So on the one hand, I really want to get this surgery done. Here are my reasons for having the surgery asap:
- My TMJ pain has gotten way worse in the past 2 months.
- My joint on one side is very swollen and sticking out, not sure what this means :S
- I really want to be out of these braces asap!
- Its gotten harder to chew my food without getting a migraine
- My mouth opens about 2/3 as much as it did pre braces, if I try to open it more I hear cracking noises
- 7 months is just too far away!!!
Ok so I guess I have to list my reasons to not push my surgery sooner and leave it for the original time I had wanted:
- I have a full year course with a huge portion of the workload due after the holidays
- I'll end up missing a lot of these lectures, although my TA said she'll work it out for me
- Its going to be winter here!! Which means very sub zero temperatures
- Technically I'm suppose to be tutoring astronomy students all year
- My mom will be flying here from Auss in the winter, lots of cancelled flights
Oh the damn obligations!!
It feels like school is my largest contributing factor! BAHH
Well my orthodontist appointment is in two weeks and thats when we will find out this actual surgery date!!
I'll just go ask the universe to figure this one out for me because I am lost!!
In the meantime I'm going to go study and use this whole jaw thing as a good excuse to keep eating ice cream :) Whats the point in trying to look attractive when I have an underbite, braces, and will soon look like I got hit by a truck? Thats just logic to me :P
Hope everyone is doing good :)
I feel the same way... my overbite is so much worse after 16 mos in braces, and one of my joints cracks and hurts and feels out of alignment. I want my surgery now!!
ReplyDeleteTerra, I hear you! My pain has gotten a lot worse too, and I would like the surgery sooner rather than later. I hope you're able to work something out so that you can get some relief and still keep up with your schoolwork and other commitments. Let us know how it goes at your ortho appointment!
ReplyDeleteHi Terra,
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you will make the decision that is best for you, but I say if you're experiencing worsening pain AND if your teachers are willing to work around your surgery, I would go ahead and have the surgery sooner rather than later. What is your major?
You look great by the way! I think you'll be really happy with the jaw surgery results.
Take care,
Tara
thanks for the comments guys!! It helps a lot to know there are people out there going through the same thing.
ReplyDeleteTara- I'm hoping, I just feel awful about taking a term off which I will probably have to do for my major courses. I'm in Business and specializing in Accounting, so the workload catches up pretty fast.
Hope you're doing well :)
Terra, I was thinking you might be a science major when I saw the comment on Astronomy. I am a CPA and was an accounting major during college, and I can tell you that if there was ever a career that wouldn't hold you back if you had to take off a term, it's accounting, seriously! The demand in our industry is so overwhelming right now with such a shortage of supply. This trend is expected to continue well into the next decade, especially in the next few years as we go towards IFRS. I'm not sure when you're graduating, but my advice is to be sure to give yourself plenty of healing time before taking on a full time job after graduation. We work a lot of hours (at least in public accounting). Then again, I do hear where you are coming from about not wanting to get behind. I would think having the surgery at least a year before graduating college would be ideal, if doable. Just my two cents, I'm sure you'll make the best decision for you!
ReplyDeleteTara- Thanks so much for the advice, I'm going to try to get a CA designation once I have my degree so I guess it really is better to get all of this out of the way as soon as possible. I tutor astronomy students since its a good reference from the natural science department and I really wanted to go into astronomy, but the demand is pretty low.
ReplyDeleteThe demand for accountants really made me change my mind, and my mom is an accountant so I hear all about it from her lol
I'm glad to hear that accounting is the way to go, makes me feel a lot better about my decision to go into business as opposed to science.
Terra,
ReplyDeleteYou said Chartered Accountant? Are you American? I am sorry, I assumed you were! Where do you live? I'm sure the demand is significant internationally though.
If you have a strong passion for science, I will tell you that business and Corporate America are quite different from science. I, too, was a science major my first year of college and switched when I realized I wanted a more stable career path with strong demand and unlimited earning potential (although that last part isn't so important to me now). Sometimes, I often wondering whether I would have been happier with a career choice I was passionate about. It's hard for me to be passionate about numbers, but everyone is different. I like my job but I get bored with it and wish it were more "fun," but that's just my temperament (if you know Myers Briggs, I'm an ENFP whereas most accountants are ISTJs, so the complete opposite go figure!). The good news is that there are plenty of jobs and applications in the field of Accounting, you'll make a really good living, and if you want to work part time so you can enjoy your science hobbies on the side, you can do that easily in this career.
By the way, last year when I was on the Big Island, Hawaii, we went up to the summit of Mauna Kea for night sky stargazing and hot chocolate. It was awesome! The NASA telescopes were pretty cool and we got to see so many neat things!
Back to the school thing (sorry for the tangent!), if you haven't already taken Myers Briggs and want a free good alternative (the real test is $800 and has to be administered by a licensed psychologist but sometimes school career service centers have alternatives of the MBTI test), go to www.humanmetrics.com. You will learn a lot about yourself and what types of careers you would be happiest with. It's the number one test used in career placement; however, it's only a tool. It sounds as if you might be questioning your career decision, so I would suggest this. Also, try to job shadow and intern if at all possible. Shadowing will give you great insights into the profession and only takes a day of your time. If you know your MBTI or take the test, I'd love to know your TI (type indicator).
Good luck to you!!
Tara
I'm Canadian lol
ReplyDeleteChartered Accountants exist in the US too right? Or is it called something else?
I've heard a lot about the international demand, which seems really nice because theres always the option to move around. My mom is an accountant in Australia. I think I actually have the option of doing an exchange or an internship over there, if I manage to get the jaw surgery done before I'm done school lol
Oh I just did the test lol, i got INTJ. apparently the natural sciences are a good career choice for me lolol
Thanks for telling me about that test. Very interesting to see how our personalities relate to our interests.
Like you, it all came down to the potential of the career I chose. I feel like having stability in a career is probably something I'll really value down the road and with a constantly changing economic situation.
It took me a long time to decide on accounting. I was very interested in astrophysics and quantum physics and the switch to apply into a business program was very last minute. I feel better about it now after talking to professors at my university who studied astrophysics and say that there isn't much of a demand for it. I was advised that its a good hobby to keep.
I really want to go to Hawaii one day and see their observatories, they have a great elevation for space optics. Some day!
When I started university I was pretty upset with the way the corporate world functions and on many occasions I considered changing my major to something science related, but it seems like all my current courses would go to waste because I'm not in a major/minor program so they don't really transfer the same. Now I'm at a point where I'm pretty happy with it, the courses relate to each other so much that its become pretty easy to understand why things work they way they do and hopefully down the road I'll be happy with this decision.
What a coincidence that we both have the love for science yet we're both in business lol AND we both need jaw surgery!
Yes, all coincidences, and the biggest - we have the same name (different spelling)!
ReplyDeleteWe call it Certified Public Accountant here but it's essentially the same thing as a CA.
If you're an INTJ you're actually PERFECT for accounting. Although most older generation accountants are ISTJs, being intuitive (N) is going to give you a significant advantage in your career in accounting. There have actually been studies performed by the American Inst. of CPAs that show our profession really needs more of your type (if you want a copy of the research project let me know I'll email it to you).
Being an intuitive will literally set you apart from your peers, primarily because you see the big picture so easily. You see the "what if" vs. the "what is," and believe it or not, only 25% of the world are Intuitives. You're theoretical and easily make connections between seemingly unrelated things. You would be very good at forensic accounting, international accounting and in public accounting - tax or audit. We have an INTJ tax manager at our firm and she loves what she does because tax law changes every 6 months and it's very challenging. In public accounting, most accountants are Sensors (S) but most partners and business owners (and world leaders and scientists) are Intuitives (N). Your type is very rare... You will probably prefer autonomous environments (especially if you're not a big fan of Corporate Environments). Small and medium sized businesses are perfect for those who prefer more independence at work and less "red tape." I could go on and on but now I'm getting off the subject haha... I love psychology which is what all this MBTI is about.
As an amateur, I really enjoy learning about quantum physics. Have you ever seen the video "What the Bleep do we Know, Down the Rabbit Hole?" It's a documentary made by the world's leading physicists. I recommend it!! It's literally mind-blowing and I have to take it in pieces. We have a TV show here called The Universe that is narrated by the same physicists as in the video. I don't think there are many "expert" physicists in the world, that's for sure, so I can see how there might be a low demand. But it would be a really cool job! I'm a huge Stephen Hawkin fan - have you read any of his works?
Hey, you get the TMJ cracking and locking and crunching noise too? finally someone who understands!!!
ReplyDeletexxx
Hi Tara,
ReplyDeleteI'm new to your blog and was curious about your TMJ issues. I'm getting double jaw surgery to improve my bite to help my TMJ issues. I get grinding noises when I yawn or open my mouth too wide. I sometimes take anti-inflammatory medicine and I've taken physical therapy for it to adjust how I open my jaw. I just got my braces on a month ago and the plan is to extract 3 teeth, then jaw surgery. The jaw surgery involves moving the lower jaw forward quite a bit and the upper jaw slightly forward and maybe a little higher (the surgeon likes where my gum line is so he's not sure on this part). I'm sooo worried that my TMJ issues will only increase after the surgery because I was told by one surgeon that moving the lower jaw forward may increase the load on the joints. But the surgeon I'm with says that his technique doesn't contort the condyles as much so I shouldn't have this issue.