Today I had my five week appointment with Dr A, and if I were being graded, I'd say I've earned myself an A+. Hooray! The first thing my OS looked into was that click that I had mentioned. We took yet another panoramic x-ray, and when Dr A saw it, he was visibly excited. Far from being indicative of something bad, that click was my right joint settling back into place. It is now back in the socket, though still with enough space to allow for limited pressure on my poor condyle and the formation of scar tissue. This is all wonderful news, and Dr A said that this was exactly what he'd been hoping for. He went so far as to say that whatever I'm doing, keep doing, because it's perfect. Yay! After all of my worries along the way this was so good to hear.
Dr A then asked my to open and bite, multiple times, while wearing the elastics. Again, he was very pleased. He said that I looked much better than when the wires had come off and it looked to him as though I was finally finding a bite and not wiggling all over the place. We repeated the process with the bands off, and I was able to maintain the bite. Dr A was seriously thrilled, and so was I. He said that in two weeks he'd like to see me again, and that maybe then I can get the arch bars off and just keep in those 4 screws. This would make me happy because they are starting to cut into my cheeks now that the swelling has gone down and I can move my face more.
Even more good news. I mentioned that bump that I thought was a hematoma, and he looked a bit worried. I told him I'd been putting warm packs on and massaging it. He felt around a bit, and said that it was likely and abscessed stitch, but I was doing precisely the right thing for it, that it was almost gone, and I should have no reason to worry.
After this exciteent me on my way with a hug, a pack of rubber bands, and instructions to start physical therapy next week. He told me that now that the joint has settled, it is now required rather than suggested in the case of trouble. The scar tissue I mentioned, while cushioning and lessening pain, can also cause issues with mobility. Because of this I'll need to go to physical therapy so that I can re-learn to articulate my jaw and get a full range of motion before scar tissue hardens.
Overall today was exciting in terms of my recovery, and I'm feeling really good.
I move back into school on Saturday, though with hurricane Irene on the way, this may change. Move in was originally set for Sunday, but my university sent out a memo to move in a day earlier to avoid the storm. However, lower Manhattan is being evacuated and I'm sure Long Island isn't far behind, so what this means for move in I have no idea. Either way I know that I will be safe, so right now my biggest concern is packing. My room is a mess, yet nothing has actually been packed. Things just seem to migrate from one side of the room to the other. Oh well. I'm off to pack some more so we can get the car loaded up tomorrow.
I hope the rest of you wonderful jaw bloggers are safe and well. :)
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