-
Day 6: Freedom and Bliss!
Pain: 4 Numbness: Same. You know in Road Runner cartoons when Wiley the Coyote accidentally electrocutes himself instead of Road Runner, and as he walks away, his whole body lights up with electric shock every other step? Well, Wiley the Coyote has been walking his electric-coyote walk across  my bottom lip all day. Swelling: Almost unnoticeable on the right side, but still a bit pudgy on the left. Today was the best day of my post-surgery life! Today, I got my rubber bands off!! *cue angel choir singing* I can officially open my mouth 12 whole millimeters. And you know what that means? I CAN BRUSH MY TEETH!!! I…
-
Day 5: All You Need Is Love…and Condiment Bottles
Pain: 6-7 Numbness: Same. Nausea: Bad this morning, but passed without incident. Back this afternoon after my 3 hour nap, but went away after tomato soup. My day of socializing yesterday caught up with me last night and this morning, and my pain was the worst it’s been. After my 4 and 9 am doses of food and meds, I slept until about 11. When I woke up, my mommy had replaced Brandon as my caretaker for the day! (Brandon had to go back to work. Rats.) Good thing my mom has an iPad to keep her company…I was pretty boring and sleepy all day. My dad came by around…
-
Day 4: Confessions of a Socialite
Pain: 5-6 Numbness: Still my entire lower lip and chin. I’ve started to feel a few painful spasms in my chin, though, along with the continuing tingling and “sunburned” feeling I have in my lower lip. Nausea: None! Today is the last day of my new patch, though… Today was a good day, overall. I woke up in pain, having skipped my pre-dawn dose of painkiller last night. Once we got it under control, though, I had a good amount of energy. We took a field trip to my parent’s house this afternoon, where I hunkered down in a great chair with Frodo pup in my lap for a few…
-
Day 3: Sleeping Beauty
Pain Level: 3 Nausea: on and off all day, but not as bad as yesterday Swelling: going down! Still definitely large and uncomfortable, but I don’t look quite as boxy as I did yesterday. I’ve been much better about icing today, which has helped tremendously. (Also, a tip for those of you recovering from jaw surgery, too: If your chin/lip is numb but itchy, applying ice alleviates the itching to some degree. Ice has kept me from going crazy!) I’ve mostly slept today, utterly exhausted from the past few days, Â I think. My pain has been ok, though, which has allowed me to sleep quite a bit longer than the…
-
Day 2: The misery is coming! The misery is coming!
If you don’t like to talk about vomit, you’d better stop reading here. Sorry… It’s just been one of those days! I had been prescribed an anti-nausea patch that I put on before surgery. I didn’t experience even a little nausea with that patch, until about 5 am this morning, that is. Vomiting was one of my biggest fears about recovery–and for good reason, I’ve discovered. Throwing up is bad enough when your mouth is functioning properly. But vomiting through sealed teeth? Oh man. THAT sucks. Because of the nasty start to my day, I’ve felt pretty queazy and exhausted all day. Also, because of the nasty start to my…
