I wake up and it is twice as bad as the day before and it feels as though it is never going to end.

I am still numb in my bottom lip and chin... however... over the past couple of days I have had itching and burning sensations in my chin and now, when I press the left side of my chin, I get a deep tingling feeling.  I think that's a good sign!

Had a visit to the dental hospital on Friday and everything is looking positive.  I had removed the front elastic bands myself last week (they were in place to correct the mid-line of my front teeth) as they seemed to have done the job.  I think the orthodontist was glad that I had done that or it may have moved too far.  Anyway, I still have elastics in on the sides and my bite is now perfectly central.  I just hope it stays like that!  They will change the wires next time in a bid to do some more of the tweaking to get my molar teeth to rest together exactly how they should.  In fact, my back teeth are already starting to meet well - it is the strangest feeling but I'm really pleased.  The best bit of news they gave was that all the braces, bands and other contraptions might be off (emphasis on the word "might") by Christmas.  That is sooner than I expected and would be the best present ever... well with the exception of an Aston Martin DB9, a crate of stella and a kebab.  Man... I ooze class.

5w 1d

I was loitering around a couple of jaw surgery forums a couple of days ago ("loitering" around websites sounds a bit wrong really but that's pretty much what I was doing) when I read a really sad story about some 18 year old guy who had gone for the same surgery as I had in June of this year.  He had started a blog (what is it with people wanting to share surgical stories with the world?) and had posted some videos on YouTube prior to his surgery.  Unfortunately this guy passed away as a result of complications that developed during his operation.  God only knows what his family must be going through. RIP fella.

Serves as a bit of a reality check when I'm still concerned about a bit of swelling and soreness.  Infection has well and truly taken hold of the left side of my face and has caused quite a hard swelling along my jaw line.  The surrounding area is softer but is also swollen.  I also have this very strange sensation in that I can hear the fluid in the swelling really loudly in my left ear, but nobody else can hear it!  Visited the docs yesterday and now on a week long course of antibiotics.  Bloody typical.  England v Wales tonight and no Stella.  I can live without a kebab, but football with no beer?  That's like one of my blog posts without the moaning!

The mid-line between my front upper and lower teeth seems to have improved and is now pretty much lined up.  I'm hoping that when I go back to the dental hospital on Friday, they say I no longer have to wear the elastic band which runs diagonally across the front of my teeth.  I think the other bands will probably have to stay for a while longer though.

I have spent most of this morning playing "shops" with my little girl.  Spending time with the family is one of the positive things that has kept me going through the recovery period.  You can't get too down in the dumps when you are spending hours buying miniature jars of Branston pickle at £250.00 a time from a really bossy shop assistant.

Just a word of thanks to those of you who have been so supportive, it is greatly appreciated and your many words of encouragement has been a real help.
 

Day 31

Been a month since my operation and a bit of a milestone really.  It's hard to explain how I feel about the op and more importantly the results.  On one hand I am fed right up of not knowing what the final results will look like (impatient I know!) and not being able to eat properly.  On the other hand I'm glad that the worst is over with and that in theory it is improvement all the way from here.

Cheeks are slightly (and I mean slightly) less swollen now although I am still finding that I morph into the churchill dog whenever I spend too long in front of the mirror. "Ohhhh yes yes yes".  The numbness is still there too, can't feel anything in my bottom lip or chin. Still banded up as well, so talking and eating are still, well, an experience.  (For some reason, it seems lately that everybody is so keen to tell me what they've had to eat or what they are planning to eat.  Just for the record in case anybody wishes to make gastronomical conversation with me....DON'T!!  Unless it involves an offer to take me out for a meal once it has healed fully, then of course feel free).

I do feel a lot better in myself lately.  I am trying to get a bit more fresh air and also need to step up at the gym a bit I think.  Sorry for such a boring update, things are moving very slowly at the moment so there is not much change to report!  

Day 26

3 weeks and 5 days post op.  I am so bored. Having been patient enough to sit through X Factor, I am now being forced to watch A Night with Will Young.  Fabulous Darling.  Waiting for Match of the Day.

Back to the whole flawed jaws thing.. today has been horrendous.  I visited the dental hospital yesterday and they said I needed to persist with the elastic bands as the centre line of my front teeth still requires a bit of tweaking for it to be perfect.  It's probably only about 1mm out but I suppose that having gone through everything I've gone through, we may as well get this thing done properly.  I also asked the orthodontist to take out the dissolvable stitches out as they hadn't dissolved and they felt quite uncomfortable.  I have to say that it was bloody painful.  I had read up on this beforehand and most people say they just felt a slight pulling.  I was prepared for that.  What I was less prepared for was feeling as though they were slicing open my gums and my upper labial frenum (that little piece of stringy tissue that connects your lip to your gum - I Googled that by the way) with a blunt stanley knife.  It was so sore.  Nevertheless, I was a good little soldier and didn't utter one swear word whilst they went about their snipping and pulling.  I think that's why today is horrendous, it just feels really aggravated.  They left a small bit of suture (stitch) in that really sore part of the inside of my upper lip.  I saw it today and proceeded to pull it out myself without causing any real discomfort.

I also found out that the left side (lower) was actually infected which is why it is more swollen than my right side.  I thought it was as it feels a lot more swollen and I sometimes get that metallic taste.  So for the last few days I have been gargling with hot salt water.  They haven't prescribed any antibiotics.  I also went to see my Doctor on Thursday.  He suggested I go back to the gym now starting with low intensity cardio work.  It was music to my ears as I have really missed the whole gym thing.  So, I went back on Friday morning and did some fairly slow pace treadmill and bike work.  Loved it.  The doc also signed me off of work until the end of September.

The fact that the swelling keeps going up and down is frustrating.  Just when you think you are making progress, BANG, Errol the Hamster makes an appearance in the bathroom mirror whilst I'm shaving.  It's not just the look of it, I feel as though I have a gimp mask on (complete with snooker ball gag) Just for the record, I have never worn a gimp mask nor do I wish to ever wear one.

Time for bed I think, I am shattered.  Good night all.