FFS in Boston with Dr Speigel

[Tori_Chi]

Wow Eva! You look so great.  I'm sorry the pain was so bad.  I found another friend who is going to take care of me after, so I think it will be okay. But it makes me feel good that you are able to walk around Boston and stuff!

[serenityfaith]

Eva, you look amazing!!! Like they took twenty years off of you!!!!(I truly mean no offense) I cant wait to see your results after you heal!!! Absolutely beautiful darling!! Hang in there!

[Eva]

Hey THANKS everyone Im still kinda undecided at the moment but I know its gonna change a lot as I heal up and I still have a LONG way to go there...

Here's a couple pics without the nose splint and WAY too much make up on covering my bruises... I still feel like I got my ass severely beat, so swollen and sore and numb My Jaw and chin are swollen up HUGE and I still have a fat lip like someone punched me a few times in the mouth  Both are way bigger than they were pre op I know the upper lip should end up a little bigger but Im hoping it shrinks a bit... Dr Spiegel said it would over the next 1-2 weeks and he assured me he didn't do much augmentation, thats what I asked for... The jaw and chin will be at least a month for the swelling/pain to go down with improvements out six months for the final result... I love my nose and the brow and the brow lift    So 9 days post op and I went from absolutely the worst Ive ever felt to somewhat functional....





Its great to be home, it was a LONG day yesterday getting home but I made it without any problems or funny looks.... I am at least able to go out and take care of business today... Thankfully there were different girls at the vet where my dog was boarded and the bitchy woman at the post office seemed indifferent to me as usual...

Now Im just gonna try to relax for a few days and heal up... 

[Devlyn]

Back to resting up!

[Eva]

Yep, still a long way to go but at least it cant get worse

Its very hard to sleep, very hard to get comfortable with so many sore spots, still literally a MAJOR headache but the Ibuprofen helps I guess, Im off the Oxycodone now Also all the stitches in my mouth along my lower gum line SUCK, they are self dissolving stitches and they are getting thinner but still very annoying... Every time I eat something(it just HURTS to just to chew anything ) they get all clogged up with food and its a literal pain to get it all out.... I have some nasty tasting prescription mouthwash I use after eating... Its weird brushing my teeth too because Im NUMB in some spots....

[mmmmm]

... The jaw and chin will be at least a month for the swelling/pain to go down with improvements out six months for the final result...

Massage is the key for lower face swelling. It gets stuck there for a month and often longer. With massage you can get rid of swelling much faster. Not only for looks, you want that swelling gone ASAP also for reasons like inflammation, infection, etc... I did a LOT of massage, and ice before and after massage, and at 10 days after the surgery I had less lower face swelling than most people have at 1 month. It's painful, but it's worth doing it, everything gets better so much sooner.

[Eva]

Yes Dr Spiegel mentioned massage and Ive been doing that along with wearing the ace bandages all the time now that Im home... Im considering going back to ice packs but they never seemed to help me much, heat actually feels better to me...

[Devlyn]

Be careful though, I thought heat/inflammation/swelling were all related. Disclaimer: I'm definitely not a doctor!

I was with one of Dr Spiegel's clients, her mouth stitches were coming out and driving her crazy that day.

Hugs, Devlyn

[Eva]

They are starting to fall out, thats good!!! By heat I just mean like after a warm shower, I dont use any other way to warm it

[Dodie]

Wow
Home sweet home.
U look great and look so happy!
Dodie

[Eva]

Thanks Dodie yes its great to have the hard part behind me

I donno about happy though... I know Im being irrational but my jaw and chin are really getting to me... They are huge, bigger than they used to be... Now I know its gotta just be swelling that will eventually go away... You cant remove bone and end up bigger in the end.... I like everything else so far but the pain and discomfort... Still its weird now looking at old pics and thinking I looked pretty good and I hate to say "better than now"...  I think that might just be some of the "post op blues" Ive read about... ALL of my earlier pics are now no good to me and Im even gonna eventually want to redo my drivers license and passport...

This got to me when I got dropped off at the airport... Dr Spiegel wouldn't let me leave without the ace bandages on but Id worn my wig there... The cab driver sir'ed me for the first time in at least 6 months   That SUCKED!!! WTF I was thinking... My body and voice and everything are pretty good... To get sir'ed really sucked, I had on some nice feminine boots and jeans and coat, scarf, hat gloves. purse ect but just my beat up face with no make up and a pair of sunglasses... I was able to make myself presentable enough in the bathroom at the airport and I had no problems with my hair on after that but still

[Dodie]

Hey
Hang in there.
U will look great. That swelling will go away just do what the doc says
I have an issue under my chin with scar tissue that is unusual so may have to have it worked on
Post op blues is common just take it a day at a time
U will be sming soon kiddo
Luv
Dodie

[TerriT]

Eva I'm so glad you are doing better. Thank you for your detailed report. It gives me hope I'll get better too.

[Eva]

Hi Terri, I think Im like a week ahead of you??? Yes the worst is over, that first week is HELL

Im by no means done yet though

Well most of the stitches fell out, theres like 2-3 left so thats good 

DAMN its still sore though, I cant seem to sleep very well unless I get plastered and then I dont really even sleep anyway 

I thought it was getting better but the numbness is WORSE than ever this morning even though the swelling seems better   

Yes Im starting to have regrets now worrying I might end up like this permanently or possibly for YEARS... That in my mind wouldn't be worth it 

Ice and massage seems to help with the swelling but nothing seems to help the numbness and loss of feeling...

The numbness is all along my lower jaw and chin, up to my upper and lower lips and even the end of my nose... also my entire forehead except for right in the middle where the feeling thats there is strange and unpleasant... Most of the top of my head behind the scar is numb and its the same behind the facelift scars... That means my ears and the area behind them is very numb as well...

My lips are getting better but from the start my upper lip has seemed bigger in the left side and Im worried that will be permanent... This is REALLY no fun 

[mmmmm]

Stop panicking, you have to be patient (you are a patient), you need to give your body time to heal. You made a decision and you will look amazing, but before that happens, your body will just do its best to do what it does after such trauma, and take it's time to deal with the consequences of your decision. It would be amazing if we could just wake up after FFS and look completely amazing and beautiful right from start without any recovery.. sadly it is the opposite. But it is well worth of everything in the end. Trust me.

Many soft tissue assymetries will happen, swelling just doesn't care much about symmetry. So don't worry about such details. Only after a few months you will be able see if there are any details that might need a little fix, but even then any surgeon will tell you to wait at least about a year or more, because it could resolve on it's own.

[Devlyn]

Eva, how long did Dr Spiegel say the recovery would take? You need to give it time, hon, it's too early to start worrying.

Hugs, Devlyn

[Eva]

Stop panicking, you have to be patient (you are a patient), you need to give your body time to heal. You made a decision and you will look amazing, but before that happens, your body will just do its best to do what it does after such trauma, and take it's time to deal with the consequences of your decision. It would be amazing if we could just wake up after FFS and look completely amazing and beautiful right from start without any recovery.. sadly it is the opposite. But it is well worth of everything in the end. Trust me.

Many soft tissue assymetries will happen, swelling just doesn't care much about symmetry. So don't worry about such details. Only after a few months you will be able see if there are any details that might need a little fix, but even then any surgeon will tell you to wait at least about a year or more, because it could resolve on it's own.

Hey Mmmm thanks really its good to hear reassurance from someone who's been there.... This is tough for me right now

[Eva]

Eva, how long did Dr Spiegel say the recovery would take? You need to give it time, hon, it's too early to start worrying.

Hugs, Devlyn

Yes I know, he said a month minimum for the jaw and chin and 1-2 weeks for my lip... He said 6 months for all the swelling to go down and up to 2 years before I regain full sensation...

Thats A LONG time, and I did know that going in but reality is a whole different deal you know

Here's couple pics today, looks like the swelling in my jaw and chin might be a little better, the scar under my nose seems to be healing well...

It IS only 10 days post op so I should be able to look forward to improvement even if SLOW by the day... Im just NOT a patient person but I guess I have no choice here....

[possessed]

You already look amazing. 10 days is too early for the swelling to go down. And when it comes to sensations it took about 4 years in my case... We all heal differently. What is important is the result so yours looks already amazing. I can imagine how good you will look like in a few months. I wish you a speedy recovery.

[Yasmeen]

Also all the stitches in my mouth along my lower gum line SUCK, they are self dissolving stitches and they are getting thinner but still very annoying... Every time I eat something(it just HURTS to just to chew anything ) they get all clogged up with food and its a literal pain to get it all out.... I have some nasty tasting prescription mouthwash I use after eating... Its weird brushing my teeth too because Im NUMB in some spots....

Have you tried drinking coca cola with food?

Oh.. the numb feeling in my lower teeth.. I know what you mean. It got a little better this week. I can now actually tell when I'm brushing my teeth. I'm also starting to feel my scalp a little again. I'm 6 weeks post-op.. Please be more patient or you'll go mental! I still have lots of swelling in my chin and lips and some around my eyes (blepharoplasty and midfacelift) and I don't look normal yet. Recovery is exhausting on more than one level and I have experienced ups and downs with every recovery I had so far. The downs make it even more draining. I gave up on being impatient, because there's just no way to rush recovery. My mind can go from 'I love how I look' to 'I look like a freak' in an hour or less.. It'll probable take a couple of more months before I can tell how I really feel about my FFS. If you have a lot of time on your side then please find things to keep you busy. Take care.