'Seeing people say they learned something new from my videos makes me feel like some of the pain I've been through is worth it.'
Leading up to the surgery, the pain from the deterioration became so intense that Lillian made the tough decision to take incompletes in her college courses for this semester, and she has chosen to defer her next semester so she can give her all to the recovery process.
"It has gotten so difficult to keep up with basic life tasks like feeding myself and cleaning up around the house," Lillian said."The college lifestyle that I was able to manage just two years ago is now unfeasible due to my level of fatigue." In addition to dealing with physical challenges stemming from ICR, Lillian also noted the ways her diagnosis has affected her mental health."The psychological trauma of watching your smile and face change so quickly is extremely underestimated by people that aren’t going through it," she said.
"I’m always so thankful for the comments I get on my TikToks saying that I’m still beautiful despite the changes in my jaw, but they don’t understand how heartbreaking it is to look at yourself in the mirror and not recognize yourself," she said.