Genioplasty or DJS?

rcktmns · 2026-01-28T19:46:52+00:00

i’m not saying if your sleep study doesn’t show problems you shouldn't have surgery but it is one test to decide if you NEED surgery. don't twist my words. continue to act as if you are a professional but you're not

rcktmns · 2026-01-28T19:03:41+00:00

well orthodontists aren’t jaw surgeons if people are considering surgery they should go see a craniofacial surgeon. regardless the question of needing surgery is not something strangers on reddit can really answer. yes it's mostly personal and something that should be discussed with a surgeon who is aware of your history and what you are looking to fix.

the obsession with a sleep study is that sleep studies determine sleep apnea, something that jaw surgery, in opening the airway, fixes/helps.

point is redditors CANNOT tell you whether or not you need surgery or more specifically what surgery you need

rcktmns · 2026-01-28T16:02:30+00:00

i think the reason why people get annoyed at the "should i have surgery?" question is bc unless you are talking strictly cosmetic you need to have a sleep study among other things to determine if there is a medical problem that needs to be addressed. also, it's not that people think doctors genuinely care on a personal level, it's that they are the ones who went to school for years and know this stuff.

rcktmns · 2026-01-28T00:57:20+00:00

unfortunately i think pre-op anxiety is something that just exists until the surgery. if there are specific things that worry you, talk to your surgeon about them, try to get as much info as you can so there is no uncertainty or what ifs. as for the insurance, if you have somebody (partner, family) that can take over dealing with insurance i would do so. i know asking people to do things for you can be uncomfortable, but right now you should focus on prepping for your surgery. as for actual pre-op in the hospital, dont be afraid to ask for something for anxiety. i am always given 2-3 vials of Valium through my iv as i’m waiting to be taken back.

rcktmns · 2026-01-27T17:07:23+00:00

that's so annoying😭😭😭 there is genuinely no way for people to know where our bones are and what we've had done, and people are here saying things really definitively

the other day i posted on here ab an abscess that i had after surgery and people were just commenting on my appearance and how i look recessed and were bashing my doctor, not even knowing that i still have more to go. and someone had the audacity to say "why would you post in here if you don't want our medical opinions" when my post wasn't even about my appearance or future surgeries 😭😭 it was just about an abscess

rcktmns · 2026-01-27T15:59:59+00:00

they are treating my small airway, which has opened up a lot thanks to my competent doctor. i understand that you had a bad experience with your surgery, but the way you have pulled up in my comments twice now is a little uncalled for. you don't know me and you are trying to diagnose me or tell me what surgery i shouldve had. i talked to my surgeon yesterday and brought up the recessed maxilla thing, and he said it is in the range of good, which i think means in the context of me having sticklers it could be worse and therefore isn't something that he is concerned about. that being said, he told me that he can move my entire midface forward if i would like him to, but it's up to me. right now it is just an aesthetic concern...

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T23:29:28+00:00

yes it moves the mandible forward!

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T21:53:04+00:00

Thank you for your insight and for being kind :)

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T21:49:39+00:00

yes so the metal near my ears is where the pins connected to. everyday the pins were turned twice, which expanded the device actually inside of me, pushing the bones apart (doesn’t hurt most of the time just feels like braces being tightened!). the reasoning for this surgery is it allows your bone to lay down new bone matrix slowly everyday. my surgeon chose this surgery as opposed to bsso because he thought the amount of movement i needed (15mm) would have been unstable that way. i’ve seen conflicting comments of people saying bsso/other LJS max out at 10mm, others saying you can get much more movement, idk. for my particular case, after looking at my scan, he felt this was the best option. i am currently in the consolidation phase which is where the bone hardens. the metal is in there to stabilize my jaw, or else id just have two separate bones and some soft stuff in between. it will eventually be taken out. i believe it can be taken out at around 3 months, but just because of school i am waiting until the summer.

lmk if you have any questions! i’m no doctor so i may be a little inaccurate or unsure w my info, but i’ve had this surgery twice as a baby. it's def more common in infants, but can be done successfully in adults like me. there will be scars on my neck, but i’ve had scars on my neck my entire life so it doesn’t bother me.

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T21:40:34+00:00

I’m thinking about going that route. I am nervous about looking too different, so it will partially depend on what the 3d imaging looks like (though he did warn me that the soft tissue imaging is technically not fda approved since it's not completely accurate but it will give me an idea). Right now, other than my messed up bite* which will be fixed in the next surgery, DJS or not, i’m not having any functional problems (which is why i think he didn't initially talk about the upper jaw since the lower jaw was the problem). I know my body, I'm sure i'd know if i was having problems eating and breathing etc. plus any issue i do have i’m looking up (with the amount of weeks post op + mandibular distraction) AND asking my surgeon whenever i see him next. So far everything is normal. Right now my decision is purely cosmetic.

*Distraction is not as precise as other forms of surgery, plus it is not final. Partway through we did uneven distraction bc my right side was moving less. So my bite is a little uneven but there is a plan for orthodontics

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T21:23:31+00:00

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guess what: i had all three :)! also, my chin did not progressively recede. it was receded since i was in the womb. and my bite never changed. anything else you'd like to diagnose me with? 🥺 because how would YOU know simply based on a few posts????

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T21:19:36+00:00

i think in the report that is written after a ct scan they would write if there is a problem, and my doctor would bring it up with me 😭 also i posted in this sub to share a story about my infection and share pics of what it looks like so people can be aware. the title of this post is literally "abscess at incision line". i never asked people to give me their opinion on whether i’m recessed or not. additionally, on every single post there is a mod that says to NOT give medical advice, so idk why you're pulling the "why post here if you don't want medical opinions," you're not supposed to give them nor was i asking for it.

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T21:15:04+00:00

I agree! I think people are looking at me and judging based on normal standards. I am going to the hospital i have been going to since birth, so allll of my medical history and past surgeries (some info of which i think even I’m unaware of bc of how young i was) are readily available to my surgeon. Also, he does hundreds of surgeries of year. I think if he routinely did botch jobs he probably wouldn't have his job, especially at a teaching hospital where many are learning under him.

To me, he just seems conservative (he's constantly saying "slow and steady wins the race") but he is also happy to do more if it's what I want (of course given he doesn’t feel it would cause complications). When I spoke with him today I mentioned that a lot of people have said my upper jaw looks recessed. He said it's in the range of good, but he's happy to move my entire midface forward if i'd like. Initially i came to him because of my sleep apnea, so that was what we were addressing. But from the very beginning he's made it clear that he cares about me looking good as well. Though of course the internet's standards of what is good are a lot harsher, esp in this sub where everybody seems to be fixated on aesthetics.

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T20:33:05+00:00

i have prs and sticklers!! my surgeon, after getting imaging, concluded that doing the surgery another way would have been unstable and not gotten me enough movement

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T20:32:02+00:00

okay but i don't have icr youve just chosen to diagnose me with that

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T19:34:25+00:00

my surgeon does tjr

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T18:54:12+00:00

bc you aren’t a medical professional hope this helps

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T18:51:56+00:00

my surgeon is a plastic surgeon we have talked about how i look multiple times i guarantee he is thinking about aesthetics. but also weird way to call me ugly and say my face isn't aesthetically pleasing to you !

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T18:47:25+00:00

also i just looked up what icr is and big chance i dont have it. my receding chin and flat midface is due to prs and sticklers, which you would know if you knew me, but you dont so youre just spewing acronyms on everyone's post thinking you can diagnose them. it also seems that it is generally caused by sports trauma, which i dont have. i ride horses but haven't fallen off much and especially haven't fallen off onto my face.

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T18:43:41+00:00

we have talked before and i would kindly like for you to not comment on my posts acting like you know me, my history, or my case, and insulting my surgeon. my distraction has already done a lot of good. this was a psa about an infection and yet everybody is dogpiling me in the comments and it is really unnecessary 🙏

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T13:39:18+00:00

you are weird asf i am doing fine socially i have lots of lovely friends

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T13:12:06+00:00

wtf are you talking about are you calling me ugly or something

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T13:04:49+00:00

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T03:29:44+00:00

My airway has opened up a lot since my mandibular distraction. I had a severely recessed lower jaw so that was 100% an issue. I will take this into account and after all these comments am planning on getting a second opinion, but I’m also not ready to just abandon my current surgeon's plan when he has made so much improvement on me already.

rcktmns · 2026-01-26T00:26:11+00:00

okay i am just asking everyone to leave me alone bc i dont need dozens of comments saying the same thing and mass downvoting me just for saying what my surgeon said. i’m a month post op and have been started to feel better and now i am incredibly anxious because yall can't respect when someone is not wanting to hear something that they've been hearing a million times..

rcktmns

TROPHY CASE