The pics:
Here's what my face now looks like. Compare to the ones I took on Sunday
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| See the swelling bulge on my lower left jawbone? That's still there, though it's better than it was. I'd estimate the swelling is down about 1/3 at this point. |
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| For this angle, there's still some swelling, but it's definitely down considerably (at least 2/3rds) on that side. Note also my lips are now closed where they generally weren't before. |
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| Neutral profile almost looks normal! |
And now, the daily update...
My TMJ pain...
Got a little better throughout the day yesterday, perhaps in part due to the warm wet compresses I was using as per Dr. Jelic's instructions. Pain and swelling was still there, though, and the joint occasionally twinged when I tried to move my jaw. That's actually a worry I'm having now: taking pills is getting more difficult because it's getting harder to crack open my jaw; I think I'be losing jaw strength quick enough that I'm not going to be able to open my mouth enough against the rubber bands to be able to take my pills before the week is out. If that happens, I'll have to ask Dr. Jelic to let me start taking off the rubber bands sooner than next Wednesday, when my next post-op appointment is scheduled.
The antibiotics and the swelling...
The antibiotics appear to be working. I can say that for two reasons: my coughing is lessening, and... I've got a touch of diarrhea, sorry to share. As for the swelling, that overswollen area around my left lower jawbone appears to be only slowly going down, but the pressure on my right ear is easing, and when I ate lunch just now, swallowing produced popping sensations even if it didn't yet clear it. My left ear, by contrast, seems to have finally cleared for good, and I'm breathing through my nose now. Still getting a little blood out my nose, almost entirely through the right nostril (where the anesthesia tube was), but it's definitely slowing.
Last night...
I was having some trouble sleeping again, and the problem was the elevated head position the bed has had me in ever since surgery (I have an adjustable bed). You were supposed to do that and not lie on your side for the first several days after, but Dr. Jelic had already told me it was okay to roll to my side now and I decided that a week of elevated sleeping was enough, putting the bed back to horizontal.
That, by the way, is the acid test for the apnea--being able to sleep on my back while lying flat instead of having my upper-body elevated. Went to bed at 11:30 and found myself very uncomfortable in the elevated position after waking up around 2, which was when I decided enough was enough, let's put the bed back to flat and see how things go. Took some hydrocodone as well because the ear was twinging again, though only 10ml instead of 15ml I did the previous night.
The verdict? I heard myself snoring on my back, but was still able to sleep, and had no problems whatsoever sleeping on my side except for rolling back and forth a lot (which may just mean it's time to replace the mattress!). I eventually fell hard asleep again and ended up waking up sometime after 9am--which, btw, is almost unheard of for me without chemical help. The hydrocodone only lasts four hours (taken at 2:30), so that wasn't it. I was bona fide sleeping.
So all indications are that the surgery worked, and the snoring may yet get better as my remaining congestion clears/swelling goes down.
The other thing I did yesterday...
...was stop in at work to see everyone, late in the day. Made my rounds, showed off my new, wired-shut jawline to everyone, generally joked around and heard the pleas for me to return as soon as possible, since there's apparently already some work waiting. An early return ain't going to happen, however, as I'm still in no shape for a regular workday. Get tired too easily, and I don't want to stress myself or my system for a while yet, not until I'm more healed.
So all in all, moving right along
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