Recovery Tips
Following is a summary of the most important things I learned during my recovery from double jaw surgery.
- Drink lots of prune juice and water. Your toilet time will be far from enjoyable for the first couple of weeks because you’re likely to be severely dehydrated. The prune juice will provide your body with the fiber it needs to work those bowels properly, but fiber is useless without water because it won’t dissolve in your body. I recommend a bare minimum of 1 L of water per day. Drink 2 L per day as soon as you can.
- Before you attempt to pull any dead skin off of your lips, be absolutely certain that it’s not a stitch. I learned this the hard way.
- Start using medicated lip balm immediately following your return to your own home. If you don’t, you’ll end up with flaps of dead skin that are half an inch in diameter, and I promise you they won’t feel good when they catch on your braces.
- Apply heat to your face 3-4 times per day for the first 5-6 weeks to help with the swelling. The heat will also help you fall asleep.
- Begin each day at a decent time. If you sleep most of the day, you won’t be able to sleep at night, and you’ll hate yourself for it. Get out of bed, shower, eat some breakfast and brush your teeth and you’ll enjoy each day a lot more. (This is good advice for any day of your life, but it especially applies when you’re on the verge of depression from having jaw surgery.)
- Go to bed on time. Yawning will cause you quite a bit of pain, so prevent it by getting the right amount of sleep during the proper hours.
- As soon as you’re able to talk clearly enough for friends and family to understand you, call people and be social. Go outside and enjoy nature. Whatever you do, ensure you don’t fall into a trap of loneliness and self-pity.
- Start drinking from a cup as soon as you’re physically able to. Your upwards trek back to having full energy begins the day you can throw your syringes in the garbage.
- Eat solid food as soon as your surgeon gives you the go-ahead. It’ll be a slow, tedious and frustrating process, but you need to go through with it in order to build your jaw muscles back up and learn how to chew properly once again.
- It may take some time to get used to your new smile and your newly structured face. Don’t be ashamed of yourself. You don’t look funny at all. You’re simply not used to looking like you’re supposed to.
- And lastly, don’t worry about your looks, bite or facial feeling for at least 6 months. You may have an open bite, but you’ll wake up one morning and your teeth will have migrated back together. You may be completely numb, but feeling will return almost overnight.
If you have any questions about the recovery process, or perhaps have other pointers to share with upcoming jaw surgery patients, feel free to jot them down in the comments.
January 19, 2012 at 10:30 pm
Hey guys, reporting in from Australia
This blog has been really insightful!! I am three days post op for lower and upper jaw surgery. Primarily to fix my underbite.
It’s so reassuring to read about the experiences everyone else has had and how you have come through stronger!! I am in a state of depression.. I just have no energy to do anything, my head constantly feels like its going to explode cause of the pressure, my teeth are always tight and stretched out, and cAn barely breathe but even then it seems like my pain isn’t as bad as some of yours.
I have bands on my teeth but they aren’t to tight so I could pretty much eat soft foods straight from the get go. My parents have been really supportive and mum has been cooking me up some amazing broths and smoothies which I am really great full for! I’ve lost about 3kgs so far.
Reading about you guys having your teeth wired shut for weeks and being unable to drink from anything but syringes makes me appreciate more what I can do. Graham, I read you couldn’t suck from a straw for a month but I could suck from day 3. I guess the severity of our operations differed a lot hey.
Thanks a lot for making this blog forum to discuss our problems.. It really helps to thereto at I’m not alone and that there are others out there who are going through the same problems.
January 19, 2012 at 12:43 pm
Ah, the joys of having a lopsided face! It is completely normal for your swelling to decrease at disproportionate rates, Liz.
You’re going to be swollen for at least another full month, but I promise it will go away. =)
January 19, 2012 at 9:45 am
I’m 8 days post op lower jaw surgery …wired shut. The left side of my face is healing quite nice..the swelling is going down and it barely hurts. However, the right side is so bad! It’s twice the size of the left, painful even with swallowing, and hot. Is it normal to have one side progress faster/easier? If the right side were keeping up with the left side, I’d almost look normal!
Surprisingly, I almost don’t feel hungry anymore although it’s still ridiculously hard being back in class surrounded by everyone opening up their snacks and eating them 🙁
January 19, 2012 at 9:24 am
Kate, you have a lot of worries right now, don’t you? I can assure you that everything you mentioned will either go away or get better with time.
You’ll be noticeably swollen for about 2 months, but people at school won’t mind, especially if you’ve got another 3 weeks off before you head back. You’ll be able to speak clearly by then, so it shouldn’t be a problem.
Your lips will settle into their place once the swelling is gone. Chewing will become easier at around the 1-month mark (2 months if you have a splint in). Your feeling of dizziness will go away in the next couple of weeks. You only feel dizzy due to a lack of energy.
You’re still in the early stages of recovery. In another 2 weeks, life will begin to look a lot better! =)
January 18, 2012 at 11:18 pm
Hi. This blog has helped me so much, everyones own experiences and opinions about jaw surgery. I had top and bottom jaw surgery to correct an over bite, which I have braces but were unable to correct this problem.
I’m about 10 days since the surgery now and you’re right, the first week was the worst. I really questioned myself why I had done this. Everything has gotten better now, and I’m finally starting to like my new apperance. I’m still all swollen and chubby in the cheek area, when should that start to go down? I have school in 3 weeks..
Hope it’s gone by then.
I’m able to bring my lips together, yet they’re not comfortable like that, is that normal? Will they eventually settle together?
I’m still not comfortable with brushing my teeth, any tips on keeping them clean besides mouth washes, cause I’m unable to swish it around.
I can chew a little bit, just uncomfortable. When should chewing become easier?
One thing that is bothering me is the fact that my head is so full and there is so much pressure in my head, constantly makes me feel dizzy and tired. Is that normal? Will the feeling go away?
My speech is still slow. When I feel great, I talk slot and that leads to my jaw getting sore so now I don’t talk as much. Hopefully this improves considering I have school in 3 weeks!
Also, I’m dribbling ALOT! and coughing up blood still. Grr!
All I want to be able to do is sleep during the night, but yet I still wake up. Help!
And, yesterday I just got elastics on the front teeth connecting bottom to top. I hate them. Please tell me they get better!
Wow I think I wrote alot. Thank you!!
January 18, 2012 at 3:57 pm
Hi Vicky,
I personally never had any bruising, so I’m not entirely sure. Most people say it goes away within the month. You can rest assured that, by the the time you have enough energy to take on the world again, your bruising will have fled. =)
January 18, 2012 at 1:25 pm
hi im getting my surgery in 2weeks. now i worried is that my face is going to look really bad with the brusing. How long will it take for the bruising to go away?
January 16, 2012 at 1:17 pm
Mike, the fact that you liken yourself to Quagmire just made my day. That’s probably a fairly accurate comparison for most of us.
Definitely avoid blowing your nose for at least a full month. It’s frustrating, but it’s for your own good.
You’ve only got one week of claustrophobic torture left and then things will start looking up really quickly!
January 16, 2012 at 6:34 am
Great site.
Just on day 5 post op. Both upper and lower, along with chin and nasal work.
Having a touch of claustrophobia…this procedure has been a nightmare of mine for some time. I had braces when I was younger and wimped out then.
One thing that saved my sanity…Suction…use it at hospital, and get a home unit. I haven’t used it a lot at home but it helps knowing it’s there.
DO NOT BLOW YOUR NOSE…hard. I wasn’t told to avoid doing it, and despite common sense, gave it a healthy shot. My left eye blew out immediately. Stupid.
Syringes suck but so far my sense of humor has helped myself and my friends get comfortable with this situation. I look like Quagmire right now…and know it’ll get better
January 14, 2012 at 2:34 pm
Headaches and bruising will be the worst for the first two weeks. You’re definitely in the most difficult part of the recovery right now. Just get through this next week and life will start looking better after that. I promise!
As for food, I lived on Ensure, soup, and smoothies, but you can honestly blend just about anything up as long as you’re able to drink it down. Just add milk to things like hamburger patties, potatoes, and vegetables and see how they taste.
January 14, 2012 at 2:25 pm
Graham,
I also just had my surgery on the 12th…..on top of the claustrophobic feeling of being all banded shut, it’s my neck that bothers me the most. It’s SO sore and bruised. Also, the greater part of the left side of my head is numb. How long does this all last? Also can anybody tell me some of the stuff you all ate? So far I’m just eating broths and smoothies but I’m really starting to hunger for something more :/
January 14, 2012 at 12:28 pm
Hi Marissa,
Swelling, nose bleeds, and bruising are a normal part of the recovery process, unfortunately.
To reduce the nose bleeds, the only thing you can do is to refrain from blowing or cleaning your nose. It’s frustrating, but if you don’t disturb your nostrils, they should stop bleeding.
As for the swelling and bruising, try laying down every few hours with a hot pack on your face and neck. These things will go away naturally, but they’ll be sticking around for a few more weeks.
It’s kind of just a waiting game at this point. If you think there may be complications with your nose, give your surgeon a call.
Good luck and I hope these things clear up soon for you!
January 13, 2012 at 10:10 pm
i had my upper jaw surgery on the 12th. im getting LOTS of nose bleeds, and starting to get bruising on my cheeks, im also geting a lot of swelling inside my mouth. and i was wondering if theres anything that could reduce the swelling bruising and nose bleeds.
January 13, 2012 at 1:47 am
Thanks Jill
I’m about 14 hours post op, still on hospital…(thank god for iPhones). Can’t say I feel great, but I’m glad to have the actual surgery behind me and to start the road of recovery. Good luck to you!
January 12, 2012 at 7:40 pm
Liz
Good luck
Thanks to all for your comments
Jill
January 11, 2012 at 12:17 pm
Jill, my recommendation is to go ahead with the surgery if you suffer from TMJ and sleep apnea. The recovery is a mere 3 months out of your entire lifetime and it will not only cause you to smile more and breathe easier, but it may also prevent future pains and burdens.
I’m not sure a second opinion is even necessary if you have both TMJ and sleep apnea. I was a victim of neither of those circumstances and the surgery still benefitted me greatly. =)
January 10, 2012 at 9:47 pm
Jill, I feel your pain. This surgery has been recommended from when I was 16, and now that I’m one month short of 28…I’ll be going in on Thursday morning! I think it’s a good idea to get it all taken care of….everybody I’ve talked to has said that it’s well worth it and even though it may take a bit of a process, the results are always great. Good luck sweetie.
Wish me luck everyone! (can’t say I’m not a little nervous)
January 10, 2012 at 8:25 pm
forgot to ck the notify me comments box
have a great night all
January 10, 2012 at 8:24 pm
OK, I am now really freaked out about doing this. I have put it off for a very long time. Can any one share why they have had to had the surgery? I have TMJ and Sleep apenia. I also grind my teeth. I am seeing a specialist in the dual surgery in about a month in TX. I am hoping I only need to have one procudure vs the double. A specialist and family friend who can do the one surgery insisted I get the second opion before it was determined what I actually need. I am freaked out because either way I will not be having the surgery where I live in Chicago. My family lives in FL, so at least there I would not have to live in a hotel.
any advice?
January 3, 2012 at 11:45 pm
Elizabeth, it’s good to hear that you’re finally going to get this operation over with!
I wouldn’t worry about the anesthesia part of the surgery. Anesthesiologists know what they’re doing and they’ll ensure you’re unconscious before letting the surgeon make their way to the front lines.
As for singing, I was able to sing comfortably again at approximately two months post-op. It sounds like a long time, but it’s totally worthwhile, I assure you!