Putting Money Where My Mouth Is

Signing Off

2010-10-22T11:53:00.000-07:00

Well here it is. It's been a few months since I've posted last and I think it's time to move on. Things are great. I'm wearing my retainers every night and every time I bite together I feel great about the whole process.

I'll be keeping the blog around for others to glean from. If any of you ortho-buddies-to-be need some insight you are welcome to leave a comment and it should still forward to my address.

Again, thanks to everyone who has helped me, and encouragement to those yet to take the journey.

Chris

Numbness

2010-05-23T09:20:00.000-07:00

As per Anon's request, a quick note on numbness. I don't think numbness is really the right word to use. In the "half-of-my-face-is-numb-from-Novocaine-at-the-dentist" type of numbness there's absolutely none. If I poke any part of my face with a pushpin I know it's there. Now there is a type of "internal-tingling-like-a-sleeping-limb-waking-up-but-without-the-pain-part" feeling when I press my lower lip, chin, and a little bit of my right cheek, but it's not painful or even annoying. In fact, sometimes I find myself playing with the tingling if I'm thinking something through. Oh, and my upper gums used to be absolutely dead to the touch which was awesome. No seriously, it was. You know how easy sitting through a teeth cleaning is when you can't feel them prodding around? It rocks. For better or worse though, the feeling has been coming back.

p.s.- Can anyone think of a reason why we even have pain receptors in our gums? So we don't FLOSS too hard? I'm willing to bet that's never happened in the history of humans or floss.

Thank You

2010-05-05T11:01:00.000-07:00

To my dentist, Dr. Anton Misleh, for putting a bug in my ear to think about getting braces again. And to his amazing crew, Linda, Amanda, Miko, Denise, and everyone else who will keep my smile beautiful from here on out.

To my orthodontist, Dr. Paul Styrt, for being a perfectionist with my smile. And his wonderfully pleasant staff including Vicki, Kira, and Wonderful Jessica who has moved on but was integral in making this all happen.

To my ENT, Dr. Michael Keefe, for making it so solidly clear how my malformation was the cause of so many little daily problems.

To my surgeon, The Chainsaw, Dr. Adel Tawfilis, for being so talented, and for being tough on me in physical therapy. Kim, Victoria, Medea, and the male technician whose name I never seemed to catch are the epitome of professionalism.

To the nursing staff at Sharp Memorial Hospital, for being patient with me because I couldn't easily express myself with a broken face.

To 24 Hour Fitness, for making pre-surgery training possible.

To the makers of CytoGainer, Jell-O, Vons Signature Soups, Lortab and Hydrocodone, for making post-surgery recovery as tolerable as can be expected.

To my grandmother Beverly, for giving me a comfortable sanctuary (twice) to get through my recoveries.

To my mom, Toni, for her constant words of encouragement. And for not forcing me to have these procedures when I was a teenager.

And to my amazing girlfriend Kelly, for her care and strength when I was in pain.

To all of you who have helped make this happen, big or small, directly or indirectly. From the bottom of my heart, Thank You.

Before/After

2010-04-30T08:30:00.000-07:00

Here it is. The moment you've all been waiting for. The qualitative analysis of before/after photos. I have to say, looking at these I realize how lucky I am and how well things turned out. Everyday I'm in awe of my new biting capabilities and I'm glad my face didn't completely change because of it. I mean of course I look different but I'm still definitely me, only better!

The Results Are In

2010-02-26T14:23:00.000-08:00

As Expected

2010-02-26T08:44:00.000-08:00

Two weeks or so now with the braces off and just as I figured, I'm ecstatic about it. Why wait this long to post then, you ask? Well if you don't know me by now you may never ever ever know me, wooo-ooo-o-ooo. It's just great. My mom bought me a couple pounds of mixed nuts which are now gone. I've been eating tortilla chips by the basketful. Hell, I'm even flossing everyday! The abutment for my implant is installed and I have a temporary crown on until I'm done bleaching my teeth. Then they'll match the color to make the real crown. The temp pops off pretty easily when I take out my lower retainer so I'll try to remember to take a photo of the post underneath so you can see what's going on. Having it put in was SUPER easy. Other than a couple pinches here and there I truly could not feel a thing. Oh and Dr.Misleh had this tiny little torque wrench to tighten it into place! Cutest torque wrench ever. Anyway, everything's amazing. I couldn't be happier with the outcome (even that little gap I was whining about earlier closed itself up!) and would do it all again without thinking twice.

(*I was going to snap a quick picture because I happen to have my camera here at work and found my battery had died. Check back in a few hours.)

One Week Countdown

2010-01-28T15:19:00.000-08:00

Not much time left now. I went in to discuss a small gap with Dr.Styrt yesterday so he loaded me up with TWO overlapping powerchains to take care of business. He thinks it'll be sorted by next week but I didn't mind mentioning that if it's not ready I'm ok with waiting another week or another month. I'm not keen on letting it slide and having the dentist "fix" it with veneers or something like that.

Planning the After Party

2010-01-06T14:22:00.000-08:00

Forget the taffy. Never really liked popcorn. Don't miss chewing gum too much. This is what I'm drooling over http://www.nutsonline.com/nuts/ .

Three Words

2010-01-06T13:05:00.000-08:00

Dee.
Ban.
Did.

In four weeks from now! Under the morning fog of La Jolla on February 3rd I will be getting the crowbar treatment to remove these shiny dental decorations! I believe the plan is then to fit me for a removable (Essix?) retainer so that my dentist can install (or "Load-In" as we say in the theatre) the abutment for my implant a week or so later. Then however long it takes to get my teeth whitened and the crown made to match and I'll have permanent retainers put in afterwards.

Prit.
Tee.
Excited.

Well, Here I Am

2009-12-01T19:39:00.000-08:00

Not too bad hunh? Pretty amazing stuff. One thing I noticed going into this is no matter what, nobody comes out looking worse than they did before. Definitely different, but always better. There are still details about my smile that I don't like but will probably not be fixed at this point, but frankly, I'm sure no one else sees them but me. That's what happens when you obsess over a part of yourself for three years. But for now, no more exciting appointments until after the New Year.

Until then, from the most sincere part of me, relax, be safe, enjoy the company of those you love, and have a wonderful holiday season. Love to all.

Daily Reading

2009-11-20T10:06:00.000-08:00

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/17/health/17brod.html

Might be particularly interesting for the older crowd with bridges.

Implantified

2009-11-13T09:59:00.000-08:00

Yesterday went really well. As well as I could have ever hoped. When I was 16 sitting in the waiting room to have what was left of my #30 tooth removed I remember looking through the pamphlet of what implants entailed and had a bit of a panic attack. I didn't have much time to think about the whole process as it was kind of an emergency extraction and seeing little illustrated pictures of metal posts sticking out of people's gums made me queasy. Maybe I've just gotten used to dental surgery. I went in, tried to relax a bit, and once The Chainsaw showed up they put a little nitrous oxide over my nose and a tiny needle in my arm and before you could say blueberry pie I was back to and texting my friends and family. Looking back through my Sent Messages apparently I REALLY liked the feeling of the nitrous. Who could blame me? It's fun! I did pass out in the wheelchair on the way to the car, I think it was a combination of the nitrous and thinking I could talk and stand up and everything way before I should. Definitely need a driver if you're having this done! But once I was able to nap it off and drink some soup I felt like I was good to go around 2pm. I got a little healing cap over it so they didn't put the flap of gum back over the implant like I thought they would.

It's not so bad, just a little more hardware :)

Won't Be a Pearly White Christmas

2009-11-10T10:58:00.000-08:00

So I got the Super-dee-duper green light about the space for the implant yesterday along with a new rubberband orientation. My bite gets closer and closer with every change so that's nice to see. I'm on for the implantation Thursday morning, got my ride all sorted, but The Chainsaw never mentioned anything about pain killers for afterwards. I think I'm gonna call and check on that today. My next ortho appointment is scheduled for (unfortunately) after the new year. So no debracing for Christmas. *shrug* I wasn't really expecting it to happen. I'm hoping I'll be able to take the day off work Thursday (the procedure is at 9am), rest up, and get back to work on Friday.

Anyone think I'm crazy?

Worst Blogger Ever

2009-11-02T22:14:00.000-08:00

Anyone else notice how after people have their surgery they kind of fall off the face of the planet? Yeah, it's weird. So much has happened, but not really. I guess everything has just gotten back to normal, and that's why it seems so un-noteworthy. Let's see, it's been about 3.5 months since the date. I'm eating completely normally. No more physical therapy (25+ sticks.) wearing "tweaking" rubberbands that I can still talk normally with. Even playing hockey again (I didn't tell The Chainsaw yet, shhhhh.) I haven't weighed myself since the surgery because I haven't gotten myself back to the gym yet, work is my excuse right now but that will change in a couple weeks. Oh and I have a date for my implant to be, well, implanted. November 12th. It would have been four months to the day after the surgery but I have a game that night so I pushed it back one :) I do have new pics to show. Crap. Old pics to show from post-op too! They're on my laptop and I blah blah blah lame lame lame. Anyway, I've gotten the obligatory "I didn't recognize you"s and the "you look way better"s and everything. And I'm happy too. Chewing into food for real is definitely something I will never take for granted. Oh, another tiny little victory I savor is being able to tear tape with my teeth at work. Always envied that. So I see my ortho on the 9th to double-triple-check the space for the implant is perfect (it's been a disconcerting nightmare getting my ortho, dentist, and OS on the same page about this for some reason) and then if I've been good there's a glimmer of a chance I might get the braces off before Christmas...

...which is ortho speak for St.Paddy's Day. So we'll see ;)

PT Checkup

2009-09-09T08:49:00.001-07:00

Went in yesterday and The Chainsaw seemed impressed. Two weeks ago I left his office maxing out at 17 tongue depressors and now I'm up to 21. There are only 25 in the stack he gave me. That equals about 40mm which is supposedly an average opening for an adult. He asked if I wanted his help getting the last four out of the way and naturally I respectfully declined. I like the pace I'm going at on my own thank you very much. I go back in in four weeks and should have the whole stack taken care of without a doubt. By then the bone graft should be pretty well healed and we'll discuss getting the implant, well, implanted. So it was a good day. I'm starting to feel recovered. Eating is pretty much normal now and I'm giddy when I can cut through food with my front teeth. Swelling I think is all gone, still a little numbness but nothing distracting. And if I wasn't so involved with my car right now (stripping/rebuilding engine/restoring my '66 mustang) I'd be back to playing hockey. Still no pictures posted though because I'm a little lazy, and I need a haircut terribly.

Short Lived

2009-09-03T08:29:00.001-07:00

Well it didn't last long but this is what the Wiki said,

"Zip-N-Squeeze is a company that makes bags for drinking food post jaw surgery. Despite being well known, they are a fraudulent company and should not be supported."

Wiki

2009-09-02T11:02:00.000-07:00

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zip-N-Squeeze

Ha. Take that. Bastards.

Hope

2009-08-27T19:35:00.000-07:00

Okay, I over reacted. Things are getting better. I can reach my tongue depressor goal with less and less pain every day. Everything is ok.

That first day really hurt though! *shrug*

Crybaby

2009-08-24T22:12:00.000-07:00

This morning I saw The Chainsaw. He took off the rubberbands (as promised) and began to torture me (as promised.) And after my short jaunt into I-want-to-curl-up-into-a-ball-and-escape-this-world-Land I brushed my teeth and was ready to go. Free of elastic tyranny. With a couple hours to kill before my appointment with Dr.Styrt I thought breakfast from a plate instead of a cup would be a wonderful idea. Buckwheat pancakes and scrambled eggs for me, thank you. It was delicious. I had to take it slow though. Little pieces, little bites. I realized I wouldn't be eating a cheeseburger just yet today.
Everyone at the ortho office was happy to see me and loved the results so far. They brought up my initial exam photos for a quick comparison and it's pretty stunning. My tech Kira snipped the surgical hooks off and before I knew it I was banded shut again.

Wait, what? Crap.

I knew they'd be putting rubberbands on again but I thought I'd be able to open my mouth with them on. No such luck. But at least I can take them off to eat and brush and perform what feels like and oral equivalent of hari kari. Which brings me to my main topic for the day.

Physical Therapy hurts. It hurts a lot. Do not be fooled. I don't know why it seems like no one mentions this part in their blogs. Have I not been paying attention? I'd like to think I'm a pretty tough guy but I dunno. Seventeen tongue depressors later and I'm a weeping twit. Seriously. It's a rare day on earth that I shed a tear, but this is the most painful thing I've ever endured. I thought it would get better by talking and eating and yawning without the elastic restraints, but that thought went out the window with the new rubberbands today. I see the Chainsaw in two weeks. We'll have to see how things pan out.

Last Night

2009-08-23T11:10:00.000-07:00

I dreamt I was eating a giant plate of nachos.

Tomorrow these dreaded rubberbands come off!

Fuck Zip-N-Squeeze

2009-08-18T15:26:00.000-07:00

Long story short, I'm stubborn and didn't think I'd need Zip-n-squeeze bags. I figured the hospital would provide me with anything I needed. The problem with the syringes they give you is they can't handle anything even moderately chunky. The hole is just too small for anything but actual liquid. So I order a 4-banger of the large food oriented bags. They haven't shown up yet. So I called yesterday for a refund, no biggie. Well yesterday their voicemail was full. Today the number has been disconnected. And their email through which I sent my payment, defunct. So please excuse my language but after all this I just don't have the decorum to hold back.

Fuck them.

Fuck them right in the ear.

Clarification

2009-08-11T15:19:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah. Just to be clear, my jaw is still immobilized with the rubberbands. So I can't "practice" stretching in between visits. So I'm not sure how I'm supposed to "progress" to get to three fingers. It seems like my surgeon has some sort of hyper-advanced super-quick path of rehabilitation.

Ouchy

2009-08-11T09:28:00.000-07:00

Ever since about the middle of Week 2 any complaints of pain came from the muscles (the masseter, actually) being all tight and not being able to strech out. The bone break has long since felt fine. This morning seems to be particularly bad for some reason. Must be because of yesterdays appointment with The Chainsaw. Before I got to brush, he wanted to do a little stretching. He told me to open up enough to put my index finger between my teeth. Seems easy enough, I could just barely do it. Then he told me to rotate my finger 90 degrees. Hmm, ok, took a second but I got it. Then he told me to put two fingers between my teeth and rotate them. I could turn them maybe 45 degrees and I was cheating by letting them slide around each other instead of keeping them directly side by side. Well, I think The Chainsaw was busy this particular morning because after my weak attempt he decided to do it himself. Donning a blue latex glove he placed his hand ever so gentl....WHAM! and twisted! And as I whimpered like a little girl, writhing around like a spider had been held in front of her face with nowhere to go, he calmly held my jaw open for 30 seconds or so. It hurt pretty badly. Granted, before the surgery, he said the rehab would be very hard. I just expected something more gradual. Like a tiny vintage car jack that would ratchet my mouth open one tiny crank at a time. No such luck.

Next week he said we were aiming for three fingers. He suggested I pre-medicate with some advil. I'm thinking some of that leftover vicodin might do the trick.

Boston Creme Pie Shake Recipe

2009-08-09T12:20:00.000-07:00

12 oz. Whole Milk
1/2 of an entire Boston Creme Pie

Blend.

Week 2 Checkup

2009-07-27T14:47:00.000-07:00

Visited with The Chainsaw today (he was in an unusually "playful" mood today which was both comforting and strange at the same time.) He removed the rubberbands (somewhere between 15-20 of them?) and had me brush my teeth with my brand new baby toothbrush with little duckies on it. Though it was a bit uncomfortable being unbanded at first so I had to take my time. My jaw didn't fall open from lack of use like I had imagined. Quite the opposite. Using the muscles again to slowly open my mouth was like trying to benchpress an empty bar when you've never lifted before. It's not that it's too much weight, but the muscles aren't exactly sure what they're supposed to be doing so it's kinda shaky and awkward. But brushing is very nice. I know my breath was startin' to kick like Long Beach at low tide. A smile did creep over my face a couple times thinking about how cool it is that my teeth actually come together now. He put four bands back on the sides but the front is clear for me to stare at how nice my bite finally is. This will be our routine for the next four weeks, then physical therapy.
I've decided to go back to work next Monday. If things were dire I think I could have done at least half days after day 11 or so. But also know that talking isn't a huge part of my job. If it were, well, I would probably wait until week 4 or later. I can talk, it's just not clear, strong, or pretty.

What's Going On

2009-07-23T20:15:00.001-07:00

Not a lot really. I'm off the pain meds and sleeping through the night now. A stitch came out the other day. My lips are still super tingly getting their feeling back and my right cheek is still pretty numb. Most people wouldn't be able to notice the little swelling that's left. I'm able to speak with minimal clarity but it's better than having to write everything down. I had lost about 10lbs @ 175 but I'm close to breaking 180 already. 185 is a normal weight for me. Two big bowls of soup and two calorie packed shakes a day are doing the trick. I'm coming up on the end of my second week off work and have two more to go but I might get some work to bring home this weekend. I go in for a follow-up on Monday whence I'm supposed to be able to brush my teeth once and have the gazillion rubber bands in mouth reduced to four or six. I'd really like to be able to open my mouth. I'm not sick of the blenderized food yet* but drinking through a syringe is very tedious.

*I discovered that blueberry muffins and two-day old glazed donuts blended in milk make an amazing breakfast treat.

Tsteeves Asks,

2009-07-18T17:19:00.000-07:00

"Going to have double jaw surgery and genioplasty on August 10th. Not sure what I should be doing to prepare. Also had SARPE and don't recall really preparing for that at all...but am more apprehensive about this. Is there anything you realize now that you would've done differently in preparing?"
Well Tstsy, first of all let me say that it's hard for me to imagine how much harder a double surgery would be than this. In my "research" it seems clear that BSSO-ers have it way worse than Leforte-ees. Here's what I do know, about a month out from my SARPE I got jacked. Hitting the gym, eating well, eating LOTS, it was my mission. I put on almost 20 pounds of muscle, had great energy and a beaming outlook on the surgery to come. Now, having, growing, or defining your muscles (or any part of your body's picture) probably doesn't directly help at all. But what it did was make me feel damn near indestructible mentally. Sure, I took it easy afterwards and wasn't out benchpressing cars in between blended lunches, but I always had a really great feeling about the whole thing. This time I didn't do any of that. I'm not depressed or anything. Things are coming along really well and I still see great progress from day to day. I'm pretty sure I won't need 100% of the time off I've requested from work (shh, don't tell anyone) and I can already see an amazing result waiting for me under some swelling and bad skin. But since you asked, I would have gotten in great shape like last time were I forced to try again.
Now, that's just one of my things. I like going to the gym. I love setting goals for myself and reaching them (or missing them and self-motivating to reach them next time around.) Maybe your thing is a musical instrument, a visual art, a crossword puzzle, spending time with someone special, working on your house, whatever. My point is this:
Make yourself indestructible.

...it might not help at all. I might be full of it. But that's my tuppence for those still listening :)

One Week Passed

2009-07-17T17:22:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling conflicted about what to post about the past couple days. I don't know if I want to rehash all the details of Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, etc., or if I just give an overall summary. Opinions? I'm sure most of you could guess from my lack of enthusiastic posting before this surgery that I didn't come in to it with a head full of steam. Partly because I had a lot of stuff going on just prior, and partly because I didn't feel it would be a huge deal since I had survived the SARPE (and pretty well I think.) In hindsight, I wish I had put my head down and barrelled in like I did before as far as putting on weight and eating well and exercising. Instead I just sort of moseyed in to major skull chopping.
I will say these few things in general:
-the pain is different than the SARPE. That was a burning kind of sensation along the entire upper lip line. This one is very sharp localized pain right underneath my ears. This must be where the bone was removed from the maxilla for the posterior impaction.
-On the one hand, it's nice to be able to keep the roof of my mouth wet and happy, on the other hand, it'd be nice to be able to do the same for my lips.
-It's hard work eating through a syringe. Way easier when you can open your mouth.

Overall, I feel like this one is definitely taking more out of me, but I can't be sure if it's because of the different procedure, or if I just wasn't ready like I should have been.

Breaking Radio Silence

2009-07-15T16:00:00.000-07:00

Well I guess it's day 5. I think I hopped online at Day 4 last time. Oh well. I was trying to take a nap but couldn't sleep so I thought I'd just write a quick hello. Things are fine. Nose is clogged. Pain is dwindling. Having weird dreams about eating sticky foods like taffy and not being able to open my mouth. Ha! Didn't see that coming. Anyway, I might feel a little more author-y tomorrow. Thanks to all the well-wishers.

Pokey and Preppy

2009-07-10T09:28:00.000-07:00

Got my surgical hooks on yesterday. Not as bad as everyone says. I mean, they're actually smaller than the canine hooks most people have on their brackets. I do feel more "dangerous" with them though. Like a gangsta! Or like an alien with big sharp teeth. Like Stitch (of Lilo and...) Anyway, I have a pre-op appointment with Dr.Tawfilis this afternoon, then dinner with my mom (who flew in for the weekend. Thanks Mom!) and family at Buca di Beppo. And tomorrow morning I have to be at the hospital by 5:30 am. Cripes, that's early. But, let's do it. Bring it on. You got nothin on me surgery woes.
I'll be taking pictures throughout again like the SARPE, but I think I'm going to borrow from Wired Lady's style and not post anything until I'm relatively less swollen so that everyone will be able to see the real impact of difference. Well it's a busy day so you probably won't hear from me for a couple days. Take it easy and send good healing vibes.

Shiney

2009-07-09T09:12:00.000-07:00

Well here we go. I went in yesterday for a last minute cleaning and check-up. Everything went very well. Miko and I had a wonderful conversation about theatre around town and what's in NYC as well. Dr. Misleh gave me a thumbs up and everyone wished me luck for Saturday.
Only a couple days now and I'll get to sleep in for as long as I want. Who said jaw surgery was all bad?

Date II

2009-06-10T19:45:00.000-07:00

July 11. One month away kids! I had an appt with Dr.Styrt today to check on the little adjustments he made last time and I figured I'd put a call in to Veronica @ The Chainsaw's office to see if she had any headway with the insurance. (Apparently they had not yet received the notifications that I had yet.) They still hadn't gotten them so I faxed over my copies. Sure enough, while I was in the chair having molds taken she called me back to confirm I was slated for the 11th. It couldn't be better timing. My show opens on the 28th. Then my girlfriend Kelly and I are going to Vegas for a few days. Then the 4th of July celebrations. Then a week to prepare myself before getting hacked apart. I've got a pre-op appt with The Chainsaw on the 10th and getting my hooks on with Dr.Styrt on the 9th. I'll see if I can't get in to see Dr.Misleh before that for one last grill detail before being banded shut for awhile.
Dr.Styrt made a remark about "being on the home stretch" today, but I really don't feel like that's the case. After the surgery I've still got at least 6 more months in wires, then all the stuff that goes with the implant, then getting my janky nose fixed up. (Not cosmetic, deviated septum.) So I'll be posting for at least another year or so I imagine. Don't put me in the archive folder yet.

Post Script-

2009-06-04T22:42:00.000-07:00

AND!- My braces are all paid off! Whoohooo! That'll be a nice chunk of change every month to get back in my pocket.

Take That, Red Tape!

2009-06-04T22:21:00.000-07:00

I scoff in the direction of retarded insurance policies designed to deter us from our medical goals! After a week of calling the ENT's office every day to see if anyone had cancelled so I could get in as early as possible (as opposed to waiting until July 18th, pssht) I came home after a day of late work to find two letters from my medical provider. Now, normally, these envelopes come about a week after I have seen my doctor and they're usually a questionnaire about how the service was and, normally, I throw them away because really who has the time? Well, the first of the two says, "Based upon information provided, Sharp-Rees-Stealy Medical Grp (sic) has approved a referral to the following: The Chainsaw, D.D.S., blah-blah-blah."
Sweet! I don't even have to go to the ENT! It's ridiculous that I'd have to waste his time and mine for him to look at me for the same thing again, seriously.
So I go on to the second envelope expecting it to be an accidental second copy of the first. It says, "This letter confirms that Sharp-Rees Stealy Medical Grp has been notified of a proposed treatment plan for you and has reviewed the plan for medical necessity and health plan coverage. The information obtained concerning the treatment plan indicates a hospital admission has been approved to the following: Leforte without* bone graft."
Yay! I didn't really have any worries about the surgery being covered because the first was handled without me ever seeing a shred of paperwork. My boys and girls in the offices are earning theirs for sure.
* I really do need, and am getting, a bone graft for my missing tooth/implant-to-be during my Leforte procedure, but I always knew it wouldn't be covered. But, by doing it at the same time, things like hospital stay and anesthesia will already be paid for. I did the same thing by having my wisdom teeth extracted during the SARPE. Just being efficient!
So it's great to get these letters. I'll set up an appointment to see The Chainsaw tomorrow morning and see how much steam we can get going here. In a perfect world, the first week of July would be best for surgery, but anytime before September can work.

Adjust

2009-05-12T21:41:00.000-07:00

Went into Dr.Styrt's today. He and the Chainsaw had a conversation with my molds in hand and decided on one last adjustment before the big day. When that big day is, we have yet to learn. But it's nice to know that they are being proactive about things. It means that I've got four weeks to convince my ENT to see me ASAP so that by the time the teeth are where they want to be, the insurance approval is where I want it to be.
Like, in my back pocket. Sucka.

Ok, so,,,

2009-05-09T10:24:00.000-07:00

...I apologize for the last post, especially when followed by a long period of silence. Not a very nice thing to do. Like telling someone that you know someone who has a crush on them but not spilling the beans.
To pick things up, when I posted it had been about six weeks (I think) since Dr.Styrt said I was ready for surgery...and nothing had happened. After that appointment (six weeks prior) I immediately called The Chainsaw to get an appointment. His receptionist Kim told me that she couldn't just make me an appointment, that my insurance had to approve the appointment. So I called my insurance and asked what I needed to do. [I was worried because I didn't want to go through the litany of referrals (from PCP to ENT to OS) in order to get there. Some of you might remember form the SARPE that this took about six months when it was all said and done because doctors schedules are pretty backed up. So despite that it's a simple 5 minute conversation in which I explain to the doctor what's going on and why I need the surgery, it can take months just to get in.] The nice girl on the other end of the phone said no it's no problem, I just have to have my ortho send a letter explaining the situation to so-and-so. Well great. I pass the info on to Dr.Styrt and they send the letter.
Wait.
Wait.
Wait.
Now we're six weeks later, nothing has happened, and I'm back at Dr.Styrts for an appointment that, had everything gone as planned I'd be getting my surgical hooks on. But alas, nothing has happened. So now we start backtracking and find out that HealthNet had declined the surgery. Lemme say dat agin, Declined the surgery. Not just an appointment. So after MUCH confusion and phone calls back and forth to/from Dr.Styrt and The Chainsaw's, we got it figured out. And while that sounds like good news...

I do in fact have to go back through the gauntlet of referrals to even get the appointment with my OS. Even though they've all already seen me for this process. The way I see it, this is just step 2 of what has already been approved. The way HealthNet sees it, new procedure, new approval.

So I've seen my PCP and have an appointment with my ENT on July 18. After a lot of (hopefully embarrassing) recounts of what this surgery is and why I need it and "you've already seen me for this"s, she said she would call the ENT directly to try to either get a verbal referral straight to the OS or at the very least, to squeeze me in sooner. I called her again yesterday to see where we were at with that and apparently the ENT was on vacation last week (good thing, so was I) but that she will check up again and get back to me on Monday.
I'm hoping we can get everything in line for me to be in a hospital bed about 7 weeks from now.

Omigod...

2009-04-02T14:56:00.001-07:00

...insurance is maddening.

I would explain, but I don't even understand the mess that's going on.

Go Bananas!

2009-03-05T15:45:00.000-08:00

I am so happy. I went to GNC last night to restock on my protein shakes. To my utter surprise, they had a new flavor on the shelf...

BANANA! I tell you it doesn't get much better than this. The possibilities are endless. Use orange juice instead of milk and Bam! Breakfast shake! Add a touch of chocolate syrup and Bam! Frozen banana shake! Mix in a scoop of peanut butter and Bam! Elvis shake!

Pre- and Post-surgery weight gain just got a lot more tasty!

Two Years Later...

2009-02-27T13:01:00.000-08:00

As I said, they took new pictures and x-rays when I went in a couple weeks ago. Well, as I'm sure you can tell, I was NOT prepared to have my picture taken but I thought I'd give you all the comparison anyway. This might be a rare case where the Before actually looks better than the After! Ignoring the disheveled hair and beard-in-process it might not be too bad. And it seems like my teeth are more yellow now than before but I'm hoping it might just be the photo. (At any rate, those are going to get whitened one way or the other when it's all said and done.) So here is the Before and After:

Sweeeeeeeeeet.

2009-02-05T16:43:00.000-08:00

Guess what I had taken today? If you guessed "surgical molds" you are correct! That's it! Bam! I'm ready for The Chainsaw! They also retook pictures and x-rays so I'll get those posted as soon as I can. So, as soon as we were done I called my primary care provider to get a referral to see my surgeon a second time. They said my ENT had to be the referring physician so they were kind enough to call him for me. (You may recall, the last time I went through these referral hoops, it took me almost half a year.) So hopefully I'll hear back from Veronica or Kim at The Chainsaw's office with an appointment for my second consultation. Anyway I'm totally stoked that I'm ready to go because it looks like my timeline for a May cut-up date should be attainable.

Whoooohoooo!

Makes Me Sad a Little

2009-01-21T18:29:00.000-08:00

So I was at Dr.Misleh's today getting the grill detailed and after I was done, Dr. Misleh, myself, and Miko, my technician, were chatting about my surgery and Miko pointed out something a little astonishing to me. My incisors have little ridges on them called mamelons. They are completely normal and come with adult teeth when you get them. The odd thing is for someone my age to have them. Why? Because my teeth have never ground against each other in the front. And so, after surgery, they will soon finally disappear.

Goodbye, Little Mamelons. Goodbye.

What Can I Say

2009-01-05T15:46:00.000-08:00

Things are slow. Patience is key. Since October every ortho appointment feels the same. I go in, sit down, get a new wire, get up, six weeks. I do have some news though.
After some pondering over a calendar here's what I figure: even if I'm "ready for surgery" by my February appointment, It'll be another month or so to get my surgical hooks on, then another month to get an appointment with The Chainsaw, then another month to get a hospital date. I don't think I'll be in until May or so.

In the meantime, I accepted an invite to a hockey tourney in Colorado at the end of April.

To fold that back into the purpose of this blog, I'm starting my weight gaining regiment again.

Sorry if it sounds like I'm losing steam here, I just don't like posting unless I have something to say you know?

You're Very Welcome

2008-11-07T08:38:00.001-08:00

To Susan, Ute, and everyone else who has said, "thanks for the blog." That's why I started it and I'm glad it's helping out. But I'll also say that I never would have guessed the amount of support I've gotten from complete strangers as well. So if you're reading this and thinking to your self, "Self, I'm glad I've read this fine publication. I feel ready to take on this challenge," you might want to swallow the pride, post some pictures, (we all know how awful they feel don't worry, you're in the most sympathetic company) and spread your story too. It's a great way to keep track of progress, timewise and picturewise; you make new friends; and it'll keep your family informed.
Meanwhile, I'll be checking in with Dr.Styrt next week. Tuesday I think?

Three Words

2008-10-16T12:17:00.000-07:00

So I go in to Dr.Styrt's this morning for a tune-up. Get seated. They have a peek and a poke. And he says to change my top wire to an 18-25 stainless and then I'll be..."ready for surgery" !! It's really hard for me to gauge how my Leaning Tower of Molar is moving so I thought it'd still be months down the line. Needless to say, I was not expecting to hear those words today, even in a forecasting context. The less awesome news is that I had a busted bracket AND a loose band on my lower chompers so we had to fix those, then go backwards to a nitinol wire on the bottom. So actual "ready-for-surgery-ness" will be bumped back at least 5 weeks. What makes this less not-so-awesome news is that I've already planned a snowboarding trip to Tahoe for December so surgery will have to wait till at least January one way or the other. This also is the best scenario as far as work is concerned so I'm not sweating it. Things are moving. I'm gonna have a great vacation. I'll get to eat real food on Thanksgiving and Christmas. So things are sweet!

As Promised

2008-09-24T12:14:00.000-07:00

Here's some pics to get you all interested again. As you can see everything is lining up very nicely. A little gap has opened up between 23 and 24 but I'm not too worried about it. Oh and I've been growing my hair out. Whatcha think?

Catching Up

2008-09-17T13:25:00.000-07:00

You'd given up hadn't you? Two months or so of checking in just to see what's going on and you must've thought I'd either given up on the whole thing or have been hiding in a cave somewhere. Well the latter wouldn't be too far off the mark. It's been mindblowingly busy at work this summer (as is our busy season) but it's all starting to come to fruition and I'm slowly becoming human again.

Anyway! I'm still here! I'm still interesting! Come back and things will get exciting soon I promise!

Since I'd last posted I've had two ortho appointments dedicated to that stubborn #31. As I've mentioned before, #30 has been missing since I was 16 or so. Which means #31 has had over ten years to lean forward as much as it likes. It was probably close to a 50 degree angle before we started straightening it out. Well they bent my archwire around a bit to get it tilted back and put a spring in between 29 and 31 to push it back. It's starting to move but I feel like this will be a long process. Dr.Styrt offhandedly hinted at maybe August for the second surgery (come and gone) so again I'm not holding my breath. Just patiently waiting.

I also had a cleaning last week and congrats to receptionist Linda who got her braces off since I last saw her. You look amazing!

So there it is. Not much has happened but I do apologize to everyone for disappearing for so long. It happens from time to time. I'll make it up with some updated pictures this week.

Treading

2008-06-21T11:49:00.002-07:00

I have certainly not been meeting my obligation to my readership. But it's not my fault! There's just nothing exciting happening. The arches are all lovely and round. The crowding is gone. That pesky second gap is gone. Everything looks great from the front. But now we have to work on that tilted #31. And it's had over ten years to get in the predicament it's currently in so I have no idea how long it could take to right itself. I'm a month away from my next adjustment so it's all about patience right now. Boring!

Well here's a tidbit for you to chew on. Make it last, things could be slow for awhile.

Did you know Dr Charles Tweed was the first certified orthodontist in the US?

Way to go Chuck. Your mother is proud of you.

Rebanded

2008-05-29T10:40:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's appointment with Dr.Styrt was sort of uneventful. They did fit me up with more spacers for my upper 7's though. I'll be going back next Tuesday to get the banded brackets put in. Closer and closer...

10,000

2008-05-23T10:32:00.000-07:00

I would have never guessed that my face would be this interesting to anyone else.

Thanks and Cheers.

Trivia #2

2008-05-21T09:54:00.000-07:00

"There are nearly 4 million people in orthodontic treatment throughout the United States. Three out of four are younger than 18."

Here's to being in the top 25%

Surprise

2008-05-08T18:45:00.000-07:00

Got a call from Linda at Dr.Misleh's today asking if I could come in. It's usually not a problem for me to hop in ahead of my scheduled appointment. In fact, it's kind of nice. That way I don't spend the entire morning dealing with pre-cleaning anxiety. Everything went well and I'm convinced the straighter teeth really are helping them stay clean. I haven't changed anything in my brushing routine since I bought an electric toothbrush a few years ago and my cleanings don't usually go as quick and easy as today. So Dr.Misleh was right way back when he said I should reconsider getting braces. Less nooks and crannies for plaque to hide makes keeping those teefers clean much easier.
Oh and I wanted to say I've been really good about not eating all those orthodontically unfriendly foods and candies but I've constantly been having dreams about chomping on things like gum and caramel.
Obviously, things have been slow on the updating front. My apologies.

Peeps #2

2008-04-14T15:31:00.000-07:00

Here's the latest shout out to Trish, Kira, Kelly, Wonderful Jessica and the rest of the lovely ladies over at Dr.Styrt's. (And Dr.Styrt too.) Dental alignment couldn't be practiced by a finer, friendlier, classier group of people. I had an adjustment today and was showered with good news like jelly-beans on Easter morning.
First of all, who can lick the roof their mouth with their tongue? That's right, I can. Kelly ground that buggering RPE out and my tongue feels like it's moved out of a New York apartment and into a French chateau. The roof is really tingly when I touch it and Kelly said to be careful of hot foods because it needs to get roughed up a little bit before it can handle that sort of thing.
Next, I was given new wires. I think they're both 17x25 nitinol wires. For those less geeky as me, they're rectangular. How is this different than square? Well, without going into the physics of how a rectangular cross section is stronger than a square cross section (and way stronger than a round cross section) because of the amount of material that is further from the neutral axis, just know that it is a stronger wire and you'll probably be happy I spared you the details.
And finally, Doc said things will take as long as they take to be ready for surgery (which I agree with) but his guess was somewhere around 4 months from now. 4 months! I've learned not to hold my breath when waiting for the praise of the orthodontic deities, but I'm kinda stoked.

Back Home

2008-04-02T13:43:00.000-07:00

Well Europe was a blast. We were undefeated in the Netherlands tournament and finished in the middle of the pack in the Czech tourney. All in all a great time and amazing experience. Saw lots of wired adults in Holland. And I stayed with a lady who had a BSSO recently. She was in the "I-don't-want-to-know-any-details-just-do-it" camp so we didn't get into it too much. So, just wanted to stop in. And for Dr.Tawfilis, no unlucky accidents.

Gap #2

2008-03-06T08:50:00.000-08:00

I posted some new pictures and it still amazes me how much has happened in two short months. My arch is scrumptiously round and the gap is gone. Looking back on the pictures just after expansion stopped I never realized how weird it really looked. Remember how I mentioned that it seemed like during expansion, one side of my jaw seemed to move and the other just stayed still? Well I feel like the same has happened with the braces. My left side has obviously done more shifting to close the chasm than the right side, resulting in a new gap between #9 and #10. Because of this offsided shifting my midlines are now ridiculously off of CL (centerline for those of you outside of the entertainment industry.) I'm sure it will all get fixed later, just have to ignore it for now.

Tocar

2008-03-03T10:43:00.000-08:00

v.- to touch. Mis dientes estan tocando.

Orthodontics and Hockey

2008-02-20T16:48:00.000-08:00

I don't see how anyone can see this combination as anything but the will of The Almighty. They go together like first graders and paste.

We had a team meeting for my Europe trip this weekend. There will be 10 skaters plus a goalie on the team and there will be 10 NON-players coming along too. Cool. Fans in the stands thousands of miles from home. Our goalie is also wired and one of our non-players I noticed has a giant gap in her teeth. Sure enough, as she was talking I saw flashes of the bands on her top molars for her expander. Bingo! SARPE victim! So we got to talking after the business stuff was done and she's a bit behind me in the process. She just finished expanding and she'll have her wires on right before the trip. I hope it doesn't hinder her bratwurst eating ability. She said they had to expand her so much that she needed a second expander made after she maxed out the first one! I'm realizing more and more I might have gotten off easy.

Square

2008-02-11T15:58:00.000-08:00

Had my first adjustment today. Not very exciting. It was nice to floss without the wire in. I mean NICE. I never thought I would ever enjoy flossing but comparatively it was heaven. I got a square wire and won't be back in for 8 weeks. 6 wasn't enough and I'll be out of the country through week 7. So if things were to keep on the way they have been the gap should be completely gone by then. But I know how these things work. Orthodontics are like football, that last two minutes takes as long as the entire game up to that point. So I'm not holding my breath. Do your thing little powerchain. You've got all the time in the world.

Peeps

2008-02-01T16:55:00.000-08:00

I gotta give a shout out to Amanda, Linda, Miko and Dr.Misleh. Keepin my grill polished couldn't be done by a finer group of people. I went in for a cleaning yesterday and it was the first time they've seen me since the surgery.

Also, it's been almost 4 weeks with the hardware. The gap is down to 2.6mm and I thought I'd show off my newly rounded upper arch. I'm giddy over it.

Whoops

2008-01-14T15:09:00.000-08:00

So there I was sitting on the couch watching the football game and picking my teeth. And as I tried to get a piece of parsley or something out of my front bracket my nail got caught by the edge of the metal and was just enough to break the bond. Who knew? So I went in and saw my favorite technician Kira to get it fixed and viola. Lesson learned. Don't pick at your braces with your fingernails.

Speed

2008-01-10T14:01:00.000-08:00

Before I went in to get my orthodontic decorations on Monday, I measured the gap at 4.1mm.
Today it's at 3.4mm.
That seems fast to me. I love it.

Tinsel Teeth

2008-01-07T16:29:00.000-08:00

Let's get this gravy train a' rollin'. I'm not sure exactly what to say about having braces again. The word "again" seems to be a recurring theme though. Throughout the appointment I found myself reassuring the technicians that I'd been through this once and I really didn't feel any of it was a big deal. Not that it's not a big deal but in the "I'm-ready-for-this-and-barring-any-dramatic-changes-in-orthodontic-technology-you're-probably-not-going-to-surprise-me-with-what-you're-about-to-do-to-my-mouth" kind of way. I think I said "yeah I remember that/those" about 157 times. I've got a section of power chain between my 1's and lips naturally red enough to make a young Donna Reed jealous.

For the uninitiated, the 80 minute appointment went something like this:

-Accept jaw-opening cheek-spreader into mouth. Gag as necessary.

-Dry teeth and prep with some chemical applied via syringe.

-Apply brackets onto what I can only assume is at first a gooey substance.

-The orthodontist tweaks each bracket individually.

-Zap with Beeping Blue Light Zapper Gun (R) to cure adhesive.

I was then immediately transported to my 7th grade self that consciously covered my braces as much as possible and hesitated to smile openly. (Now that I'm cocky as a farmer's alarm clock I imagine I'm gonna get over that crap really quickly.)

So that's about it. You can go on to bed children and know that when you get your braces it won't hurt and it'll just take a couple days to get used to them.

Ok?

Now, run along.

Sweet dreams.

...

...

...

Are all the kids out of the room? Great. Because I have to know, when everyone else was having their brackets bonded did it smell STUNNINGLY like marijuana? It couldn't possibly be just me.

Stubborn, Table for One

2008-01-03T13:39:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year everybody. I hope your holidays were as fruitful and drama-free as mine.

I had my 6-week follow-up with The Chainsaw this morning. I've been eating psuedo normally for two weeks now so I didn't expect him to tell me anything profound. Pretzels are still out of reach but the rest of my diet is for the most part status quo.

I did have one thing to ask about before we parted ways for 12-18 months though. See, I've been invited to play on a hockey team that's playing in a tournament in late March.

In Europe.

Needless to say, I'd kick myself forever if I had to miss this opportunity. I explained how it's a non-checking tournament so I don't have to worry about being laid out in the middle of the ice, and that I wear a full face shield with my helmet. And let me tell you, no matter how much wheeling and dealing I did Dr.Tawfilis was not happy about the idea. He said that if my jaw wasn't protected it could be "disastrous." Which begs the question, "How disastrous exactly?" He said in that event it could require another surgery to straighten things out.

Now at this point I'm thinking I've already gone through one surgery and have another one slated. So why would the thought of one more deter me? In his exact words he said I could play "if your jaw is protected." Well I can't think of any way to further protect my jaw than what I play with now.

So I'm going to play in the 14th Annual World Amateur Tournament in Klasterec, Czech Republic.

And I get my braces on Monday.

Nothing of Importance

2007-12-13T10:40:00.000-08:00

I'm still here. Nothing exciting happening though. It's been about 3 weeks I guess since I stopped expanding. There might be a small difference but I'll have to take a picture tonight to be sure.

Last Friday I hit a wall of sorts. It was the cheeseburger wall. As helpful as the soup was it just wasn't cutting it any longer. I had to bite into a burger. I might be addicted, Jughead style. At any rate I discovered come pain or discomfort I can eat a McDonald's Double Cheeseburger. And if I can eat one, I can eat three. Granted, this is the bottom of the Burger Bell Jar but I'll take what I can get. Come new years you'd better believe I'm gonna lay into a fat sirloin burger smothered in provolone and mushrooms from one of my favorite hole-in-the-wall establishments.

I'm not sure that I've deliberately broken any of my surgeons rules. He was very vague about the chewing/no chewing. I think he said I wouldn't "be able" to chew anything until the new year. There was no mention of soft foods easing back in at any point. I'm not sure I care. He's a great doctor and I trust him, I'm just really stubborn. Wait till I ask him when I can start playing hockey again ;)

I'm going back to the east coast tomorrow for the holidays. I'll try to post a picture before I leave. I wonder if I could pry my old ortho records out of my former OD. That'd be fun for everyone.

The Cheeseburger Experiment

2007-11-27T16:52:00.001-08:00

Some of you may remember my comment a while back to Erin about putting a cheeseburger in a blender. As I learned, she's vegetarian and therefore I had to step up to the challenge. Well after some clinical studies and numerous pie charts we've received the data back from the labs and I think I'm ready to publish.

Going into this thing I speculated that keeping the quintessential burger meal in tact would be the best plan. Burger, fries, and a shake. Have any of you dipped your fries in a chocolate shake? It's not half bad. We did it all the time at Wendy's growing up. Anyway, here are the ingredients before:

...aaaaaand here's the after:

...it was pretty awful. Maybe a beef broth instead of the shake? I wasn't sure. After some contemplation I noticed the cheddar soup my mom had bought earlier. Hm. Intriguing. So a couple days later after the shock of the initial attempt had passed I gave it another go.

This is a Jack-in-the-Box Ultimate Cheeseburger (no lettuce or tomato which helped I think) with a small order of onion rings in a bowl of Vons Cheddar Ale Signature Soup.

It came out the consistency of a stout oatmeal and while the flavor was exactly wht one would expect when chomping into such a greasy-cheesy-melty-mound-of-heaven, it wasn't exactly the same without the actual chomping. Until then, I'll be enjoying my Cream of Burger Soup.

Heal 4 Real

2007-11-23T13:42:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to mention that the day before the soft-food extravaganza of mashed potatoes (sweet and regular), stuffing, green bean casserole, and super chopped turkey I finished my expansion regiment. I'm all done at 19 turns total (none were done during surgery) and totally jazzed about letting the bones heal up nice and properlike. The sooner they get going the sooner I can dive into the foods I really love. The Chainsaw said I wouldn't be able to eat until after the new year but with Christmas dinner on its way I know I'm going to be pushing my luck.

Check, Check, Double-Check

2007-11-19T16:46:00.000-08:00

Last time I saw The Chainsaw he said he wanted to see me before Dr.Styrt did to check on my expanding progress.

So I slipped in for a early appointment with him this morning to give him a gander at my ever-increasing ghetto-fabulousness. He basically said I've healed really well and that I was ready to be passed on to Dr.Styrt's care until the next surgery. I'll see Dr.Tawfilis again in 6 weeks to make sure everything is healed for real (no foolsies) after the expansion is done. I asked when I could start lifting again and he said I could go easy now but any over exertion will lead to broken blood vessels, soreness, and re-swelling. So I'll go easy until the new year I think. It'll be nice to ease back into it anyway.

And off I whisked (can one whisk or does one have to BE whisked?) off to see Dr.Styrt. And this, I think, is a great indicator of how well I know my body and it's healing capabilities. I lie down in the chair and he takes a peak inside.
Checks my file.
Looks again, and says, "So did you have the surgery on the 3rd?"
("No I always look like a field goal post.) "Yup, I did," I said.

"Wow. You healed really quickly."

Bam. No sweat. I thought that was cool.

So we're on for a date after the new year to get bonded and wired. The best part is I'll get brackets on my lower 6 & 7's instead of bands so I won't need spacers. Pow. AND, I only have to click my way to 19 instead of 24. How ya like me now?

Halfway House

2007-11-18T21:53:00.000-08:00

This is a 12-turn gap. I'm trying to have fun with it.

On a serious note though, I can't help but think that only the right side of my jaw is moving over and not the left side. I'm sure it can all be fixed when the expanding is done but it's weird to notice.

6 Turns

2007-11-14T14:43:00.000-08:00

I've gotten used to cranking the expander at this point. Yes, I do it myself. And I really enjoy trying to feel the difference in the gap right after I've done one. Amazing technology.

And finally, I got the surgery pictures up. Enjoy.

Back to Work

2007-11-13T16:29:00.000-08:00

I've been hopping in to clear out my email and check on things since Sunday but today was the first day there were actually other people around. It's nice to be missed even though nothing super important was going on.

Click!

2007-11-12T12:53:00.000-08:00

How fun. I saw Dr.Tawfilis this morning for my first post-op visit and he showed me how to start opening this thing up. Not that complicated, just a mild formality really. He clicked me twice and honestly I couldn't feel a thing. I was expecting a lot more pressure with each turn but it just wasn't there. I can, however, see daylight through my front teeth. How cool! Progress! It's happening! I can't stop jumping around! The Chainsaw wanted me to do 2 turns in the morning and 2 at night. But Dr.Styrt said 1 in the morning and 1 at night. I feel like I could do 4 a day without a problem but we're gonna go with Dr.Styrt on this one because its the more conservative route I suppose. I dunno. I asked about the gummy movement and if my maxilla would get sucked back up as it heals and he said yes. It's just swollen and not scarified yet but that'll change during the "consolidation period," or the six weeks after expansion.

I'm so happy I've finally gotten to this point, where things are happening. In theater, sometimes you have days where you can work hard for 10 or 12 or 16 hours and at the end of the day the theater looks the same as at the beginning of the day. Other days you can have half a crew working only 8 hours and it feels like a different world when you lock up. We like those days.

Well I Can't Figure It Out

2007-11-09T21:43:00.000-08:00

Ok SARPE survivors this one's specifically for you. I've been working out that fleshy mouth meat and getting used to the movement. When I first started checking things out after the hospital it looked like my front teeth were WAY more prominent than before. I thought this might've been because my upper lip was pretty swollen in an upward position and maybe they were just being "revealed" more than normal. But after careful observation I've noticed my maxilla is actually hanging lower than it used to and when I bite down (or would it be biting up?) I can press my upper teeth up a good 3-4mm. I understand that it has to flap around in order to allow for lateral movement once expansion starts, but once that's done how does the maxilla heal back up where it should be? Does the scar tissue just tighten up and pull everything back into place? Does bone fill in where it hangs and will I need to live with it until it can be reassessed for the next surgery?

I go in bright and early Monday morning to start clicking but am getting this kiddish impatience about the whole thing. Don't make me do the pouty lips. I'll do it. I have no shame.

Wisdom Teeth vs. Jaw Surgery

2007-11-08T19:31:00.000-08:00

All this comparison talk of having surgery and your wisdom teeth pulled has prompted me to post my views on the subject. For the most part, I do think people are just trying to empathize by relaying their extraction experiences when talk of surgery comes up. I've seen enough sour faces and cringes of terror (even before the graphic descriptions) to know that most people don't envy the surgery patient. And I think it would take a truly insensitive person to actually believe that their outpatient procedure could trump an osteotomy. So when your sister-in-law or buddy at the office tries to make you tense up with their little story, just try to be polite, they obviously don't know any better. I will offer my opinion of each side having just done both.

Wisdom Teeth-
-point of information, all four of mine were erupted. I'm sure they would not have come in as smooth as they did had I not had a set of premolars removed in middle school. I will say that I'm pretty sure the swelling would have been 10 times worse if they were impacted.
-pain, during the first day or so the pain from the extractions was more noticeable than from the osteotomy. After the 5th or 6th day when I was completely off the pain meds they again became the more annoying of the two pains. It's sharper and more localized for obvious reasons.
-bleeding, when blood spills out of your mouth while you're rinsing it's hard to say exactly where it's coming from. But I'm fairly confident that there was very minimal bleeding after I left the hospital 27 hours later.

Two-piece Leforte I-
-what makes this surgery above and beyond an extraction is how it effects everything around you for a much longer period of time. Putting the gory details aside let's look at the two side by side. Longer operating time, more blood loss, liquid/soft food diet for about 5 times longer, pain meds prescribed are much more serious (morphine for crying out loud! They give that stuff to dying soldiers)
-from a lifestyle point of view, if I wanted to go lift weights or play hockey after an extraction I could do it that day. Might sting no doubt, but it'd be possible. After surgery? My maxilla is being held in place by the meat in my mouth. That's all. When I bite together I can feel my upper arch moving closer to my brain. Walking is now considered a jarring activity. Let's just say that that sort of instability changes the way you do simple things like sit in a chair, turn your head, and swallow your juice.
-pain, during the first couple days it felt like a burning sensation at the line where the cuts were made below my nose. But worse than that, when re-learning to swallow the maxilla does a whole lot of clanking around. And feeling it clank together up there was enough to stop everything around me. These last couple days have gotten better with that scar tissue starting to grow in there. The stitches are tight and dry up there and smiling is still very painful.
-bleeding, the bleeding thats going on seems to be leftovers from the procedure. A couple times a day I'll lean forward in just the right way and my nose will start dripping blood. Not a nosebleed, just leftovers that've pooled up in the nasal cavity. Gunks of blood have become slowly coughed up from the throat and the nasal area and I'm sure this is ok because it feels so relieving when I get a good piece.

With this in mind, I'd like to say that having your wisdom teeth is like hitting your thumb with a hammer. But jaw surgery is more like being splattered across the sidewalk by a bus.

Clean Yourself Up

2007-11-07T13:51:00.000-08:00

Day#5 and there's not a whole lot to talk about. It seems like the most difficult part of this game is keeping the roof of my mouth clean and dry. I spent the better part of the morning cleaning out gobs and gobs of gunk from up there. It has also been an ongoing front to dissolve the clotted blood holding my upper lip to my front teeth. I've certainly gotten my hunger back. The first couple days out I could only put down a few ounces of anything at a time but this morning I made myself a nice big old pineapple and vanilla shake and downed the whole thing. And yes, I did make it myself. Hooray for being proactive about your recovery schedule. Then I took a nice bath (which is waaay more relaxing than a shower, which is all I have at my place) and made another shake for lunch, this time cookies 'n' cream. The sad news of the day is that virtually all of the weight I had put on is now departed from my body. 198lbs was the closest I could get to my goal and I weighed 195 the morning of the surgery. Now, a scant 180 I feel like a waif. I'm hoping that I can get back to a 3-shake-a-day regiment to stop any more loss, but once I get eating again I'm hoping to put some of it back on.

Swallowing is still a little disturbing at times but not as bad as it was. I'm carrying around a towel for saliva so I don't have to swallow for swallowing's sake. Still lots of pressure in the sinuses and the very few times I've tried to utter a word it sounds (as it should) very, very congested. I'm not taking any more Vicodin during the day but they do help me get to sleep. So the pain isn't too bad.

Oh, I am taking daily pictures but won't be able to post them until next week.

Land of the Living

2007-11-06T10:02:00.000-08:00

Day #4 and mom wouldn't let me stay in bed anymore. Tough love in my family.

The surgery went well. Dr.Tawfilis said everything went as planned, wisdom teeth caused no issues. We showed up at 5:30am to check in and you'd think I was the only person having surgery that day. There wasn't a long wait from getting into my gown till I was in the room. I met my anaesthesiologist just prior, Dr.Cochran I think. I asked him where he went to med school. University of Michigan, he said. Some of the best hockey in the world there so I'm at ease ;) It didn't take but a minute after actually getting into the operating room that Dr.Cochran told me he was going to give me some stuff to sleep and that I should just relax. After the night I had before believe me I was ready to relax and go to sleep. No counting. Just relaxing and I was probably out in a second or two. When I woke up I was able to recall exactly what was going on, knew that I'd have gauze in my mouth etc. The wisdom teeth were the most painful part right off the bat. I got nauseated twice and it felt like a precursor to passing out but the nurse was able to give me something that calmed me down immediately. I think I remember her using the word "Dulotid," mmmm. Then they wheeled me to my room and got me hooked up on Torridol. I had the option of that or Morphine. I gave the Morphine a chance once and absolutely did not like it. They only gave me 1mg instead of the max 4mg but it was enough to make my breathing race so much that I couldn't sleep. So no more morphine for me. Later that night they started trying to get me to take in some liquids which was a challenge. Without rigid fixation you really can feel the maxilla shifting around when you swallow. It's disturbing. Sleeping through the night was hard because the pain came back. This time it was like my nasal area was on fire. The next morning I got up to use the bathroom and watched some football until The Chainsaw came to check up on and possibly discharge me. I felt ok and he said I looked good so I was free to go.

First, We Show Up

2007-11-02T18:56:00.000-07:00

...Then we see what happens. At 7:30am PST start counting backwards from 10...

9...

8...

...

Bring it!

I Have a Pahwette Exthpander

2007-11-01T14:46:00.000-07:00

Having conversations with people has become like a staring contest. I endure the hilarity of it as long as I can before telling them I have an appliance in my mouth. I can only imagine what's going on in their heads when I'm speaking. Not that I'm self conscious about it, I'm really not. They could think I'm drunk for all I care. I started chatting up the Artistic Director of the theatre today at lunch (who has no idea I'm having surgery or any of this done) and it really was sort of a joke's-on-him feeling I got.

Here's a picture of the device. For the rest of the world, see that slot just left of the two dots? That slot is where you put in the key which is basically a small wire comparable to a paper clip. By rotating that wire towards the back of the mouth (as indicated by the arrow) it spins a screw which pushes the two sides apart. Each "turn" of the key is actually about a quarter turn of the screw. At the prescribed 24 turns for my treatment and the desired 6mm expansion I figure it's a 1tpm screw (1 thread per millimeter. 24 "turns" times one quarter turn per "turn" divided by 6mm = 1 thread per millimeter)...I'm a mechanical person, this is what I think about :)

I'm gonna go shopping for recovery stuff tonight and then play hockey one last time before the thurjeree.

Thish Ish Shuper!

2007-10-31T11:01:00.000-07:00

In my opinion, the expander isn't as bad as people say. Yesh itsh hilarious to hear me shpeak, but I find it funny too so I don't mind. It's tricky to keep all the saliva down because 1)there's a lot of it, and 2)you have to relearn how to swallow. The roof of my mouth dries out a bit which is weird but there's enough room up there to lick it with my tongue. I wonder if my roof is high enough that food won't get too stuck in there. Maybe I'm dreaming.

Kira, my tech, made me try to say "spaghetti" and "green grass" before she let me go and I'm not sure if there was any medical practice to it or if it was solely for her enjoyment. Fringe benefit of the job I guess. I don't blame her :)

I was curious how much expanding he'd like to do and the measurements look like 6mm. Dr.Styrt said this would be about 24 turns. So one week after surgery (which is an IMPOSSIBLE word to say right now) I'll start cranking twice a day and go back in after one week to check my progress at 14 turns.

Good thing I bought all this saltwater taffy to enjoy for Halloween tonight. (jk)

As Per Request

2007-10-31T08:19:00.000-07:00

What are Orthodontic Spacers?
...and why do you need them?
Your orthodontist may have told you that you need to have spacers before your braces go on. What does this mean?
Some of your teeth may need brackets that are attached to metal bands that go all the way around the tooth.* Usually, the bands are used only on molars. If the space between your molars is very tight, it will be difficult for the orthodontist to put the bands on the teeth. Therefore, space must be opened up to fit the bands in. This is where spacers come in.
Spacers are little rubber nodules that fit between the teeth. In some cases, your orthodontist may use a metal spacer, which looks like a tiny metal hinge. The spacers stay between your teeth for several days and move the teeth apart slightly. You wear the spacers 24/7 until your orthodontist removes them. Do not floss teeth that have spacers between them (it will be impossible)!
Are spacers uncomfortable? Yes, they usually are. It feels like you have something stuck between your teeth -- and you do! In some cases it may be more than just uncomfortable; it may ache. If so, take pain reliever (such as ibuprofen) as needed.
Spacers usually stay between your teeth for several days; sometimes for as long as 10 days. The spacers are taken out before your braces are put on. The braces don't hurt like the spacers; in fact, when the spacers are removed, it feels so much better, even after the braces are put on!
Many people on Metal Mouth Forum have remarked that spacers were the worst part of the entire process. Perhaps that's not very encouraging, but remember, they're only in your mouth for a short period of time. You can deal with it. They'll be in, then they'll be out, and you'll be done with it. Hang in there, you're on your way to a better smile! And if those spacers really bug you, drop in to the Metal Mouth Forum and spill your guts. We love to commiserate! :-)
*Why do some teeth need metal bands instead of regular brackets? Fillings. If you have a filling that protrudes to the outside of your tooth, brackets cannot be glued to these fillings. Therefore, a metal band must be wrapped around the tooth instead. The bracket is attached to the metal band.

The Last Supper

2007-10-31T08:08:00.000-07:00

After some prodding from a friend of mine I decided at the last minute to have a celebratory last supper before surgery. I guess I knew I would do something like this but hadn't been nailed down and it's been a busy week. When pressed I realised that last night would be the best time for it as I get my expander put in later this morning. So I had a small dinner with close friends at a little place called Fleming's Prime Steakhouse.

I ate 24 oz. of unadulterated Porterhouse fury.

It. Was. Amazing. They certainly give Ruth's Chris a run for their money. I brought my two favorite wines from Chile, a vanilla-y Cabernet Sauvignon and a leathery Malbec. They worked very well with the slabs of heaven upon our plates. I meant to take pictures of the event but forgot my camera. Shoot. Anyway it was a great time. I love a nice dining experience with good friends.

Hitting the Bag

2007-10-25T15:57:00.000-07:00

For someone who gets pretty squirmy around dentists I've gotten pretty good at regular cleanings. Sure it hurts sometimes but I can usually grit through it. And now that I've become very intimate with the spacer situation I can grind down a burger or two for the good of the cause despite the tenderness. But let me tell you, having a cleaning the day after getting spacers in is no picnic. I felt like Rocky's side of meat as he's giving it the business. Do yourself the favor and make sure your last pre-op or pre-brace cleaning is either a few days after the spacers, or the day before. That's a nickels worth of free advice my friends.

In other news, the fires are dying down and my family got to go back to their respective homes yesterday. I don't think I'll have to be postponed afterall (knock on wood). Makes for dramatic reading though, ¿qué no? Thanks again for the thoughts.

Chug Chug

2007-10-24T11:36:00.000-07:00

Well no sense in giving up just yet. I had my spacers put back in today and will keep on with my appointments until I hear for sure that I'll be pushed back. The good news is the winds have changed today and it's getting cooler everyday. My spidey senses tell me things will be calmed down by the end of the weekend. (Any takers on a friendly pool?) If I'm right, I think I'll be ok to go next Saturday. I asked Dr.Styrt what the timeline would be for brackets and he said 6 weeks after surgery. So we got that scheduled while we were at it. It's nice when pieces of the puzzle start to solidify, even if only in a small way.

Things Could Be Worse...

2007-10-23T12:21:00.000-07:00

You guys would not believe the October I've had so far.

To start off, I got called in to Jury Duty. Yes, I was actually on a jury. Well better to get it over with I guess. I was there for the better part of a week deliberating over a Battery Against a Dating Partner. They were both shady characters and honestly none of us really knew how a case like it could have made it to trial. (Not to make light of domestic violence.) But we didn't trust either of them and it ended up being a hung jury. Not so bad, a good week before surgery taken up in an interesting way.

Then I go play hockey and decide to block a puck with my hand. Slapshot right to the palm where there's no padding to speak of. When I get home I figure it's better to check into the ER at 12am than it is the next morning so I cruise over there for an x-ray. They send me home with some Vicodin and tell me it's not broken, just needs some rest and deswelling. The next morning I take a sick day to enjoy my Vicodin on the couch and get a phone call from the radiologist. He sees a fracture and I need to go to an orthopedic. Great. I've broken my hand before and it's not super painful but being in a cast for 6 weeks is more annoying than a little brother. So I go to the ortho(pedic) and he squeezes my palm near the wrist and says, "Is this tender?" "No"I say, "it's up here by the fingers." "Have you ever injured your hand before?" he queries. "Yeah about 6 years ago I punched a wall" quoth I. (This story deserves its own telling over a couple drinks.) You guessed it. The radiologist saw the old fracture. So I'm fine and on my way.

Well whew, I made it through the week and it's Monday morning, 6am. Imagine the contentedness on my face in the middle of a cozy slumber after a busy weekend. Now imagine my heart palpitating and lungs gasping when I become jarringly awoken by my phone. My family got evacuated for the fires. They're staying with me now. Everyone is fine and the houses are ok so far but god damn if I can't get a break. Thanks to everyone for the well wishes. We're native San Diegans. This ain't our first barbeque.

Oh yeah, if the fires keep going there's a chance my "elective" surgery will be postponed again.

Ack.

Two-Thirds of the Way There

2007-10-07T18:31:00.000-07:00

I weighed in at a palpable 195 today.

I wish I was more interesting today but you'll have to deal with what I give you :)

Addicting Game Hunt

2007-09-30T13:33:00.000-07:00

This is going to be SOOOOOO fun when I'm all drugged up.

http://www.zipperfish.com/games/miscellaneous-games/boomshine/

A Meal in the Life

2007-09-28T13:25:00.000-07:00

I'm really surprised at how interested people have gotten in my weight-gaining endeavor. Everyone at work knows about it and asks how its going. I've even gotten a few compliments from people who aren't in the know, which is definite incentive to keep pushing. When I grabbed my new favorite snack off the lunch truck today (Vanilla Zingers) one of my good friends made a crack about treating myself lately and we got to talking about how much I actually am eating and if gorging myself was actually working. With the explanation that I was also working out religiously I think I got him to understand that yes, it actually was working. And so, along that vein, I thought I'd share with you a few examples of what I eat during the day.

WARNING: The following is not for the faint of stomach or jealous of nature.

Example #1- Breakfast- Chocolate Protein Bar
Brie and Pesto sandwich
Lunch- Grilled Cheese sandwich
Coke
Exercise- Ice Hockey Game
Dinner- Cheeseburgers (3)
Butterfinger Pie
Vanilla Protein Shake

Example #2- Breakfast- None
Lunch- Sushi- Pizza Roll, Philly Roll, Tuna Sashimi, Yellowtail Sashimi
Large Asahi
Small Sake
Exercise- None, day off
Dinner- Endless Shrimp at Red Lobster- Caesar Salad, Broccoli, one order each of Popcorn shrimp, Scampi shrimp, Buffalo shrimp, Breaded shrimp
Bar- Irish Coffee w/whipped cream
After Bar- Sourdough burger
Cheesecake slice

Granted, these are some of the more grand forays into the culinary world, but it paints the picture. To be fair to the other part of the equation this is what my exercise routine is like:

Chest Press
Bicep Curl
Tricep Extension
Lat Pulldown
Inclined Bench Press
Military Press
Squats
Leg Extension
Leg Curl
Crunches

Every other day, no lifting if I have hockey that day.

It's not a very precise or focused workout. Very general. Get everything done all around. But I haven't gotten bored yet or hit a plateau which is nice. I think being able to see progress every day (even if only by a couple pounds) keeps me motivated.

So that's what my life has been like lately. Sorry I don't have any good ortho news. Still just watching the days pass by until things get picked back up again. I get my spacers put back in October 24th so you'll have to hear about my phys ed program until then.

Packing It On

2007-09-14T13:27:00.000-07:00

I weigh 190lbs. I weigh more today than I ever have in my life. I'm trying to gain weight before the surgery.

And I love it.

I've been trying to gain weight since high school and have always had a hard time at it. Now, for the vast majority of you who are scrunching your face and about to get all uppity with your sarcastic I-wish-I-had-that-problems and your oh-life-is-so-hard-having-a-fast-metabolism retorts this is what I have to say to you: I have no doubt in my mind it is as much effort for me to gain five pounds as it is for you to lose five pounds. Now that we've established that this is not an easy task for me let's move on.

Granted, that's not to say that it isn't without its interesting benefits. If I want to eat ice cream in the middle of the day, I do. Even if I don't want to eat ice cream in the middle of the day, sometimes I do. I had a cheeseburger and chocolate shake for breakfast the other day. But other than the decadence of it all there are other perks. I no longer hold back on ordering the food that I really want just because I'm trying to save money. I consider this an investment in my health and I don't mind shelling out a little more per week for that. Also, it forces me to workout religiously. I don't want to just gain weight, I want to gain good weight. When you're sitting around doing nothing (like I'll be soon) muscle mass disappears way before fat mass. So just skipping the salad and gorging on pop-tarts will not help me out at all. Going to the gym and using up those calories however creates nice dense muscle mass. So I'm happy about the way I look. I've also convinced myself with no scientific evidence that by being as strong as I can I'll be able to heal quicker. Can't be complete rubbish right?

The downside of all this is like any diet or workout regiment I have to stay on it. Keeping a high calorie intake is difficult when you're not used to it and sometimes you just don't feel like lifting.

I've gained about 6lbs in three weeks and would like to reach 200 by the surgery. So if you'll excuse me, I have to finish my last Zinger.

AYFKMRN?

2007-09-13T09:35:00.000-07:00

I got a call from Veronica, my OS's assistant on Tuesday. She wanted to know if it would be ok with me if they postponed my date until November 3rd.

Seriously? Seriously. Seriously??

The way she posed this as a question struck me as odd. Especially when she explained that The Chainsaw is having some family issues that make October bad for him. Would it be ok with me? "He doesn't want you to be mad" she says.

Despite how much I tried to explain to little Veronica that I will work my life around the surgery and that whatever needed to happen will happen, she was really trolling for my approval about the whole thing. No I'm not mad at him. The man is going to chop my skull apart, I think resentment of any kind is not the path to take here. Not to mention I don't mind waiting another two weeks if it's the difference between a good procedure and one where my surgeon is half-occupied with his sick mother or brother in rehab or child with chicken-pox or whatever. I don't care. Sort your stuff out and tell me when you're on your game. Don't ask my permission or beg my forgiveness. Doesn't want me to be mad. Seriously.

So November 3rd is the new day. Still a 7:30am procedure. After it was confirmed by the hospital I called up Wonderful Jessica and my dentist to reschedule the expander and cleaning. (I was supposed to have this cleaning in August. Sheesh.)

With the new date there's a chance I won't be back to work for tech rehearsal of my next show but it's a much smaller show with a much less important director. But it'll be fine. If I were to really push myself I'd be able to get back for a couple hours a day but really I think the show will be fine. This way I'll get more time to prep on the front end anyway.

Seriously.

Face Time with The Chainsaw

2007-09-05T15:07:00.000-07:00

I had a follow-up with Dr.Tawfilis today and while he didn't really tell me much that we hadn't already talked about it did reaffirm that I do in fact know what's going on. Not once did he mention a BSSO so I imagine someone just got a little confused or misinterpreted his notes or something like that. I asked him to explain in more detail what exactly he'd be doing in there. The words 'saw' and 'chisel' came up and despite my distaste for medical situations and discussion I actually found myself very intrigued and excited about the whole thing. He said I wouldn't actually start expanding until after one full week, twice a day. Sounds a little different than other people's treatment schedule but just like any profession doctors clearly have they own preferences on how to do things. I subtly reminded him that he'd be taking out my wisdom teeth at the same time by asking whether that would happen before or after the skull chiseling. (Before, it's hard to pull teeth with jaw pieces flapping around loose.) So that's about it. I've got all my spacer and cleaning and expander cementing appointments set up and it'll all be here before I know it.

Date

2007-08-27T18:27:00.000-07:00

Yay Veronica! October 20th it is. At 7:20am I'll be out like a light and The Chainsaw will be doing his thing. Two months away seems like awhile but considering work and my family's availability to take care of my sorry ass I'll just have to suck it up and be patient. I'm thinking I will take out my spacers and just have them put back in since it is going to be so far out. I guess I'd rather get re-used to them than go that long without flossing and little chicken and beef chunks rotting away in my gums. I'll be getting my four wisdom teeth out at the same time so I should be plenty swollen, plenty sore, and plenty drugged. Could be worse, I could be on fire.

Here's a question for those of you hip on the lingo, Veronica said I was up for a BSSRO (bilateral sagittal split ramus osteotomy.) Now from a little googling it seems that this is basically the same thing as a BSSO (ramus just means 'bone' apparently) but all the cases I can find have been mandibular. I'm more of the maxillary flavor as I understand it. Am I missing something?

I'm almost part of the club guys!

Tick Tick Tick

2007-08-27T13:42:00.000-07:00

Still no word from Veronica. I wouldn't be this impatient if I had a date. But waiting for things to happen kills me.

In other arenas, I chewed through a spacer again this Friday past. As I replaced it with my little floss trick I may have overdone it a tad. Yeah, that sucker got jammed waaaay up there. So I went the weekend with more than normal soreness (shrug) and squoze myself in to see a technician (Carrie Ann) today at lunch. Here's where it gets interesting. The particular space that this spacer was occupying was between my two crowns. This little bastard was wedged so far into my gums I could feel it getting hung up on the root side of the crowns. Carrie had to slide it around to the side to get it out. Talk about a weird feeling.

Now I'm ok though. Well, except for the waiting part.

Of Course Not, Duh

2007-08-24T17:13:00.000-07:00

So we're going with option #2 of the previous post. As I had suspected, this weekend was out of the question. To my defense, they didn't give me any restrictions when they asked for some good surgery dates the first time. I figured it was worth a shot. Anyway the soonest opening they could get is on the 18th. This is right before my show goes into technical rehearsal so I can't do that. I might as well wait two weeks after that when the show opens. So I'm hoping for October 2nd. Veronica was supposed to call me back with a confirmation today but apparently the hospital hasn't gotten back to her yet. So I guess I'll go home for the weekend and hope something comes up on Monday.

Authorized

2007-08-21T15:41:00.000-07:00

Insurance authorized my SARPE this morning and faxed it to Dr.Tawfilis' office. They said I have until November 18th to have the procedure. I've learned not to expect things TOO quickly but I'm hoping for something a tad sooner than that. We shall see. Because I have a show coming up I see three options. 1- I get in pronto, like, this week or early next before work gets stupid. 2-I wait until the first week of October (eeek, that sounds so far away) 3- I just go in as soon as they can fit me in and let work figure itself out. I know this sounds like the most reasonable option to most of you out there, but unfortunately theatre isn't the most reasonable profession.

If You Want Something Done Right

2007-08-17T10:45:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone. I'm home safe and well. And while I am happy to be back home I'd be lying if said I wouldn't rather still be in South America. It was pretty amazing. For anyone who enjoys skiing/boarding, eating great food, drinking better wine, and meeting essentially wonderful people I highly recommend the skinny country to the south.

Now on to more pertinent subjects. I did manage to chew through two spacers while I was out. Both from the same place. The distal on the left side tends to stick down lower than the rest so I kinda knarl it up when I chew things. Eventually it just gets worn down and breaks. Who knew.

I was hoping to come back to a voicemail from The Chainsaw telling me my surgery date. I was welcomed by no such message. (Strangely, I had zero voicemails and zero texts. Odd I think) So I checked up on them today and Kim told me they had not yet received approval from insurance. She gave me their number and said I could shake the tree if I wanted. Yes, please. Me likey shakey.

I gave them a ring and lo and behold, they have not received a request for any operation. I call back Kim and let her know and hopefully this will be squared away soon. I'll be checking up on them again tomorrow just in case.

I was starting to feel a little bad about bugging Kim so much about when I'd get a date but now I see that It's not a bad thing to be as proactive as possible if you want things to get done.

Pause

2007-08-02T10:09:00.000-07:00

Yay it's Thursday! Orthodontically no big deal. Geographically very significant. I'm leaving for two weeks of snowboarding in Chile today and I can only imagine a horrendous accident involving my face being crushed by a boulder that might warrant a post on our collective commonality. In which case I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be in the mood to post anything anyway. So I'll see you all when I'm back northside. Erin and Amy it looks like you're both pretty much out of the thick of it and I'm so happy for you both. Can't wait to catch up in a few.

Cheers,
Chris

Patience

2007-07-31T13:47:00.000-07:00

Ok so I may have gotten a little ahead of myself. I got a call from Kim at Dr.Tawfilis' office and she basically said that my proposed surgery date is rather unrealistic. They're looking at another 3-4 weeks to get insurance approval and another 3-4 weeks for a hospital opening. Granted, I knew setting up my ortho appointments was a bit on the rash side but I was hoping for the best. I guess I just got excited because if everything went according to my plan it would fit perfectly into my work schedule and this and that...

And now I know that surgery is an awful mistress who will do as she pleases, when she pleases.

So I guess I'll just keep my spacers in for awhile so I don't have to get re-used to them. I'll postpone the cementing of the I-make-food-impossible-to-eat device and wait.

At least I won't be stressing about it on my trip.

Getting There

2007-07-26T12:45:00.000-07:00

Nothing exciting but I did go in to Dr.Styrt's this morning. Kira took out my spacers and fit the bands for my RPE. I was kind of hoping to actually get to try the whole device in my mouth for a second just to see what I'll be in for but no, the bands around the teeth get fitted separately and then get sent to RPE's-R-Us to be built into the expanding part. Makes sense now that I think about it. And while I was prepared for the rank smell that is food stuck in the spacers it doesn't cease to amaze me how much smell a little piece of whatever foodstuffs can cause. I didn't feel bad about it though because 1) Kira is smart enough to wear a mask and 2) they tell you specifically not to floss near the spacers. So there. You want rotting chicken pieces? You got it.

She gave me some more extras in case I have another escaping bandy while I'm away. I'm getting a touch nervous about the surgery date because I still haven't heard back from The Chainsaw's office. I think he's waiting for me to be approved by the insurance people before he schedules me. I just hope it happens before I get on a plane so I can tell my family what's happening when exactly.

Well How About That.

2007-07-18T12:12:00.000-07:00

A mere 6 hours after leaving Dr.Styrts yesterday a spacer came out. Hmm. Seemed to go back in without much hassle but it was curious, I never lost one from the first time around. Whatevs. Yeah they're a little sore but I've found I'm adopting a slightly aggressive point of view towards the ordeal. "I know this is going to hurt to bite into but the more I get used to it the better off I'll be. Bring It!!"

Surprise!

2007-07-17T17:47:00.000-07:00

After looking at my schedule to figure out when I want to start this saga I found a good week after I get back from holiday and called Wonderful Jessica to set something up. I want to do everything I can to be ready to hit the ground running when I come back. As I figured, getting the RPE cemented will take a few appointments. One to get some spacers in, a second to fit the RPE and a third to actually plant it in there. She had time this afternoon to get the spacers in. I didn't have anything better to do and the sooner I get used to them the less annoying they'll be in Chile. Next week I'll get fitted. Then I'll fly 15 hours for some snowboarding and wine. Then on the 20th of August I'll get geared up for a hopeful surgery on the 22nd or shortly thereafter. Things have been going swimmingly so far. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. It's good to be good, it's better to be lucky.

So it has begun. I've got spacers on my upper 6's and I'm ready to rumble.

Meeting with The Chainsaw

2007-07-16T13:51:00.000-07:00

Dr. Tawfilis is great. He went to USC and is an honored lecturer at UCSD. I like his style and I'm feeling pretty good about him. I think for the purposes of this blog I might keep calling him The Chainsaw though because that's how nicknames work. Sometimes they just stick and you get no say in the matter.

So Dr. Styrt wanted a consult for a Lefort I expansion and posterior impaction in addition to lower mandibular advancement. Three things happening there: Upper jaw gets cut vertically and is spread apart, Upper jaw gets tilted forward, and Lower jaw slides forward. Dr. Tawfilis said he prefers to be minimalist when it comes to surgery and believes that the lower advancement won't be necessary but if the chin deficiency is a problem for me that he recommends just a genioplasty. (He showed me some pictures of other genio patients and I'm not sure how I feel about it but I've got plenty of time to ponder.) He also said he isn't sure that the Lefort expansion will be necessary and that seemed to think that SARPE (surgically assisted rapid palette expansion)would do the trick. This confused me a little bit. I guess by Lefort I expansion they mean like a three piece expansion? Anyone have any insight? And the prize indeed goes to Erin for calling the wisdom teeth extraction. He said we could do it at the same time as the SARPE since I'd be under anyway. As for the implant down the line, the bone grafting will happen at the same time as the Lefort I and the actual implanting will happen around the time I get the braces off. The great news is he said I can save some money by doing the grafting at the same time because implants aren't usually covered.

Speaking of coverage. He said my insurance is usually really good about approving this type of treatment and that yes indeed, we're talking 100%. Sweetness.

So we talked a little bit about timeline and here's the big rundown:

1. Make an appointment with Dr.Styrt to get the hyrax (hirax?) cemented in, meanwhile Dr.Tawfilis will put in the request to insurance for the SARPE.
2. Have SARPE, remove wisdom teeth, and start clicking. (For those of you out there who've had this done, how long post-op until the braces go on?)
3. Get braces on and start closing "the gap"
4. 12-18 months later, have a Lefort I and bone grafting and perhaps a genio (I really think I'm going to decide against it though.)
5. 6 months later, get braces off and install implant post.
6. Then whatever the timeline for the implant is, I didn't see any need to go into it in detail since it's so far away yet.
7. Fin!

As I'm writing this I got a call from Dr.Tawfilis who had a chance to speak with Dr.Styrt. They're in agreement about The Chainsaw's plan and now I need to get that awful thing cemented in. Here's the rub. I'm going on vacation to Chile in a couple weeks and think I'd like to wait until I get back to get everything started. I'd hate for something to go wrong while I'm there or have to deal with that thing any longer than I have to, especially when I'm supposed to be enjoying myself.

The only bad part of the appointment was with the confirmation of the SARPE means I'll have to stop playing hockey 12 months sooner than I was hoping. *shrug* I guess that's the way it'll have to be then.

I Am a Retard

2007-07-15T10:30:00.000-07:00

Yup. Friday the 13th. I was supposed to go meet my OS but the fates had another plan for me. I had to run around for work and thought I'd be able to make it back in time to head to my appointment. I would have made it just in the nick of time had I not forgotten to grab my models and x-rays. Bloody hell. So as a penance I had to reschedule for Monday and have the whole weekend to think about what I had done. Lucky for you my readers often times my curiosity gets the best of me and an entire weekend with a box of cement teeth on my desk is too much to go without a peek. So here are some photos to tide you over until tomorrow. You can really see two distinct occlusal planes (I've been reading.) My wisdom teeth are also visible now and Erin I think you're right. There seem to be good odds they're gonna get the axe.