Two years Later

I wanted to put up some final photos from my 2015 surgery.  Much of the numbness that I had immediately after the surgery has remained. I think the majority of the numbness is from the bone graft that I received in my upper palate. I have little feeling in the gums above my two front teeth or inside the septum of my nose. I have permanent swelling on the left side of my face near my nose and loss of feeling there also.  There is a continuing darkness of one of my upper front teeth that the surgeon said would go away eventually, but a slight graying of the tooth remains.
People compliment me on how good I look for my age, which helps me feel better about my decision to go through this whole process of teeth extraction, braces, surgery, recovery and outcome. I will be 60 this year.
I never would have done all of this if it were just for cosmetic reasons. Prior to surgery, it was very difficult for me to close my lips or keep my mouth closed. Now I can have my lips closed with out the struggle to keep them closed and my jaw is more relaxed.

My parting thoughts would be that I basically traded the discomfort of TMJ and a crooked bite for post surgical paresthesia  and swelling.

If I had to do it again, I think I would forego the upper palate bone graft and just have the lower jaw surgery.  The outcome of having so much numbness and such after the upper jaw surgery seems to be more than I would've liked to experience.

I hope that this blog has offered some insight to anyone who may be considering surgery.   Overall I am happy having straight teeth. This is something I had wanted my entire life and I don't regret doing it. Sometimes I wish that I didn't wait so late in life to get this done, so if you are hesitating, don't wait!!
Having a nice smile definitely adds to a happy heart.