<before surgery>
 
Since the fourth grade of elementary school, I've been getting orthodontic treatment for malocclusion. When I became a high school student, the head dentist at the dental clinic recommended jaw surgery after stating that there was no further improvement possible with orthodontic treatment.
Even though I had gotten orthodontic treatment for a long time, a lot of money was spent, and my teeth alignment still didn't improve much. It caused stress due to my protruding jaw and long face.
After that, I decided to undergo double jaw surgery as an adult. However, as I became an adult, I started attending university, which left me with little time and financial constraints due to tuition fees and living expenses. As I lived alone, it was challenging to save up for the surgery.
While attending university and completing military service, I finally had some free time and financial stability, allowing me to consider jaw surgery. I found out about the WHY Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinic while researching jaw surgery on YouTube and decided to book a consultation after watching videos of Dr. Lee Seok-jae, the head dentist.
The staff were extremely kind when I made the consultation appointment over the phone, and they were equally welcoming during the actual consultation. After the consultation, I immediately scheduled the surgery date.
The fact that they only perform one surgery per day and that guardians can observe the surgery from outside made me feel very reassured. So, on January 9th, as the new year began, I underwent double jaw surgery along with contouring surgery (for square jaw and chin).
 
(Surgery Day) Day 1
I underwent surgery on January 9, 2024. For my hospital stay, I brought spare underwear, sleeping socks, phone charger, balaclava, lip balm, and a bottle of Pocari Sweat.
The evening before, I had beef for dinner and fasted for 10 hours afterward since the surgery was scheduled for 10 a.m. I was asked to arrive at the clinic by 9:40 a.m. on the surgery day. As I come from a rural area, the bus schedule was uncertain, so I arrived at the clinic at 8:30 a.m.
After arriving, I changed into hospital clothes in a private room (loved how the room was only for me) and then went to the consultation room to receive surgery explanations and sign consent forms. With some time left, I also had my retainer removed which had been attached to my teeth for a long time, before entering the surgery room.
I wasn't nervous at all, as I thought it would all be over once I woke up from the anesthesia. As I lay on the surgery table, I felt excited, thinking, "Finally, I'm getting the surgery."
I lay on the surgery table, taking deep breaths until suddenly, my memory vanished.
After the surgery, I vaguely remember someone saying, "Wake up and sit here." I followed their instructions in a daze. I didn't want my parents to worry, so I had come to the surgery alone. However, the consultant came to my room, found my charger, and reassured me that they would also contact my parents, which was very touching.
They told me not to fall asleep as I needed to get the anesthesia gas out of my body. However, I kept dozing off and waking up, alternating between using my phone. Time seemed to pass quickly.
I couldn't breathe through my nose because it was blocked, so I had to breathe through my mouth. The feeling of the endotracheal tube touching my throat made me feel like I was going to vomit, but I eventually got used to it.
After the surgery, nurses changed my blood bag and applied cold packs every hour. They also gave me pain relief injections, which made my arm feel cool and soothing.
I spent most of the first day dozing off and waking up intermittently until the next morning.
 
(Day 2)
Around 9 a.m., they removed the urinary catheter and blood bag attached to my body, and I instantly felt refreshed! From the second day, I started wearing detachable wafers. Breathing through my mouth due to a blocked nose made it challenging with the wafers, but once the urinary catheter and blood bag were removed, I felt much better and could walk around freely.
However, I was too lazy to walk around and ended up playing games on my phone in bed. Around 11 a.m., the nurse gave me two bottles of NewCare and two bottles of water. Even though I wasn't hungry because I was receiving  fluids continuously, I tried the NewCare out of boredom. I didn't bring a syringe or a sauce bottle, so I drank it straight from a paper cup, spilling some, but it went down smoothly. I finished one bottle of NewCare and drank the entire bottle of Pocari Sweat. It was refreshing to drink without any swelling in my throat.
However, I had been drooling all day. From the morning, I had been drooling continuously, and it persisted into the evening. While continuously wiping my drool, I began to worry if something was wrong.
When doctor lee came in, he reassured me that drooling was normal and would improve. He even joked that if I was worried about missing out on walking, I could watch Netflix and Disney+ on the TV. Despite his initially blunt demeanor, he turned out to be very caring, and his concern for me made me feel reassured. I slept soundly on the second day after walking around diligently in the clinic.
 
(Day of Discharge - Day 3)
Before discharge, I received swelling laser care. My parents came to pick me up, and we left the clinic straight away at 10 a.m. We opted to visit a pharmacy slightly further down from the one directly under the clinic because it was cheaper. We bought medication there, and since my nose was still blocked, I also purchased cotton swabs before heading home.
Although we left in the morning, by the time we reached home, it was already evening. I didn't feel hungry when I got intravenous fluid, but I felt incredibly hungry during the journey home. As soon as I arrived home, I indulged in a rainbow sherbet for my stomach and had a NewCare and a bottle of pumpkin juice. I also took my medication, which consisted of seven pills in the morning, five at lunch, and seven in the evening.
I continued with cold compresses diligently and had a good night's sleep on the third day, but I still experienced continuous drooling.
 
(Day 4 to Day 8)
From the 4th to the 8th day, it seems quite similar.
After breakfast and dinner, I went for a 15-minute walk each day (although I did it half-heartedly). I have been showering daily since the 4th day until now.
What I ate on each day:
 
Day 4:
Breakfast: NewCare and 7 pills
Lunch: Rice porridge and 5 pills
Dinner: NewCare, pumpkin juice, and 7 pills
Late-night snack: Ice cream
Taking pills was the most challenging part of my recovery, especially due to a full stomach from drinking water.
 
Day 5:
Breakfast: NewCare and pills
Lunch: Castella cake with milk (it was delicious!), a cream puff (only the cream), and pills
Dinner: NewCare, pumpkin juice, and pills
Starting from the 5th day, the continuous drooling improved, and by the 6th day, it had completely stopped. Ice packs were applied from the afternoon of the 5th day onwards.
 
Day 6:
Breakfast: Plain porridge and pills
Lunch: NewCare, pumpkin juice, pills
Dinner: NewCare, yoghurt, pills
From this day onwards, I started lying down to sleep.
 
Day 7:
Breakfast: Beef bone soup porridge (very moving moment), pills
Lunch: Beef bone soup porridge (so delicious that I had it again), yoghurt, chocolate (melted and eaten, superb!), pills
Dinner: Rice porridge, pumpkin juice, ice cream, pills
 
Day 8:
Breakfast: Beef bone soup porridge (lost the excitement from eating too much), chocolate, pills
Lunch: Yoghurt, rice porridge, pills
Dinner: Rice porridge, pumpkin juice, pills
 
 
(Day 9) First Follow-up Appointment:
I had chicken soup porridge and chocolate pudding from in the morning before taking my medication and departing for Seoul. Upon arrival, I received laser swelling care and mouth disinfection at the clinic. Although they mentioned that the swelling was significantly reduced, when I looked in the mirror, my cheeks still seemed quite plump.
I had a CT scan taken, and since there were no particular issues, I scheduled my next appointment and returned home immediately.
I think I spent about 8 hours on the bus that day. Nevertheless, it was great because the bus terminal and the clinic were close to each other, and I could take the subway right away.
I couldn't eat lunch, so I didn't take any pills then. For dinner, I had chicken soup porridge, pumpkin juice, and ice cream for dessert. From now on, I was instructed to brush my teeth after eating, so I diligently brushed my teeth after meals. They mentioned that they would remove the stitches at the next appointment, but since the doctor warned me in advance about the possibility of pain, I'm slightly worried about it.
 
(Day 10 to Day 16)
I had a total of 10 days' worth of medication, so excluding the 3 days at the clinic, I took medication until the 13th day.
I continued my routine of walking for 15 minutes after breakfast and 15 minutes after dinner consistently.
 
Day 10:
Breakfast: Beef rib soup porridge, medication
Lunch: Chicken porridge, maple pudding (yum!), medication
Dinner: Rice porridge, pumpkin juice, medication
Day 11:
Breakfast: Chicken porridge, medication
Lunch: (No medication during lunch)
Dinner: Fish cake soup, rice porridge, pumpkin juice, medication
I woke up too late, so breakfast also served as lunch.
Day 12:
Breakfast: Beef bone soup porridge, medication
Lunch: Chocolate protein shake, tiramisu (tiramisu is amazing!!), medication
Dinner: Rice porridge, steamed egg (my favorite), pumpkin juice, medication
On the 12th day, it snowed heavily, so I didn't go for a walk.
Day 13:
Breakfast: Rice porridge, steamed egg, medication
Lunch: Egg porridge (a bit of a failure), NewCare (after a long time), ice cream, medication
Dinner: Rice porridge, pumpkin juice, Oreos with milk, medication
I was so happy to finish my medication on the 13th day.
I lost 5.5 kg by the 13th day.
Day 14:
Breakfast: Milk with Chex chocolate cereal
Lunch: Curry, rice porridge
Dinner: Fish cake soup, rice porridge, pumpkin juice, ice cream
I felt completely revived without taking medication.
Day 15:
Breakfast: Rice porridge, steamed egg, pumpkin juice
Lunch: Takoyaki (I skipped the octopus inside, it was so delicious, I ate 8 pieces), chocolate protein almond bar
Dinner: Rice porridge, steamed egg, scrambled egg, yogurt drink, pumpkin juice
 
Day 16
Breakfast: Rice porridge, steamed egg, pumpkin juice
Lunch: (No lunch)
Dinner: Rice porridge, steamed egg, rice cake ribs (not recommended), pumpkin juice, tiramisu cake, hot chocolate
 
 
 
(Day 17)- I had my second visit to the clinic for stitching out.
 
After having rice porridge, steamed egg, and pumpkin juice for breakfast, I headed straight to Seoul.
Even to my eyes, the swelling had significantly reduced, and upon arrival, I went for the swelling laser care. However, the consultant praised me, saying that I didn't even need the laser care because the swelling had reduced so much!
Another dentist even commented on how much smaller my face looked, which made me feel great.
After the swelling laser care, I went to have the stitches removed. I was a bit scared because of the pain, but it turned out to be not so painful, and it was over quickly. It felt like someone was pinching the flesh and cutting it with scissors, but it wasn't painful. After it was done, I got disinfected and headed back home.
I couldn't have lunch, so when I arrived home, for dinner, I had rice porridge, steamed egg, grilled pork belly (it was so delicious, it melted in my mouth), hot chocolate, and pumpkin juice.
I was told that I would have my braces adjusted the following week, so I didn't have to come in next week, but I made an appointment for the week after next.
 
(Day 18 ~ 19)
Since the stitches were removed, my pronunciation has completely improved, and I feel like I'm back to being normal!
 
Day 18:
For breakfast, I had rice porridge, steamed egg, and grilled pork belly.
I didn't have lunch, but for dinner, I had rice porridge, steamed egg, frozen pork (the part with lots of cartilage was the best), and pumpkin juice. 
For a late-night snack, I enjoyed an Ediya foam foam pudding shake.
 
Day 19:
For breakfast, I had rice porridge, steamed egg, grilled pork belly, and pumpkin juice. 
For lunch, I had rice porridge and grilled pork belly.
For dinner, I had rice porridge, steamed egg, grilled pork belly, and pumpkin juice.
My weight has decreased by a total of 7kg as of the 19th day. It's gradually coming off!
 
 
 
<Second Week Overall Surgery Review>
I underwent double jaw surgery along with contouring surgery for my square jaw and chin using the SSRO method, with 2mm reduction of the upper jaw and 5mm reduction of the lower jaw.
I trusted the head surgeon and underwent the surgery, and I'm really pleased with the results. It feels great.
It's a bit embarrassing when people around me compliment me on my face becoming smaller.
So far, I still have a slight swelling in the morning, but it completely disappears by the evening. Nevertheless, I'm happy that the swelling is subsiding so well, and I'm looking forward to seeing my face fully recovered from the swelling in the future.
 
<4-week post-op review>
It's been one month since I had the surgery.
On the first month, I went for my third visit~
I arrived early for laser swelling care, took facial photos, and also had a CT scan done.
The head surgeon showed me before and after photos, saying my face has become smaller and cuter.
Even from my perspective, looking at the before and after photos, I could feel that my face had become smaller.
Starting from the first month, I began orthodontic treatment. I discarded the wafer I used before and had braces only on my upper teeth. The lower teeth will be fitted next month.
Additionally, four out of eight screws embedded in my gums were removed. I thought it would hurt, but fortunately, it didn't hurt much, to the point where I hardly felt anything.
Now, except for the hard things, I can chew, so as soon as I got home, I ordered pizza. My mouth is still small, and chewing is difficult, so after eating two slices of pizza, I just heated up some rice and ate that.
The doctor advised me to practice opening my mouth more for the next orthodontic appointment to make it more comfortable. So, I'll have to work hard on mouth exercises from now on!
As for the swelling, I'm not sure if it's entering a plateau phase or if it's not reducing anymore, but compared to before, I can feel that it has reduced a lot.
People around me say my face has become much smaller, and some even ask if I had a nose job because they think my nose has become higher. I feel so happy
I can't wait for all the swelling to go away.
I'm really looking forward to seeing myself when all the swelling is gone!