I unfortunately had to start wearing the bands during the day again because my lower jaw is still trying to shift to the right, which causes my bite to be misaligned. I am happy to have my appointment tomorrow so that I can discuss this with my doctor. I am getting very aggravated with my lack of progress. I've been in the bands for 3.5 weeks now and can still only open 1cm. I am still hopeful that exercises/physical therapy will do the trick for me in terms of mouth opening, but that likely won't solve the problem of my jaw trying to move to the right.
It also occurred to me why my doctor would wait so long to get an MRI to check for soft tissue damage if I continue to have limited mouth opening (she previously told me 3 months). The arch bars are likely made of steel that would be subject to the magnetic field of the MRI and would therefore need to be removed before I could have an MRI. Just a guess, and another thing to ask my doctor about.
On Friday I had lunch with a friend who has had corrective jaw surgery (jaw advancement) and just about everything else done to her mouth (braces twice, wisdom teeth extraction, gum surgery). It was nice to talk with someone who has been through a similar experience.
I hated reading that you had to take a step back in your recovery. Did your doctor's appointment give you any insights?
ReplyDeleteHi Ashley, I forget that a few people actually read this blog :) I posted an update, thanks for asking.
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