My surgery

Decided to take my full 3 week of med leave which I think was definitely the right decision. Even though I have the energy to go back to work at day 14 post-op, my face was still really swollen and sore in spots. I would have felt uncomfortable with all the movement.

At day 15 post-op, I woke up to a little transformation. A lot of my swelling went down and I had a lot more movement. Everything is still tight and numb but I am used to it. There are also areas that are really sore to the touch like right above my ears. I am really glad that I don't have to wear the compression bandage anymore because it was starting to irritate me whereas in the beginning it felt good to have its support.

At day 16 I resumed my daily 4 mile walks. Felt great to be active again. I am also back to doing all the household cleaning and such. I am way more active without fatigue now.

Today is day 18 and I gave myself a gentle facial with a nice exfoliant treatment and mask- avoiding all incision areas of course. My skin really needed a clean since up to now I was only allowed to wash it with a gentle cleanser and cotton balls. Once I am totally healed, I am going to treat myself to a fancy schmancy facial at a spa. :D

Overall, I am really excited about the results but can't wait for more of the swelling around my chin to go down so I can see my new profile.

Sorry it took a while to get back to this. I wanted to write about how my recovery went. I was out of it for the first 2 days and the evidence of that shows in all the typos of my original post. hahaha

Sleeping at a 45 degree angle has been surprisingly easy because I bought a foam wedge at a medical supply store. Highly recommend this - it was only $40 and provides more stable support than just plain pillows.

Here's a brief timeline of recovery so far:

3 days post op I no longer needed any pain meds. I had been taking 2 tylenol per day but wasn't in much pain. The biggest discomfort is the swelling and stiffness. My face and ears are really numb which is weird but not bothersome.

4 days post op I was eating a bit more as my appetite came back. All mushy or liquid food. Still couldn't open my mouth much. Saw doc again today who was thrilled with the lack of bruising I had. All incision sites are looking good. I've been cleaning them 2x daily with hydrogen peroxide and antibiotic ointment. Got to wash my hair but it was anticlimactic because there is so much ointment in it that I couldn't really get the hair in the back of my ears very clean!

5 days post op we had some people around at the house. I was all bandaged up but was able to have fun and socialize a bit. I can even smile a bit now.

8 days post op I had some of the stitches out. The incisions are healing really well. The biggest thing now is the swelling. There is a lot of swelling under my chin and then up by my cheek bones giving my face a wedged look. I also have a lump on one cheek that is causing a dimple. It is all normal. From now on, I will gently press on my face the way the doc showed me to encourage the lymph nodes to take the swell away. I can also cut down on wearing the compression bandage to only half a day now. I can really start to see my new jawline which is gonna look great once the swelling is down!

10 days post op I got all gussied up to attend a function. Wore my hair down and a full face of make up. It was awkward to get base makeup over all the lumps as they are still sore to the touch. But I looked totally normal with my hair covering the lumpy sides of my face and felt great.

11 days post op I went out to the beach. I am not supposed to tan on my face so wore a giant hat. It was nice to be out by the sea. ah. Really starting to feel normal again. A lot more movement in my neck and more swelling around my chin is gone. I also have some more energy. I had been feeling really tired by mid afternoon each day and really had to push myself but today was the first day that I didn't even feel tempted to nap. :) The idea of going back to work next week seems possible now but I will see how I feel. I have a job where I am moving around a lot so I may give it one more week. I put in for a 3 week med leave so may just stick to that.

I had this procedure done because my platysma muscles in my neck were already sagging and causing some slight jowling in my jaw. I was developing the dreaded family turkey neck that my older relatives all had! It was something that my friends told me did not detract from my face, but friends are supposed to say stuff like that. It was very noticeable to me and I guess I am just not ready to look my age especially since I don't act it! :) And so after consulting with the highly talented and capable staff of Dr. Albert Fox, I felt confident now was the time - I was getting what I called a 'Gooble-ectomy.'

My advice to anyone considering this type of surgery is to make sure you have a doctor who has experience, who can who you photos of his work, you takes as much time as you need to explain things to you and who you can trust. You will be under anesthetic so make sure there will be a CRNA in the room monitoring you constantly. I would also make sure that you can take 2-3 weeks off and have someone for the first 4-5 days that can help you. You may be one of the lucky ones who are on your feet in days- but you may not- so prepare for the worst.

I had my surgery yesterday here are as many details as I can remember.
I was brought into the surgical suite by the nurse who would be my caretaker. She asked some questions, explained what would happen and then I was dressed for the surgery. I then met the scrub nurse who would assist the doctor and the CRNA who would administer the anesthesia and watch me the whole time. Then Dr. Albert came in to mark up my face. I started getting really nervous then but everyone was so friendly and comforting that I knew I was in great hands.

We all marched into the OR and I hopped up on the table. The CNRA placed the IV which was a little pinch and felt cold. There was friendly chatter to make me comfortable and then… I woke up and it was over! I could not believe it. I didn't even remember falling asleep but I was out for 5 hours and all I was thinking is how badly I had to pee. Yes, that was my biggest discomfort which was quickly remedied by my care nurse.

I felt very woozy afterwards and needed to stay in recovery about two hours. The anesthesia was the hardest part for me. I slept most of the day and would describe the pain on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the worst) at a 4. I only took Tylenol about every 8-10 hours. It is a burning pulling type of pain and my jaw is super tight- like I ate ten bagels and then chewed 27 packs of gum.

Today I had the wrappings taken off and the drains out. It felt great to take all that heavy stuff off. The drains really pinched and so it was a relief to get them out. I still feel woozy today but haven't really eaten much. Eating has definitely been tough. Plan on a liquid diet for sure. Chewing right now feels like a workout- not the good kind.

I will update in a few days. So grateful for the team at Dr. Fox's office- everyone from the receptionist to the OR staff and of course Dr. Fox has so far made this a really excellent experience. Can not stress how important it is to find the right place to have a procedure like this done. :)