One Heck of a Crooked Jaw Posted: 11-13-07 01:58am
Hi everyone,
I read your comments. I am 37 and have
corrective jaw surgery scheduled for Jan
2008. The left side of my lower jaw is
longer than the right and my upper plate
is canted so it is not level. An unusual
situation for sure. This condition
resulted from an unexplained growth spurt
when I was 24 years old, in which my
facial features changed, my feet grew from
10 1/2 to 12's, I grew 2 inches taller,
etc, etc. The surgery to fix my jaw is
called orthognathic surgery which is
performed by a maxofacial surgeon. In
order to fix my particular problem the
doctor has to cut my upper jaw in 4 places
and lower jaw in 4 places, level it and
ensure that all my teeth align correctly,
then re-position my chin to complete the
process. I will have my jaw wired shut
for at least 6 weeks and be on a liquid
diet. Definitely does not sound like fun
but based on the photos of prior patients
with similar issues, the surgery should
correct most of my TMJ, bite, and teeth
alignment problems. I was just going to
deal with it for the rest of my life when
I decided to just check into my options.
I had braces on my teeth as a teenager
which gave me a perfect smile. My
condition made my teeth crooked again,
worse than before. I went to my local
orthodontist to see what could be done.
He told me that he could re-align my teeth
but that if I really wanted to have a
great smile again I should see a surgeon.
He recommended me to the top maxofacial
surgeon in my part of the state. I have
been in braces for one year, will have the
surgery, then one more year of braces to
complete the process. Yes it is a long
arduous process but I am excited to be
half way through it. Those of you with a
similar condition should definitely check
into it. It is a pricey surgery which
will require at least 3-5 days in the
hospital then home recovery for at least a
month more. Luckily my medical insurance
is covering most of it as jaw assymetry is
considered a medically necessary procedure
to correct. I will post an update after
it is done and let you know how it went.
I hope this post has helped someone.
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Biani
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Jan 2008 Posts: 166 Location: ,
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me too!! Posted: 01-18-08 20:11pm
Wow... after surfing the net so long to
find why i have an asymmetrical face, i
have found people who know what i'm
talking about. I have told my sister and
my mom and they both tell me i'm crazy,
even when i'm showing them a picture of me
from the front, with a line drawn down the
middle, where it's OBVIOUS my chin isn't
aligned with the midline of my face, and
that my whole mouth is skewed. I have
noticed that i look more crooked with the
two mirrors, i look SO ugly! and curiously
enough, most people tell me i'm cute, that
i should be a model even, which i know i
couldn't possibly be, but at least THEY
think it, so i guess i don't look ugly to
them.
My boyfriend is the only person that has
told me that my face is crooked. He makes
a big fuss over how different i look when
he looks at me in a mirror. He says i look
ugly in the mirror, but that when he looks
at me in 'real life' i don't look so
crooked. The explanation someone gave here
about the mirrors and one being used to
looking at faces in some way was very
good. Although i have never seen anyone in
a reflection and thought they looked
strange...
I have been thinking about getting braces
or something to align my bite, so that i
don't have to bite to the left anymore.
But i don't know if it's just a matter of
my teeth being a little skewed or if one
side of my jaw is longer than the other.
It is very annoying though... i'm very
self concious about pictures or video, i
am always afraid that people are noticing
when i'm talking to them too. I always
tilt my head or turn it so it's 3/4 in the
photo, never straight on the front, cause
then my asymmetrical features are more
obvious.
I recently had all of my wisdom teeth
pulled out, and my doctor told me that
indeed, my jaw is pulling the lower part
of my face to the left. That she could do
a little surgery and move my chin bone a
little to the right... I didn't go for it
as it was just to camouflage the problem,
plus, it's not only my chin, my whole
mouth is skewed. So, I'm pretty afraid to
go to doctors and get my ugly face screwed
up even more.
Airrun, let us know how your surgery goes.
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Ares
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 26 Jan 2008 Posts: 1
Posted: 01-26-08 20:42pm
Im surprised to find other people with the
same problem as me with a quick google
search. During High School, I had a
feeling that I wasn't the same as everyone
else, I had troubles getting a girlfirend
and some people seemed to act very strange
around me. Sometimes I would stare at my
face in the mirror, trying to find
something wrong with it, but everytime I
managed to convince myself that there was
nothing wrong. I had a tug-of-war with
myself for several years...yes my face is
asymmetyrical, no it isnt etc.
It wasnt until I was getting braces put on
that the dentist pointed out tyhat I had
an asymmetrical face. He used the
reference "Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde." I was
devestated, my worst fears were true.
Everyday I'm tormented by this problem. I
avoid looking at people straight on,
pictures, and during conversation I wonder
if theyre thinking to themselves how ugly
I am. Even when Im at dinner my mother
will sometimes look at me and I wonder if
she's disapointed that her son had to be
so ugly...
Somedays I forget about it, others it nags
at me constantly. Its very difficult
being ugly in a world that prizes
superficial looks so very highly.
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Biani
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Jan 2008 Posts: 166 Location: ,
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Posted: 01-29-08 19:43pm
I can totally feel your pain, Ares.
I haven't had trouble getting a boyfriend,
but he does make fun of me sometimes. And
makes a big fuss over how much weirder i
look in a mirror's reflection. It really
gets me down. Sometimes i get so depressed
that i have even told him to get a pretty
girl to be his girlfriend, i just feel so
damn ugly sometimes.
Some other days i think i look cute, in
spite of not being normally symmetrical.
I'm sure you do too. Being a little
crooked does not make us ugly! sure, we
could look better i guess, but i think we
make this flaw of ours even bigger, people
probably don't notice as much.
Sometimes i forget too, sometimes i look
in the mirror and i think that i don't
look that crooked, but at others, i really
feel like a picasso painting...
So, if you don't mind me asking, what do
you think is the cause of your
asymmetrical face? or did the dr. tell you
why? Are the braces going to help fix
that?
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kirrabeachbum
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 12 Feb 2008 Posts: 50 Location: , South Africa
Yea I think I have the same problem Posted: 02-12-08 17:52pm
I'm 24 right now and I never noticed this
looking into mirrors until I got an
apartment with a 3 way mirror, meaning the
part in the middle is regular and the
sides come out. My left side looks worse
than my right. But I only think about it
when I have that kind of mirror or I hold
up a mirror in my hands to look at the
side of my head. My hair has a wave and
one the better looking side goes back and
the worse looking side it comes forward.
Can you guys post up photos here??? That
would be best...I'll do it too..
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kirrabeachbum
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 12 Feb 2008 Posts: 50 Location: , South Africa
I have the same problem Posted: 02-12-08 17:57pm
can you guys post pics??? Instead of
talking let's see what the fuss is about.
If you upload your photos to
photobucket.com which is free, they give
you a code to use for message boards.
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kirrabeachbum
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 12 Feb 2008 Posts: 50 Location: , South Africa
I think you look good from both sides.
True, your hair does a weird thing on your
left side, lol, but it doesn't look 'bad'.
Maybe you just need to pay more attention
to it when you're combing your hair...
like you have to MAKE IT go up too with
some hair product or something.
I would like to see pictures to see what
everyone is talkinga about too, but as far
as I am concerned... well, I'm very self
conscious to post pictures of myself. What
if someone i know sees me? lol
Plus, kirrabeachbum, you don't look
asymmetric at all... just your hair. I
wouldn't complain so much if it was just
my hair, which is kind of funnier on my
left side too. I have some of those
'little baby hairs' along my hair line,
the kind that never grow past 2 inches or
something like that. It's a lot more
noticeable and a lot thinner on my left
side, so i look kind of bald if i pull my
hair back. And, as i said, yours looks
like all it needs is a little spray or
mousse to make it stand up like on your
right side.
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kirrabeachbum
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 12 Feb 2008 Posts: 50 Location: , South Africa
Hey Posted: 02-13-08 17:24pm
I would just post your photos. I don't
care if anyone finds me on here that I
know, and if they do, then they're
obviosuly here for a reason other than
just for kicks.
So yea post your photo! Everyone else
should too. I bet you it's just mental or
something to do with your eyes when you
and only you take the time to look in the
mirror even thought the perceived
asymmetry is not there. You probably have
never noticed other people who hav ea
crappy side totheir face right?
As far as my photos go...I'll post another
pair soon as well that perhaps shows it
more...my hair is wavy and just does
taht...when i put stuff in the hair it
looks too thick...=)
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Biani
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Jan 2008 Posts: 166 Location: ,
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Posted: 02-13-08 18:43pm
lol. I haven't noticed anything weird
about the faces of people I know, unless
they're overly WEIRD, i do know a couple
of people that do have strange faces.
I'm sure my asymmetry isn't just
'perceived'. I've even measured and have
drawn lines on pictures of myself. If i
draw a straight line down the middle of my
face, it doesn't connect with the midle of
my mouth or chin.
I'm considering posting some pics... but i
have to take them first.
Seems like you don't have the same problem
as the rest of us, kirrabeach, from those
pictures you look totally normal and
symmetrical. Maybe post one from the front
of your face?
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kirrabeachbum
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 12 Feb 2008 Posts: 50 Location: , South Africa
hey Posted: 02-13-08 19:45pm
the front of my face looks fine...although
my nose is slightly crooked...but that's
not uncommon...i'll post 2 more photos
holding the camera instead of in front of
a mirror and that exacerbates it I
think...
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kirrabeachbum
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 12 Feb 2008 Posts: 50 Location: , South Africa
okay here's the last photos i promised Posted: 02-14-08 23:07pm
First one is me from straight up. I
realize my nose is slightly crooked to my
left, I think.
See? you're perfectly normal!!! you DO NOT
have the same issues as the rest of us.
Well, I'm not sure if everyone else has
the same issue as me, maybe i'm the only
weird faced person here.
I analyzed your photo, and according to
me, the thing that's just a wee bit off is
your chin and mouth. But it's a LITTLE
bit, barely perceivable. The midlines of
those are a little to your right. But i
can't stress this enough, A LITTLE!!
I don't think you look funny from your
'bad side'. lol. As probably your mother
would say: you look fine!!
Anyways, just yesterday i was
experimenting with the whole theory of one
being used to seeing oneself in the
mirror, and when you see the image
reversed you think you look weird.
I'm used to the image i see of myself in
the mirror... i taped a little video of
myself, and sad to say, i noticed how
crooked i look! ugh... it makes me so self
conscious. Then i put the camera in fron
of the mirror, as to see the reflection of
the video, in which i think i look more
'normal', still a little croocked, but far
less noticeable.
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kirrabeachbum
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 12 Feb 2008 Posts: 50 Location: , South Africa
hey Posted: 02-16-08 00:10am
okay 3 things...
1. Explain your mirror theory again? I
didn't quite follow that..
Watch one of the youtube videos of me on
my main page which anyone can see and see
how it looks in live action as opposed to
pics. that is when it shows up the most.
3. And post your pics! That's the only
way for others to see..trust me. =)
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crooked
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 26 Feb 2008 Posts: 1 Location: ,
Posted: 02-27-08 16:13pm
Hey! I’m really glad that I found this
forum, it has helped me so much to find
out that I’m not alone. I, too, have
very asymmetrical face. Like most of you I
also found out my crookedness with two
mirrors and awful pictures. when I take
pictures of myself from the “good
side” I think I look cute and very
normal but from the other side I look like
a monster , I mean it’s seems that those
face half’s could not possibly belong to
the same person, they look so totally
different. And the worst part is that I
don’t know which side I should base my
identity to. Am I ugly monster or a normal
looking girl? Things you guys have written
here sound so familiar and I feel I
could’ve wrote them myself.
And what is it with this? I’ve notice it
too.
“Then i put the camera in front of the
mirror, as to see the reflection of the
video, in which i think i look more
'normal', still a little croocked, but far
less noticeable.”
And by the way ,kirrabeachbum , you really
don’t have the same problem that the
rest of us. You look cute. I, look like a
monster.
Maybe we should post picture of our faces,
maybe so that eyes would be covered or
something to make them less recognizable.
Let's try to hang on, at least we're not
alone
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wilsonshw
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 28 Feb 2008 Posts: 1
Posted: 02-28-08 10:00am
Hi everyone! Like crooked above and others
here, I too was glad to find this forum. I
face the same asymmetry problems that you
guys have described. Thing is though, it's
not just my face that's obviously
asymmetrical. It's my whole body.
When I was a kid, I noticed that my ears
were weird. One sticks out more than the
other, and even feels softer. I also
noticed that my smile was crooked. At age
16, a friend commented on how my chin was
bigger on one side compared to the other.
I never noticed it, and even after this
comment, I remained oblivious to it
whenver I looked in the mirror (I just saw
my weird ears and how one side of my lower
lip seemed *slightly* bigger than the
other side).
At age 19, I fooled around with a camera
and took a close-up pic of my face...and
that's when it struck me. What came out
was this blatantly asymmetrical face that
I didn't see in the mirror. It looked like
my right side was bloated, and in
contrast, someone had let the air out of
my left side! That night sort of squeezed
every ounce of security out of me (and
made me kind of anti-social, I must
admit).
From then on I started noticing all the
things I never noticed (or never cared).
One side of my back (left) is flatter than
the other (also pointed out by a friend
who patted me on the back, and also
ignored by me initially). My right leg is
shorter than my left. When I feel the top
of my skull, the left side is flat, and
the right more rounded. Even facial hair
grows at a faster rate on the right side.
Just a moment ago (after reading this
forum), I toyed around with google and
found something called "Hemihypertrophy".
My symptoms seem to perfectly match what
was being described, including having a
curved spine (a condition called
"scoliosis"), which is why one side of my
back's flatter than the other side,
apparently caused by different leg
lengths.
I admit it freaked me out, but I realize
I've grown up healthily to reach 25, and
if any problems were to occur, at least
one would have already. Live with it I
guess?
On a side note though: I've had people
saying how "hot" I look when they see my
pictures which I, of course, take from one
side. Go figure . Wonder what
they'd say if they saw my face up front
though...
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kirrabeachbum
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 12 Feb 2008 Posts: 50 Location: , South Africa
pictures Posted: 02-29-08 23:57pm
Hey,
Can you guys post some pictures? I hear
what you're saying but I'd like to see
what you're talking about b/c there is
only so much you can say to describe them,
right?
=)
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kirrabeachbum
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 12 Feb 2008 Posts: 50 Location: , South Africa
pictures Posted: 02-29-08 23:57pm
Hey,
Can you guys post some pictures? I hear
what you're saying but I'd like to see
what you're talking about b/c there is
only so much you can say to describe them,
right?
=)
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Biani
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 18 Jan 2008 Posts: 166 Location: ,
Thanks: 2
Thanked:0
Posted: 03-03-08 19:54pm
Hey guys! how come i hadn't seen that
there where new replies until now? I
checked almost everyday! lol
I'm a bit traumatized by this subject and
was thrilled to find a forum for it too.
I think I'll post a picture where you can
only see my nose and mouth. That will give
you enough of an idea, without showing my
whole face. I'm embarrased!!!
It would make me feel better if any of you
really crooked people would post too,
haha. Kirrabeachbum doesn't count cause he
looks perfectly normal.
By the way, Kirrabeachbum:
1.About the mirror theory, someone said a
lot about it earlier in this thread. It's
something about how you're used to seeing
yourself, or anyone for that matter from
one perspective. The human brain always
tries to 'round things up' so it makes
things appear symmetrical even if they
aren't all that... Anyway, when you flip
the image, if there's a slight curve to
one side, and you never notice it on the
'normal perspective' on the flipped one it
stands out a lot. I'm bad at explaining
things, haha, i hope i made myself
clear... Anyway, i think this is why it
freaks me out more of how I look when i
see myself in videos...
2. I followed your link to myspace and a
video came up, but it had pictures...