Decision-making regarding orthognathic treatment

Deciding whether to pursue orthognathic surgery can be a complex and emotional decision. We provide support to help you fully understand your treatment options, ensuring you are informed about the benefits, risks, and expected outcomes. By exploring your concerns and preferences, we support you in making a decision that aligns best with your personal values, goals, and expectations.

Preparing for surgery and adjusting after surgery

Preparing for orthognathic surgery may feel daunting, but we are here to help you feel more confident and ready for the process. Our service offers practical advice and emotional support as you approach your planned surgery, addressing any anxieties and clarifying what to expect. If you have experienced low mood or another mental health difficulty in the past, we can help you prepare for your recovery period after surgery so that your mental health or wellbeing is not negatively impacted. Post-surgery, we can offer short-term support as you adjust to changes in your appearance and functionality, helping you manage recovery and cope with any emotional challenges that may arise during the healing process.

You can find some useful resources on in the Downloadable Resources section on the top right-hand side of the website.

Supporting with anxiety or concerns relating to dental-facial appearance 

• Do you check your reflection frequently, or avoid it completely?
• Do you avoid social situations due to your appearance?
• Do you find having your photo taken distressing?
• Do you worry about how others may be judging your appearance?
• Do you feel like you’re putting your life on hold until after your surgery?

Concerns about appearance and the psychological impact of dental-facial conditions can affect self-esteem and emotional well-being. Speaking with our team can help you build confidence and improve your relationship with your appearance and reduce the impact your appearance distress has on your life. Many patients find support from our team, whilst on their orthognathic treatment journey, helps improve their well-being.

If you would like to access to some self help resources this website could be of help: 

Appearance Overconcern Self-Help Resources - Information Sheets, Worksheets & Workbooks

Helping to work through any barriers to treatment, such as dental anxiety or phobias

Many people face emotional or behavioural barriers that may prevent them from moving forward with treatment or surgery. Whether it's a longstanding habit like thumb-sucking, a fear of dental procedures, or anxiety triggered by anaesthetic, claustrophobia or other concerns, these issues can create obstacles to orthognathic treatment. We also support people who experiences symptoms of dental-related trauma, such as distressing surgical/ward experiences.

We provide support to help you understand and address these challenges in a safe, non-judgmental space and help you feel more comfortable and confident as you move forward with treatment. If you have any questions about potential barriers to treatment, you can speak to a member of our team.

What to expect from contact with our service?

As part of your treatment, you will meet orthognathic surgeons, orthodontists and psychologists and you’ll be asked to complete our questionnaire. Someone from our team may come and speak to you during one or your clinic appointments.

If you agree to a referral to our service, we will be in touch to offer you an appointment to explore in more depth your concerns and your broader circumstances, to understand anything which may be affecting your orthognathic treatment and how your orthognathic treatment may impact you.

This initial appointment allows us to think about whether our service can offer you some support to help you along your orthognathic journey and enables us to consider with you and your medical team whether orthognathic treatment is suitable and safe for you at this time.  

Possible outcomes

After your first appointment it is often helpful for us to discuss next steps for your care as a team, therefore we will agree a time to get back in touch with you to discuss this, usually within two weeks of your appointment.

There are a few possible outcomes from an initial appointment with the Orthognathic Psychology Service, including:

• Being added to our waiting list for 1:1 psychological therapy.
• Being signposted or referred to another mental health service that is more suitable for the support you need (we would do this jointly with you, with your consent).
• We may also agree that you don’t want or need any support with us at this time, in which case you’ll be discharged from our service.