Prepare for your surgery

If you are a candidate for jaw surgery, read this.

I had double jaw surgery and genioplasty done on January 6th.

Day 113

We’re now working with my orthodontist to complete the process of fixing my bite and I will see my surgeon every few weeks for checkups.

For those heading into surgery, or those embarking on their journey this post should help you in preparation for it all.

Learn from my experience. I hope you will feel less alone, more prepared, and more confident heading into your surgery date.

Pre-op Considerations:

1. Speak with your surgeon about the expected outcome, and make sure it aligns with your aesthetic and medical hopes.
2. Dot your i’s and cross your t’s with the insurance company (and benefits department at your job) before your surgery so that you don’t need to worry about it during your recovery.
3. List out your constraints and support system that you will rely on post-op. This will let you think through what you are missing, and expose the flaws in your current plan.
4. Stop consuming food 8 hours before the surgery time, and water 6 hours before. I completely stopped consuming food and water 10 hours before.

7 hospital post-op stay key points:

1. Sleep is your best friend! Sleep will help your body recover better, and help with the swelling as well as your mental strength.
2. Water is your next best friend. Drink as much as you can after you wake up from surgery.

• This will thin the mucus and reduce your congestion. You will pee a lot, but it will help with your throat while also decreasing discomfort.
• When asking for water, see if they can get a large jug for you so that you don’t need to ask every few minutes (at first, I only got small cups worth each time)

3. Take the medicine on time when they give it to you. These anti-inflammatories help with the swelling which is scheduled by the doctor.

4. If you start getting nauseous ask for medication for nausea.

5. Ask for a clipboard and pen, it made communicating easier.

6. Mentally accept that the first 6 days are the worst. After the 6th day, the swelling should decrease.

7. Trust the staff, but also make sure you communicate your concerns. You may have different needs, but so long as you communicate them I truly believe you will be taken care of.

Discharged Post-op things to consider:

There are a lot of product recommendations on r/jawsurgery and I’m sure it helped each person in their situation.

I obsessively read many posts before my surgery, noting what helped and didn’t help make the recovery process better.

12 crucial items that made my recovery easier:

I bought most of my items from Amazon

1. Linux LX5 Wedge Pillow Set — These helped me sit comfortably upright, providing proper support on the couch and the bed every day.

• I purchased this when it was $199, and I’d do it again in a heartbeat. It’s over 20% cheaper now, and they also give a space bag (you vacuum the air out) to make it easily stored without taking much space.
• If money is an issue, get firmer pillows that can keep you upright ( 60 degrees ish, since 45 degrees was uncomfortable for me) — I don’t want you to think that you need to spend a lot of money to make your experience better.

2. Lip balm for the lips — Your lips will be really really really really really really REALLY chapped. The rawness will make you hate everything. I used this almost every 15 minutes and had one of these in every room of the apartment.

3. Jaw Bra with heat/cold compress — I wore this every day. 15 minutes on, 15 minutes off. r/Jawsurgery recommends the Cryojaw, but I opted to spend that money on the pillow system instead. I felt the jawbra was more than enough, with 4 compresses that I can rotate.

• I tried the face mask variant with the beads but I didn’t like it as much. You may want to try that one, but being able to always switch out the compresses easily without needing to wait for another freezing/heating session made all the difference for me.
• Use cold (ice) for only the first 48 hours. Swelling stops after 48 hours — after 48 hours, blood is trying to exit the area, so you should use heat moving forward to assist the blood leaving the site.
• Caution: Keep in mind though that the sensation on your face is not fully back so the heat may be hotter than you think it is. Don’t leave the heat pack for really long amounts of time. I was recommended 15 minutes on, 15 minutes off. Test the heat with someone near you before you go ahead, and use that as a benchmark

4. Syringes for drinking — There are some recommendations for squeeze bottles, but most syringes were too big and the flow was too fast for me to intake anything.

• A doctor at the hospital made this syringe with tubing right at the hospital after my surgery for me to drink water from — absolutely was critical in my first 48 hours.
• You pull water into the syringe and then place the tubing near a gap in the teeth.
• Used these syringes for all liquids for 6+ days post-op until I was able to drink out of a cup.

5. Surgical Toothbrush — used this toothbrush to try to maintain oral health. Sometimes, you have no energy to brush. But do so when you can.

6. Humidifier — I have a Honeywell that is great, but I would purchase this Levoit humidifier if I didn’t have one in hand. Easier to clean than other models, and also won’t over humidify your room.

7. Orthodontic wax — I had some from my ortho, and they saved the inside of my mouth because during surgery they cut up the wires. Use a large chunk so that it’s easy to remove — when it smudges and gets stuck, it’s a pain in the ass to remove. But totally worth it compared to getting cuts in your mouth.

8. Saline Spray — This is the brand of saline spray that the surgeon prescribed. They may provide you with this in the hospital before you get discharged. You most likely don’t need to buy this yourself. Your nose will be congested, and there’ll also be dried blood in there. This helps.

9. Q-tips — Good to GENTLY poke at the dry blood. You don’t want to take out the blood clot.

10. Baby bulb — Used to take out mucus and congestion. You don’t want to take out the blood clot, so make sure you’re careful. But taking out the mucus made breathing WAY easier.

11. Baby wipes — I couldn’t find the energy to shower the first 2 days, so I used baby wipes to wash my face and wipe my body.

12. Breathe-right strips — I couldn’t breathe through my nose for the first 48 hours.

• This relieved the pressure by a significant amount, and I was able to breathe even a little after.
• My surgeon said it was fine to use, and I alternated (half a day on, half a day off) in order to prevent psychologically relying on it.

7 foods that I relied on daily:

1. PEScience Protein Powder — I looked extensively for protein powders before my surgery. The r/nutrition and r/fitness subreddits gave GREAT reviews on this. Out of all the flavors, the most reviews I read were Snickerdoodle and Gourmet Vanilla.

• Once I was able to drink thicker liquids, I drank this EVERY DAY (without complaints) which is a testament to the taste.
• If you have time, I suggest going on their website, and you can order a variety pack of single servings to try before committing to a flavor.

2. Lactaid: (lactose-free milk) — I felt that dairy made my face puff up more, exacerbating the swelling, so I opted for lactose-free milk.

• Soylent and Ensure were too thick for my liking, so I mixed Lactaid in them to make them thinner and easier to drink.

3. Whole milk — Since dairy made my face puff up more, I used whole milk after the swelling went down since it had more calories.

4. Soylent — Soylent was what I took my medicine with. Mint chocolate and Strawberry were my favorites (many people LOVE the mocha one as well but I opted to avoid caffeine).

• I recommend you try the flavors yourself before buying a pack (I did so before surgery).
• I tried banana, mint chocolate, and strawberry, and then bought a 12-pack of mint chocolate and strawberry.

5. Gatorade Zero — When I wanted a “sugary” burst to take me away from the monotonous medicine and water, I went with sugar-free Gatorade to avoid cavities as much as I could.

6. Cranberry Juice Diet — Similar to the Gatorade, I needed a refreshing drink to ease my nausea if the medicine/food was too overwhelming. Cranberry juice killed it immediately, so I took a shot of cranberry juice right after the medicine.

7. Congee or Porridge.

• Rice, chicken stock, white pepper, carrots, scallions, white carrots, bones(of your choice — we did chicken/ pig bones), simple and easy.

That’s all!

Thanks for reading, and I hope this helps you in your journey ahead. You got this!

Disclaimer: The information on this post is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice or treatment. Never disregard professional medical advice and consult with your medical professional.