Jaw Surgery Scheduled for 6/15/2012

The jaw surgery is scheduled for June 15, 2012.  It seems so close after the years our family has spent working towards Brian's jaw surgery.  Just getting to this point has been a challenge and we are all struggling to imagine the challenges that lay ahead.  There is excitement, fear, exhaustion but most of all there is love.  My job as Brian's Mom was to make sure he had this opportunity - his job is now to walk down the path to full recovery with all of us at his side and cheering him on.

Orthognathic or jaw surgery is expensive (about $40,000) and seldom covered by health insurance.  Health insurance likes to classify this procedure as "cosmetic" rather than medically necessary.  My son's upper jaw is extremely narrow and his bottom jaw is extremely wide - basically his upper jaw can fit into his lower jaw.  Here's a look at some of Brian's symptoms:

• Speech impediment - after 6 years of speech therapy
• Mouth breathing - impacting activities
• Teeth do not touch unless Brian moves his lower jaw to one side or the other
• Unable to chew food with his mouth closed
• Unable to close mouth unless a conscious effort is made to raise his lower lip
• Sleep Apnea
• Flatness in face under eyes and difficulty smiling - ok this one is cosmetic, but I want my son to be able to smile freely.

Not to mention his deviated septum.  One side of his nasal passage way is basically completely blocked and the other side is mostly blocked.

Brian is 18 years old now, he has lived this way all of his life.  His experiences have helped shape the man he has become, but it was not an easy road to travel.  Children and even some adults can be so unkind.  When Brian was younger, he would share difficult times with me; however, as he got older, he kept these events to himself and managed them internally.

Just two years ago, Brian switched schools.  One of his teacher's asked Brian to read aloud, so he began to read.  The entire class burst out laughing at the way Brian speaks.  Brian never told me about this, someone else did.  I asked Brian why he didn't tell me and he said that the people who laughed are just kids and either the kids would figure out that he is just a regular guy or they wouldn't. 

He said, "Mom, it's ok".  He has said that to me many times over the years.

Well, perhaps this is a good overview of our family's journey to this point - 3 weeks prior to Brian's surgery.  There will be more posts and daily posts after the surgery.  I got the idea to blog from Graham (http://doublejawsurgery.com/) - he is simply amazing.  I hope by blogging about Brian's surgery - other families will find courage to move forward even when it feels every door has closed around them.

More to come....