irene's 6 week update

[Guest guest]

Hi everybody,

It's been my 6-week anniversary since my surgery on February 24th, and

I wanted to post an update. I'm doing pretty well. I have been

chewing since week 3, and now I'm eating pretty much anything that I

can chew (and I can't chew steak, some meat, carrots, bagels, etc. -

the hard stuff). I do find that my jaw gets tired from eating too

much, so I can't pig out like I used to do before. But I did cross a

big milestone in my eating this past week - I finally had sushi, which

tasted great after so many weeks without it!

I can open my mouth a little more than 2 fingers. I excercise it every

day, but getting to open more is hard work. I am optimistic that it

will get better. It has gotten better in that I can brush and floss

my teeth with no problems, and I can open wide enough to fit most

reasonable-sided pieces (and a piece of sushi ). My numbness is

also seem to be improving - I have much more feeling than before, and

it's getting better every day (but very very slow!). My only concern

is my newly aquired crossbite, which is uncomfortable. My OD assured

me that he can make my bite almost perfect (almost because I have a

tooth missing on one side, so it won't be as perfect as it could have

been), but he asked for some patience. So, once again, I'm hopeful.

I do like my new smaller chin, and can't wait for the swelling to go

down to have normal cheeks again . My coworkers, the OD, and the

girls in his office are all very impressed with the results. One of

them said " It took 10 years off you " . I'm 27, so what does that make

me? 17??? I think my still puffy cheeks might have something to

do with this comment. My husband, on the other hand, said " I really

can't tell the difference - except in our savings account " . The OD

and his staff were amused by this comment. They were like " What is

he, blind " ?

But nevertheless... things are getting better, slowly, but surely

every day. I hope that all my surgery buddies are improving and

recovering. Recovery is a very slow process, but looks like it's

working nevertheless, day by day. I'll post some new pictures of me soon.

Irene.