Deprogrammer.

Yesterday I got my deprogrammer splint.  Here is the little description that came with it:

The deprogrammer should be worn full time even to eat and sleep.  Dr. (Orthodontist) has this appliance designed so your back teeth are slightly apart.  This allows for jaw repositioning.  This also allows for Dr. (Surgeon) to know more accurately your jaw alignment.

This is similar to a retainer.  It can be taken out to clean.  You may brush this with toothpaste when you brush your teeth.  It may taste like plastic the first couple of days but that taste will go away.  At first, you may want to soften your diet to get used to eating with your new appliance.  

The assistant told me to call the office right away if I were having any problems, even slight, as the splint is supposed to relieve symptoms.  She said, "Remember that doctor's world is in microns; he seeks perfection, so call if you need to."  That was VERY reassuring on many levels.

I go back in a week for my first adjustment (as the jaw shifts, the occlusal plane of the splint has to be adjusted to give the correct "bite").

Also, the very BEST news is, I wear the splint for sixteen weeks, and then I can have my surgery.  And, since the sixteen weeks is a definite time, I can actually SCHEDULE my surgery!!!  I am calling my OS right after the new year!

Here are some pics of the splint:
* (note: this is a pre-surgery splint; I don't think it is anything like the splint some have after surgery)
** (those little metal wires hook over loops in my braces to hold the splint in)