Guest guest Posted March 23, 2004 Report Share Posted March 23, 2004 I had lower advancement only. I can definitely open my mouth widely -- I was never tightly banded nor wired. But more than 3 cm? That's quite a lot. I don't think i ever in my life have been able to open that wide, but then I have a small mouth, too. Some people do wind up with limitations on their opening abilities. I don't know anyone for whom it's a serious problem, after the healing is all over. As for your own private preferences and predilections, i would strongly suggest that you ask your surgeon. I can promise you that there is nothing you can ask him/her that he or she hasn't been asked before. People have worried about asking about catheters. About asking when any type of intercourse is OK. About what they'd say while waking up in the Recovery Room. The docs have heard it all. As I told one of my own docs when I had to bring up something embarrassing, " Not that there's anything so exotic or interesting about my experience that you haven't heard it all before. " He grinned, and later said I was right on that point. Best, Cammie > Ok, ok, so I asked about biting into a big sandwich and singing with my mouth wide open, > but my REAL fear is not being able to perform oral sex for the rest of my life post-op. Are > there any one or two or more year post-ops who can answer this question with certainty, > years after surgery and physical therapy ... can you still perform orally in the bedroom? > How limited is your capacity to open wide enough to do that? > > At the risk of sounding like a total perv, I have to admit: now that I'm hearing these > responses, I'm not sure I'm willing to give up the capacty to perform oral sex in the future. > After dealing with jaw pain for most of my life, where I could only > open my mouth 2 finger widths or so and only for a few seconds, I went through > splint therapy for 4 years, and can now open my mouth 2 inches with no pain, and can > hold it there comfortably. After the splint therapy though, my jaw has slid back into its > natural position after a lifetime of " posturing " , and now that I have good jaw function, I > also have an 8mm open/overbite and > a really really small chin! However, if the alternative is not being able to use my mouth the > way I want to, I think I may be able to live with an overbite and a small chin and just wear a > splint at night for the rest of my life. > > Help! How different is " life on the other side " really? What are your limitations in terms of > opening range? Can ANYONE out there open wider than 3 centimeters??? I've got to know > before I make this big decision!!! > > Thanks for listening, > Jen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 23, 2004 Report Share Posted March 23, 2004 I had lower advancement only. I can definitely open my mouth widely -- I was never tightly banded nor wired. But more than 3 cm? That's quite a lot. I don't think i ever in my life have been able to open that wide, but then I have a small mouth, too. Some people do wind up with limitations on their opening abilities. I don't know anyone for whom it's a serious problem, after the healing is all over. As for your own private preferences and predilections, i would strongly suggest that you ask your surgeon. I can promise you that there is nothing you can ask him/her that he or she hasn't been asked before. People have worried about asking about catheters. About asking when any type of intercourse is OK. About what they'd say while waking up in the Recovery Room. The docs have heard it all. As I told one of my own docs when I had to bring up something embarrassing, " Not that there's anything so exotic or interesting about my experience that you haven't heard it all before. " He grinned, and later said I was right on that point. Best, Cammie > Ok, ok, so I asked about biting into a big sandwich and singing with my mouth wide open, > but my REAL fear is not being able to perform oral sex for the rest of my life post-op. Are > there any one or two or more year post-ops who can answer this question with certainty, > years after surgery and physical therapy ... can you still perform orally in the bedroom? > How limited is your capacity to open wide enough to do that? > > At the risk of sounding like a total perv, I have to admit: now that I'm hearing these > responses, I'm not sure I'm willing to give up the capacty to perform oral sex in the future. > After dealing with jaw pain for most of my life, where I could only > open my mouth 2 finger widths or so and only for a few seconds, I went through > splint therapy for 4 years, and can now open my mouth 2 inches with no pain, and can > hold it there comfortably. After the splint therapy though, my jaw has slid back into its > natural position after a lifetime of " posturing " , and now that I have good jaw function, I > also have an 8mm open/overbite and > a really really small chin! However, if the alternative is not being able to use my mouth the > way I want to, I think I may be able to live with an overbite and a small chin and just wear a > splint at night for the rest of my life. > > Help! How different is " life on the other side " really? What are your limitations in terms of > opening range? Can ANYONE out there open wider than 3 centimeters??? I've got to know > before I make this big decision!!! > > Thanks for listening, > Jen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 23, 2004 Report Share Posted March 23, 2004 I had lower advancement only. I can definitely open my mouth widely -- I was never tightly banded nor wired. But more than 3 cm? That's quite a lot. I don't think i ever in my life have been able to open that wide, but then I have a small mouth, too. Some people do wind up with limitations on their opening abilities. I don't know anyone for whom it's a serious problem, after the healing is all over. As for your own private preferences and predilections, i would strongly suggest that you ask your surgeon. I can promise you that there is nothing you can ask him/her that he or she hasn't been asked before. People have worried about asking about catheters. About asking when any type of intercourse is OK. About what they'd say while waking up in the Recovery Room. The docs have heard it all. As I told one of my own docs when I had to bring up something embarrassing, " Not that there's anything so exotic or interesting about my experience that you haven't heard it all before. " He grinned, and later said I was right on that point. Best, Cammie > Ok, ok, so I asked about biting into a big sandwich and singing with my mouth wide open, > but my REAL fear is not being able to perform oral sex for the rest of my life post-op. Are > there any one or two or more year post-ops who can answer this question with certainty, > years after surgery and physical therapy ... can you still perform orally in the bedroom? > How limited is your capacity to open wide enough to do that? > > At the risk of sounding like a total perv, I have to admit: now that I'm hearing these > responses, I'm not sure I'm willing to give up the capacty to perform oral sex in the future. > After dealing with jaw pain for most of my life, where I could only > open my mouth 2 finger widths or so and only for a few seconds, I went through > splint therapy for 4 years, and can now open my mouth 2 inches with no pain, and can > hold it there comfortably. After the splint therapy though, my jaw has slid back into its > natural position after a lifetime of " posturing " , and now that I have good jaw function, I > also have an 8mm open/overbite and > a really really small chin! However, if the alternative is not being able to use my mouth the > way I want to, I think I may be able to live with an overbite and a small chin and just wear a > splint at night for the rest of my life. > > Help! How different is " life on the other side " really? What are your limitations in terms of > opening range? Can ANYONE out there open wider than 3 centimeters??? I've got to know > before I make this big decision!!! > > Thanks for listening, > Jen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 23, 2004 Report Share Posted March 23, 2004 Dear Jen, I am a 'nonproformer' as of late... but its more related to the fact that I only had lower, it corrected the problems that were visible the overbite and crossbite. I am having a third surgery as now my bite is open and I don't have much movement and limited opening. When I get the uppers done that will tip my mouth into the proper position (so my back molars dont touch when I open wide...) So there is no real cause for the nonproforming as a result of the surgery it was an oversight on the part of my first surgeon or a relapse... So when I get surgery #3 this fall I should be back to professional proformances * my surgeon went for the conservative approach as I had just given birth 2 weeks before. You will want to do the stretching exercises and keep the scar tissue from forming. Shiloh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 23, 2004 Report Share Posted March 23, 2004 Dear Jen, I am a 'nonproformer' as of late... but its more related to the fact that I only had lower, it corrected the problems that were visible the overbite and crossbite. I am having a third surgery as now my bite is open and I don't have much movement and limited opening. When I get the uppers done that will tip my mouth into the proper position (so my back molars dont touch when I open wide...) So there is no real cause for the nonproforming as a result of the surgery it was an oversight on the part of my first surgeon or a relapse... So when I get surgery #3 this fall I should be back to professional proformances * my surgeon went for the conservative approach as I had just given birth 2 weeks before. You will want to do the stretching exercises and keep the scar tissue from forming. Shiloh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 23, 2004 Report Share Posted March 23, 2004 Dear Jen, I am a 'nonproformer' as of late... but its more related to the fact that I only had lower, it corrected the problems that were visible the overbite and crossbite. I am having a third surgery as now my bite is open and I don't have much movement and limited opening. When I get the uppers done that will tip my mouth into the proper position (so my back molars dont touch when I open wide...) So there is no real cause for the nonproforming as a result of the surgery it was an oversight on the part of my first surgeon or a relapse... So when I get surgery #3 this fall I should be back to professional proformances * my surgeon went for the conservative approach as I had just given birth 2 weeks before. You will want to do the stretching exercises and keep the scar tissue from forming. Shiloh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 23, 2004 Report Share Posted March 23, 2004 Jen - I wondered about this too, before my surgery...and a bit afterward. But when I opened my mouth to eat dinner tonight - I broke a rubber band (I am wearing them in the back - connecting top and bottom molars.) So I think I'm going to be " OK! " I had upper/lower 6-weeks ago, BTW. Corinne > Dear Jen, > I am a 'nonproformer' as of late... but its more related to the fact > that I only had lower, it corrected the problems that were visible > the overbite and crossbite. I am having a third surgery as now my > bite is open and I don't have much movement and limited opening. > When I get the uppers done that will tip my mouth into the proper > position (so my back molars dont touch when I open wide...) > > So there is no real cause for the nonproforming as a result of the > surgery it was an oversight on the part of my first surgeon or a > relapse... So when I get surgery #3 this fall I should be back to > professional proformances * my surgeon went for the conservative > approach as I had just given birth 2 weeks before. > > You will want to do the stretching exercises and keep the scar > tissue from forming. > > Shiloh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 24, 2004 Report Share Posted March 24, 2004 From my own experience, limited opening isn't nearly as much of a problem as an arthritic joint, and my joint was diagnosed as arthritic before orthognathic surgery entered the picture. Sure, it took a while to get my opening back after the upper and lower surgery last March. I can open wide enough, but that matters little as my joint makes me unable to stay open. It's possible that if I'd had surgery sooner, things would be different, and I'm sure my hubby wouldn't mind either ; ) Regardless of what we may wish for though, there is no fixing my bum joint now. Orhtognathic surgery made my teeth look great and meet the right way, but it didn't do anything for a joint that was far gone by the time my malocclusion was detected and treatment began. If you have the opportunity to pursue treatment now, I strongly recommend that you weigh your current situation against the things that could happen if your bite goes uncorrected. Even if your reasons are mainly cosmetic right now, there can be many things that could go physically wrong in the long run. If you're not sure what you may be particularly susceptible to, ask your docs. They're the ones with the technical skills to see what may happen down the road with your particular case. > Ok, ok, so I asked about biting into a big sandwich and singing with my mouth wide open, > but my REAL fear is not being able to perform oral sex for the rest of my life post-op. Are > there any one or two or more year post-ops who can answer this question with certainty, > years after surgery and physical therapy ... can you still perform orally in the bedroom? > How limited is your capacity to open wide enough to do that? > > At the risk of sounding like a total perv, I have to admit: now that I'm hearing these > responses, I'm not sure I'm willing to give up the capacty to perform oral sex in the future. > After dealing with jaw pain for most of my life, where I could only > open my mouth 2 finger widths or so and only for a few seconds, I went through > splint therapy for 4 years, and can now open my mouth 2 inches with no pain, and can > hold it there comfortably. After the splint therapy though, my jaw has slid back into its > natural position after a lifetime of " posturing " , and now that I have good jaw function, I > also have an 8mm open/overbite and > a really really small chin! However, if the alternative is not being able to use my mouth the > way I want to, I think I may be able to live with an overbite and a small chin and just wear a > splint at night for the rest of my life. > > Help! How different is " life on the other side " really? What are your limitations in terms of > opening range? Can ANYONE out there open wider than 3 centimeters??? I've got to know > before I make this big decision!!! > > Thanks for listening, > Jen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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