Thursday, November 14, 2013

Braceface: One Year Later!

Hi Everyone!

My "One Year Later" post is a bit late! I am not going to tell you that my surgery is not on my mind anymore, that I've moved on and don't really think about it. I think about it EVERY TIME I LOOK IN A MIRROR. I am still in awe when I look at my smile. After so many years with a funky bite I can't believe I'm "one of those people" with great teeth.

I didn't post the week of my one year anniversary because it was a very busy one! I celebrated my surgery anniversary (Oct 16) with a check up at my orthodontist. Everything looked pretty good! The back of my bite has opened a little bit and I was given some rubber tubing to "chew" on as an exercise... hopefully that will close everything up.

Jeff and I celebrated our 2 year dating anniversary (Oct 17) at a doctors appointment by listening to our baby's heartbeat! (Much better than our 1 year anniversary, which was in the hospital post-surgery!) We are so excited!!! In true Italian fashion, I got pregnant a couple weeks after our wedding. The last two years has transformed my life in every single way possible. I am very very very grateful.

I wanted to put this all in one post, but needed to wait a bit until I was a little further along. I am about 3.5 months now - due May 7th. Prepping for delivery feels weirdly similar to prepping for surgery!

As for the state of my jaw: There is still some numbness in my inside upper lip at the incision site... Also, my upper outer gum line is still numb. It's definitely weird when brushing, but it's something I don't notice throughout the day. My range of motion is where it was pre-surgery. I can open wide and shift my jaw side to side without pain.

Check out this before shot! It was taken in 2007 when I 
was first given the bombshell news "you need surgery".   
It took me 4.5 years to pull the trigger on braces and surgery! 


 And now the AFTER!! It really blows my mind.  
(Even my messy bun looks better)

Hope you all are FANTASTIC! I will keep updating every so often. There's just not much jaw related news. Please jot down my email address: welbyway -at- gmail and keep in touch or write to connect on FB.

Cheers,
Amanda

10 comments:

  1. OH. MY. GOODNESS!!!! Amanda & Geoff CONGRATULATIONS on your wonderful baby news :))))) So excited for you - we definitely want to be kept up to date!! And I'd love to connect on FB. Love your after photos - you look so happy.

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  2. Congratulations!!!!!!! ahhhhh im so excited for you and geoff absolutely amazing news :) and your after photos are FABULOUS can't wait to look as good as you soon ;) xx

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    1. You are soooooo close!!! You will definitely be on my mind over the next few weeks:)

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  3. YES!!! I'm excited about your baby like it's my own! LOL! I tried to send you a message yesterday to check on you, but your blog had disappeared (??) I checked again today and saw your lovely post about the little-one-to-be. May you & Jeff be blessed with a beautiful, healthy baby!

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    1. Thank you Cece!!! You are so sweet!! I've actually been dying to post this news bc I'v been so excited to tell you specifically! Thank you for your blessings:) xoxoxo

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  4. It's always fantastic to hear news about how happy people are after their braces have been removed! Your joy and excitement about the whole thing are contagious! Haha! Anyway, congratulations on your set of pearly whites, and also on your pregnancy. Hope things are doing great!
    Lindsay @ Smile by Design

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  5. Hi, Amanda! Happy New Year...Just thinking of your family and the little-one-to-be...Hope all is well!

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  6. I am getting braces soon and was wondering if your dentist or ortho wanted you to get an implant for your bottom missing tooth. I ask because I just had to get a tooth pulled on top (it was a baby tooth that was wearing away and needed to be pulled) and was wondering if the dentist or ortho had bugged you about your empty space?

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    1. Yes, I do need to get an implant, however I was told I needed to wait at least a year after my surgery. It's been a busy time and I haven't been able to get it taken care of. In the meantime, my retainer has a piece that sits in the missing section to make sure my teeth don't collapse into the space.

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    2. Were you told that the implant is absolutely necessary/required, or are you getting it strictly for personal reasons?

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