Day 38: you're hot then you're cold

I have past the one month mark! Wooohooo! I can say that from beginning to now a lot has changed. The swelling is way down, a coworker the other day actually said I didn't really look like I was swollen anymore and could just pass as having a fat face (still don't know if this is a compliment or not). The pain isn't as bad tho I'm experiencing a new type of pain. My lower right side of my jaw is extremely sensitive to hot and cold. When I drink anything too hot or cold there is a sharp shooting pain down my jaw into my neck. I used to have to have ice in my water or I seriously couldn't drink it, now I have to wait for it to reach room temperature for it to be tolerable. I've read that other people have experienced this as well and it goes away so I'm hoping it will work itself out over time. I really don't have any upper jaw pain anymore, it all seems to be located in my lower jaw now. I have worked 3 times in the past week, for a few hours each time. It's been good trying to get back to normal but I still am not ready for a full work day and I can't do the normal things I would do on the job. I've pretty much just been doing office work and pushing paper because I can't really talk that much or that well still and am on restrictions as far as lifting, pushing and pulling goes. I've said goodbye to the syringes and I have never looked back. This week I tried 2 non liquid meals. First, was mashed potatoes with BBQ sauce on them. It tasted like BBQ chips! I ate a few spoonfuls and was full. Then I made some spaghetti and cut it up very small to eat it. I ended up making a mess and spilling spaghetti all over myself but it tasted good. Little successes. This upcoming Wednesday I get the splint out (thank god) and then Thursday is my first orthodontist appointment since the surgery! I'm sure Thursday will be the worst day ever. After having your skull sawed apart the last thing I want is hand poking and prodding and moving wires and elastics around everywhere. I'm bracing myself for an uncomfortable experience and I assume I'm going to hate my life and be in a lot of pain after. As the saying goes, no pain, no gain right?