Syringe to Spoon
Yesterday, a large piece of the wax separating my molars to pull my jaw back into place broke off into my mouth. After some effort, I managed to open my banded jaw just enough to push it out through my teeth with my tongue. So, I called my surgeon’s medical assistant, she consulted him, and this morning at 9 am, I returned to the clinic at Stanford.
My surgeon cut the myriad rubber bands which banded my jaws shut and prevented me from opening my mouth. Then, he removed all the wax in my mouth. Opening my yap felt really strange, as does the fact that my tongue can feel my actual molars again. After installing a pair of new rubber bands on each side, he told me to do some range-of-motion exercises.
My friends, I have graduated from liquids to soft foods. My diet can now include ice cream, pudding, soups of various kinds, and blended angel hair pasta (the blender chews it up into little tiny chunks for me), among other things. I don’t have to eat things with my 60cc syringe anymore. I have graduated to spoons.
I get to spend at least two more weeks without solid food. But, I did ask my surgeon if I could exercise…
“Don’t fall. Probably better to ride a trainer. But, when you get your heart rate up, it’s going to feel uncomfortable because your fractures are still healing, so just be careful.”
So, perhaps, a week from tomorrow, I’ll ramble 20 miles up and down Foothill Expressway and see how it feels. If it doesn’t hurt, it looks like I may end up with a non-zero November cycling chart after all. We’ll see. Better to have that big goose egg than mess up my body.
I guess next, I’d better see about checking on my valiant steed.
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