You're definitely not alone in preferring heat—I was the same way. Ice just made my jaw feel tighter and more uncomfortable, honestly. I ended up using a heating pad on low setting and found it helped relax the muscles enough to ease some of that awful stiffness. Day three and four were roughest for me too, but after that things slowly started improving...hang in there, you're probably through the worst of it by now.
I feel ya on the heat vs ice thing. Ice packs always made me feel like my jaw was auditioning for a role in Frozen...stiff as a board, not fun. Heating pad on low was definitely my jam too—felt like it melted away some of that tension bit by bit. Honestly, days three and four were brutal, but once I hit day five, things started easing up noticeably. You're probably right on the edge of relief now, hang tight. It really does get better soon.
Totally agree about the ice packs—never did much for me either. Did you try alternating heat and ice at all? I found that switching between the two every 15-20 minutes helped more than sticking to just one. Also, did your dentist recommend any gentle jaw exercises or stretches? Mine gave me a few simple ones to do after day four, and they really seemed to loosen things up faster. Days three and four were definitely the worst for me too, but once I started moving my jaw a bit more intentionally (nothing crazy, just gentle movements), the stiffness eased noticeably. Hang in there, you're probably through the worst of it by now.
Switching between heat and ice never really worked for me personally... seemed to irritate the area more. My dentist actually advised holding off on jaw exercises until at least a week had passed, just to give the graft site extra time to heal without disturbance. I guess everyone's healing process is pretty different though, so it's good you found relief with gentle movements. Hope things ease up soon—bone graft recovery can be rough.
Totally agree with your dentist's advice about holding off on jaw exercises the first week or so. I tried gentle movements early on, but honestly, it just made my swelling and soreness worse. Found that giving the graft area complete rest for about 10 days really did help—less irritation and pain overall. Everyone heals at their own pace, though... bone graft recovery is definitely a patience game. Hang in there, it does get easier.
