slightly OT... xray after my latest reconstructive surgery

[DueyT]

Chris, one of these days I'll have to take the Beast on a road trip and pop down the 401/40 and see ya...been a few years since I lived in St-Hubert. Can't remember, but did you say you're right downtown or somewhere around LaSalle/Beaconsfield?

Cheers,
Duey

[MBXB]

Hang in there, Chris! Stay agressive with the physical therapy and hang real tough with the mental part. You're restablishing connections that took your whole life to develop, so even it if doesn't work at first, keep doing it.

Ramon

[misfortune]

I, for one, would welcome a backstory as to what happened. Good luck and keep the good outlook.

[Rory]

I had all the pink circled parts put in November 3rd, the lower chin piece was from emergency surgery january 2003.
I did not notice until you said it, but ya, the braces do seem to be pulling to one side!
I will talk to my ortho when i see him.
Believe it or not, the pain was not that bad, I stopped the demerol on the 5th day out, the worst part is the swelling and trying to eat, liquid, liquid, liquid!

It is most likely just the fact that it is a pano x-ray. It is the way the x-rays were shot through your head (3D makeup squished onto a 2D film). Also, if you can afford it, you may want to get your teeth cleaned every 3-4 months while you are in braces to help prevent any cavities. It is really hard to keep your teeth clean with those buggers on there. It may be possible to get your dental insurance to pay for the extra cleanings if you are at high risk (but don't count on it because they are the insurance companies ). Good luck to you.

Best,
Rory

[SharkmanBMW]

Hang in there, Chris! Stay agressive with the physical therapy and hang real tough with the mental part. You're restablishing connections that took your whole life to develop, so even it if doesn't work at first, keep doing it.

Ramon

Ramon... funny you mention the mental part... it is the hardest part to deal with.
I don't always have the best outlook... it is tough when for the last 2 years i have been dealing with the pain and poorly functioning jaw... gets aggravating, depressing and somedays I get to the point where I want to kick everybody's ass!

[SharkmanBMW]

the story:
I was with my friend at 7 pm on January 27th 2003 when we t boned a 10 wheel dump truck full of snow... the big ones - 4 front wheels that turn...
This is a type of snow removal truck and it turned directly in front of my friend (driver) and myself as we came towards him at 75 k on a -40º winter night. The dumbass in the truck crossed a solid yellow without looking (volkswagen head and fog lights were on as well as street lights)....
6 months later and i have yet to be able bite a chicken wing, let alone chew a T-Bone. Broken jaw in 4 places, cheekbone, upper jaw, parts of both eyesockets, nasal everything, 1 broken protruding finger. 9 weeks wired shut, 4 Ti screws and plate in chin, 2 in finger. Not to mention the actual personal "damage"... People... PROTECT YOUR HEAD AT ALL COSTS, YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW FRAGILE THE BRAIN IS.
The original screws put in my chin were somewhat "incorrectly" put in, which adds soon to be installed tooth splints to fix what doctor dumbass "did his best on". Then cut my lower jaw at the rear, both sides... lenghthen and re-center my jaw - which offset to the right and impacted upward about 3/8" up (could be 1/8th, but it feels like a foot!) So I can't bite anything or chew anything solid... chiclet style gum is only bearable if its hot out, and then it takes all the force I can handle to crack through!
Need any soup or blenderized meat recipes??????
Best part... I live in a place where you can't sue for road collisions... They (the government acts as the insurance company) pay 90% salary, most bills but wait until you are healed before you get compensation, in my case... minimum 3 years- depends on a lot of surgery, rehab, the scars in the mouth, (i will spare you the nasty details of how they get screws in your chin from the inside, cutting all around the bottom of your gumline and peeling open enough to get a plate, 4 screws and a drill.... like I said... I will spare you the nasty parts..;(
At the moment I can't feel my face, it feels thick, numb... there are nerves reversed, so i feel my chin in my cheek and vice versa! So, I am a work in progress, as is my 540i... slowly but sweetly.
Donations can be made in the form of "pre-paid Fuel Cards"!!!!!

take care of yourselves, you may be a great driver, safe car... blah blah blah... but when a big ****en truck turns in front of you - you're not laughing anymore at least not while my jaw is wired shut.

the truck driver got a ticket for "moving into the path of an oncoming vehicle... $140.

here I am 2 years later, 2 surgeries done.... better but no where near normal, I will never get back my jaw function because the bones are so out of place, the doctors just did what they could.
My brain injury (TBI-traumatic brain injury) is still a problem, I am not who I used to be, I forget who I used to be... I don't really like who I am now but am stuck with it.
My personality is low key, not funny or charming as before, not much to say, very aggressive, I snap for no reason... I am hard to live with.
The TBI affected the frontal lobe of my brain, which controls executive decisions and actions... planning and organising, anything that requires intelligence above the basics, gonzo!
I have snapped a few times on the road when people purposely cut me off and bumped them, I have had a few other events that prove that I am not in control of myself.
I take anti depressants, anti psychotics and a cocktail of other meds to keep me from REALLY losing it... for the first year I truly thought up ways to find and seriously wound the truck driver, so they increased some medication...
THE POINT IS: I was one of you before, normal guy, normal life, I had a lot of things going for me, very smart, quick witted and very on the ball................
and now I am on medication so I don't hurt people and my life is very ****ed up. All because of a head injury that the doctors refer to as "light" brain injury. To me it is not light, it is a very serious, life threatening problem. I cannot see myself working a normal job, the boss yells at me and i snap and kick his ass.... it takes so little for me to get it is scary, doctors say it is because I am hurt that my life is disrupted and out of my control... scary.
so again, the point is... protect your head at all costs, bones heal, brain doesn't.
I never needed meds before, never, so because of one dumb **** truck driver, my physical appearance and mental abilities are messed up for the rest of my life, don't let it happen to you.
wear your seatbelt tight, it my case, the dash of the car came and hit me in the face - I was wearing a big winter coat and the slack was enough for me to move towards the dash coming at me, bad luck...
pull it tight, 2 hands on the wheel and expect the unexpected!
thanks for your support guys, it really does make a big difference in my life, when so few things are going my way, your support is appreciated!

[infinity5]

Wow. Can that truck driver still drive? Jesus. My grandfather had several small stokes that did the same thing to his frontal lobe, i know what its like, the losing control and agression thing. Its perfectly normal to want to serious wound the truck driver... *I* want ot serious wound this truck driver just from reading your story

[SharkmanBMW]

was that the truck driver is still working... the snow removal guys here get paid by how many dumps they do, so when it snows, they don't sleep. They just work until the snow is gone, no sleep, drinking? drugs to stay awake? who knows!
there are no enforced regulations that they follow, so it really is stay up as long as you can do it.
the guy we t-boned was going to some private property to dump his snow, illegally, but he still got off.
I would like to take a bat and break his face-as he did mine, and my friend that was driving suffered knee damage to both legs that will haunt him forever, so I would have to break both legs as well..... then I might start to feel avenged!
The luckiest thing was - while I was out cold, the trucks fuel tank ruptured and was leaking diesel all over, thankfully no flames or I would be either dead or much worse off.
drive safe everyone, it only takes a second for your life to change.

[Bimmer Nut Ed]

Hell of a story. Wish there was something I could do to help (need a website? pm me if you want a free place to publish stuff). Anyway, I hope you can muster the strength to overcome your challenges, I'm sure it's not easy. Lean on friends, let others help, don't carry the weight all by yourself. Thats what we are all about, we're social beings that only survive with the company of others. So by all means, express yourself on our board too. It's always good to hear from you. Best of luck.

BTW, your buddies car was a VW, which model? Sounds like your side did not have an airbag, correct?

[zak78]

You can't fault yourself for needing antidepressants when you're dealing with the loss of yourself. Everybody talks about what it's like to lose a loved one, but nobody runs support groups for those who lose several pieces of their identity by blunt force trauma. Anybody in your shoes would need some help. There's no way you could escape being utterly, well, blindsided. My question: Are you on antipsychotics (say, Zyprexa) to augment an antidepressant, or because the brain damage causes you to hallucinate/become delusional? I was also thinking you could end up having awful flashbacks due to post-traumatic stress disorder. I work in an ER, so this stuff is generally my job. I've had my face "broken" before, so you have support here!
Nick
I spend a lot of time telling folks that just because a person needs medication doesn't mean they're not "normal" or "like you and me." People are people, dammit.