By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-12-24 17:07:19 | Updated at 2024-12-25 05:11:42
12 hours ago
A student has told of her horror after a jawbreaker candy snapped her jaw, leaving her unable to eat solid food for more than a month.
Javeria Wasim, 19, decided to bite directly on the 'giant' three-inch diameter candy instead of sucking on it until it softened.
With one bite, Wasim's jaw instantly hurt and her friend pointed out that her front tooth was chipped and another tooth was 'wiggly'.
Wasim was rushed to the hospital where she had an X-ray and a CT scan that revealed she had suffered two fractures in her jaw.
Doctors said that Wasim's tooth was 'wiggly' because it was resting on top of the bone that had 'split' in two parts.
Due to the damage done, her jaw had to be wired shut for six weeks and she now requires braces to fix her misaligned teeth.
The business administration student said that she could not open her mouth but blamed the pain on her broken tooth and had no idea that she could have broken her jaw.
Javeria Wasim from Toronto, Canada , and her friend decided to get 'giant' three-inch diameter jawbreakers while out shopping last month
Following a one-hour surgery the next day, Wasim's jaw was put back in place, and a bar was inserted in her top and bottom gums, wiring her jaw shut for the next six weeks.
She admits the incident 'traumatized' her enough to 'probably never try a jawbreaker again.'
Detailing the chain of events, Wasim said: 'I was with my friend at the mall, and we went into [a shop] to see if they had jawbreakers. We got a giant one, the biggest size they had.
'I said, 'We have to break it because people lick their way through it, and it takes them months to get through it all.'
'We were talking about it and asking, 'Can we bite into this? The candy is literally called a jawbreaker.'
'I used to have them as a little kid. I've seen videos of people biting into the small ones, but I'd never seen anyone bite into the big ones.
'I bit into it and only made a hole, and my jaw started to hurt. My friend looked over and said my tooth was chipped.
'It hurt really bad. I was crying a lot when the ambulance came, and everything was blurry.
'They told me my jaw was broken and needed to be wired shut. I was shocked; I thought my biggest problem was my broken tooth.'
Once back at her university dorm room, the 19-year-old admits she became impatient to get to the center of the gumball and tried to bite into the candy - it saw her break her jaw
An ambulance took Wasim to the hospital where she had an X-ray and a CT scan, and she was 'shocked' to discover that she had suffered two fractures in her jaw
'I couldn't open my mouth but I thought it was because of the pain from my tooth.
'I had to have surgery, they put my jaw back in place and put a bar into my top and bottom gum and wired it shut.'
Wasim's 'wiggly' bottom tooth is now sideways and braces are needed to fix her bottom teeth, as well as her front teeth that 'separated'.
The student had to stick to an all-liquid diet consisting of shakes and soups until her jaw was unwired on December 23.
Wasim said she has struggled with the liquid diet and with the side effects of the surgery, all while she has been studying for her exams.
'All my bottom teeth are messed up. My two front teeth have a little gap now so I'll have to get braces to fix them,' she said.
'I can't eat anything, all I'm having are protein shakes and soups, I lost seven pounds in two weeks.
'I haven't eaten in 42 days, I have soup but you're never full, you're always hungry.
'All I can think about is how hungry I am, I took the feeling of being full for granted. I miss food so much.
'I also feel irritated all the time. I can't open my mouth, I can't lick my lip if food gets on it, I can't use my teeth to open something.
The student had to stick to an all-liquid diet consisting of shakes and soups until her jaw was unwired on December 23
Wasim said she has struggled with the liquid diet and with the side effects of the surgery, all while she has been studying for her exams
'You realize how important your mouth is, you use it for literally everything in your life. It has affected my life so much.
'The first week of surgery I was in so much pain, I can't explain it. I would just lay in bed and take painkillers.
'I'd sleep because the only time I wasn't in pain was when I was sleeping.'
Given how badly the incident has affected her, Wasim is now urging others to only lick the candy, even if it takes them weeks to get to the center.
'It was a dumb idea I had with my friend. I'm definitely traumatized so I would say I probably wouldn't have one again,' said Wasim.
'It was such a stupid thing, people break their jaws in car accidents and fights, this was such an avoidable way to break your jaw.
'I'd tell people if they want to get in the middle of a jawbreaker, it's better to take the six weeks to get through to it than having six weeks suffering the consequences of biting it and having your jaw wired shut.'
