Almost time..

To mark the 1 year anniversary of having jaw surgery.  I'm still numb.  And I still have problems hitting my teeth and biting my lip but not too often.  The pain is still there and right now I've decided to just live with it.  I am very happy with my profile.

I am supposed to visit my ortho in about 2 months just to check everything.  I haven't decided if I'm going back after some comments my ortho's partner made last time I was there.  He basically told me that most people would just live with the jaw pain.  Well, duh!  I've been doing that my whole life.  It wasn't every day (not like it is now) but it was there.  I really just wanted to hit him in the jaw and tell him to deal with it! 

But jail is not really appealing to me so I decided to just cry to my husband and not schedule another appt.  I probably will go back eventually because I don't want to hurt any progress we made with the surgery.  I will just have to make sure I see my ortho and not the other guy.

In other news, we have moved to a new house, my oldest started kindergarten and my son started preschool.  I enjoy seeing them have fun!  I've also been introduced to the world of cheerleading.  My daughter is only 5 but it is a lot of work!  I'm including a picture of me at the Utah Olympic Ski Park in Park City, UT.  My husband and I went there recently to celebrate out 10th wedding anniversary. 

Profile pic

This was taken at my son's 2nd birthday. 

Long Time No See!

Time has flown by the past couple of months.  I've been so knee deep in things I forgot I HAD a blog.  Just to update you on everything.  I get my braces off in 11 days!  And the 18th marks 6 months post surgery.

I still have the same pain I had before so the surgery didn't help. And yep I'm still numb which is probably permanent.  It's more annoying than anything and I bite my lip sometimes when I chew my food. 

I've been eating everything I could before the surgery for awhile now.  Loving the jaw, not really loving the nose but it's not too bad.

I will see my surgeon again when I get my braces off.  I haven't seen him since the last post I think.  The best news is that I received a check in the mail from my surgeon.  I guess my insurance paid a lot more than the doctor's office predicted.  Gotta love when that happens!

Hope you are all doing well and hopefully it won't be 2 months before I post again.

Catching Up...

I've  been busy lately so I'm sorry I haven't posted in awhile.  As far as my jaw goes, still numb on my lower left side and my surgeon recently told me it could be permanent.  Great!  I can live with it but it makes me mad that the side I'm having problems with is the side the other doctor did.  A guy I've never met.  I did see him talking to the patient in the office the other day and I wanted to give him a piece of my mind.  But the kids were acting crazy and I didn't get a chance.

The pain is back too.  I went to my ENT in one last effort to make sure my ears weren't the problem.  I saw a PA named Chad because my doctor was on vacation.  Chad suggested I try a cream that this company developed for TMJ pain that you rub in and numbs the area.  Where were you a year and a half ago Chad?  So I said I would try anything and he put in the order.  The company called me right away and told me my insurance does cover the drug and it would be $50 per month supply.  I ordered just one month to make sure it works.  I should get it today so I will let you know.

As far as life goes, lots of things are happening.  We are selling our house.  It's our first home we bought and before the kiddos.  We are getting granite and stone backsplash put in this week to sell our house faster.  Luckily homes on our neighborhood have been going pretty fast.  But on the downside we will have to live in an apartment for about 4-5 months.  We found a nice complex close to where our home will be and close to Maddie's school so we are hoping to rent there but they only have two bedrooms available.  I'm trying to look at it like an adventure and the fact I won't have much to clean!

I'm also working on my son's 2nd birthday party which is next weekend (his actual birthday is April 9th) and the Rotary golf tournament which is on April 14th.

Braces off in 2 months!  Yea!

Weeks 12/13 - The cost

I wasn't sure if I should post the cost of the surgery but that's the one thing I wanted to know when researching.  I hope I'm not violating any laws.  Well, here it goes.  And yes, it's a lot.

Braces- Just over $6,000
Surgeon's Fee- Just over $33,000
Hospital's Fee- Just over $81,000 (6 hours of surgery, 4 days in the hospital, 3 in ICU because of issues)
Total - $120,000+

I'm not sure if there are any other costs.  I let my husband deal with it because I just get stressed out.  My insurance covered $10,000 of the surgeon's fee (he was not in network, I don't think any surgeon was), most of the hospital cost and $1,000 of the braces.

I hope this helps.  Now to my progress.  I am using the jaw wrap every day for my pain.  Not pain from the surgery, the pain that was there before.  Surgery wise I'm doing good.  I still have that extremely deviated septum and numbness in my chin but other than that I'm doing fine.

Michelle, a blog follower, had surgery this week.   Please keep her in your thoughts.  Have an easy recovery Michelle!

New Profile Pic

Baby Shower Pics

Had fun doing a baby shower for my cousin's wife.  The guest of honor had the flu so she couldn't come.  Some of my favorites things are the wishing tree, shoe favors, cake balls and not pictured are the pink rimmed plastic cups.  Just dip the rim of the cup in karo syrup and then in colored sugar of your choice.  Here are some pictures.  The first one is me with a friend's Mom.