Sunday, April 17, 2011

8 months and counting...

I haven't posted in a while - and since I'm now past that 6-8 month mark that my doctor talked about - I figure I should say something! It's been about 8.5 months since surgery. I still have an area in the front right part of my tongue that is numb-ish and tingles, and also the left bottom half of my lower lip going all the way down to the bottom of my chin. It also tingles, so I'm still hopeful that my nerves will continue to heal and I'll be back to normal by my 18 month mark. My mid-lines are no longer perfectly aligned, but they are much better then they were. My jaw still doesn't look symmetrical but I'm not willing to undergo another surgery to correct it further. All in all, it's an improvement on what it was before and it's much easier to chew my food! Here are a few pictures taken between the time I got my braces off in December, until now. For anyone about to undergo the journey (or is thinking about it) feel free to ask me questions! I gained a lot of my knowledge by perusing through others' blogs as well!




I think the best part for me is that I'm not "afraid" to smile anymore. I still don't think my smile is my best asset or perfect in any way - but it's such an improvement from how I used to feel about it, that I grin all the time without thinking about it! It's great!

5 comments:

  1. I love that last photo of you!

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  2. Thanks Tam - it was taken 2 days ago. I think I look kind of old, but oh well! :)

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  3. Hi
    I will be having double jaw surgery maybe before the year is up. I have been diagnosed with Condilar hyperplasia- condyle kept growing after one side of my jaw had stoped- so I have a noticeable deviation of my jaw. I'm worry that when I get surgery my cheek or lips will be like loose skin on my new aligned jaw. Since its been in this deviated position for a long time- I'm going to be turning 30 years old. Did you experience any of this? Thanks

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  4. Hi Tamara I just want to say thanks so much for sharing your story and pics. I'm coming up for the surgery and I feel hugely encouraged after seeing your blog. You are truly beautiful now! No good side or bad side - it's all good :-) Sue

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    1. Good luck Sue! What is your surgery for? I'm so SO glad that I did it - I would do it again in a heartbeat!

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