Re: A little scolding from my OS re jaw opening plus note to CaroleAnn

November 19, 2004

There is an apparatus called a therabite that worked wonders for me.

Here is a link to the site http://www.therabite.com call your Dr. and

ask if youcan use it. it seems to be much better that prying your jaw

open as it exerts even pressure . I went from 12mm to 25 in one week

and am at about 35 now with this. The therabite is manufactured in

europe but ther is a US office. Your Doc may have to order this for

you.

Marsha

>

> I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my jaw;

I

> said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. " I

did

> and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as possible!

Then

> he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said that I

> barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

exercises? "

> Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected because

of

> the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me open at

30

> mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me! He

told

> me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go as far

> as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. " He

wants

> me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off for an

> hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise list

from

> your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

exercises,

> since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> thank you!

November 19, 2004

There is an apparatus called a therabite that worked wonders for me.

Here is a link to the site http://www.therabite.com call your Dr. and

ask if youcan use it. it seems to be much better that prying your jaw

open as it exerts even pressure . I went from 12mm to 25 in one week

and am at about 35 now with this. The therabite is manufactured in

europe but ther is a US office. Your Doc may have to order this for

you.

Marsha

>

> I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my jaw;

I

> said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. " I

did

> and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as possible!

Then

> he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said that I

> barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

exercises? "

> Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected because

of

> the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me open at

30

> mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me! He

told

> me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go as far

> as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. " He

wants

> me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off for an

> hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise list

from

> your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

exercises,

> since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> thank you!

November 19, 2004

I think there's a critical period around 2-3 months post-op where

you need to regain full movement or you might have some permanent

difficulty, which may be why he's pressuring you.

I never understood the grimacing and groaning you see/hear related

to post-op and post-trauma rehab therapy until I had to go through

it myself. It hurts! But you have to do it, and do it now.

I would pry gently several times a day for a few minutes. There's a

point where you can feel a good stretch, and you're just on the

threshold of pain - get to that spot and hold it for a 30-count,

then relax and repeat a few more times at each session. It'll get

easier the more you do it. Which is why you have to pry it open more

each day because you want to stay right on the edge of what you can

tolerate. They key is consistency - do it often and do it regularly.

--Neil

>

> I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my jaw;

I

> said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. " I

did

> and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as possible!

Then

> he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said that

I

> barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

exercises? "

> Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected because

of

> the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me open at

30

> mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me! He

told

> me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go as

far

> as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. " He

wants

> me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off for

an

> hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise list

from

> your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

exercises,

> since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> thank you!

November 19, 2004

I think there's a critical period around 2-3 months post-op where

you need to regain full movement or you might have some permanent

difficulty, which may be why he's pressuring you.

I never understood the grimacing and groaning you see/hear related

to post-op and post-trauma rehab therapy until I had to go through

it myself. It hurts! But you have to do it, and do it now.

I would pry gently several times a day for a few minutes. There's a

point where you can feel a good stretch, and you're just on the

threshold of pain - get to that spot and hold it for a 30-count,

then relax and repeat a few more times at each session. It'll get

easier the more you do it. Which is why you have to pry it open more

each day because you want to stay right on the edge of what you can

tolerate. They key is consistency - do it often and do it regularly.

--Neil

>

> I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my jaw;

I

> said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. " I

did

> and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as possible!

Then

> he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said that

I

> barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

exercises? "

> Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected because

of

> the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me open at

30

> mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me! He

told

> me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go as

far

> as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. " He

wants

> me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off for

an

> hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise list

from

> your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

exercises,

> since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> thank you!

November 19, 2004

I will Neil, thank you thank you thank you! I will print your

message!

Bea

> >

> > I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my

jaw;

> I

> > said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. " I

> did

> > and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as possible!

> Then

> > he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said that

> I

> > barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

> exercises? "

> > Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected because

> of

> > the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me open

at

> 30

> > mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me! He

> told

> > me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go as

> far

> > as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. " He

> wants

> > me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off for

> an

> > hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> > Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> > NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise list

> from

> > your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

> exercises,

> > since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> > thank you!

November 19, 2004

I will Neil, thank you thank you thank you! I will print your

message!

Bea

> >

> > I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my

jaw;

> I

> > said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. " I

> did

> > and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as possible!

> Then

> > he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said that

> I

> > barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

> exercises? "

> > Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected because

> of

> > the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me open

at

> 30

> > mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me! He

> told

> > me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go as

> far

> > as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. " He

> wants

> > me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off for

> an

> > hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> > Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> > NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise list

> from

> > your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

> exercises,

> > since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> > thank you!

November 19, 2004

Hi Neil,

Thanks...you are right, consistency is the key. Somedays I find it

difficult to stretch and massage but I'm thrilled that I can open

wider. I was so worried that it would never open. Just the

stretching exercises were not enough for me to get my mouth to open.

I had my upper/lower/chin surgery done on Sept 10th. Physical

Therapy is working for me, so many things I didn't imagine I would

be doing after this surgery. I was relieved that the PT told me

that my problems are all muscular, not joint. I even have a

tightness in my scalp, he asked if I had plastic surgery to tighten

it...ah no but I asked that he not loosen it too much :-) Maybe it's

a benefit!!!

Carole Anne

> > >

> > > I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my

> jaw;

> > I

> > > said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. "

I

> > did

> > > and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as

possible!

> > Then

> > > he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said

that

> > I

> > > barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

> > exercises? "

> > > Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected

because

> > of

> > > the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me

open

> at

> > 30

> > > mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me!

He

> > told

> > > me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go

as

> > far

> > > as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. "

He

> > wants

> > > me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off

for

> > an

> > > hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> > > Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> > > NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise

list

> > from

> > > your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

> > exercises,

> > > since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> > > thank you!

November 19, 2004

Hi Neil,

Thanks...you are right, consistency is the key. Somedays I find it

difficult to stretch and massage but I'm thrilled that I can open

wider. I was so worried that it would never open. Just the

stretching exercises were not enough for me to get my mouth to open.

I had my upper/lower/chin surgery done on Sept 10th. Physical

Therapy is working for me, so many things I didn't imagine I would

be doing after this surgery. I was relieved that the PT told me

that my problems are all muscular, not joint. I even have a

tightness in my scalp, he asked if I had plastic surgery to tighten

it...ah no but I asked that he not loosen it too much :-) Maybe it's

a benefit!!!

Carole Anne

> > >

> > > I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my

> jaw;

> > I

> > > said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. "

I

> > did

> > > and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as

possible!

> > Then

> > > he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said

that

> > I

> > > barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

> > exercises? "

> > > Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected

because

> > of

> > > the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me

open

> at

> > 30

> > > mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me!

He

> > told

> > > me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go

as

> > far

> > > as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. "

He

> > wants

> > > me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off

for

> > an

> > > hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> > > Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> > > NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise

list

> > from

> > > your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

> > exercises,

> > > since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> > > thank you!

November 19, 2004

Thanks Marsha, I'll go look at that site now.

Carole Anne

> >

> > I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my

jaw;

> I

> > said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. " I

> did

> > and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as possible!

> Then

> > he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said

that I

> > barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

> exercises? "

> > Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected

because

> of

> > the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me open

at

> 30

> > mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me! He

> told

> > me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go as

far

> > as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. " He

> wants

> > me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off for

an

> > hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> > Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> > NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise list

> from

> > your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

> exercises,

> > since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> > thank you!

November 19, 2004

Thanks Marsha, I'll go look at that site now.

Carole Anne

> >

> > I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my

jaw;

> I

> > said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. " I

> did

> > and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as possible!

> Then

> > he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said

that I

> > barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

> exercises? "

> > Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected

because

> of

> > the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me open

at

> 30

> > mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me! He

> told

> > me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go as

far

> > as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. " He

> wants

> > me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off for

an

> > hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> > Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> > NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise list

> from

> > your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

> exercises,

> > since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> > thank you!

November 20, 2004

I am almost six weeks and can open almost 42mm. I found opening my

mouth as wide as I can even if it hurt and moving my jaw side to

side Helped. I also would massage my cheek muscles. I sometimes

would use my fingers and pull down on my lower jaw almost forcing it

open. I did have alot of muscle spasms in the beginning, which my os

gave me muscle realxers and that seemed to really help. Another

thing that I think helped too was talking and using my jaw muscles

as much as possible. Last night I even had a big burger from chilis

and was able to eat it with no problem. I think using the jaw

muscles as much as possible really loosens them up. I was sore a few

night after talking a lot, but that as seems to happen less now.

Good luck.

> > >

> > > I'm bummed because today my OS asked me how far I can open my

> jaw;

> > I

> > > said maybe 25mm, so he measured and then he said " Open wider. "

I

> > did

> > > and he repeated himself, and I really opened as far as

possible!

> > Then

> > > he took his fingers and opened my jaw wider (ow!)and he said

> that I

> > > barely measured 23mm! He asked " Have you been doing your

> > exercises? "

> > > Of course I have, but.... not as agressive as he expected

> because

> > of

> > > the pain, and I told him so. So he said he wants to see me

open

> at

> > 30

> > > mm by Nov24 when I see him again. Yikes, that's a lot for me!

He

> > told

> > > me to pry my mouth open with my fingers and really try to go

as

> far

> > > as I can. " Don't worry, " he said, " you won't hurt anything. "

He

> > wants

> > > me to do this exercise 3x a day while I have my elastics off

for

> an

> > > hour to eat and brush (also 3x a day).

> > > Wouldn't this kind of " prying " exercise cause lockjaw?

> > > NOTE TO CAROLE ANN: Will you please email me your exercise

list

> > from

> > > your physical therapist, too? I will still do my own OS's

> > exercises,

> > > since I it is what he ordered. My email is beagood2me@e...

> > > thank you!

November 20, 2004