There is light at the end of the tunnel:-)

[Guest guest]

Hi All

Well I went to see both my OD and OMS yesterday after 3 months post-

op. Neither of them had seen me in over a month since I was away in

Italy.

My OMS was super pleased with my progress. He said that my jaw was

healing very nicely and I was looking very good. I still have some

swelling but it's noticeable only to me and the people who know me

very well. In other words if you were to see me walking down the

street you wouldn't notice it. I discussed with my OMS the fact that

my nose has truly turned up as a result of the surgery. It's not a

big deal to me since everything else went REALLY well but if I could

have had everything turn out perfect I would have liked to have kept

my nose at it's former position. Unfortunately that couldn't be

helped but it seems that if I ever decide to get my slightly

deviated septum fixed with a septoplasty then my nose issue should

be resolved. We'll see...I'm certainly in no rush to have another

surgery. My OMS also gave me the go-ahead to start flossing again

even though I still haven't regained any sensation in my upper gums,

I just need to be careful. He even said I could go get my teeth

professionally cleaned. Whoohoo!! I'm to see him again in 1 month's

time.

My OD was also very pleased with how my teeth were coming along. He

took off 4 of my brackets - 2 from my back upper teeth and 2 from my

back bottom teeth. I know it's only 4 brackets but it felt like the

beginning of liberation!! Right now my bottom teeth are only being

held stationary by a little piece of wire. Next month I'll get all

the braces off on them and have a permanent retainer put in. The top

teeth still need about 2 more months of braces and then I get to de-

brace them too after which I will have to wear a retainer only at

night for 6 months and then for 1 hour every day for another 6

months. My OD explained to me that it takes about 267 days for a

bone to truly solidify hence why I need to use the retainer at

night. I must say when he showed me what my retainer would look like

I was impressed because it looks just like an invisalign would - a

see-through plastic cover. VERY different from the retainers I had

the past 3 times I took my braces off. Since my adjustment yesterday

the gap in between my 2 front teeth is already almost gone. It's

amazing how fast the teeth move!!

The last piece of news is that I've also been cleared to start

chewing fully again, with the exception of steak and hard vegetables

and fruit like apples, which I am totally fine with.

So that's my LONG update. Sorry for the long and boring email but I

just wanted to share with everyone and show them that light does

exist at the end of the tunnel so hold on tight and don't give up!

Thanks for reading!

Sara