iam scared

[oscars mummy]

i currently have braces day one today, and in january iam having a jaw operation as my teeth meet together with a slight underbite its all come round so quick since i was put on the waiting list 5 years ago and now iam really scared what can i expect to feel like after and do you have trouble tallking and waht will i wont i be able to eat?

[justjenn]

Look it up online and maybe look at some stuff on youtube. I have to have surgery at some point for a bad overbite. I've read everything I can find, and looked on youtube and I'm feeling much better and less scared.

Good luck!

[mikeg]

Its not as scary as it seems. Start with doing your reserach to find a good surgeon...

[Sunny]

It's understandable to be scared of something as major as this. All surgery has an element of fear attached to it, as this is huge stuff and you have every right to feel this way.

I recommend you do some research in person and online and become well informed. Knowledge is great at helping us feel more in control and I'm sure this will help you.

Talk to both your surgeon and your ortho about your concerns and ask them about where you can access information. Please be aware that much of what is online will be the opinions of everyday people, not experts, so please keep this in mind when you're reading. There are many great blogs that have been kept by people who've had a variety of jaw surgeries.

Good luck with researching your surgery and making sure you're well prepared for what lies ahead for you!

[smylex]

Ah, you're in the same boat I am. I just had 2 teeth removed to get ready for braces next month to prepare for orthognathic surgery myself. With any luck, they won't have to do nearly the same amount of work on you that they're going to be doing to me as I'm having surgery on both upper and lower jaws to correct my underbite.

Be sure to ask your OS plenty of questions if you have them, even if they seem trivial.

Head to YouTube and look up orthognathic surgery. There, you'll find several videos of people at various times after their surgery. Many of them have also shared pictures of how they looked before and after surgery and you can see radical differences in the appearances of many.

Obviously, you will have some trouble talking depending on what they're going to do to you for recovery. Many people are banded with heavy elastic bands post-surgery. Some people are wired shut. Either way, you're not going to have the easiest time of talking with your jaw immobilized.

After surgery, you can probably expect to feel some numbness of the jaw area as they are moving the nerve. I've read that many people feel numb days, weeks and even months later. This does eventually subside, but in rare cases, the numbness is permanent. That being said, if you're numb, you won't be feeling any pain, I guess.

You can expect to be on a liquid diet for a while. Be sure to have your blender ready, and you can find recipes for post-surgical food consumption all over the Internet.