$100,000 face??

If you search for anything regarding TMJ online, chances are, you will come across Dr. Larry Wolford. He is a world renowned oral surgeon who specializes in cases just like mine (If you would like some information on TMJ, I would suggest going to http://www.drlarrywolford.com/tmj-temporomandibular-joint-disorders/). People travel all over the world to see Dr. Wolford and I thought I was lucky enough to have him 45 minutes away. My dad and I went to his office and checked in with his wonderful nurses and were seated quickly in a consultation room. Dr. Wolford came in and introduced himself and then quickly started taking measurements of my face and taking notes into his recorder. I thought it was so interesting that he was still using a tape recorder for his records. After the measurements and pictures, he drew a sketch of my face now and another sketch of how it should look. He showed me everything that would need to be done and said I would have to get braces first and then he would do surgery to replace my joints. And that was it. I left feeling satisfied, but still a little confused. My dad felt uneasy with everything (not unusual for him though... Mr. WorryWart). We really did have so many unanswered questions. Our main concern was why my joints were wearing down at the age of 20. I wanted to move forward with Dr. Wolford since he was so well known and clearly had been doing this process forever... but the amount of money they wanted upfront before they could schedule the surgery was ridiculous. Dr. Wolford's office was also out of network with our insurance so it would have cost us a pretty penny out of pocket. My dad insisted I see someone for a second opinion and I'm glad we decided to do that. 

The next doctor I scheduled an appointment with was Dr. James Bates in Dallas, TX. 

I hope all my readers are enjoying my blog! Please follow me if you're interested in finding out more about this crazy journey of mine!

Ashley