Suggestions for fixing problems post jaw surgery?
Posted: Tue May 23, 2023 4:13 pm
I had to have jaw surgery a year and half ago to fix some night time breathing issues. My upper jaw was moved up and forward, while my lower jaw was moved forward and slightly rotated. As you might imagine, it was a hell of a procedure, one I am still in some ways recovering from.
I've been playing regularly since this January, but I am really struggling with a few things, and am needing some suggestions on how to figure it out again - especially if you / a student of yours has had a similar procedure done. Some context: my embouchure is totally different because the movements were pretty extreme. My teeth are in a different position, as is my chin, etc. etc. Additionally, I've lost feeling in the lower half of my mouth. On the right its almost entirely gone, while on the left, its there, but prickly and a little painful (but not enough to bother me when playing). My gums are also pretty numb, so detecting pressure touch there is hard - but that will come back still.
I am struggling with:
-Range. Used to play well above the staff, into high C, D, and beyond. Now I am struggling with the middle Bflat and above. It is slowly improving... very slowly.
-Durability. I get extreme pain and tired feeling in cheeks/jaw after only maybe 10-20 seconds of playing much above a middle F. Once a little warmer, this is less extreme. But after about 1.5 hours of playing, this gets really bad.
-Sustaining notes. Especially when I need to lower my dynamic.
-Air loss. I seem to be leaking air from the sides of my mouth. The harder I clamp, the worse all the other ^ things get.
A final piece of context is that I have none of these issues when playing below the staff. Playing low is no problem.
I've been playing regularly since this January, but I am really struggling with a few things, and am needing some suggestions on how to figure it out again - especially if you / a student of yours has had a similar procedure done. Some context: my embouchure is totally different because the movements were pretty extreme. My teeth are in a different position, as is my chin, etc. etc. Additionally, I've lost feeling in the lower half of my mouth. On the right its almost entirely gone, while on the left, its there, but prickly and a little painful (but not enough to bother me when playing). My gums are also pretty numb, so detecting pressure touch there is hard - but that will come back still.
I am struggling with:
-Range. Used to play well above the staff, into high C, D, and beyond. Now I am struggling with the middle Bflat and above. It is slowly improving... very slowly.
-Durability. I get extreme pain and tired feeling in cheeks/jaw after only maybe 10-20 seconds of playing much above a middle F. Once a little warmer, this is less extreme. But after about 1.5 hours of playing, this gets really bad.
-Sustaining notes. Especially when I need to lower my dynamic.
-Air loss. I seem to be leaking air from the sides of my mouth. The harder I clamp, the worse all the other ^ things get.
A final piece of context is that I have none of these issues when playing below the staff. Playing low is no problem.