What to Expect Before and After Jaw Surgery
If you’re like me, you found out you need jaw surgery and came to Google to search, “what to expect before and after jaw surgery.” (Am I right?) Except at the time I found out I needed jaw surgery and came to Google to find out more, not a whole lot of information came up. A few things, but definitely no personal accounts of what the experience was like. (Yes, I knew they’re not all *exactly* the same, but I was still curious!)
Now after having been through the experience myself, this is me coming back to the internet to give my personal account of what I could have expected before and after jaw surgery.
Quick Background:
Ancient History:
I had had jaw issues since the dawn of time. When I was little I had an underbite. I’m pretty sure I started on orthodontics when I was like… 5. There were expanders, spacers, head gear, two phases of braces and more to fix the issues. I was 14 when my initial treatment was finished and my braces came off for (what I thought was) the last time. And then I lost my retainer…
5 or 6 years later I went back to the orthodontist and got braces again to straighten my teeth which had shifted, and correct my bite/jaw alignment which had also shifted. At that time the orthodontist said I would *maybe* need surgery on my jaw but we’d know for sure after a few months into my treatment. The issues were corrected with braces alone and surgery wasn’t necessary at that time. 9 months of braces and my smile and bite/jaw were good as new. I wore my retainers RELIGIOUSLY. I wasn’t about to go through braces for a THIRD time in my life and second time as an adult! (Joke was on me).
More Recently:
About 12-13 years later I decided to visit the orthodontist AGAIN. For a few years I had been experiencing clicking, grinding, and pain (more like discomfort) in my jaw. And despite wearing my retainers religiously, I could see my teeth had shifted some and I had developed a cross bite. I flew from Chicago to California to see my orthodontist (the same one I’ve known since I was 5). He took one look at my X-rays and said I’d need jaw surgery to correct the issues once and for all. Oh and another round of braces. (Yay…)
And so started my THIRD round of orthodontic treatment. 12 months and 1 jaw surgery later and my teeth and jaw are good as new and not going anywhere! (1. Because I’ll wear my retainers RELIGIOUSLY and 2. Because both my upper and lower jaws were surgically “locked” into place. They’re not shifting anywhere!)
What to Expect Before Jaw Surgery:
My personal experience before jaw surgery involved a consultation with a jaw surgeon, and 7 months of braces. When my jaw surgery was scheduled, I had a few additional pre-op appointments with the jaw surgeon.
At the final pre-op appointment a nurse(?)/assistant(?) walked me through step by step on what I should do and what to expect on the day of my surgery and during recovery. I also had the opportunity to ask the suregon any questions I could think of. As ridiculous as this may sound, my most BURNING question was whether or not I’d need a catheter during the surgery! (Potty things weird me out. Not a fan of using nature as a toilet, not a fan of using squatty potties when traveling in countries that have them (IYKYK), not into the idea of a tubey thing helping my body with the whole going potty thing, etc. I’ll just use a regular flushing toilet, thanks!) THANKFULLY the doctor said a catheter WASN’T going to be necessary. (Phew)
I asked if my jaw would be wired shut after surgery and the doctor said no. He said my jaw would be held closed by rubberbands which would be attached to my braces.
The Day of the Surgery:
Morning:
I had to be at the hospital at 7am. My parents both drove me there and my mom came inside the surgical “prep” room (so to speak) with me. I made sure to go to the bathroom one more time 😉 and changed into a hospital gown. A nurse put an IV in me and I remember already starting to feel sleepy before they even wheeled me from the prep room into the OR. I remember saying bye to my mom as they wheeled me away and I sort of remember being transferred onto the opperating table? I assume?
Afternoon:
The next thing I remember is groggily waking up to a nurse talking to me and wiping my nose and mouth, and eventually hearing my mom say she was there while she held my hand. Apparently I was in the surgical recovery room at that time, and the next thing I remember after that was waking up in a hospital room and seeing my mom sitting in a chair across from me.
I hadn’t seen myself in a mirror yet and I asked my parents if I looked scary. My mom said something like, “Ummm…..” and my dad said something like, “Well you’re kind of bandaged up and you look a little swollen and bruised… but I can still tell you’re my Chelsea.” Ummmm….. I basically looked like I had gotten a giant beating to the face! 😂 My cheeks were HUGE, I had a GIANT bandage wrapped around my head and chin, I had a black eye and some blood dribbling from my mouth. I wouldn’t say I looked “scary” per se, but I definitely wasn’t lookin’ very cute, either!
Night:
I stayed one night in the hospital and spent that time sleeping on and off, taking liquid medicine through a syringe, and icing my poor swollen cheeks. In order to be released from the hospital I needed to drink a certain amount of water and be able to go to the bathroom. I accomplished both of those things and in the morning my parents were able to take me home.
Some Side Notes:
- At my final pre op appointment the nurse(?)/assistant(?) told me she recommended I wear a v-neck shirt to the surgery. I didn’t know why she specifically recommended a v-neck, but I didn’t ask either. I found out as I was changing out of my hosptial gown and into my regular clothes to go home… My cheeks were too swollen for my face to have fit through a crew neck shirt! So if you’re having this surgery… make sure to wear a v-neck or something with a SUPER wide and stretchy opening for your head to go through. And ladies… make sure to wear a bra that doesn’t need to go over your head. I made the mistake of wearing a sports bra and that was a challenge to get on over my swollen face post surgery.
- I recommend keeping your phone or a pen and paper nearby you at the hospital post surgery. With my swollen cheeks and jaw held together with rubberbands I couldn’t speak very well if at all. Writing messages out on my phone and showing them to the nurses and my parents was the best way I could communicate!
What to Expect After Jaw Surgery:
How I Felt:
I’ll be honest… The first week post surgery was really rough. I was SO weak and I couldn’t walk without my mom or dad there to lend an arm to help steady me from falling. I spent a lot of time sleeping (at night and 2 naps a day) but I also spent a lot of time feeling sore, uncomfortable, nauseaous, hungry, etc. Sneezing and coughing were *super* uncomfortable. Between the swollen face and achy nose, throat and esophagus (from being intubated during surgery) I avoided coughing and sneezing AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. It wasn’t comfortable.
My face was numb in a lot of places, some of which seemed super random. My upper cheeks were numb, my lower eyelids, the roof of my mouth, my nostrils (not the rest of my nose, *just* my nostrils) my lower lip and my chin. I’d say it took *roughly* four weeks or so for the feeling to come back in all those places except for my lower lip and chin. Those stayed completely numb for a few months post surgery.
A year post surgery the feeling in my lower lip and chin was back by about 50%. You know when you get numbed at the dentist and then a few hours later the numbness is starting to wear off but the feeling in your mouth still isn’t back 100%? That’s what my lower lip and chin felt like a year post surgery. It was weird, but I got used to it.
How I Looked:
My cheeks were swollen when I left the hospital, but they swelled even BIGGER a day or two after I was home. It was insane! I had my wisdom teeth removed when I was 16 and my cheeks swelled a bit in the process. The swelling (and recovery) after jaw surgery was like my wisdom teeth experience x10. If I looked like a chipmunk after getting my wisdom teeth removed I looked like a freaking GORILLA after jaw surgery! 😂
The doctor recommended I wear a heated head wrap sort of thing to help with the swelling. It was AMAZING. (Though, the jury’s still out on whether I looked more like a dog in a cone of shame or a handmaid in one of those winged hat things they wear in, “The Handmaid’s Tale.” 
Praise be. 
) The one I got was like $20 on Amazon and I wore it as much as possible. Not only did it help with the swelling, the warmth also helped soothe the pain. 100/10 recommend.
I also had A LOT of bruising. 
It looked like I got a nice little uppercut to my chin and good old fashion punch in the eye. The bruises around my jaw and neck turned all kinds of gross colors as they healed which was just awesome.
The Eating Situtation:
RIGHT After Surgery:
In the first week I was only allowed to drink liquids through a tube/syringe thing. My mom and I had filled the fridge with all kinds of liquids we could think of with some calories in them. I drank a lot of juices, chocolate milk (with whole milk) and protein drinks. *One* of my mom’s fears going into this was that I would be SO hungry. (Under normal circumstances this girl can EAT! IYKYK) But in the first week (and a little after it too) my appetite/stomach were all over the place. Sometimes I felt hungry and sometimes I felt nauseous. I ended up losing a pound A DAY in the first week after surgery. Even though I did feel hungry sometimes I (mostly) didn’t feel like I was STARVING. The nausea went away and appetite became more consistent as time went on.
A Week After Surgery:
After the first week the doctor cleared me for a soft no chew diet which would last until I was 6 weeks post op. I ate a lot of smoothies, yogurt, smooth soups (like tomato and squash), milkshakes, mashed potatoes, refried beans, and mashed up avocado. When my mouth was still super swollen and couldn’t open much I’d drink everything from a cup. (Even soup which was a little weird at first.) As the swelling went down and I was able to open my mouth more and more I started eating food with utensils again.
Eating in the first few weeks post surgery wasn’t a pretty sight. Since my lower lip and chin were still numb I couldn’t feel when food dribbled down my face. I was always a MESS after eating. Like, baby-in-a-highchair messy. And in true baby fashion, I started using dishtowels as bibs when I ate. I actually went through them pretty quickly, so I’d recommend keeping quite a few on hand.
Recommendation:
*** If you’re having this surgery my recommendation would be to try and think of as many ways as possible to change up the flavors of the limited food options you have. Eating the same few things over and over started to get old for me. I was DREAMING of what I would be eating when I was allowed to chew again! My only caution would be to avoid spices, salt and pepper for a bit. (Remember, coughing and sneezing were SUPER uncomfortable in the beginning, so I’d avoid eating anything that could cause that). ***
The Medicine Situation:
I had tons of medication to take post surgery and it was all in liquid form. Keeping track and on top of my meds (especially the pain meds) was crucial for the first 10 days or so. One of my meds I needed to take every six hours (we did 11 and 5 around the clock). My parents were really great about writing down which medicines and times I took them, but if I was sleeping at the time I was supposed to take more or forgot to take them on time (not the “every six hours” med. We stayed on schedule with that one), the pain would be pretty rough until the meds kicked in again. Sticking to the meds schedule as much as possible really helped with keeping the pain in check.
I think this was the first time I ever took Hydrocodone for pain and it was SOMETHING ELSE! The first time my mom gave it to me I dizzily told her… “I feel really weird mom…” and immediately laid down (from my already seated position) and knocked right out. That stuff is no joke!
The Caregivers:
There’s no way anyone could go through this surgery without someone around to help them afterwords. My poor parents were rockstars taking care of me post surgery! I was most comfortable sleeping on the couch for the first few nights (because it was easier to sleep sitting up there like the doctor said I needed to). So my poor mom slept on the little couch next to me in the living room! And she woke up every 6 hours to give me more medicine and help walk me to the bathroom. The whole “medicine every 6 hours” thing lasted the whole first week or so post surgery. It wasn’t fun. (For me or my parents!) Getting through the first 7-10 days post surgery was the toughest. My parents and I all started to see some light at the end of the tunnel after that.
Post Surgery Appointments:
My first post surgery apppointment with the suregon was about a week after the procedure. I was still super weak and uncomfortable, but I somehow made it through. The oral surgeon had said I’d need to take 6 weeks off from work for recovery. He said he can often times release people to go back to work after 4 weeks but when he remembered I’m a flight attendant he said, “I’ll want you to wait 6 weeks. With the way things have been going in the air lately I wouldn’t want you to get punched in the face.” (This was at the tail end of airlines’ requirement to wear masks on planes due to Covid.) My first orthodontist appointment post surgery was 2 weeks after the procedure. My mouth was still swollen and sensitive but they knew I had just had surgery and were super gentle. No pain, thankfully.
Random Tid Bits:
I drooled A LOT in the beginning. I know this is gross but I think maybe my cheeks/mouth were too swollen for my tongue to properly regulate/control the salvia in my mouth. That being said, I kept a roll of paper towels with me all the time to spit excess saliva into. (Gross, I know. ) I think I went through a few rolls in the first two weeks or so. The drooling lessened more and more as the swelling went down. But if you’re having this surgery, consider keeping some paper towerls nearby. Something else that came in really handy were baby wipes. (The kind that are 99% water.) I could clean my face and hands with them and it didn’t require me to get up and go into the bathroom. (Moving/walking was rough in the beginning, remember?) I would definitely recommend keeping these handy post surgery as well.
As for teeth brushing I was given a child’s toothbrush and a prescribed mouthwash type stuff to use in lieu of toothpaste. When I ran out of the prescribed mouthwash the doctor said to use regular mouthwash instead. I’ll be honest… the teeth brushing thing was sort of a “do the best you can” type of situation. My teeth and mouth felt more clean and fresh as the swelling went down and I could open my mouth more to properly brush them. The first time I was allowed to use toothpaste again was *chef’s kiss.* Side note: It took roughly a whole year before I could *fully* open my mouth as wide as possible.
Final Thoughts:
As unpleasant as I know this mostly all sounds, even knowing now what I didn’t know pre surgery I’d do it all over again for the results that I got. My jaw no longer clicks, grinds or feels any pain or discomfort when I bite, chew, or simply open my mouth. I’m happy with the changes in my jaw and teeth. The whole process from the time I got my braces on and then off (with a major surgery thrown in there too) was exactly a year. I’m sure the timeline, treatment, and healing process is a little bit different for everyone, but this was *my* personal experience.
If you’re having jaw surgery soon, I’m sending all the good vibes and positivie energy your way. It’s not the greatest experience in the world, but I can attest to the fact that being on the other side of the experience feels pretty great. And that makes it all worth it. Good luck!
CE
