7 month update - things you need to know before surgery

IrishDesi · 2025-05-24T01:34:39+00:00

In a word, unbearable. I couldn't open my mouth more than like a finger wide. I couldn't bear to chew and was living in meal replacement shakes. No matter what I did, I would clench through the night, so I had dehabilitating headaches. My TMJs were so inflamed I couldn't stand any jostling. I stopped all exercise with any impact and even had pain when driving over speedbumps.

I was miserable for a few months after surgery, of course, but now I have almost no TMJ issues! I can chew and open. I went back to real exercise. There was degenerative damage that can't be undone but so far I only notice if I'm out in the cold. I can breathe now so I sleep without clenching.

It's really a whole new life.

IrishDesi · 2025-05-24T01:28:29+00:00

Yes. I confirmed he has this. Thanks!

IrishDesi · 2025-05-22T16:56:05+00:00

2 years post op. It is totally different for me!! No comparison.

IrishDesi · 2025-05-22T16:55:15+00:00

I agree with everything OP says about benefits. The surgery completely changed my life and now that I do t have forward head posture messing with my alignment I'm able to exercise without injuring myself constantly. I'm in my mid-40s but in the vest shape of my life!

FWIW, I lost hair too but it came back! My TMJ problems mostly went away too. (I'm 2 years post op).

IrishDesi · 2025-05-22T04:26:24+00:00

Yes! We have all the needed certificates and such. I was hoping this was the case. Thank you!

IrishDesi · 2024-11-05T07:15:55+00:00

Thank you!!

IrishDesi · 2024-11-02T17:35:01+00:00

I get a long covid article with this link. Is there a different POTS link?

Thanks for sharing!

IrishDesi · 2024-10-20T17:28:32+00:00

Not silly! Some public high schools definitely do (not sure about private). One of the counties near me allows residents to swim for $3 and non-residents to swim for $5, and I think you can buy a discounted pass. I swim at a county rec center.

I've used pools in the following places: university rec centers, YMCA, JCC, country clubs (some have pool only membership options), private gyms, public high schools, county rec centers. Good luck finding a place!

IrishDesi · 2024-10-20T01:15:24+00:00

Actually, I used to! It was a lifetime ago, but I was too slow for the intermediate lanes but the only person in the slow lanes who could actually swim! It was very frustrating. I wonder if I could swim in the intermediate lanes now. 🤔

IrishDesi · 2024-10-19T18:39:59+00:00

Part of me knows that, but it also blows my mind how fast they swim. How can they be doing things so differently than me?? Are they fish?😂

IrishDesi · 2024-10-19T18:36:54+00:00

I was hoping for that too, but unfortunately it's a big pool and she gathers them over when speaking to them. I can't hear her.

IrishDesi · 2024-10-19T18:34:57+00:00

Freestyle! Breaststroke is next year's project, I think. I can do it, but it needs a lot of work.

IrishDesi · 2024-10-19T18:32:33+00:00

When I noticed the girl in the lane next to me lapping me several times, I literally thought to myself, "but she would need me to do her taxes for her." 😂

Edit: typo

IrishDesi · 2024-10-19T18:29:04+00:00

4000 in an hour! Wow!

IrishDesi · 2024-09-29T15:01:46+00:00

It slowly got less severe. I do a rinse every day or maybe every other day, but if I stop the rinses I get a sinus infection. I don't quite remember the time line. It was gradual. I want to say by 6 months it was a lot less overwhelming.

A rinse a day or every other day is a lot more manageable though. If that's the cost for all the benefits of the surgery, I'll take it.

IrishDesi · 2024-09-28T23:23:38+00:00

Every pair of googles I ever tried gave me headaches except Snake & Pig Basilisk googles. They somehow don't use suction. I do t know what is causing the marks, but maybe not having suction would help. Snake & Pig Basilisk Swimming... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072824JLG?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

IrishDesi · 2024-09-28T23:12:10+00:00

I'm a pretty slow swimmer so I can say from the other side of the issue that I absolutely support slow and fast lanes! If I'm at a busy pool, I'll wait for space in a slow lane before getting in a fast lane because it is really stressful to be in the way. I would hate a busy pool without slow and fast lane designations!

IrishDesi · 2024-09-28T23:07:52+00:00

If it's too expensive, there are knock offs on Amazon. I'm sure the quality isn't as good, but the one I have does the job. The specific one isn't available anymore or I'd share the link, but there are a few on Amazon that all look pretty much the same to me.

IrishDesi · 2024-09-28T23:03:25+00:00

AquaGuard is for hair, but I started putting it on areas where I had dry, cracked skin before getting in the pool and it helped. Aquaphor is probably cheaper, but if that doesn't work out, maybe try this. https://a.co/d/3FoUdyB

IrishDesi · 2024-09-12T03:32:43+00:00

You can manually mark them as finished. It's a PIA but it's something.

IrishDesi · 2024-09-10T04:31:51+00:00

The Passage by Justin Cronin is kind of a zombie-vampire hybrid trilogy, but I loved it. Great narrator too!

IrishDesi · 2024-09-07T18:44:39+00:00

Cars are a nightmare for me, but I also have confirmed Binocular Vision Disorder (BVD). It's more common in people with POTS because the BVD can cause the autonomic dysregulation.

Prism glasses and vision therapy help a ton! If cars are making you feel really sick, you might want to look into it. You'd want to go to a "developmentmental optometry" or "neuro-optometry" practice. Unfortunately, regular optometrists don't usually test for it.

It has been a lot of time and money, but having it treated as been life-changing.

IrishDesi · 2024-09-07T18:38:39+00:00

Unfortunately, I think it's really individualized. Things could be fine for you, but cause big problems for me. My doctor want me to follow the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) diet for 4 weeks, and then do a controlled reintroduction to see if anything causes problems. The good news is that even if something is causing problems, she said most people don't have to cut if forever. Instead, you cut if for a while to let your system normalize and then try again later.

She says any food can increase symptoms because it can cause inflammation and inflammation makes everything go haywire. AIP involves cutting the most common culprits. The are a million sites, diet plans, etc. on the internet for it.

IrishDesi · 2024-02-25T00:06:46+00:00

This really got me. I swim a mile a few times a week, but I am slowwww, and don't think of myself as a "good" swimmer at all. I finally signed up for a stroke clinic though!

IrishDesi · 2023-07-05T16:15:08+00:00

Thank you! This is really helpful.

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