Day 6: Tingling Sensation

Day 6 (February 28, 2007)







I have slight tingling in my lower lip at random times. I suspect that my nerves are trying to reconnect. However, I won't know for sure until I ask the doctor on Friday.

Anyway, today is the last day I'll be staying as Gilbert and Stacey's home. They're going back to Taiwan early tomorrow, which means I'll have to start making my own food. I'm glad I invested in a Magic Bullet from the neighborhood Kohl's.

UPDATE: I went to C-Dental today to get some x-rays done. The entire process took five minutes. However, I had to wait an hour for the technicians to resolve their BSOD issue, reboot their computers, fix their databases, and print out my pictures. Ah, technology.

Day 5: The Gurgling Stomach

Day 5 (February 27, 2007)







I had some bad bouts with diarrhea yesterday. I won't even begin to describe what the toilet bowl looked like afterwards. It's too scary. I dared not look.

I realized that my stomach is still struggling to adapt to an all liquid diet. It's struggling mighty hard... like Sisyphus and the stone. The first sign of weakness is of course an incessant grumbling of the stomach. It drones on and on.

I read online that when the stomach gurgles, it's actually trying to reconcile the distribution of air and liquids in the stomach. Well... considering that's all that has been in there for the last couple of days, I guess I should just brush it off as a normal phenomenon. Still, when you try to sleep and are woken by the sounds of animal screams... but then realize it's your stomach, you tend to get a little edgy. The only time this is okay is if you're a Martian rebel leader in a Schwarzenegger flick.

I feel weak today in the arms and legs. Stacey says that I may be lacking in complex carbohydrates. I'm no expert in nutrition (if it tastes good, eat it) but it sounds about right. Normally, carbs should be the majority of one's diet. But for me, it hasn't been the case. Because it's difficult to drink rice and soy products (curse you, phlegm!) I've been staying as far away as possible. Bad idea. I need to soldier up and deal with it. Man cannot live on chicken broth and miso soup alone.

Day 4: Babysitting Bonanza

Day 4 (February 26, 2007)







A new problem has popped up: phlegm. Not being able to clear your throat or hawk loogies is really starting to bother me. I figured that I have two options. I can either swallow my saliva, or try to filter it out through my splint. Both are extremely gross.

Anyway, Stacey mixed me some salt water to rinse out my mouth. It's been dissolving the saliva for the most part. I'll write more about this later. Right now, Sammy wants to play computer games. 5-year-old girls are full of energy.

Day 3: The Quest For Protein

Day 3 (February 25, 2007)







I can feel myself getting weaker and skinnier. I noticed it in the shower last night. I need more protein in my liquid diet. On the bright side, I can speak much more clearly than before, in both Mandarin and English. It's at a level where Sammy can actually understand me. That's a step in the right direction.

It certainly didn't help that I had a cold yesterday. My nose was runny and my eyes were watering. I'm pretty sure I caught the cold while I was in the hospital. I wore my scarf to bed last night and sweated it out so I feel much better today. My eyes and nose are fine and my temperature is back down to a manageable level.

I still don't have any pain in my jaw, which is nothing short of miraculous. There's just a feeling of intense pressure that's difficult to describe. The only real discomfort that I have is a headache that stems from having to prop myself up while sleeping to prevent fluids from becoming trapped in my throat. That and I have cracked, chapped lips.

I spent the majority of yesterday in bed, drifting in and out of consciousness while listening to the UCLA Men's Basketball team rip Stanford a new one. Hurrah! We were undefeated at Pauley this season. Thank goodness for Ben Howland. That certainly cheered me up and helped me recover a little faster.

I'm going to spend the day watching movies on my laptop and replenishing my fluids. First up, Ghost Rider.

Day 2: The Cheek Fat Thickens

Day 2 (February 24, 2007)






Hooray for progress. I still don't have very much pain in my jaw, just a light throbbing feeling. However, I have regained feeling in my upper lip. As a result, I can enunciate words better. Granted, I still sound like some archaic demon from the Exorcist, but at least people can understand me now.

Swelling hasn't gone down yet though.

Extreme Makeover, Kevin Edition

The surgery is over. I am alive.

On Feb 22, Sharon dropped me off at Kaiser Permanente on Kiely in Santa Clara. Eventually, I was admitted to pre-opt, after reading US Weekly and People magazine in the lobby. Dr. Surpure and his assistant came by to take some pictures of my jaw for his personal records. Then, the anesthesiologist gave me a couple of shots (into the IV). The first one was a steroid, designed to reduce the swelling during the operation. The other was a narcotic "cocktail" to calm me down.

Did it calm me down? Nope! It had the opposite effect. I became kind of squirmy and uncomfortable. Also, I felt depressed, as if I was making a huge mistake. This, my friends, is why narcotics are bad for you. The orderly came by and told me to shoot some chemicals up my nose. Once I did that, I became unconscious. I don't remember anything else.

The next thing I knew, it was 6pm (about six hours later) and I was in tremendous pain. No, it wasn't from my jaw. The nurse was yanking the tubes out of my nose and out of my lungs. My nose was bleeding and my throat hurt like crazy. My lips were completely chapped, and my tongue was trapped behind my teeth. I also had the metallic taste of blood in my mouth. Plus, everything was REALLY REALLY loud. I read from another jaw surgery patient that when she woke up, it felt like someone was hitting all the keys on a piano at once. Yeah, it was sort of like that.

I could hear someone yell MR. SUNG over and over again... REALLY LOUDLY. But still, I couldn't wake up. I was just in pain. Do you remember how in Last Action Hero, Arnold's character pulls out a homing beacon out of his brain from his nostril? That's what it felt like... but up my esophagus. Finally, I opened my eyes, shifted my body from the stretcher to the hospital bed, and fell asleep. Stacy, Gilbert, and their daughters were there too, so they prayed for me and provided some nice emotional support. At this point, the nurses pumped up the morphine.

Surprisingly, my jaw wasn't in any sort of pain. My throat and nose hurt like crazy, but the jaw was fine. Even now, my jaw doesn't really hurt... and I'm not on any pain medication. I do have lots of ice on it though, in an attempt to minimize the swelling and better enunciate my words. Also, I did not suffer from any nausea either. Although I had some gas (burping and farting), I never felt the need to vomit. Even after eating some chicken broth for breakfast, I was fine. I guess it's because the doctors had the foresight to pump my stomach after breakfast to get rid of all the leaked pus and dirty black blood.

I also found out this morning that my surgery lasted much longer than anticipated because there were some complications with the left side of my face. My jaw refused to stay in place. I'll find out the whole story eventually. But it's most likely the reason why I don't have much feeling in my left cheek and lip. Dr. Surpure says that it's a good sign that I still have SOME feeling, because it means I can get it back in a few months. We'll see. I sure hope those nerves repair themselves. Otherwise, when I kiss in the future, it'll feel like I have half a lip.

I spent the night in the hospital. However, the nurse woke me up every two hours to take my temperature. Also, I had a hard time peeing. Because they had put a catheter up my urethra during the operation, I was stuck with a perpetual erection. However, I really really had to go. However, I couldn't. This was the most painful part of the night. I tried everything from pinching myself to thinking unsexy thoughts. No dice.

Eventually, I did manage to pee. And when I did, I ended up having to pee every hour. I suppose that since I will be on an all liquid diet for the next 3-4 weeks, I should get used to this.

As you'll be able to see below, I now resemble the child of Sammo Hung and Jabba the Hutt. When I finally saw myself in the mirror, I chuckled a bit. However, the ice has certainly helped reduce the redness. Dr. Surpure told me this morning that Sunday will be the worst day of swelling. After that, things should improve. I will go and see him again on March 2. In the meantime, I just have to eat (drink) well and take my temperature every day to check for infection.

I'm currently at Stacey and Gilbert's house. They will take care of me until I can take care of myself... or until they have to return on Taiwan on March 1. Thanks to everyone for your support. I'll post daily updates on my condition in this blog.

Before the Surgery
Day -2 (February 20, 2007)







The Recovery
Day 1 (February 23, 2007)








Bloody nose, chapped lips, other damage to face...

The Breath Before The Plunge

It's Tuesday night, Mardi Gras. And in many ways, I'll be forced to partake of the horrors of Lent thanks to surgery. Lent is one of those religious holidays where you're supposed to give up a material possession. In flaggellant tradition, this self denial builds character, virtue, or absolution. I'm not Catholic, so I don't really care.

However, the hard reality is that I will be giving up solid food due to the wires. With surgery about a day and a half away, I'm contemplating what a month of perpetual-shutness will be like. An all liquid diet? The horrors.

It's a good thing that Stacy and Gilbert have decided to allow me to crash at their house for the initial days after the surgery. The drugs, combined with fatigue and pain, would make me rather vulnerable if left alone. At least I won't have to worry about my new drinkable dinners for a while. Once I've kicked the painkillers, I'll most likely be able to survive on my own. Well... provided Sharon makes me rice gruel.

I've been reading stories on the internet about how important it is to have family nearby after jaw surgery, if  not for the convenience then for the emotional support. The unfortunate side effect of painkillers is a deep depression. So here is a message to my future self: "Don't give up! It's not so bad. The doctors just broke your jaw, shaved off bone, and reassembled it. You are swollen like a cherry right now, but you can make a project out of it. You love projects, right? Plus, this gives future jaw surgery patients a resource to calm their fears. When the swelling disappears, your bite will be corrected."

I need to eat a lot tonight. Gluttony-ho!

Surgery Notes

I went to go see Dr. Surpure at Santa Clara's Kaiser offices today to make some preparations before my surgery. For those of you who don't know, I'm having oral surgery to correct my bite, realign my jaw, and possibly help my clunky bones from bringing me unnecessary pain. To the parents out there, this is why you should give your kids braces. Otherwise, when they get older and their bones harden, they'll be stuck with jaw problems!

Anyway, the operation is set for February 22, 2007 at 7:00 AM. I'll spend the night in a hospital bed. Then, I'll recuperate at home with a wired jaw for two weeks. The jaw will remain wired for three weeks, during which I'll survive on liquids. I plan to return to work on March 8, 2007. However, I won't be able to engage in any vigorous exercise for three months.

"Prepare to lose 15 lbs. after the operation," someone told me.

Considering how skinny I am already, I predict that the soups and juices will transform me into a shadow of a man. Send your care packages, please!

Anyway, I plan to keep everyone updated via this blog. I will post daily updates of my progress, pictures of my swollen face, thoughts of boredom, and quirky observations of the recovery process. I'll also post some recipes in case some future surgery candidate decides to Google the keyword 'oral surgery support.'

Right now, my concerns are these:

1) Will the pain be terrible? Will the painkillers be worse?
2) What will I eat?
3) Will I lose permanent feeling in my jaw?
4) Will I suffer from tooth damage?
5) Will I be able to talk without pain?

I guess we'll find out in a couple of weeks.