orthodontic surgery

downtime: terminator/potato face

In late october and early november I had two major operations on my face to reposition my jaw. Big thanks to the brilliant teams at Guys and Kings hospitals! This was not cosmetic - I had no idea what I would end up looking like - but to correct a class II malocclusion anterior open bite and cross bite. This basically means my lower jaw was recessed and I couldn't bite my front teeth together. The other potential change is quite daunting: I may become less stressed.. I've spent my whole adult life unconsciously pushing my lower jaw forwards as it won't sit properly in a resting position. Imagine being in a constant state of tension. It may explain my workaholic behaviour. Hmm. The potential outcome is I may be more inclined to relax, switch off and sleep like a normal person. The worry is that my cyborg mojo might be due to this physical anomaly. Dangerous times.

After extensive train track braces shenanigans, the operations set both my upper and lower jaw into their new positions, and I will now spend a few months looking like a dribbling bruised potato while I heal. Between operations 1 and 2 I managed to crack out an outfit for Empress Stah, but have decided I need real downtime for this second round. So things will be quiet for a while..

Below left: terminator face. Right: 7-days post-op portrait by genius artist, friend and muse Manko