some general post-op questions

[Guest guest]

Hi everybody,

Some general questions to those who already had their surgeries:

1. If you're wired, how do you yawn? Can you yawn at all? How do

you keep your mouth clean?

2. If you have numbness after the surgery, is it the same kind of

numbness that you get after novocaine injection at the dentist's?

That is, do your face muscles droop?

Irene.

[Guest guest]

i'll let someone who has been through being wired address the

problems there.

I don't think the numbness is the same, and no, the muscles don't

droop -- at least usually. (I suppose there probably is someone,

somewhere, but it's not typical.) It's more of a loss of sensation,

which can be quite a nuisance, to say the least. The good aspect: it

gets between you and the pain everybody expects on first hearing

about this surgery - again, at least usually.

Cammie

> Hi everybody,

>

> Some general questions to those who already had their surgeries:

> 1. If you're wired, how do you yawn? Can you yawn at all? How do

> you keep your mouth clean?

> 2. If you have numbness after the surgery, is it the same kind of

> numbness that you get after novocaine injection at the dentist's?

> That is, do your face muscles droop?

>

> Irene.

[Guest guest]

i was wired for six weeks. he clipped the wires a week ago today.

yes, i did yawn. there's really not much you can do there. it

won't hurt you... it'll just be really annoying and probably look

kinda funny to people watching. it seemed harder for me to fight the

yawns than to just give into them. i also sneezed... also not a

problem. you just figure these things out as you go along.

well, i keep yawning as i type this so i'd better stop. lol!

heather

> > Hi everybody,

> >

> > Some general questions to those who already had their surgeries:

> > 1. If you're wired, how do you yawn? Can you yawn at all? How

do

> > you keep your mouth clean?

> > 2. If you have numbness after the surgery, is it the same kind

of

> > numbness that you get after novocaine injection at the

dentist's?

> > That is, do your face muscles droop?

> >

> > Irene.

[Guest guest]

oh, and i almost forgot. to keep your mouth clean... your first week

you will probably only be able to rinse with salt water, or just

plain water. until the stitches come out avoid mouthwash. i used

Plax before brushing. of course, you can only brush the outside of

your teeth. make it a habit to massage your gums on the inside with

your tongue. sounds silly i know. again, not much you can do...

it'll be kind of gross until you're freed and able to brush all over

again.

> > > Hi everybody,

> > >

> > > Some general questions to those who already had their surgeries:

> > > 1. If you're wired, how do you yawn? Can you yawn at all?

How

> do

> > > you keep your mouth clean?

> > > 2. If you have numbness after the surgery, is it the same kind

> of

> > > numbness that you get after novocaine injection at the

> dentist's?

> > > That is, do your face muscles droop?

> > >

> > > Irene.

[Guest guest]

Irene,

I just had surgery for upper, lower and palatal split on 5/4. Right

now I'm still banded shut. The surgeon said I wouldn't be wired,

which is true, but I cannot even open my mouth a little bit with

these bands and the splint. I use a waterpik to clean my mouth. It's

a bit challenging, but I'm so glad I have it because your mouth does

get kind of icky. I use warm salt water through the day and

sometimes I use mouthwash diluted in cool water--that helps me feel

a little cleaner. My face is still numb from my chin to my lower

eyelids. To me, it does feel a little bit like novocaine but my face

is not drooping. I don't think that's possible with all the

swelling! :-) The numbness seems to be getting a little better each

day but it's still pretty bad on my chin and lips. I noticed I was

trying to yawn yesterday. My mouth doesn't open but I can feel it in

my ears popping. It's not really a nice feeling, but fortunately I

haven't wanted to yawn too much. I hope this helps answer any

questions you have!

Becky

> Hi everybody,

>

> Some general questions to those who already had their surgeries:

> 1. If you're wired, how do you yawn? Can you yawn at all? How

do

> you keep your mouth clean?

> 2. If you have numbness after the surgery, is it the same kind of

> numbness that you get after novocaine injection at the dentist's?

> That is, do your face muscles droop?

>

> Irene.

[Guest guest]

I wasn't wired, so can't comment there.

Yawns: be careful pre or post-op. My surgeon said that yawns are

uncontrolled openings, and that one should always support the lower

jaw when yawning. I was surprised to hear that he encouraged that at

any time, not just early on post-op.

Keeping your mouth clean - there should be gaps where liquids can get

in, even if you're wired or tightly banded. I swished liquids using

the zippie bag while standing over the sink in the bathroom.

Numbness: no drooping of muscles. I tried to exercise by doing pouts,

frowns, smiles, smirks, anything I could. It's amusing and lifts your

spirits when you see a stranger making funny faces at you in your

bathroom mirror : )

Numbness does involve loss of sensation, I would run a pen tip

(opposite end, no face-painting) across the areas and see if I could

feel it or not. At first, no, but eventually I could feel a little

bit. It does feel like dental freezing (novocaine) wearing off at

some point. You'll probably find that the majority of numbness goes

away within the first few weeks, then it will start to slow down, it

can take years for some little bits to completely go away, but it's

nothing that you can't live with. I have a small spot on my lower lip

from wisdom tooth surgery years ago, and it's no big deal at all.

Here's a tip: I used a locker mirror at meals. I couldn't rely on my

husband to tell me when there was food on my face and I couldn't feel

it.

Hope that helps,

> Hi everybody,

>

> Some general questions to those who already had their surgeries:

> 1. If you're wired, how do you yawn? Can you yawn at all? How do

> you keep your mouth clean?

> 2. If you have numbness after the surgery, is it the same kind of

> numbness that you get after novocaine injection at the dentist's?

> That is, do your face muscles droop?

>

> Irene.