Limb Lengthening Forum

Limb Lengthening Surgery => Limb Lengthening Patients Experiences => Topic started by: Brb6ftTall on June 08, 2017, 05:29:43 AM

Title: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 08, 2017, 05:29:43 AM
Hello all! I recently found out about this forum, and thought that my experience in Limb Lengthening thus far may be helpful to you guys. As the title implies, I am currently lengthening my femurs from surgery I had 3 weeks ago with Dr. Mahboubian in California. Here are the days I have written about so far:

My height was never really a concern when I was younger, I was always on the "shorter side" of the class but I was never the smallest, so I didn't think too much of it.  But one day when I suddenly became height aware (somewhere during maturity I gues?) I knew there was something I had to do, and that I couldn't be short forever.  I was mainly inspired to do Bilateral Femurs with Dr.  Mahboubian from Femur2014's diary, with him seemingly making an actual full recovery.  I also didn't have enough money for Paley (the "safest" option), but reading through his diary convinced me that it was worth getting it done soon with Dr.  M rather than later with Dr.  Paley.

I will not be giving out too many personal details because I want to remain as anonymous as possible, so unfortunately that means no stats or pictures that could reveal myself.  I will say the following, however.

Age: 22
Height: 174. 8 cm (~5'9)
Goal: 182. 86 cm (~6'0) [+7. 6 cm]
Weight: 130 lbs

I know my height may not be short to a lot of you, but I have been around athletes my entire life (as I was one of them. .  didn't continue in college though) and honestly being referred to as "the small one" made me a tad depressed.  With that said, I realize these heights are "rounding" but hey, I highly doubt anyone will call me out for not being 6 ft at my new height when they don't call me out now for saying 5'9.    I also realize I could add 8cm instead of 7. 6 (like femurs did), but after reading many, many posts throughout the years it seemed like going over 7. 6 cm was above the safe limit as far as athleticism is concerned.   I also weighed around 145 lbs prior to surgery, however I stopped working out and getting heavier to make sure I didn't go over 150 lbs (the weight limit for precise) because I was gaining weight pretty quickly.  Anyways, without further ado, here is my own diary!

Day 1 - 5/18/17

After what seemed like forever waiting in the hospital room, I was finally wheeled off to see Dr.  M.  I was admittedly a little nervous about it, but I just kept focusing on what my new height would look like after to keep me going.  Upon saying hello to all the surgical staff, the next thing I knew I was out cold from anesthesia. 
When I woke up I couldn't feel much, but immediately noticed I couldn't move/rotate my legs anymore! That was pretty scary.  I don't remember much of this part because I was still coming off from the anesthesia, but I mainly remember all the staff walking in one by one to say the surgery was successful and they wish me the best.  Most of that day was a blur, but I remember eating hospital meals, getting poked for blood drawings, getting squeezed for blood pressure etc.  throughout the night.  I was given pain meds through an IV, so that was keeping my pain at bay.  Dr.  M reassured me everything went well, but that there were many incisions in my leg muscles so it was crucial that I rest them today and start therapy the next day.

Day 2

This day technically starts somewhere around 3 am I think? It was very difficult to sleep through the night due to all the nurses checking up on me and making other commotion while walking through the hallways and such.  I think the longest amount of sleep I could get was 2 hrs or so before I was woken up again for something.  It got kind of annoying after a while for nurses to be coming in and waking me up, only to ask if I needed some water.  My caretaker could have done that for me if I needed it! I tried to remember these people were just doing their job so I wouldn't get too frustrated. 

Now this day was probably the hardest so far.  My meds from the initial anesthesia were wearing off, so the pain came rushing in.  It definitely hurt but not too bad, probably a 3 or 4 out of 10.  What seriously hurt though was freaking PT.  They came around 8 am, and I had never felt so much pain in my life just trying to stand up.  Getting to the edge of the bed was hard enough, but actually pushing up to get on the walker was one of the hardest things I've ever done.  We had to retry a few times due to the PT's pulling me up but me screaming No! and pushing back down.  Eventually I made it up, but the pain continued through the entire walking process.  I'm talking like 9-10 out of 10 for the whole duration, I was screaming so bad that nurses from the hallway had to check up on me.

After laying back down, I'm at the point where I'm regretting doing the surgery and telling myself my previous height was just fine and all that.  I keep thinking I'm so stupid for willingly putting my body through all of this.  These negative thoughts are soon interrupted by the arrival of Dr.  M, who made me feel sooo much better.  After recounting everything, he assured me I was doing great and every day would get easier and easier.  He also told me I had already officially lengthened 1 mm, yay! The rest of the day wasn't nearly as difficult.  The food tasted as bad as hospital food usually does, and the nurses still wouldn't let me sleep.  The PT however got A LOT better, with the pain only being a 6-7 this time around.  Dr.  M took me off the IV pain meds and I switched to Norco, it was really weird falling asleep with it in my system but it sure did help the pain.

Day 3

Not a whole lot to say about this day, it was the day I got released! Dr.  M saw me first thing in the morning, and he made me as happy as ever.  However, he stretched me out much worse than the PT ever did, and I hadn't taken my pain meds yet.  7-8 pain levels came after he left, and that was truly a hard 30 mins to get through for the pills to kick in.  PT came and it was the best I had ever done, pain was only a 2 or 3 and I was getting off the bed and walking no problem.  I couldn't believe the difference only 1 day had done.  Not much else happened that day, I had breakfast and lunch and PT came one more time (easy yet again), and that was pretty much it.  All my blood tests checked out, and around 5 pm I was dressed and ready to go.  It was somewhat difficult to transition from wheelchair to walker to car, but I managed it rather quickly and I was back in my hotel before I knew it.  Getting me into my bed wasn't that bad, and after taking some more Norco I passed right on out.  At this point, I also took Xeralta for blood thinning.  I woke up a few times throughout the night randomly, due to being in a weird position or being too hot or needing more Norco etc, but after I went back to bed at 3 AM I had the best sleep I've had since before I checked in to the hospital.  It was sooo much better sleeping without all the nurses and tests going on, I was so relieved.

Day 4

Not much to say here either, this is where I am now! I'm scheduled to see Dr.  M next Friday so he can teach me how to lengthen using the machine.  Pain is even better than it was in the hospital, probably due to a combination of me recovering more as well as being in a better atmosphere.  I'm only taking 1 Norco now every 4-5 hours or so instead of 2! I can also finally pee again, I have actually been able to since yesterday but I forgot to mention that was a challenge.  It's okay though, basically just nasty catheter stuff that no one wants to hear anyway! I'm eagerly awaiting the first time I can go No.  2, I haven't done that in a few days due to Norco causing constipation. 




So that's it, I will mainly be chilling, stretching out, and playing video games till the next time I can see Dr.  M.  I realize I didn't include lots of details like where I live ornwhat stretches I did throughout the day, however I didn't think it was important (since most of that is already covered in other diaries in greater detail) but if anyone wants to know those questions feel free to ask and I will answer as best as possible.  I mainly envision this diary as a once or twice a week update max, with my main focus on providing recovery details after surgery is fully done (before and after rod removal).  I noticed that most people might post a few months after the end of consolidation/nail removal, but then stop before a full 100% recovery can be reported.  I plan on not doing that, I would like to come back to you guys a year from now and really let you all know if I'm back to former athleticism or not.  Will try to keep my diary updated as soon as anything major happens, thank you for reading!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 08, 2017, 05:30:16 AM
Day 5

Today's the best day so far! Although I can definitely say that about each day that passes haha, Dr.  M was right when he said it would get better every day.  I woke up around 8:30 am, 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep was amazing!! Definitely the longest I've had so far.  I never really realized it before, and it might just be me, but I think people with normal legs adjust very slightly throughout the night to not be uncomfortable and wake up.  I'm saying this because lately the only reason I wake up in the middle of the night like I was before is due to the fact that I just get plain uncomfortable staying in the same position I've been in for hours.  I wake up and have to slightly move my heels, or slightly rotate my back (my back probably hurts the most from laying on it for a long time).  Oh and that reminds me, I'm happy to say I'm slowly but surely getting back more leg function!

I will try to describe this as best as possible: Picture a straight leg, and a leg completely bent to where your heel is touching your butt.  The completely straight leg would be what I call "180 degrees" while heel to butt would be "0".  Going off that, "90" would be what I call having your feet straight below your knee, as if you were bending your knee upwards while lying down until you reach the point where your foot is flat.  The rest of the degrees would obviously be in between those numbers.

Now that that's explained, I will describe how I'm doing.  During PT, I usually get my leg elevated and bent from 180-90 degrees, going past that hurts and gets real stiff.  It is expected however due to my muscles still not recovered from the incisions.  In the beginning, I could not or could hardly bend my knee towards me at all.  Earlier today however, I decided to try it and was very happy to see that if I focus, I can bend my knee to around 145 degrees by itself, and can take my hand to guide my tibia inwards to get to 90.  Awesome! The pain isn't bad at all, still at 1 or 2 level max, but the stiffness and exhaustion really kicks in if you don't have a helper.

I was also able to sit up straight for 2 hours today.  The longest I was able to before was 1 hour, and immediately afterwards I was helped in bed (needing help only because I was so exhausted from sitting up straight) and fell asleep quickly.  This time, I only took a short nap (less than 1 hr) and felt great upon waking up, no pain or stiffness whatsoever.  I am still pushing myself to get more function in my leg/knee, but I'm not trying to push too hard since I have no reason to do so this early on.

My appointment with Dr.  M got moved up from Friday to Tuesday, which is tomorrow! I will be taught how to lengthen using the device, and will be told more details about PT and what pills to take on and so on.  Things will start changing for me pretty soon, once your muscles are healed you will regain function, but once the lengthening starts you will really have to keep up with PT to maintain flexibility and have a better recovery. 

Unfortunately still no bowel movement yet.  Peeing has been fine however.  I've slowed my Norco intake to only 1 pill every 6 hours or so instead of 4, and I feel great.  I'm also eating a lot more than I have been, but still haven't really had the urge to go.  I took some laxative pills earlier in the day, and am hoping to have some bowel movement before bed tonight.  I imagine it will be sooo relieving.


That's all so far guys, will update again tomorrow after the appointment with Dr.  M.  I will leave you guys with this message:
For those of you Guests who may be lurking this forum and my diary, I highly encourage you to REGISTER and ask any and all questions you can.  Trust me, even though other diaries besides me may have been super thorough, I still had a crucial question or two I would have loved to have answered but couldn't due to the fact that the authors had already moved on from LL and had stop posting.  Like I said earlier, it my personal mission to be here a year from now and fully inform everyone of my recovery, but the sooner you guys register and post your questions the better.  Please don't do it before it's too late, don't mess up like I did!

Until next time.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 08, 2017, 05:30:40 AM
Day 6

Yet another great night of 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep! I found a new position to lay in, in which pillows are piled up behind my back so that my back isn't on the mattress.  It works great because my back doesn't hurt anymore, so now the only times I randomly wake up is if I get too hot or by having a random muscle spasm during a period the Norco had worn off (the likeliness of this is less and less each day).

Shortly after I woke up, I started getting the urge to go to the bathroom.  I was so happy because I haven't been able to do this in 6 days.  I delayed taking the Norco so it wouldn't have a chance at delaying my bowel movement.  This was now like 9 hours since my last Norco intake, so I was in a bit of pain.  It took me a while but I was able to stand up on my walker (with assistance. .  it's hard without pain meds) and successfully reach my commode.  After a while of sitting there, I finally had some bowel movement! I was sooo happy.  It was a decent amount, and it didn't really hurt as bad as I thought it would.  Once I was cleaned up, I got back up on my walker and got back to the bed.  I immediately took Norco to ease the pain I'd been dealing with, and also took my Xeralta for the day.

Not much else happened after this, so I'll skip to the point where I saw Dr.  M.  I was 15 mins late to him because of traffic, but everything was fine.  The first 10-15 mins of the Appt was his assistants removing all the bandages off of me, I was relieved.  Some of them hurt because they were sticking to my hair, but most of it came off relatively easily.  Once they were all off, Dr.  M came in and examined my incisions.  He said they were all looking great and were healing just fine, so no more bandages were needed.  Nice! He then wanted to examine my range of motion.  It was pretty funny because he just sat there and said "Okay, move your leg. " And I was like "Umm. .  I can't. " Apparently I'm supposed to be able to move my legs better than I have been able to? But it is possible he is confusing me with a patient that has been recovering for a week, since these appointments are usually 8 days after surgery but mine got moved up to only 5 days after.  Regardless, he lifted my leg for me and made me work my hardest to keep it in the air without his assistance.  It was really strenuous, and it looked to me like I wasn't really accomplishing anything.  However, he said I was doing well as he could feel my thigh muscles being utilized during the motions.  He told me to just keep working on this to get these muscles strong again, and told my Care taker to make me do more things by myself.  The last thing he did was give me a prescription for specific vitamin C and D pills, telling me to take them twice a day, and another prescription for physical therapy, which I will use when I return home. 

Once that was done, he left the room and a rep for Precice came in with the lengthening device.  The parts themselves aren't very big, but it came in a decently big box, like the size of a kid's rolling school backpack or suitcase.  He explained to me how to use the device, it was really simple.  Basically I just plug in the console to the wall, and have it set for . 33mm (which it already is by default, and can't be changed) and hit "Start" when I'm ready to lengthen.  I put the other part on a specific part of my femur (that is marked during surgery) and hold it there, and once Start is pressed the magnets do their thing.  You can see the device go from 0mm to . 33mm, it takes a few minutes.  Switch legs when you're done, and once you've done both simply unplug the machine.  It's REALLY easy to use.  However, it does NOT keep track of the total lengthening you have done, so make sure you keep track of that yourself! I am supposed to do 4 sessions of . 33mm for the first 5 days (once every 6 hours, for a total of 1. 33mm) and then slow it down to 3 sessions (once every 8 hours, for a total of 1. 00mm) on the 6th day and onwards.

Now that my appointment was all done, I was driven to Walmart for my new supplements and to pick up some other things, then driven back home.  Even though we only went to these 2 places, we were gone for like 6 hours! LA has crazy traffic. 


Day 7

Not a lot to say, more good sleeping and good stretching.  I've been working more on stretching by myself rather than with my care takers help, and so far I can lift my foot straight in the are from a bent knee position (with lots of strain), but cannot extend it further out to hold or I will come down.  Hoping to get there soon.  You can really feel the soreness after your reps are done, it honestly reminds me of working legs at the gym.  I've also been taking my vitamin C and D twice a day as I've been told to.  Other than that it's all the same really, no new bowel movement yet but I'm not too worried, I'm just happy that it still works after the initial one.  My next appointment with Dr.  M is next Tuesday, almost a week from today.  Will update again by Friday, as that is when I start lengthening.  Can't wait for that!

Until next time.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 08, 2017, 05:31:51 AM
Day 10

As of writing this, I have lengthened exactly 3.  63 mm! This is including the first 0.  99mm they give you during surgery.   Using the machine is super easy and it takes about 2-3 mins per leg.   I don't feel anything when lengthening either, maybe a little warmth on my femurs but I think that might just be in my head.   

The days are getting better yet still.   I am now able to easily get off and on my walker and wheelchair without any assistance, though it's still difficult for me to get both legs in my bed (my bed is kind of high off the ground though.  .  ) so I need help for the second one.   Stretching is still at the same amount, not gaining anything but that's fine because I'm mostly focused on just retaining right now.   The pain is unnoticeable at most times unless I'm actively moving my leg, and my arms are getting stronger so I'm able to do more and more by myself now.   I've had at least 1 bowel movement every day since the first one, and when I need to go I just get up on my walker and walk to the toilet myself.   I still use the commode on the toilet just so I don't have to sit too far down and also get access to the railings the commode provides, but once I get stronger I'm planning on getting rid of it. 

So yeah, not too much to say about anything, everything's going well and still getting easier. My appointment with Dr.   M is in 2 days, and by that time I should be more than 6mm taller too.   I'll update sometime around then, or if anything major happens before. 

Until next time.

Day 16

I had my Appt with Dr. M yesterday because it got moved from Tuesday to Thursday. The Appt went great! First I had an X-ray to make sure I had been lengthening properly. Dr. M said it looked like I had done about 9mm, which is consistent with what I had written down at the time (it was about 9.24mm or something like that). But the really cool part was that my bone was growing back super fast, so fast that he told me to start lengthening 4 times a day for 1.33mm instead of 3 times a day for 1mm. This is great because not only does that mean I can get the lengthening over with quicker and get my new height sooner, but it is also indicative of how quickly I can consolidate once I'm done lengthening, which means hopefully I'll be able to start walking in no time! I also got all my sutures and stitches removed, so now they're just left to healing on their own.

Now here's what might be a big deal for some of you: this is the last time I will see Dr. M for another year or so (to take the rods out). I am not from California, I am from another state. I am leaving back home tomorrow and will be sending X-rays every 2 weeks to Dr. M to make sure everything is okay. This means I will be doing the entire lengthening process by myself without ever having any type of check ups from him. Of course I would fly in if I needed to in case of an emergency, but assuming there won't be any, I will be doing the therapy and lengthening process in my own state from here on out. This may be dangerous, but I am very excited and I know I will be able to do it. I'm pretty young and healthy, and seeing my recovery process makes me all the more confident that I'll do just fine.

I can raise both my legs higher than I ever could (post surgery) and can extend them in the air farther and hold them for longer. I can get up on my walker and walk for longer and with less pain. I'm only using pain meds every 6 hours, sometimes more like 8-9. My appetite is coming back, I'm able to eat more kinds of food and more of it. My bowel movements are getting more and more normal, and I have at least one a day. I still use the commode on the toilet just because it's hard coming up from being that low, but I can pee standing up like normal. I'm starting to be able to go past 90 while bending my legs, I'm hoping that once I get back home and start therapy I will be able to push this even further. But so far guys, I'm doing great. And all these things get better and better each day. I'm so happy this is going so well.

As of writing, I have currently lengthened 10.56 mm, which is over 1cm. I still have 2 more lengthening sessions today, so it'll be at over 11mm by the end of the day. I can't wait to get my first inch (2.54cm, or 25.4mm) though, that's where the real progress begins. Now that I'm leaving Dr. M, I will not be updating this as often, maybe around every half inch or so unless something noteworthy happens. I will still be here for any questions though, I check the forum quite often so if you have ANY questions please ask! Thank you all for reading this, and I hope my diary so far has been able to give you all a good impression of limb lengthening with Dr.
M.

Until next time.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 08, 2017, 05:32:50 AM
Day 21

I'm at 3 weeks in now, and I definitely have the best improvement yet. There's quite a few things that have changed since the last time I've updated, so here we go.

I made it back to my home state last Friday. I took pain medication once before my first flight and once between my connecting flight, so I wasn't really in pain at any time. Since I couldn't stand, I didn't have to go through the medical detector and was patted down instead. That was pretty nice, I didn't have to explain my rods that way. Upon arriving home, I did something that I believe most people do not recommend: I went up the stairs into my room. There were 14 steps. The first time was rather difficult, but every time after that has been easier. For those wondering, the way I do it is by putting one hand on the stair railing and putting the other hand on a cane to help me up the steps. First I put the cane on the step in front of me, and position my railing hand a little further up than I am to be equal with the cane. Then, I push down on the cane and the railing and lift up my leading foot onto the next step. Finally, I take the other foot that hasn't gone up yet and sort of just scoot it up the step. Rinse and repeat till I get to the top, then I transfer to my walker and go. I was able to do this only a bit more than 2 weeks post op, but I can't say I recommend it. Keep in mind that I am young and weigh less than the weight bearing limit, but It definitely would have been easier to be able to stay downstairs. With that said, going down is a lot easier but still a hassle. And the crazy part is I actually do this 3-4 times a week, it takes me about 10 minutes but it gets easier as my arms and legs get stronger.

Medications: I stopped taking pain meds a few days ago, the only time I take one now is right before PT, that's it. Pain is obviously a bit worse without him, but I'd say it's pretty much just a 1-2 all day with a max of 3 on my left leg (more on that later). I also stopped taking the blood thinner today now that I'm 3 weeks post op, so hopefully I feel better in some way from doing this. Other than that, still taking Calcium and Vitamin D twice a day as instructed by Dr. M.


Physical Therapy: I started PT today, and it was great. I was given two exercises to do at home to increase my quad strength and flexibility. They're pretty basic, the strength one involves straightening my leg and pressing down on a towel below my knee, while the other one has me pulling on my leg with a strap to help bend it further and further. My flexibility for bending my knee was measured at 110 for the left leg and 108 for the right. These definitely aren't great, but I was told to just go as far as I could until I felt any type of discomfort, so it's not like I was actually stretching it really. I can also say that my left leg is lagging almost way behind my right leg. My right leg is pretty independent on most movements and is mostly painless or at a 1 throughout the day, but I actually have to pick up my leg left manually to move it a lot, and if I don't it starts hurting. This has been getting better though, and just a few days ago I was finally able to get in and out the car by myself without having to carry my left leg, so it's clearly getting stronger. Once it catches up to my right though, this will be a breeze since my right really doesn't give me any trouble. I go back to PT again tomorrow, and from here on out I'm scheduled to have it 3 times a week, and after 4 weeks or so I'll move up to 4 times a week to do more intense exercises. Can't wait!

Lengthening: So far, I have lengthened 1.7cm. I will be going back to doing 3 sessions a day now since I was only supposed to do 4 sessions a day for a week, and next week I'll get my X-ray to Dr. M to see how to proceed from there. I'm actually keeping track of my height on the wall now and will be making new marks every week, so that will be fun to see. Also, after speaking with Dr. M and messaging SysOp himself (thank you SysOp!), I have decided that I will instead shoot for the full 8cm. The 0.4cm difference in height isn't all that much to be without, but having it definitely helps to be that much more above 6ft rather than borderline. My body is so far accommodating the lengthening really well, so if it continues like this I (and Dr. M) see no reason why I wouldn't be able to safely do 8cm. But of course, we'll see how it goes!


I believe that's everything now guys. Phew, that took a while to type. As usual, feel free to ask any questions here or via PM, I am open to any and all questions that you think will help in your own LL journey. Thank you for reading, I'll update around my first X-ray next week or if something major happens.

Until next time.


Sorry for all the posts lol, but now my diary here is all caught up. Just like it says up there ^^ feel free to ask any questions!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: onemorefoot on June 08, 2017, 06:11:26 AM
Do you know if Dr. Manh uses external devices( tsf)? Are you 5 9" in the afternoon?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: IwannaBeTaller on June 08, 2017, 08:25:58 AM
Your username, lol.....I wish you the best of luck on your journey.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 08, 2017, 11:10:19 AM
Do you know if Dr. Manh uses external devices( tsf)? Are you 5 9" in the afternoon?

As far as I know, he does not. I asked him about it and he gave a vague answer saying that the risks are too high, it sounded like he didn't offer it anymore to me but he may still do so for deformity correction in children.

I am unfortunately not, that's the reason why I said I am "about" 5'9. However, now that I'm going for the full 8cm I think the extra 0.4 will be enough to get me to 6 ft flat rather than "5'11 and 3/4" or something like that lol, even though if it did I'd round up anyways :P
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 08, 2017, 11:11:10 AM
Your username, lol.....I wish you the best of luck on your journey.

Haha, I couldn't come up with anything too clever and I wanted to remain anonymous. I think my username gets straight to the point though :) Thanks for the support, feel free to ask any questions!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: TIBIKE200 on June 08, 2017, 11:57:45 AM
What made you do it in the end?

There must have been an event or events that made you decide to do LL at such a young age
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 08, 2017, 12:26:06 PM
What made you do it in the end?

There must have been an event or events that made you decide to do LL at such a young age

I kinda described this in the first post, but basically I've been around tall people my entire life and was tired of being the "short" one. I always thought I would grow, and held out hope for the longest time until I found out my growth plates were closed. When it came down to it, being the size I was just didn't line up with how I saw myself being as an adult, and without this extra height I couldn't imagine being satisfied with myself. In the end, I decided to do LL in order to become the person I truly wanted to be, and I wanted to do it sooner rather than later.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Bander72 on June 09, 2017, 02:03:49 AM
How much was your total cost and do you know if he takes insurance like Rozburch.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 09, 2017, 03:06:59 AM
How much was your total cost and do you know if he takes insurance like Rozburch.

$72k for surgery + hospital stay, my insurance covered meds and PT.

His office does accept insurance yes, but since it's a cosmetic surgery your insurance most likely won't cover any of it. Mine didn't :(
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Bander72 on June 09, 2017, 03:23:47 AM
I say it because someone went to rozburch who is on paleys level who charges normally around 100k and this insurance got it down to 50k. I wonder if the same insurance was use could reduce the price to 40 or 30k. By the way if you are 22 how did you aford this?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 09, 2017, 04:37:13 AM
I say it because someone went to rozburch who is on paleys level who charges normally around 100k and this insurance got it down to 50k. I wonder if the same insurance was use could reduce the price to 40 or 30k. By the way if you are 22 how did you aford this?

Oh I see, well yes then theoretically if one has that insurance I see no reason why it wouldn't work for Dr. M's office as well.

I had a job all throughout high school and I was really good at saving. When I set my mind to this, I worked 2 jobs, sometimes 3, while relentlessly saving and also applying for credit cards to boost my credit limit. I didn't actually have all the money but I did have most of it, the rest I was able to charge to my cards since by that time I had more than enough credit to do so.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Bander72 on June 09, 2017, 04:53:37 AM
Do you know how much your hospital fees were? 6 Feet soon qoute that he saved 35k from hospital fees and 25k from the surgery so total 60k. Im not sure if it would be the same because then it be 12k for the surgery with Mahbouian..... But if it was  about 30k it would be a gigantic bargin still.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 09, 2017, 04:58:00 AM
Do you know how much your hospital fees were? 6 Feet soon qoute that he saved 35k from hospital fees and 25k from the surgery so total 60k. Im not sure if it would be the same because then it be 12k for the surgery with Mahbouian..... But if it was  about 30k it would be a gigantic bargin still.

Hospital fees were $40k, plus a bit more than $1k for the anesthesiologist fee.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: questionthe on June 10, 2017, 04:53:21 PM
When you're done you should post a picture of the wall marks as that would be interesting to see.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 10, 2017, 07:32:29 PM
When you're done you should post a picture of the wall marks as that would be interesting to see.

Sure, I wouldn't mind doing that. It would be sometime in the beginning of August.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Datum on June 10, 2017, 11:38:35 PM
This diary will be interesting I guess
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 10, 2017, 11:56:17 PM
This diary will be interesting I guess

Well I would hope so, I wouldn't want it to be boring!

If you have any questions about something I didn't cover, don't hesitate to ask.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Bander72 on June 11, 2017, 03:59:51 AM
This diary will be interesting I guess

 ???

What do you even mean with that? And yes it will be a good diary to see because its rare to see a mahboubian diary in the forum As well as having information on his price. I'll have to investigate when I have time to see how much I could save with insurance if it's a good amount like RozBurch then I'll be sprinting over from SF to LA.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: TIBIKE200 on June 11, 2017, 04:28:31 AM
???

What do you even mean with that? And yes it will be a good diary to see because its rare to see a mahboubian diary in the forum As well as having information on his price. I'll have to investigate when I have time to see how much I could save with insurance if it's a good amount like RozBurch then I'll be sprinting over from SF to LA.

Ignore him. It's the good old "you know who" user
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 11, 2017, 05:11:51 AM
???

What do you even mean with that? And yes it will be a good diary to see because its rare to see a mahboubian diary in the forum As well as having information on his price. I'll have to investigate when I have time to see how much I could save with insurance if it's a good amount like RozBurch then I'll be sprinting over from SF to LA.

If you're in SF then I'd definitely recommend going with Dr. M for sure. Definitely do a price comparison though, and also keep in mind that NY has a higher cost of living than LA. You'll need to stay in whatever city you choose for at least 2 weeks, if not longer.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Bander72 on June 11, 2017, 09:10:56 AM
Two weeks is nothing and yeah La is definetly cheaper. Its alot more expensive in nothern california/ Sf in particular. I wonder how Id go about getting the insurance information and a estimate of how much I could save. Does mahbounian have a list of insurances he accepts?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 11, 2017, 12:11:32 PM
Two weeks is nothing and yeah La is definetly cheaper. Its alot more expensive in nothern california/ Sf in particular. I wonder how Id go about getting the insurance information and a estimate of how much I could save. Does mahbounian have a list of insurances he accepts?

I would just call his office and ask. I'm not sure if he has a list specifically, but he does have some sort of system because I asked him about my insurance and was told that the one I had wouldn't cover anything.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: yyes on June 11, 2017, 02:21:41 PM
Just to let you guys know with Dr Rozbruch, insurance is hit or miss according to what the billing department told me.

In fact, the lady I talked to said that sometimes it even depends on the person thats handling your case. Some representatives are anal about the rules, whereas others are more lenient.

Hence, this is why sometimes hospital fees are covered because some representatives will consider it 'non cosmetic' whereas sometimes they wont be covered because the representative will consider the whole thing 'cosmetic' .

The unfortunate thing about all this according to the billing department is that there is no way of knowing beforehand whether your insurance will cover the procedure or not. This didnt make sense to me but thats what I was told. So in essence you have to go in there with atleast 130k from the estimates I was given.

HOWEVER, I was told something very interesting.

If the Dr finds some defect in your legs, he can get insurance to cover the procedure.

Here's the kicker:
Almost everyone has some defect in their legs according to the nurse that I talked to.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: RealTrump on June 11, 2017, 09:06:41 PM
If the Dr finds some defect in your legs, he can get insurance to cover the procedure.

Here's the kicker:
Almost everyone has some defect in their legs according to the nurse that I talked to.

Highly doubt most people get their insurance to cover this procedure 'cuz of some defect. This is the type of anecdote that happens to "everyone" except for yourself.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Bander72 on June 12, 2017, 12:51:34 AM
Just to let you guys know with Dr Rozbruch, insurance is hit or miss according to what the billing department told me.

In fact, the lady I talked to said that sometimes it even depends on the person thats handling your case. Some representatives are anal about the rules, whereas others are more lenient.

Hence, this is why sometimes hospital fees are covered because some representatives will consider it 'non cosmetic' whereas sometimes they wont be covered because the representative will consider the whole thing 'cosmetic' .



The unfortunate thing about all this according to the billing department is that there is no way of knowing beforehand whether your insurance will cover the procedure or not. This didnt make sense to me but thats what I was told. So in essence you have to go in there with atleast 130k from the estimates I was given.

HOWEVER, I was told something very interesting.

If the Dr finds some defect in your legs, he can get insurance to cover the procedure.

Here's the kicker:
Almost everyone has some defect in their legs according to the nurse that I talked to.


Wonder if a defect could be any minor thing as a chiropractor told me that my left leg was 2mm shorter than the right. I guess 6 feet soon was in luck not to get noisy representative.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Body Builder on June 12, 2017, 02:15:39 AM

Wonder if a defect could be any minor thing as a chiropractor told me that my left leg was 2mm shorter than the right. I guess 6 feet soon was in luck not to get noisy representative.
2mm is considered no difference.
More than 90% of people have a difference of up to 0.5cm between their legs.

Also, so minor differences can't be measured from a chiropracton or anyone else.
Only x rays or ct scan could measure the exact length of the foot so you can find tiny differences like this.

And no, it is not true that most people have issues with their legs that an insurance covers.
A 10% of population at max would have such problems and I believe even that is too much.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: yyes on June 12, 2017, 02:46:09 AM
Highly doubt most people get their insurance to cover this procedure 'cuz of some defect. This is the type of anecdote that happens to "everyone" except for yourself.

Im just going off what the nurse told me. Honestly, I didnt believe it but im sharing what she said. I will be visiting in August so that they can take xrays.

Nonetheless, you better come to this surgery with 130k if you will use Rozbruch.

Why?

If you assume that you will only have to pay 50k, the down payment for the surgery is a non refundable 30k. What happens if you insurance decides not to pay? Well, now you are out 30k . I assume that maybe they can hold the 30k for maybe a year or 2 but still its a major headache.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 17, 2017, 06:59:06 AM
Day 30

My first inch!! I'm still just a bit under 5'10, but I'm definitely closer than I've ever been compared to 5'9. Still have a little more than 2 inches to go, the extra 0.4cm in the end should make up for being a bit under every inch lol. But I'm so excited, 1 inch officially down!

Not much has changed as far as how I'm doing. PT has been great, it's probably my favorite part of the day. My left leg has definitely been getting stronger and catching up to the right, but it still has some ways to go. Whenever I try and stand, I can feel resistance in my left knee not wanting to straighten, so I have put conscious effort on it to be straight. The longer I walk and stand however, the quicker it goes away. And lately it's been going away quicker than normal, most likely from my PT progress. I've been getting pretty lazy with the stretches I'm supposed to be doing at home, but that's only because I've been feeling fine and feeling like I don't really need them.

I sent my X-Rays to Dr. M yesterday, and he replied within a couple of hours. He says my bone growth looks great and to stay at the same lengthening rate, so unfortunately I couldn't go back up to 4 sessions a day but it's definitely better than going less than 3. In conclusion, not really much to say here. I'm doing great so far guys, pain is mostly at a 0 throughout the day and my leg functions are getting easier and easier as my legs get stronger. Thank you all for reading so far, hopefully I'll have something more significant to report before my next half inch or so, but until then please feel free to ask questions!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 30, 2017, 09:56:13 PM
Day 45

40mm down!
That's 4cm/8cm, and I'm feeling great :)

I'm sure you guys are wondering how I got to be 4cm already even though you can't lengthen till a week post op.. well I'll tell you why, it's because my bone growth is going super fast again!

I sent my new X-Rays to Dr. M, and apparently the bone growth on my left leg is coming in "very strong," so strong that I have to move up to 4 sessions a day, 1.32mm a day for the next 2 weeks. My right leg was also coming in strong, but unfortunately not as strong as the left (not a bad thing, just means it was coming in normally lol). However, I'm also being allowed to switch to 4 sessions a day for my right one as well. When I send him my next X-Rays in 2 weeks, Dr. M will see if my right leg is keeping up with the lengthening, and if it is I can continue to do 4 sessions a day!

This is soooo great to me guys. Let me put it like this:

Originally, I was set to finish lengthening on August 11th.

Due to having initial fast bone growth, I had to move up to 4 sessions for a week, putting my new date at August 8th.

And now since I'll be doing this for 2 weeks, my new finish date has moved from August 8th to August 4th!

And the best part: If my bone growth still looks good in 2 weeks, I'll be able to move my date up even more and be able to finish in July instead of August.


So yeah, I'm ecstatic to say the least. Other than the great X-Ray news, everything else has been going fine. I still haven't been taking pain meds since week 3, and now I don't even take them before PT anymore. I literally go through the entire day, every day, with 0 pain meds and feel no pain. The only "pain" I have is sometimes stretching in PT, but really I personally wouldn't call that pain.. it just feels like a stretch to me lol. I really enjoy the exercise bike, the rest of the stuff is pretty general such as hamstring pull downs and quad extensions. The hardest thing they have me do is stand up and sit downs, they're really tough on my legs because of how much strength I lost. Keep in mind the only reason I can do this without assistance is because I'm under 140 lbs, for those of you above it please make sure your PT does not make you do this. Also, my left leg is still tough to straighten but it hasn't gotten any worse, just hasn't gotten much better. And I can also feel my right knee starting to stiffen as well, but it's no where near the left leg and still not hard, just takes some very minor effort whereas before it was effortless.

My appetite and sleep have been perfectly fine. I wish I could eat more, but it's just difficult eating more food when I'm not doing any physical activity to earn it, though I do get hungry after PT. My sleep has been perfect, I can sleep for 7 hours+ and only wake up when I feel like it. Though now I can technically only sleep 6 hours or less due to the lengthening every 6 hours, but I fall back asleep right after anyways no problem.

I can't remember how much detail I went into with sleep and pain and such before, but after this is over I do plan on giving a type of "week report" or a sort of general roadmap of my experience, so hopefully for the people who might think my posts are too long will still have some good info to read and others can have a good guideline to see where to be at week by week. As usual, I'll report back if anything major happens, but if not then I'll definitely post again in 2 weeks for my new X-Rays. Thank you for reading!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: TIBIKE200 on June 30, 2017, 10:45:20 PM
So now you are 179cm tall. Must be feeling great.

 How much are the 4cm noticable from your POV?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 30, 2017, 10:52:50 PM
So now you are 179cm tall. Must be feeling great.

 How much are the 4cm noticable from your POV?

Definitely great to have gotten this far. As far as being noticeable, unfortunately not really lol because I have yet to see any friends I can compare myself to. I am, however, noticing it's getting easier to reach my ceiling fan's switches so that's pretty cool.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: axelf on July 01, 2017, 01:41:19 PM
Nice.

What do you think about recovery? What does DR Mahboubian say about it? Will you be able to run fast again, what about the different biomechanics with longer femurs compared to tibias?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on July 01, 2017, 09:13:58 PM
Nice.

What do you think about recovery? What does DR Mahboubian say about it? Will you be able to run fast again, what about the different biomechanics with longer femurs compared to tibias?

I think I'm doing super well so far, obviously it's way too early to say but I feel like I'd be able to be athletic again just because of how well my legs feel. Dr. M says you can resume sports after 6 months post op.

I do think I'll be able to run fast again, the biomechanics will definitely be different but I mean there are people with naturally longer femurs that can still run and such. As long as you're still within a good ratio, I think you'd be fine but I won't know till I get there.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: biggerdreams on July 01, 2017, 09:21:56 PM
I think I'm doing super well so far, obviously it's way too early to say but I feel like I'd be able to be athletic again just because of how well my legs feel. Dr. M says you can resume sports after 6 months post op.

I do think I'll be able to run fast again, the biomechanics will definitely be different but I mean there are people with naturally longer femurs that can still run and such. As long as you're still within a good ratio, I think you'd be fine but I won't know till I get there.

resume sports 6 months post op or post lengthening? or post consolidation?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on July 01, 2017, 10:42:17 PM
resume sports 6 months post op or post lengthening? or post consolidation?

Post op. 3 months lengthening (or less depending on how much you do/how fast you lengthen), 1 month (or less if bone heals faster) of consolidation, then 2 months to build up your strength and flexibility. So by month 6 you should be able to resume running and such again.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: biggerdreams on July 01, 2017, 11:39:03 PM
Post op. 3 months lengthening (or less depending on how much you do/how fast you lengthen), 1 month (or less if bone heals faster) of consolidation, then 2 months to build up your strength and flexibility. So by month 6 you should be able to resume running and such again.

I think that's pretty optimistic but good news nonetheless!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: ctw on July 03, 2017, 06:58:06 AM
Hey! Have a couple of questions

-How are the pain levels are this time? Still taking any pain meds?
-How are you getting around in terms of mobility at the moment?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on July 03, 2017, 05:01:27 PM
Hey! Have a couple of questions

-How are the pain levels are this time? Still taking any pain meds?
-How are you getting around in terms of mobility at the moment?

Pain = 0. Just some tightness. I stopped taking pain meds after the 2nd week.

Getting around is fine, the walker's not difficult at all and transferring to and from the wheelchair gets really easy once the initial pain from surgery is lowered.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: tinkerbell007 on July 05, 2017, 03:26:05 AM
Hi, thank you for your diary. Do you know if Dr.M accepts care credit financing? I'm saving up but if I could partially fund using care credit, I can go through the process sooner than later.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on July 05, 2017, 05:22:13 AM
Hi, thank you for your diary. Do you know if Dr.M accepts care credit financing? I'm saving up but if I could partially fund using care credit, I can go through the process sooner than later.

Yes, he does.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on July 15, 2017, 09:51:43 PM
Day 66

I wanted to update this a couple of days earlier, but there was a delay in getting my X-Rays to Dr. M. Anyways, here we go..

Unfortunately my right leg did not look like it could handle the increased lengthening of 4 times day/1.32mm per day. My left leg, however, still looks strong as ever. I was advised to keep lengthening the left at 4 times a day while dropping the right to 3 times a day. This is kind of inconvenient for me, but I'd rather follow Dr. M's advice than get complications in either leg. It will be a little weird having my left leg longer than my right, but since I'm so close to being done already the difference will be minimal.

Here's some pics for you guys!
http://imgur.com/a/tBoHF
Right on top, Left on bottom

Keep in mind though, the bad news of my right leg does NOT mean I'm doing "bad." 3 times a day is absolutely normal, "bad" would mean I have to do less than that. My left leg is just doing really good, and to me it's bad news that my right leg isn't also doing really good. Now my legs will be a few days apart in the end when they are finished lengthening.

Besides this though, everything else has been fine... currently at 6cm, I noticed I got tighter around 5.5cm or so but nothing painful, just a feeling that made me want to stretch more to reduce the tightness.

Here's my dilemma though guys: I've really been considering not going the full 8cm. There's several reasons for this.

First off, I'm worried about how I will perform after 8cm. I've seen great successes like ShyShy and others who were able to run and jump after a large amount of lengthening, but for some reason none of these people have ever went to 8cm. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but all the great success I've seen were all 7.5cm max (as in ShyShy's case), but never passed that. I don't know if 8 is just a bad number or not, but for me not seeing any 8cm patients with that kind of success makes me very cautious.

Second, I'm a little scared about how much more I can take, especially in my right leg. I know I haven't really felt any pain and I'm doing great right now at 6cm, but it's only going to get harder from here.. do I really want to push myself to the point where it gets hard? I think it would be great for me to just stop when I get really uncomfortable (with that amount hopefully being 7.5/7.6cm) rather than getting all the way to 8cm and being super tight. I just feel like the former will help me heal a lot faster if I'm still relatively fine, while the latter will not only take longer to recover from but will also take longer just to feel better.

Lastly, and most importantly, I truly do want to start getting back to my life. I miss hanging out with my friends, family, and girlfriend. I miss going to the gym, I miss running outside and I miss being able to just go out in public like normal. I'm definitely not saying I'm at my limit and need to be back in public like right away next month or something, but the longer I lengthen the longer the recovery will take.. and that compounding time is really starting to take its toll on me. Is the 4mm difference between 7.6cm and 8cm even worth it anymore? I'm starting to think little things like my hair can easily make up for that difference. I really just want to stop lengthening already and start recovering.. once I can walk I can at least look like I'm normal, but in the walker everyone will clearly know something's wrong.


I'll definitely be thinking a lot about this over these last 3 weeks, and I'll make sure to listen to my body as the ultimate deciding factor. But I'd like to know what you guys think, please chime in as much as you can and let me know if stopping at 7.6cm rather than 8cm would be worth it. Thank you for reading!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: llendpoint on July 16, 2017, 10:54:04 PM
Your upper body will shrink when you get older, so you will technically not stay 6 feet anyway. But you can stay solid 5'11 forever if you finish with this, and probably still look and be closer to 6 feet than 5'11.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on July 16, 2017, 11:41:13 PM
Your upper body will shrink when you get older, so you will technically not stay 6 feet anyway. But you can stay solid 5'11 forever if you finish with this, and probably still look and be closer to 6 feet than 5'11.

So what's your vote then? 7.6cm or 8cm?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Heightseeker77 on July 17, 2017, 04:03:33 AM
Go for 8cm. Be the first one ever! Make history! I believe in you!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: llendpoint on July 17, 2017, 07:39:47 AM
So what's your vote then? 7.6cm or 8cm?

7.6 cm, if you feel it becomes a strain on your body.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Jack1066 on July 17, 2017, 01:00:31 PM
0.4 cm is nothing. Go for whatever is easier. Especially don't risk your health over 0.4 cm!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: TIBIKE200 on July 17, 2017, 06:44:04 PM
You are 180.5cm now.. If I would have been you I would have stopped.. Than again, I am not you. Yo uare overthinking those 0.4cm as if they are a huge difference.


 Btw, I wouldn't consider shyshy's case as being a legitimate case.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Body Builder on July 17, 2017, 08:59:52 PM
So what's your vote then? 7.6cm or 8cm?
7.84 is my vote.  8)
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: llendpoint on July 17, 2017, 09:21:05 PM
I noticed that people who use feet and inches to measure want to hit certain marks. Hitting 180 cm is enough for people who use centimeters, but not for people who look at it as being just below 6 feet.

So... move somewhere where people use centimeters  ;D
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: biggerdreams on July 17, 2017, 09:34:35 PM
0.4 cm is nothing. Go for whatever is easier. Especially don't risk your health over 0.4 cm!

Agree, no one is ever going to bust out a tape measure to see exactly how tall you are. Health and recovery are more important.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: LLSouthAmerica on July 17, 2017, 09:54:50 PM
Day 66

I wanted to update this a couple of days earlier, but there was a delay in getting my X-Rays to Dr. M. Anyways, here we go..

Unfortunately my right leg did not look like it could handle the increased lengthening of 4 times day/1.32mm per day. My left leg, however, still looks strong as ever. I was advised to keep lengthening the left at 4 times a day while dropping the right to 3 times a day. This is kind of inconvenient for me, but I'd rather follow Dr. M's advice than get complications in either leg. It will be a little weird having my left leg longer than my right, but since I'm so close to being done already the difference will be minimal.

Here's some pics for you guys!
http://imgur.com/a/tBoHF
Right on top, Left on bottom

Keep in mind though, the bad news of my right leg does NOT mean I'm doing "bad." 3 times a day is absolutely normal, "bad" would mean I have to do less than that. My left leg is just doing really good, and to me it's bad news that my right leg isn't also doing really good. Now my legs will be a few days apart in the end when they are finished lengthening.

Besides this though, everything else has been fine... currently at 6cm, I noticed I got tighter around 5.5cm or so but nothing painful, just a feeling that made me want to stretch more to reduce the tightness.

Here's my dilemma though guys: I've really been considering not going the full 8cm. There's several reasons for this.

First off, I'm worried about how I will perform after 8cm. I've seen great successes like ShyShy and others who were able to run and jump after a large amount of lengthening, but for some reason none of these people have ever went to 8cm. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but all the great success I've seen were all 7.5cm max (as in ShyShy's case), but never passed that. I don't know if 8 is just a bad number or not, but for me not seeing any 8cm patients with that kind of success makes me very cautious.

Second, I'm a little scared about how much more I can take, especially in my right leg. I know I haven't really felt any pain and I'm doing great right now at 6cm, but it's only going to get harder from here.. do I really want to push myself to the point where it gets hard? I think it would be great for me to just stop when I get really uncomfortable (with that amount hopefully being 7.5/7.6cm) rather than getting all the way to 8cm and being super tight. I just feel like the former will help me heal a lot faster if I'm still relatively fine, while the latter will not only take longer to recover from but will also take longer just to feel better.

Lastly, and most importantly, I truly do want to start getting back to my life. I miss hanging out with my friends, family, and girlfriend. I miss going to the gym, I miss running outside and I miss being able to just go out in public like normal. I'm definitely not saying I'm at my limit and need to be back in public like right away next month or something, but the longer I lengthen the longer the recovery will take.. and that compounding time is really starting to take its toll on me. Is the 4mm difference between 7.6cm and 8cm even worth it anymore? I'm starting to think little things like my hair can easily make up for that difference. I really just want to stop lengthening already and start recovering.. once I can walk I can at least look like I'm normal, but in the walker everyone will clearly know something's wrong.


I'll definitely be thinking a lot about this over these last 3 weeks, and I'll make sure to listen to my body as the ultimate deciding factor. But I'd like to know what you guys think, please chime in as much as you can and let me know if stopping at 7.6cm rather than 8cm would be worth it. Thank you for reading!

I feel you man! I felt exactly the same during the lengthening, the longing for home and being able to move again, the little things in life that I had never appreciated before. The only thing I can say to you, stop for the right reasons (physical, medical, not psychological) because if you stop too early you might regret it and you can't ever go back in time to go the extra cm. But then again, realise that 1 cm is a lot in terms of recovery and stiffness. I wouldn't go further than 7 cm but every body is different. Do know however that there are a lot of details that you just can't know at the time, you don't know how long recovery will take you in particular. 181 cm is a great height already!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on July 19, 2017, 06:43:07 AM
Thanks for all of your input guys! I would love to be the "first person" to get to 8cm and fully recover my athletic ability, but the thing is if I go for it and fail, it's not like "Oh well, I tried.." and move on.. I will be like that for the rest of my life! I don't know if that's a risk I'm willing to take.

Moving my right leg down to 0.99mm per day from 1.32mm per day really helped in these past 2 days. And for some reason, my legs at 6.4cm feel a lot looser and stronger than they did around 5cm when they got tight. It was as if once I pushed passed 6cm, it got easier and my legs loosened up.. it doesn't make a whole lot of sense but hey I'm not complaining!

Based on everyone's input and how I feel already, I think I'm going to stop at 7.5/7.6cm. The reason I've said "7.5/7.6" at times is because my goal is 7.6, since 3 inches is technically 7.62cm which is closer to 7.6 than 7.5.. but if my body is not feeling well then I'd gladly take 7.5cm instead. I don't see myself stopping at anything lower than 7.5 though, unless I'm having major complications.

I'll make the final call about going to 8cm or not when I get there, but for now I'm just gonna focus on getting to 7.6cm and then measuring my height and judging whether or not the extra 4mm is worth it.

Thank you all for reading and contributing! I truly appreciate it.


Btw, I wouldn't consider shyshy's case as being a legitimate case.

Why not? Was he disproven or something?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: drvbmc on August 05, 2017, 06:28:06 PM
Hey 6fs, congrats on your successful lengthening.  I am wondering if Dr. R allows patients to go to their home city during the distraction phase once he knows things are progressing smoothly?

I saw that Dr. Mahboubian allows patients to do so, which is why I ask the question.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: drvbmc on August 05, 2017, 06:29:37 PM
Sorry - wrong post - was intended for the Rozbruch diary.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: LAGrowin on August 13, 2017, 10:43:41 PM
Hello Brb6ftTall,

Hoping that you're well and consolidating without issue.  Congratulations on a smooth journey to a new height!

How are you feeling?    Can't wait to be where you are soon through Dr. M.

All the best!

Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on January 18, 2018, 06:45:47 AM
Hello everyone. Just wanted to say i’m alive. Loving my new height. I’m still not able to run yet, I can jog on the treadmill but it’s very very weird. I’m also unable to squat because of how bad my form is, not sure if I can work past this or not but I’m not worried about it too much right now.

I also apologize to anyone who sent me a PM and I didn’t answer. Honestly I now see why people randomly stop posting, once you’re up and moving after LL you honestly don’t want anything to do with it anymore. Or at least I did. I just wanted to move on in my life and not worry about something that seemed so far away now.

But I digress. My main goal is still the same, I created this diary with the intention of reporting to you all after surgery to add to the data of recovery. I’m sorry I wasn’t posting more or answering questions, but truthfully that wasn’t what my diary or original intentions were meant for. I’ll post back once I can run again, maybe next month? Not sure if i’ll Ever be able to squat but I will post if I do. Thank you all for reading.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: TIBIKE200 on January 18, 2018, 06:53:54 AM
How much did you lengthen in the end?

 Btw, I think you can forget to squat normally... Proportions wont allow that...
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on January 18, 2018, 07:31:59 AM
How much did you lengthen in the end?

 Btw, I think you can forget to squat normally... Proportions wont allow that...

I stopped at 7.6cm. I don’t regret not going to 8cm.

I looked up videos of squatting with longer femurs, some of the tips in that help but yeah it might just be that I’m not meant to do squats. I’m uncertain what I should be doing to replace squats though.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: TIBIKE200 on January 18, 2018, 07:47:15 AM
I stopped at 7.6cm. I don’t regret not going to 8cm.

I looked up videos of squatting with longer femurs, some of the tips in that help but yeah it might just be that I’m not meant to do squats. I’m uncertain what I should be doing to replace squats though.

No offence, but the "longer femur videos" are for people who might have slightly longer femurs. I doubt you have the length of femurs to someone naturally your height after you lengthened so much.
  You can do sumo deadlifts instead
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on January 18, 2018, 08:13:32 AM
No offence, but the "longer femur videos" are for people who might have slightly longer femurs. I doubt you have the length of femurs to someone naturally your height after you lengthened so much.
  You can do sumo deadlifts instead

No offense taken lol. Like I said, I’m probably just not meant to do squats. I heard walking lunges are good for quads and glutes too. I’ll look into sumo deadlifts, thanks a lot for the suggestion.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: MirinHeight on January 19, 2018, 05:03:11 AM
No offense taken lol. Like I said, I’m probably just not meant to do squats. I heard walking lunges are good for quads and glutes too. I’ll look into sumo deadlifts, thanks a lot for the suggestion.

what do you mean by running is weird?

how long did it take for you to get back 100% to your normal walking gait?

do you wish you lengthened less than 7.6 cm?

Thnx man!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on January 19, 2018, 09:34:51 PM
what do you mean by running is weird?

how long did it take for you to get back 100% to your normal walking gait?

do you wish you lengthened less than 7.6 cm?

Thnx man!

I’m not getting the full range of motion, it feels like I’m just stomping really fast. This could be due to a lot of reasons:

1. Poor flexibility (when you do LL you lose all of it pretty much, I couldn’t even cross my legs or get anywhere near touching my toes)
2. Rods haven’t been removed. I’ve heard reports of running getting better after rod removal, but I don’t know.
3. I’m just not used to running yet lol.

Its probably 1 or more of these reasons, but i’ll Be sure to let you all know when it gets better.

Gait was not nearly as bad as people say it is. I was probably 80% normal only a week after being allowed to walk (which was 3 weeks post lengthening), 90% after a month and 99% until sometime recently. I say 99% because though I would look completely normal in a mirror and to other people, something just felt “off” but it wasn’t something I or anyone else could actually see. But recently, as in the last month or so, I’ve felt back to 100% and don’t think about walking anymore. A lot of that could be mental though, so I may have been back at 100% a while ago.

I 100% do not regret going less. Honestly I wouldn’t even think it’s worth it to go less. The only reason I’d do less is if I was either doing tibia as well, say 5cm femur and 3 cm tibia or something, or if I was already 5’10 or higher.. but then I probably wouldn’t have wanted LL anyways.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: MirinHeight on January 19, 2018, 11:10:09 PM
I’m not getting the full range of motion, it feels like I’m just stomping really fast. This could be due to a lot of reasons:

1. Poor flexibility (when you do LL you lose all of it pretty much, I couldn’t even cross my legs or get anywhere near touching my toes)
2. Rods haven’t been removed. I’ve heard reports of running getting better after rod removal, but I don’t know.
3. I’m just not used to running yet lol.

Its probably 1 or more of these reasons, but i’ll Be sure to let you all know when it gets better.

Gait was not nearly as bad as people say it is. I was probably 80% normal only a week after being allowed to walk (which was 3 weeks post lengthening), 90% after a month and 99% until sometime recently. I say 99% because though I would look completely normal in a mirror and to other people, something just felt “off” but it wasn’t something I or anyone else could actually see. But recently, as in the last month or so, I’ve felt back to 100% and don’t think about walking anymore. A lot of that could be mental though, so I may have been back at 100% a while ago.

I 100% do not regret going less. Honestly I wouldn’t even think it’s worth it to go less. The only reason I’d do less is if I was either doing tibia as well, say 5cm femur and 3 cm tibia or something, or if I was already 5’10 or higher.. but then I probably wouldn’t have wanted LL anyways.

thnx man and good luck on your recovery!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: myloginacct on March 26, 2018, 03:41:28 AM
Quickly skimmed the through thread, but didn't see any link to x-rays (or pics).

(My apologies if I missed anything.)
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: LAGrowin on March 26, 2018, 11:06:21 PM
Hi,

Brb6FTtall helped me tremendously by sharing his experience with me directly. Even through my lengthening he has guided me in somewhat knowing what the timing is for certain issues/improvements. He is also the reason I ended up deciding on Dr. M over 1 year ago.

LAGrowin
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on March 29, 2018, 02:38:20 AM
Quickly skimmed the through thread, but didn't see any link to x-rays (or pics).

(My apologies if I missed anything.)

I posted X-Rays on page 2, look again.


Quick update for the rest of you guys: I’ve been squatting for about a month now, had to stretch my quads to get the motion but I can do it now. Currently up to 95 lbs, as well as doing a plate on each side for leg press. Life is pretty good I’d say, my legs are definitely looking back to normal. LL is slowly but surely becoming a distant memory.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: jwjw1969715 on April 12, 2018, 12:05:23 AM
Hi, sorry for bothering but could you tell me how much it cost you?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Android on April 12, 2018, 12:06:59 AM
Hi, sorry for bothering but could you tell me how much it cost you?

Already answered here (http://www.limblengtheningforum.com/index.php?topic=4535.msg70981#msg70981).
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on May 05, 2018, 06:42:13 PM
Update! Getting my rods removed in either late July or early August. Haven't decided on a date yet because of obligations, but it'll for sure happen within the next 3 months.

I'm gonna try to go for a run within the next few days. I probably could've before, but I just haven't felt the need to so I haven't. I'm a fit/skinnier guy, so I feel that I have no need to do cardio and I get plenty of exercise weightlifting and just walking in general at work or when I'm out and about.

My squats were going up, almost back to a plate, but I started to feel pain in my right quad. This has happened to me before in my left leg because it wasn't as strong as my right, so I'm assuming the same is happening to my right quad now due to the fact that it recovered slower than my left after surgery. So I decided to drop back down to 105 lbs, and I'm working more on reps right now rather than increasing weight so I can strengthen my right leg to catch up with my left.

Life is still good guys, and it's been like that for about 8 months now. I'll report back sometime next week hopefully and let you all know how my running went. Any questions feel free to ask as usual, thanks!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: myloginacct on May 07, 2018, 01:07:48 AM
Do you feel squatting is as safe as before, after CLL?

I think I'd stop doing any exercise that puts more pressure on the leg after CLL. You never know, just to be safe. Opinions of a vet like you would be much appreciated!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on May 07, 2018, 01:27:03 AM
Do you feel squatting is as safe as before, after CLL?

I think I'd stop doing any exercise that puts more pressure on the leg after CLL. You never know, just to be safe. Opinions of a vet like you would be much appreciated!

I wouldn’t say it feels less “safe” but it definitely doesnt feel as normal. But like I said in earlier posts, it will take time due to decreased strength and flexibility. I probably will never feel as good as I did before or squat as deep as I used to, but you can definitely get back to a comfortable form and squat as heavy as you did before (building up to it of course).

That would actually be a bad idea, your legs will be super weak after LL and not doing any type of leg exercises will keep them that way forever. Remember, I’ve been cleared by my doctor to do everything I’m doing. There are plenty of LL’ers who have done leg exercises, including heavy weights, after surgery. But of course it’s all about what each person can individually handle and how they recover afterwards, as far as the range of what they will be able to do.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on June 06, 2018, 12:26:54 AM
Hi all, quick update.

I’ve been running for a couple of weeks now. It hurt really really bad in my quads, glutes, and pretty much all my leg joints but I ran and walked a mile. Been doing the same thing since then, working on running more than walking it. This last time a few days ago it almost didn’t hurt at all, so I’m definitely making progress.

My squat is up to 115 lbs now (35 lbs on each side). Still not quite back to my 205. My bench and every other non leg lifts are the highest they’ve ever been though.

Looking forward to the day I can squat 200+ and sprint again.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on August 07, 2018, 11:04:34 PM
UPDATE:

Both rods removed yesterday morning! I was originally going to stay the night in the hospital, but the pain was not too bad so I decided to go home. I’d say I have a 4-5/10 pain in my hip/glute area and some in my right knee. Left knee has some too but not as bad as right, in fact my left leg in general feels a lot better than my right. This is just like the initial surgery.

I am able to walk without crutches, however my right leg kind of drags so I’m trying not to walk too much. Other concerns like being able to go to the bathroom by myself are fine, it’s nowhere near as painful or limiting as the initial surgery. Apparently Day 2 is the hardest day, so I’m expecting things will only get better from here. Doc says I can continue running and lifting weights after 2-3 weeks if I can tolerate it. Will update again soon!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Android on August 08, 2018, 05:22:09 AM
Thanks for the update! Congrats on the nail removal, you're almost completely done. Glad to hear that the pain wasn't so bad, I hope that it'll be like that for me too, though I'll be getting four nails removed at once 😅
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: ShortLivesMatter on August 10, 2018, 09:12:32 PM
Thanks for the update! Can you provide some more details about nail removal since I'm about to do so as well. How was the 2nd day, what about after that, were you limited in anyway besides some possible minor pain? My Doctor said it would take just a couple of days to recover.   
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: snowcloud on August 13, 2018, 10:33:15 AM
Hi Brb6ftTall, it's good news, can I know what's the cost to remove the rods, thanks
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Bestrong on September 04, 2018, 08:29:07 PM
Hi Brb6ftTall,

I am planing to do LL next year with Dr. M and I dont have any friend or faminy with me. My question is How much did you pay for caretaker?

Thank you and best wish to you.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: Brb6ftTall on February 15, 2019, 06:09:08 PM
Hello all, haven’t updated this in forever. I simply don’t think about LL anymore, I can run a lot smoother after rod removal, though not at my previous speed yet, and I can go to the gym and do everything I did before. I haven’t tried playing basketball or other sports yet, but that’s only because there hasn’t been an opportunity. I also feel that my speed and conditioning could be a lot better by this point, but I just haven’t made time to actually run and train. Other things in life are just taking priority now a Days, so I’m very sorry I haven’t been able to come back and post about how I’ve gotten back to pre-LL strength, speed etc. but please know that this is only because I haven’t made the time for it, not because I feel limited in any way.

As for the few questions that were asked: unfortunately I can’t answer them. I had a family member stay with me so I did not pay, and my rod removal was covered under insurance for “painful hardware removal” so I didn’t pay for that either.

If I ever do get back to my previous LL strength and speed, I’ll try and post it on here. But who knows when that day will be. I do hit the gym multiple times a week, so the strength part will come a lot sooner than the speed part, but currently my numbers for Legs are only about 70% of what I could do pre-LL. I’m positive this could already be 100% though if I had been more consistent for all these months.

In closing, I’d just like to say thanks to everyone who read this diary and I hope I helped all of you in some way. Please look at this diary as an example of a successful surgery, and know you can still achieve your dream of being taller and still be in great physical shape afterwards.
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: 21FRANCO on May 04, 2019, 06:56:13 PM
Hey do you know how much was the cost with DR MAHBOUBIAN ? ALSO IS IT POSSIBLE FOR ME BEING 5 FT 8 1/2 TO GET ABOUT TO 6 FT ?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: 21FRANCO on May 05, 2019, 05:36:34 AM
My guy I have a question ? How long did you stay in a hotel after the surgery?
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: amandasolomon on May 10, 2019, 08:07:22 PM
Hello!
My name is Amanda and I am Dr. Mahboubian's marketing coordinator. Thank you so much for publically sharing and documenting every step of the height lengthening process. We are glad you are happy with the results and we appreciate the time you have taken to share your positive experience with the forum. Thank you again for your time and we appreciate you!
Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: amandasolomon on May 10, 2019, 08:10:14 PM
Hey do you know how much was the cost with DR MAHBOUBIAN ? ALSO IS IT POSSIBLE FOR ME BEING 5 FT 8 1/2 TO GET ABOUT TO 6 FT ?

Hello 21Franco,
Below is the cost of the height lengthening procedure done with Dr. Mahboubian.

$750 consultation fee can be applied towards your surgery cost!
Bilateral femur lengthening (Precise nail) -----------------$65,500.00
Bilateral tibia lengthening   (Precise nail) -----------------$75,000.00   
Combined tibia and femur lengthening 3-4 weeks apart-------$139,000.00
*Upgrade to the full weight bearing STRYDE nail for $5000 more

The cost covers hospital stay for up to 3 days. It is recommended but not mandatory that you remain in the United States for the entire lengthening process. If that is impossible, a minimum of 2-3 weeks are necessary to ensure all went well with the procedure and that the lengthening phase began well.

Title: Re: Brb6ftTall - Internal Femurs - Dr. Mahboubian - 2017
Post by: 7231 on June 06, 2019, 03:04:41 AM
Hello 21Franco,
Below is the cost of the height lengthening procedure done with Dr. Mahboubian.

$750 consultation fee can be applied towards your surgery cost!
Bilateral femur lengthening (Precise nail) -----------------$65,500.00
Bilateral tibia lengthening   (Precise nail) -----------------$75,000.00   
Combined tibia and femur lengthening 3-4 weeks apart-------$139,000.00
*Upgrade to the full weight bearing STRYDE nail for $5000 more

The cost covers hospital stay for up to 3 days. It is recommended but not mandatory that you remain in the United States for the entire lengthening process. If that is impossible, a minimum of 2-3 weeks are necessary to ensure all went well with the procedure and that the lengthening phase began well.

Thanks, what else does it cover? can you plz elaborate what are covered in this cost and what are not? thanks a lot