2 Weeks Post-Op - A week of disappointments

I'm way behind on blogging about my recovery from surgery. When I hit the 2 week mark (Jun 5th), I was plenty excited. I was back to work, my elastics were going to come off, I was going to start up on mashed foods and my splint was due out in just 2 more weeks!

And then I had my visit with my surgeon and orthodontist.

The Bite: My surgeon thought my bite on my jaw was lining up very well. No concerns. He put one of the x-rays up but I couldn't see the screws on it. I asked him to explain the exact procedure I went through but he didn't have the time for that either. He promised he would show me on the models next time around.

The Elastics: I thought finally, the elastics come off and he disappointed me, well, only partially. He said I had to continue wearing the elastics at night but I could take them off during the day. I can live with that.

The Splint: Here's the one I was most anxious to hear about. "When does the dreaded splint come off?" He thoroughly disappointed me on this one. "5 more weeks", he said. I have my appointment on July 10th. Hmmff...

The Bone Graft: I asked him about the stitch in my lower cheek and I was right. He took a bone graft from there. I guess that solves that mystery. He used it to fill in bone when he separated my upper jaw.

Nose Blowing: Leading up to the 2 week milestone, I was starting to look forward to blowing my nose. It was really starting to feel grungy and yet again, I was disappointed. He said, it was best if I waited another week. I guess there was something to look forward to at the 3 week milestone now.

Cleanliness: Both my orthodontist and my surgeon thought I was doing an excellent job keeping my teeth clean. Hooray! I'm not so concerned about cavities and gum disease now.

Braces: I had to ask my orthodontist when he thought the braces will come off. He said he couldn't really comment until the splint came out but he has to leave them in for at least 4 months to support my upper jaw while it completely heals. There could be some tweaking he has to do which may push it past 4 months but I won't know more until July 10th.

Upcoming milestones:
3 weeks post-op - visit surgeon, start blowing my nose
4 weeks post-op - start soft chewing
5 weeks post-op - visit surgeon
6 weeks post-op - one week until the splint comes off
7 weeks post-op - splint comes off!!!
8 weeks post-op - resume regular diet
4 months post-op - braces come off (hopefully...)