Three years of dental purgatory later…
Since I’ve been repeatedly asked to post a picture of myself sans hardware (read: braces and appliances), I’m updating this fancy little blog one last time.
I had a date with my orthodontist earlier this week where she kindly removed my braces for me. The entire process took no more than 5 minutes and was relatively painless. I was shocked that something that was such an inconvenience could be eradicated in mere moments. My teeth felt extremely slimy at first, but I later realized that I’d simply forgotten what smooth teeth actually felt like.
Following that, she made a couple of molds of my new mouth so their lab could fashion me a sporty new retainer! (Note: I’m not actually excited about having a retainer. I’m just making my best effort at staying positive.) I received the retainer a few hours later and learned how to snap it in and take it out. Then, upon shaking the hands of all of the lovely ladies who have taken care of me in that office for the past 3 years, I walked out the door for the last time.
I’ve created a little storyboard intermission for those of you who would rather forego reading altogether and just look at pictures.
Guess what, folks! I have big news!
I got rid of my braces!
Now I’m subjected to wearing this retainer…
…but it’s going to keep my teeth super straight! (Now that’s an unflattering shot!)
Wearing a retainer is frustrating at first because your speech is slightly lispy and you need to take it out every single time you wish to eat. It only took a day or two before I learned how to speak while wearing it and realized that removing it to eat is hardly an inconvenience, considering I can now smile at the table while I eat. It’s quite a brilliant thought! I’m supposed to wear this retainer every day for a year, then every night for two months, and then 1–2 nights per week for the rest of my life.
I wonder what’s waiting out there for me and my new smile…
Following my orthodontist appointment, I went to donate blood with a friend for the first time in my life. Now, despite having 5 years’ worth of tattoos, I’m actually horribly afraid of needles. I finally manned up and committed to donating only to learn that you can’t be a donor if you’ve had dental work performed in the past 24 hours. I still had the privilege of eating free cookies though, so it was a worthwhile trip.
“Would you like another plate of ribs?”
Later that night, a few friends and I went out for unlimited ribs (despite the fact that my orthodontist explicitly told me not to eat ribs for three days until the glue on the permanent wire on the backs of my bottom teeth was fully set). Folks, eating things like ribs and apples again is quite amazing. I felt like a bit of a glutton afterwards, considering I ate 5 plates’ worth. It was a celebration though, so I’m exempting myself for that one night only.
I’ll be driving to New York in a couple of weeks to experience New Year’s Eve in Times Square. I plan on doing something crazy, so look for me on TV! I’ll be the crazy Canadian running around finding cameras in a mad attempt to flash the entire world… with my new smile!
July 21, 2013 at 5:02 am
Hi Graham, you are really cute! Just saying. Love your blog!
July 13, 2013 at 1:51 pm
I was just wondering whether yourself or anyone else has experienced recurring tonsillitis since having the surgery. I had the surgery last June and since have experienced about 8 lots of tonsillitis.
I was wondering whether this has anything to do with the surgery or not at all?
Thanks
July 15, 2013 at 11:28 am
Bella, I haven’t experienced any onslaughts of tonsillitis since having the operation 3.5 years ago and I don’t believe jaw surgery would have any effect on throat infections. I would talk to your doctor about the situation. =)
July 9, 2013 at 4:29 pm
Thanks Grant for the reassurance. : ) Ya, I am sure my placement and things might change a little. I think at this point I am just freaking out because it is next week! Seriously, though just looked at your before and then your most recent, you look amazing!
July 8, 2013 at 6:23 pm
Hi Graham, I just finished reading pretty much your entire blog and wow. Super informative. Thank you for all the time you put into this. I am scheduled to have double jaw surgery next Tuesday, and I am getting incredibly nervous. I was a vocal major and now a voice teacher, and well at this point I am afraid of what the surgery will do to my voice.
Reading how happy you are about your choice to have surgery is def helping calm my nerves… So thank you!
July 9, 2013 at 10:09 am
Heather, the surgery will not affect your voice because it doesn’t run deep enough to affect your vocal chords or anything of that nature. The only effect the operation had on my voice was my lisp went away, which is a positive thing. Since the shape of your mouth will change a bit, you may have to spend some time relearning how to manipulate your tongue in your mouth when it comes to singing, but you’ll be able to figure it out. =)
June 28, 2013 at 11:16 am
Hi Graham,
Love your blog! I just wanted to know – have you fully regained feeling in your face or is there still numbness? If so, how distracting is it or how much do you notice it?
Cheers!
June 29, 2013 at 8:14 am
Ronny, I have small permanent numb patches in my lower lip and chin, but I honestly don’t even notice them until someone asks. You will very quickly adjusts to minor loss of feeling should you need to. The human body is a pretty amazing machine!
June 24, 2013 at 11:36 am
Graham, I am glad to hear of the water’s recession, and I hope that all goes back to normal soon. Unfortunately, it seems we will no longer be able to venture to your neck of the woods due to the flooding. So I suppose I will have to take a rain check on that hike….no pun intended.
June 23, 2013 at 7:59 pm
Graham,
I heard about the flood that occurred recently in Canmore. I am told it was quite devastating. How are things up there?
-Coby
June 24, 2013 at 9:33 am
Coby, it’s still pretty bad in the southern part of the province. You can follow the latest updates on Twitter to see what’s going on. The rivers are finally receding, so there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.
June 21, 2013 at 11:26 am
Hey Graham,
Thank you for your advice on where to go during our visit. I believe we are arriving July 31, and we are staying for eight days. Also, we are staying in Canmore, so if you have free time that would be awesome.
June 22, 2013 at 9:19 am
Coby, send me an email when you arrive in Canmore and I’ll see if I’m free one of the weekends during your stay. =)
June 20, 2013 at 7:25 pm
Hey Graham,
It has been six months since my own double jaw surgery, and I must say your blog has been a major help in my recovery since day one. I have given my orthodontist and my orthognathic surgeon your website url and recommended they tell anyone undergoing the operation about this website. It’s comforting to know your not the only one in the world going through the nightmare that is orthognathic surgery! On a side note my family and I have decided to evade the Texas heat for a week and travel north into Canada. We were looking at staying in Alberta, at Banff National Park. Do you have any other suggestions of where we should visit?
Thanks,
Coby
June 21, 2013 at 8:22 am
Hi Coby,
I’m happy to hear the recovery is already behind you. You’ll probably be having your braces removed in a few more months as well, which is always exciting!
I actually live just one hour away from Banff right now. Banff National Park is, in my humble opinion, one of the top five most beautiful places in the world. I love hiking, so I often drive to the town of Canmore (just 20 minutes west of Banff) to take on day hikes. You can also visit Lake Louise (a 45 minute drive east of Banff), which is a glassy lake at the base of an incredible glacier. When are you folks visiting? Perhaps I can take you hiking!
June 18, 2013 at 1:09 pm
Hello Graham! I found your blog/website when I got home from double jaw surgery – since there wasn’t that much for me to do (being so limited and all..) I turned to the internet to search for people who were or had gone through the same process as me, and that is when I stumbled across this site.
I am very happy that I found your blog, but it saddens me that I’ve read through it all already; because it has kept me entertained for the past few days. I’m happy for you though, being done with this process and all – you look great! 😀
I just want to thank you for making these posts through your journey, they have kept me hopeful and patient. I’m only 2 weeks post-op, but I can be a very paranoid person and so I thought the swelling would never go down during the first few days (can you imagine looking the way you look when you’re 3 days post-op?? I was so freaked out during the first week! lol) Reading your posts have definitely calmed my nerves and now I will just have to be patient I guess. I’m so excited for the day when I can have solid food and the day I’m rid of braces. Whoa… biting through a sandwich will be such a joyous moment. Okay, enough with the day dreaming, I just want to thank you for the hope you have brought me through this site; so.. thank you!
Have a nice day! (◡‿◡✿)
– A reader from Sweden!
June 19, 2013 at 9:41 am
Ruhani, I’m super happy that I was able to keep you entertained for at least a few days! Stay happy and I look forward to seeing a bright new smile in Sweden soon!
June 3, 2013 at 3:53 pm
Thanks Graham for ur hope and wellwishes I think we are going to need some medals to get through this. But we will get through this long journey which one day has to come to an end, and hopefully the results will be stunning for my son not just in look wise, but health wise.
May 29, 2013 at 6:50 pm
U also made me laugh in one of ur posts, calling it dental pergatory, I went through such when I was younger, so I know what u r talking about. And also in my previous comment, u have an occulsion for a person without disabilities. So we have to take things that u may not realise into consideration for my son to be able to have this. And this is not a preference this op or treatment, its a have to have in an urgent situation.
Take care and hope u r enjoying ur results still.
June 3, 2013 at 1:11 am
Serenity, it sounds like this process will take a bit more consideration for your son, but I know you’ll use your best judgement in deciding when and where to have the necessary procedures performed. I wish both you and your son all the best along this journey and I hope it’s both a rewarding and education experience (honestly). =)
May 29, 2013 at 6:46 pm
My son is about to start his 3 year plus journey, although its been 5 years to get to where we are now just to get treatment for him. I found ur blog and then today I realised ur openbite and occulsion, for us it’s a malocculsion from a rare medical dental condition. And we have multiple disabilities to take into consideration. Along with abmormality in the jaw and his open bite, is severe and him having things like fibromyalgia. Just for my son to get two teeth taken out from the roof of his mouth behind his teeth, so he can have a mold done for his braces so they can be made up, he needs to have sedation and they are talking iv for him. So I am not going to get him to read this blog with the pain level that u went, through with the operation, it would be an omgosh for him not just from the op but also the dental medical disabilities he has causes extreme sensitivity that can shut down different body systems and organs from working. My son is 21.
But for him to be able to eat and chew like everyone else, that would be amazing. As well as having people not stare nor comment at his mouth and teeth that would be amazing.
But what I did find useful in this blog is some of the difficulties u went through may be worthwhile to take into consideration. My son’s length of stay in hospital maybe also be longer as well as his healing process. For when my son gets his two teeth taken out, we have to stay near the hospital incase there are problems. So I can just think about what it may be like with dealing with the double jaw op for both of us.
Thanks again and the results look amazing.
May 18, 2013 at 12:06 pm
Graham, (by the way, here in England, everyone would correctly pronounce your name Gray-am… ;))
I have just today received my double jaw surgery date for 29th July. I’ve already had palatal expansion a few years ago and didn’t handle it well so my anxieties have been multiplying!
Nevertheless, today I stumbled across your blog in my moments of panic and read the entire thing.
I feel so much better…
Your (hilarious) attitude to what you went through and your optimism has given me more confidence than I’ve ever had since I found out I’d need surgery nearing on 10 years ago.
Thanks 🙂
By the way you now look amazing…
May 19, 2013 at 11:11 am
Teresa, I’m always happy to hear that my writing provides people with newfound confidence (and hopefully a bit of laughter as well). Enjoy the next few months and let me know how the surgery goes! =)
May 15, 2013 at 5:27 pm
Graham,
Thank you so much for taking the time to write this blog!! By the looks of all the comments it’s become a second job for you!
I read it from start to finish before my surgery and go back to it from time to time when I feel like things are moving too slow. I’m at recovery day 45 and tomorrow the splint is coming out! YEA!
Anyway thanks again it was great to be able to read a time line of someone who’s been through it!
May 16, 2013 at 9:40 am
Always happy to help, Heather! Congratulations on being halfway through your recovery!
May 12, 2013 at 8:36 am
Hey Graham, thank you very much for sharing with us your surgery jorney! this blog has been extremely helpful for me. Your results are amazing. I’ll be having double jaw surgery next year, to fix a class III malocclusion as well.
I’m “mentally prepared” for that, although as you said one is never prepared for that until you go through it firsthand, but well, let’s say I’m not very scared 😀 I’m just a bit worried about potential involuntary injuries when sleeping, for instance clenching (I don’t suffer from bruxism but…) or…pushing with your tongue somewhere you shouldn’t… Is there any reason to be afraid of that? 😀 Or your mouth and muscles are that weak that you can’t damage yourself?
…Do they give you meds for this purpose?
I’m asking this because I guess at first you have to feel like your mouth is not yours, since everything has changed its position therefore there might be involuntary movements (?) Haha maybe it’s a stupid question but I hope you geat what I mean.
Thank you very much!
Regards from Spain
May 12, 2013 at 10:30 pm
David, you need not worry about injuries while sleeping. Your jaws will be held together during the initial few weeks by either wires or elastics, so there won’t be any opportunity for you to bite your tongue or grind your teeth. You’ll find sleeping difficult at first simply because of the swelling, but if you rest a hot pack on your face as you fall asleep, it should sooth you enough that you’re able to rest. You’ll do great next year, man! (Also, I miss Spain!) =)
April 15, 2013 at 4:14 pm
Hey there Graham,
Thank you for your input.
I would just like to clarify a couple of things.
I am having braces which is costing me 7,600 – sans insurance – out of pocket, as I don’t have a credit card or private insurance – my employer does not cover ortho treatment.
I believe, in my case – because I am full time student, and part time employee, that I will have to go on a payment plan, because of a financial strain, and I just wanted to see how you did it, without a payment plan?
I see that you had to pay $5,000, plus for the extraction. You see, in my case, I would have to be on a plan.
I am in the emotional right place for being accepting to the surgery and recovery, but I am not emotionally accepting because of the financial strain it will have on me.
Thanks again for your input.
Would like to hear more!
Regards,
Alejandro
April 16, 2013 at 9:15 am
Alejandro, I honestly cannot relate to financing the surgery, but I believe it is worthwhile. If it’s going to set you back financially for the next few years, however, perhaps it would be less stressful to save money over the next 12 months and take on the operation after that. I wouldn’t go into too much debt over a non-life-threatening change. =)
April 11, 2013 at 10:39 pm
Alejandro, my name is Terry and I am from BC. My health insurance isn’t covering my surgical fees, the provincial health plan will cover the OR and hospital stay, at least two nights. My surgery will be just over $8500 and possibly $900 less if they do not have to do geniplasty (break my chin). I have to pay half up front and then the surgeon will devise a payment plan for the remainder. My braces are close to $8000 when all is said and done and my insurance on,y covers $2700. I will eventually need two implants also. When all is said and done the entire process will cost me a small fortune but if it fixes my jaw issues it will be well worth it.
April 11, 2013 at 11:29 am
Hey there Graham. Thanks four blog,which was a very thorough blog on your journey with jaw surgery.
I am 28, just as you were close to your 30’s as well, and I too will hopefully be able to receive orthognathic surgery – if I can manage the costs.
I was wondering though, what was your plan – monthly plan, weekly, bi-weekly? I understand the costs – which was stated in your blog, but did you have a plan to pay back your debt in regards to surgery – I’m assuming so? My only issue and worry is the cost itself, not the surgery, and not the recovery.
Also, I live in Ontario, Canada, and I’ve seen on other blogs a rough costs of what I could expect to payback.
Anyways, thank you again for your journey, and I can’t wait to get an answer, so I have a rough estimate of what I might be getting myself into.
Cheers fellow canuck.
Alejandro
April 12, 2013 at 9:42 am
Alejandro, I only had Alberta Healthcare, but it covered most of the operation and hospital stay. I ended up paying $5000 in surgeon’s fees, $1600 to have my wisdom teeth extracted, and then the cost of my orthodontic work as well. I did not go on a payment plan, though, so I’m not sure what your options would be in that regard. I can’t see the surgery (sans braces) costing more than $10,000 anywhere in Canada, since provincial healthcare should cover most of it. Also, glad to hear you’re not worried about the surgery. That’s a good place to be, emotionally. =)
April 10, 2013 at 9:12 am
Thanks for the replies! I’m actually not stressing too much (yet anyways). I have the luxury of doing mostly freelance work so I don’t really have to worry about getting back to work asap. Do you know how much they shortened your lower jaw exactly? I’m just trying to gauge what kind of outward changes I might be able to expect. I apologize if this information is somewhere on the site already, but I’ve only read this page and a few others since I found it last night.
April 10, 2013 at 10:20 pm
I can’t actually recall the numbers, Chris. I recall my lower jaw being moved by double digits, so perhaps 11–12mm? =)