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[Antonio]

Congrats DIFM. Good luck with the bone healing.

I'm 3.5 months post femoral lengthening and I don't notice any pain in my glutes or thighs while walking. Even with my feet close together.

What I note from the diairies is that the Guichet and Precice patients have pains in the glute and upper thigh regions whereas the Fitbone ones have them in the knee.

I get sharp knee pains after doing squats or stretching. Perhaps it's due to the nail insertion and fixation differences.

[TIBIKE200]

What do you mean by not getting the happiness of being tall?

[Iamready]

What do you mean by not getting the happiness of being tall?

Speaking for myself.  It's more of a content feeling.  There is no euphoric feeling from getting taller, and you quickly adjust to your new height such that the only time you are reminded why you went through with this surgery is when you see how surprisingly short you used to be in past photos.

[TIBIKE200]

Speaking for myself.  It's more of a content feeling.  There is no euphoric feeling from getting taller, and you quickly adjust to your new height such that the only time you are reminded why you went through with this surgery is when you see how surprisingly short you used to be in past photos.

I guess its normal? Just like going from skinny to buff.. Also, I dont think an average height or even tall dude, walks around smiling being average or tall.

[Iamready]

Well, maybe he meant something else.  Like a bittersweet feeling.

[Jessie Believer]

Hey DIFM! You say that you're feeling your hip sway and weak legs coming back when you stop working them out. What kind of exercises so you do and how often? I still suffer from this problems and hopefully with your exercises I can cope them thanks ahead

[TIBIKE200]

Well, maybe he meant something else.  Like a bittersweet feeling.

I still remember the vid when you got to 5'7 at the end of your tibial LL and said you almost cried of not feeling short anymore. That really got my feels hihi. I guess it's better that you adjust quickly to the new you... Being euphoric all the time could only cause harm in the long run

[EndGame]

One more thing: I also noticed that it's hard to walk with my legs close together. I don't remember that being an issue prior to LL. Could be because my biomechanics are different now and the angles of my legs are different. Not sure. Can you guys walk with your legs close together - like rubbing your feet together as you're walking? When I do it, the outside of my thighs start hurting.

I'm no expert, still lengthening, but I suspect your ITB could be the issue. Maybe do some Ober stretches or hip stretches and it'll improve. Good luck. Appreciate your diary. Thanks.

[goldenegg]

I'm no expert, still lengthening, but I suspect your ITB could be the issue. Maybe do some Ober stretches or hip stretches and it'll improve. Good luck. Appreciate your diary. Thanks.

same- im under the impression that IT band tightness causes wide legs. I can walk with feet close together- no pain but I do feel a stretch on my sides. shouldn't be a biomechanical thing unless the axis of your legs has changed dramatically. can you stand with your feet together? just doing that for a few minutes was a good stretch for me when I was started recovery

[DoingItForMe]

What do you mean by not getting the happiness of being tall?

You get used to the new you after a while. For example, I'm used to being rich. I don't wake up every morning cheering that I'm rich. But there was a high when you first get the change. When I first crossed 2" increase, I was pretty happy. When I made my first million dollars, I was pretty happy. It might sound sad that the high doesn't last forever. But it does remove the feelings of sadness. So it's not so much that I'm happy all the time. It's more like I'm never sad now. My short stature was the last source of unhappiness for me. And now I don't really have anything that really upsets me. The Buddhists call it "nirvana" I believe. A release from suffering.

same- im under the impression that IT band tightness causes wide legs. I can walk with feet close together- no pain but I do feel a stretch on my sides. shouldn't be a biomechanical thing unless the axis of your legs has changed dramatically. can you stand with your feet together? just doing that for a few minutes was a good stretch for me when I was started recovery

I can stand with my feet together. Only a mild discomfort occurs when I do. But if I stand with my feet together and then tilt my upper body, my TFL (outside of thigh, near the head of the femur) starts hurting. My guess is that it's related to the fact that I stopped working out my legs and the pain associated with that. I suspect that it's the same muscle weakness pain I felt. The reason is because I had my ITB released and when I do tests with my ITB, it stretches just fine. I think just working out my legs again will remove the pain again. Sucks that I have work out my legs for the rest of my life, though. But at the same time, at least it's a good reminder to never skip leg day.

[Peaceout]

great update,thanks..

[DoingItForMe]

Some of my scars are starting to fade into skin color. It's starting from the outside and heading in, so the scar looks like it's getting smaller. Also noticed that hair is starting to grow back where the scars were. The first scars starting to fade are two one closer to the knee. With one of them now maybe 60% faded. The rest don't look like they're fading fast. They're still bumpy and slowly changing color. I'm guessing that given the rate of fading plus that fact that they're going to drill the same holes again when they remove the rods, it'll be 5 years before they stop being darkened.

[TIBIKE200]

The 1 million dollar question is though, given your current physical and mental state post LL, would you still do it if you were able to go back to the day before surgery?

 Or to be even more clear, are the stuff we tell each other and ourselves in the forum are anywhere near the truth? That with added height will come more respect, sociability, attention from women or whatever?

[mrmayor]

DIFM (and any other LL veteran) - as i read your diary, it sounded like you spent a lot of time in the pool, often up to 3 hours per day.  What exactly did you do in the pool?  Did you walk upright?  Did you swim strokes?  the reason I ask is I am literally at the Homewood Suite where I believe you stayed and the pool gets shallow...were you able to actually walk to the shallow end without fear of snapping the nail?  I got in it for the first time today and was a little weary.  I weigh 165lb

Thanks for any input

Mayor Mark

[DoingItForMe]

DIFM (and any other LL veteran) - as i read your diary, it sounded like you spent a lot of time in the pool, often up to 3 hours per day.  What exactly did you do in the pool?  Did you walk upright?  Did you swim strokes?  the reason I ask is I am literally at the Homewood Suite where I believe you stayed and the pool gets shallow...were you able to actually walk to the shallow end without fear of snapping the nail?  I got in it for the first time today and was a little weary.  I weigh 165lb

Thanks for any input

Mayor Mark

I walked forward, backwards, and side-by-side in the pool where the water was about up to my nipples. That's as shallow as I was allowed to go. I think the precice nail is stronger than 75 lb, and that they're just being overly cautious. Don't get so scared about breaking the nail. Worry more about getting flexible and stronger.

The 1 million dollar question is though, given your current physical and mental state post LL, would you still do it if you were able to go back to the day before surgery?

 Or to be even more clear, are the stuff we tell each other and ourselves in the forum are anywhere near the truth? That with added height will come more respect, sociability, attention from women or whatever?

I can't answer the first question until the whole LL thing is finished. If my bone doesn't fully heal and I need a bone graft and the bone graft fails or some other bad stuff happens during rod removal, etc. then yea, I wouldn't have done it if I had the chance. If my legs do heal well and my rod removal is all fine and there's no permanent pain, then yes I'd do it again. I don't care that much about the diminished athletic ability, because my happiness or income doesn't depend on it. But I would probably not do this surgery if I enjoyed sports regularly. Would I do it again if I were 5'9" - such as doing tibias and adding more inches? Not really. If I were around 5'4"-5'6", I would. Crossing over that barrier between short and average height is a pretty good feeling. Being short sucks, as we all know or else we wouldn't be here in the forums. But being average in height isn't so bad. I don't feel any more discrimination or looks of disgust because of my height.

I'd say yes, there's a difference in respect and attention when your height is higher. But I think the most glaring difference is that a girl who used to be taller than you would now be willing to date you as opposed to not if you were shorter than her. That's about the biggest difference. I went back to see some of the girls who used to not like me because of my height, and they still did not like me. So height is not the definitive factor on whether a girl will like you or not. It's more like a part of a checklist and if height was the tipping point that made her not like you, then even if she liked you now now that you're taller, then your relationship is still very fragile. An analogy would be like if height were your physical education grade in school. But that's only one class out of the 10 classes you have to take. When you're short, you have a failing grade in that class. But if you fail in all other classes, then it doesn't matter that much if you get an A in physical education, because your overall grade is still a failure. Let's say that getting into college is like getting respect from girls and peers. So yes, if you're trying to get into college with a sports scholarship, then you'll be rejected immediately because of your physical education grade. They won't even care if all your other grades are A's. But there are also college who don't care about your PE grade, and you could fail that class all you want as long as your other grades are great. And then perhaps there's that rare chance that you barely made the cut off of the college just because your PE grade bumped up from the C to an A. But you're still at the bottom of the class at that college. That means that you'll have a lot of trouble at that college, because you're the worst student there. So my point is, improve yourself in all other areas first if you really want to see a big improvement in yourself. Otherwise you're just pouring a glass of water into a forest fire.

Some girls don't care about your height, too. Which explains why I've never really had a long gap in time when I didn't have a girlfriend. There's plenty of cute girls under 5'5". So don't ever do this surgery for a girl or for anyone's respect for that matter. They're not worth all the pain and money and time loss. Do it for yourself, because you're the only person worth doing this for. If your height is the only thing that's holding you back from loving yourself and losing all this time/money isn't going to affect you that much, then go ahead and do this surgery. That was the situation that I was in when I made this decision to do the surgery.

Seeing over crowds at concerts is also an added bonus.

[TIBIKE200]

Thx alot for the detailed response difm. I appreciate it

[Alu]

Loved the insight.

Especially this:

It's more like a part of a checklist and if height was the tipping point that made her not like you, then even if she liked you now now that you're taller, then your relationship is still very fragile.

[The Kaiser]

Loved the insight.

Especially this:

DIFM i re-read your diary and no way am gonna go for 8 when i do this surgery, so i will ask you two questions

1- do you think 7 or 7.5 cm a better choice than 8 cm or its consider a lot too?

2- do you believe Guichet's recovery time is more better?

[Iamready]

Kaiser.  Both guys that did less than 8cm- 6.5cm and 7cm- during my stay in west palm beach took longer to consolidate than the guys who did 8cm.  So it's really a crap shoot. But I do think if you are less than 5 foot 8, 6.5 cm looks better than 8cm.

[The Kaiser]

Kaiser.  Both guys that did less than 8cm- 6.5cm and 7cm- during my stay in west palm beach took longer to consolidate than the guys who did 8cm.  So it's really a crap shoot. But I do think if you are less than 5 foot 8, 6.5 cm looks better than 8cm.

i was thinking about 8.5 cm before then 8, but i will try my best to 7 or 7.5 at max if i am unique

1- so you think how many cm you length docent matter in a recovery?
2- does the doctor know if your nerve or muscle stretched in a good way by using x-ray? or after lengthening you can know?
3- hows your condition now? you can walk, play?

wish you the best

[DoingItForMe]

If you're a Paley patient right now stuck in Palm Beach, good luck out there! I've been following the hurricane news and it looks pretty bad.

DIFM i re-read your diary and no way am gonna go for 8 when i do this surgery, so i will ask you two questions

1- do you think 7 or 7.5 cm a better choice than 8 cm or its consider a lot too?

2- do you believe Guichet's recovery time is more better?

1. I think 7 to 7.5 cm is a better choice if you want to lessen your chances of screwing up your flexibility and reducing your pain. 7-8 cm was when my legs got really tight and every mm was a getting much much harder to recover from, flexibility-wise. I think if I stopped at 6 cm, I would be more normal and not lose as much of my athleticism. But this is for my starting height. At different starting heights, I don't know.
2. I believe that recovery time comes down to the patient and not the doctor. If you think your doctor isn't good, then just read the other people's diaries and see what they tell them to do. For example, I detailed a lot about what I had to do during lengthening. I don't think my recovery had anything to do with which doctor I took. The fact that my bone is not growing faster probably has nothing to do with which doctor I took or how much calcium I intake. I think my body just doesn't grow a lot of bone on its own (never broke a bone before, so I didn't know). But surgery screw-ups are a real thing and something you should worry about.

Kaiser.  Both guys that did less than 8cm- 6.5cm and 7cm- during my stay in west palm beach took longer to consolidate than the guys who did 8cm.  So it's really a crap shoot. But I do think if you are less than 5 foot 8, 6.5 cm looks better than 8cm.

I agree. Consolidation also depends more on things like calcium/vitamin D intake, exogen (maybe?) and age. An extra cm of consolidation would probably just equal to 2 more weeks of consolidation. Feeling tighter in places is the bigger concern.

i was thinking about 8.5 cm before then 8, but i will try my best to 7 or 7.5 at max if i am unique

1- so you think how many cm you length docent matter in a recovery?
2- does the doctor know if your nerve or muscle stretched in a good way by using x-ray? or after lengthening you can know?
3- hows your condition now? you can walk, play?

wish you the best

1- It matters if you care about flexibility and not having permanent pain. For example, I still have aches in the tighter areas around my legs. I probably wouldn't have if I had done 7 cm instead.
2. They know by your physical therapy measurements, which they take once every 2 weeks and meet up with you to discuss it. X-ray is for knowing if you are lengthening too fast or too slow based on bone growth.
3. I can do everything that a normal person can do except my squatting power is much less. My walking looks a little bit weird, too, still. Just a little according to my friends, but still noticeable.

[The Kaiser]

If you're a Paley patient right now stuck in Palm Beach, good luck out there! I've been following the hurricane news and it looks pretty bad.
1. I think 7 to 7.5 cm is a better choice if you want to lessen your chances of screwing up your flexibility and reducing your pain. 7-8 cm was when my legs got really tight and every mm was a getting much much harder to recover from, flexibility-wise. I think if I stopped at 6 cm, I would be more normal and not lose as much of my athleticism. But this is for my starting height. At different starting heights, I don't know.
2. I believe that recovery time comes down to the patient and not the doctor. If you think your doctor isn't good, then just read the other people's diaries and see what they tell them to do. For example, I detailed a lot about what I had to do during lengthening. I don't think my recovery had anything to do with which doctor I took. The fact that my bone is not growing faster probably has nothing to do with which doctor I took or how much calcium I intake. I think my body just doesn't grow a lot of bone on its own (never broke a bone before, so I didn't know). But surgery screw-ups are a real thing and something you should worry about.
I agree. Consolidation also depends more on things like calcium/vitamin D intake, exogen (maybe?) and age. An extra cm of consolidation would probably just equal to 2 more weeks of consolidation. Feeling tighter in places is the bigger concern.
1- It matters if you care about flexibility and not having permanent pain. For example, I still have aches in the tighter areas around my legs. I probably wouldn't have if I had done 7 cm instead.
2. They know by your physical therapy measurements, which they take once every 2 weeks and meet up with you to discuss it. X-ray is for knowing if you are lengthening too fast or too slow based on bone growth.
3. I can do everything that a normal person can do except my squatting power is much less. My walking looks a little bit weird, too, still. Just a little according to my friends, but still noticeable.

woooow more than enough, i quit sports two years ago because i said to my self am gonna do LL in the next couple years why i practice and loose money. so my main question is

1- when can i walk normally not like a zombie ( so no one notice as i will make it secret)

and thanks

[Peaceout]

Hey difm,when will you remove nails?

[DoingItForMe]

Hey difm,when will you remove nails?

No idea. Getting an xray later this month to find out if I need a bone graft to fill in the bone gaps in my femurs. If it's all healed up, then I should be ready to take out the rods early next year I guess. But I'm probably going to be on the safe side and wait until next Summer (so 2-years post-op), because of what happened to programdude.

woooow more than enough, i quit sports two years ago because i said to my self am gonna do LL in the next couple years why i practice and loose money. so my main question is

1- when can i walk normally not like a zombie ( so no one notice as i will make it secret)

and thanks

No idea. I making progress normally. I'm probably not a good example of quick progress with walking. I barely walk much each day, since I'm a computer programmer and sit most of the time. I'm sure that if I walked more often each day, I'd get my normal walk back sooner. I've only been recently been walking more often. I blame the pain in the tight muscles for making me not want to walk so much.

[The Kaiser]

No idea. Getting an xray later this month to find out if I need a bone graft to fill in the bone gaps in my femurs. If it's all healed up, then I should be ready to take out the rods early next year I guess. But I'm probably going to be on the safe side and wait until next Summer (so 2-years post-op), because of what happened to programdude.
No idea. I making progress normally. I'm probably not a good example of quick progress with walking. I barely walk much each day, since I'm a computer programmer and sit most of the time. I'm sure that if I walked more often each day, I'd get my normal walk back sooner. I've only been recently been walking more often. I blame the pain in the tight muscles for making me not want to walk so much.

don't worry am sure its a couple months matter to walk normally like before, don't think about sport at the moment.

1- you're now 8 months post-op?
2- what happened to programdude? i knew he had a longer recovery but nothing more serious

[drvbmc]

DIFM, thanks so much for your insight into all of this.

Looking for a straight up opinion. I am a 40 yr old guy who has lived a life riddled with height neurosis. I am 5'5", and very successful. My flexibility is not as good as yours but is better than average. Also, I don't want to consider this surgery for a couple of years, and will have time to work on my body further as I get closer.

Also, I am set on doing 6 cm - NO MORE.

From your experience of who you have met and learned about on the forum - should I consider this or just get it out of my head now, and move on with life??

Your opinion is much appreciated.

[DoingItForMe]

don't worry am sure its a couple months matter to walk normally like before, don't think about sport at the moment.

1- you're now 8 months post-op?
2- what happened to programdude? i knew he had a longer recovery but nothing more serious

1- 15 months post op
2- He took his rods out 1 year post-op, and then he snapped his femur and had to get another rod put in.

DIFM, thanks so much for your insight into all of this.

Looking for a straight up opinion. I am a 40 yr old guy who has lived a life riddled with height neurosis. I am 5'5", and very successful. My flexibility is not as good as yours but is better than average. Also, I don't want to consider this surgery for a couple of years, and will have time to work on my body further as I get closer.

Also, I am set on doing 6 cm - NO MORE.

From your experience of who you have met and learned about on the forum - should I consider this or just get it out of my head now, and move on with life??

Your opinion is much appreciated.

I mean, if you can get your height neurosis out of your head and move on, then you don't need this surgery. If you're not capable of that, then you could also seek professional help. If that doesn't work, then there's 3 things to consider for this surgery:
1) Cost
2) Health
3) Time loss

I've already outlined all those in my diary. Basically it's 1) around $100,000 (maybe less if you go with a cheaper doctor, maybe more if you have complications). 2) loss of flexibility and muscles and athleticism. 3) 6-12 months of your life spent being fully/partially handicap. If all that sacrifice is acceptable to you, then there's only two other things to ask you.

1) Are you doing this for yourself or for someone else. If you are doing this for yourself, then okay. If not, then please consider not doing it for the other person. He or she is not worth it.
2) Have you tried wearing 6 cm shoe lifts before? If not, try it out for a while. See if 6 cm makes a difference in your life. If it does, and you go, "Yes, I wish this is permanent and am willing to sacrifice the money, time and health to get it." then I guess this surgery is the answer you seek.

That's the journey I took before I made my decision to do the surgery. And now my height neurosis is gone. I'm not sure that it'll be gone at 5'7", though, honestly. 5'7" still isn't very tall (no offense). That's why you should try the 6 cm shoe lifts first. See if it's really what you think it's like. Sometimes the grass looks greener on the other side until you actually get there. So give 5'7" a trial run first. Might as well get your friends used to your new height anyway.

[The Kaiser]

1- 15 months post op
2- He took his rods out 1 year post-op, and then he snapped his femur and had to get another rod put in.
I mean, if you can get your height neurosis out of your head and move on, then you don't need this surgery. If you're not capable of that, then you could also seek professional help. If that doesn't work, then there's 3 things to consider for this surgery:
1) Cost
2) Health
3) Time loss

I've already outlined all those in my diary. Basically it's 1) around $100,000 (maybe less if you go with a cheaper doctor, maybe more if you have complications). 2) loss of flexibility and muscles and athleticism. 3) 6-12 months of your life spent being fully/partially handicap. If all that sacrifice is acceptable to you, then there's only two other things to ask you.

1) Are you doing this for yourself or for someone else. If you are doing this for yourself, then okay. If not, then please consider not doing it for the other person. He or she is not worth it.
2) Have you tried wearing 6 cm shoe lifts before? If not, try it out for a while. See if 6 cm makes a difference in your life. If it does, and you go, "Yes, I wish this is permanent and am willing to sacrifice the money, time and health to get it." then I guess this surgery is the answer you seek.

That's the journey I took before I made my decision to do the surgery. And now my height neurosis is gone. I'm not sure that it'll be gone at 5'7", though, honestly. 5'7" still isn't very tall (no offense). That's why you should try the 6 cm shoe lifts first. See if it's really what you think it's like. Sometimes the grass looks greener on the other side until you actually get there. So give 5'7" a trial run first. Might as well get your friends used to your new height anyway.

wtf!! Programdude removed his rod how come he snapped his femur and should do another Precice!! why did his bone fused 100%

[drvbmc]

Thanks for your response. I appreciate thinking this through with others, who have been in the same boat, because frankly, I do not have many people in my life who share my experience.

1. I am certainly not doing this for anybody but myself. Other than some occasional callous comments from idiots, and some girls who said they would not date a shorter guy, this issue is in my head only.

2. I have used 6 cm shoe lifts (Bugarri makes very good 2-3" shoes), and I feel much better when I wear them.

3. I realize that 5'7" is not tall, but I am not expecting to be tall in my life. I am however of the mindset that 5'7" is a noticeable step up from 5'5", especially when comparing my height to girls in society.

Having said all of that, I am very athletic. I play competitive hockey, and am a single digit handicap golfer. I am NOT willing to sacrifice my athletic ability over this.
From your experience, do you think that a 6 cm surgery will limit my ability to play sports, say a year after it?

Also, is the healing not shorter for 6 vs 8 cm, making walking more realistic in 4-6 months?

[YourSpaceBoyfriend]

If you are really playing competitive then forget it.
It's not even going back to your full self but 1 year after initial surgery? No chance.

6cm vs 8cm has an impact on your recovery rate, healing time and amount of reduced athletic ability.

You have pretty clear mindset, if you really think that it will help you and it's holding you back then it's absolutly alright. Just remember that this surgery makes you taller but it won't solve your issues by itself.

I feel you, 5'5 and living in a tall european country. Unfortunately i needed to give up on playing basketball after nasty incident with my leg.

[The Kaiser]

Thanks for your response. I appreciate thinking this through with others, who have been in the same boat, because frankly, I do not have many people in my life who share my experience.

1. I am certainly not doing this for anybody but myself. Other than some occasional callous comments from idiots, and some girls who said they would not date a shorter guy, this issue is in my head only.

2. I have used 6 cm shoe lifts (Bugarri makes very good 2-3" shoes), and I feel much better when I wear them.

3. I realize that 5'7" is not tall, but I am not expecting to be tall in my life. I am however of the mindset that 5'7" is a noticeable step up from 5'5", especially when comparing my height to girls in society.

Having said all of that, I am very athletic. I play competitive hockey, and am a single digit handicap golfer. I am NOT willing to sacrifice my athletic ability over this.
From your experience, do you think that a 6 cm surgery will limit my ability to play sports, say a year after it?

Also, is the healing not shorter for 6 vs 8 cm, making walking more realistic in 4-6 months?

a year, two and three. its will diminish your athletic ability, maybe later you can play it for fun, but make a career from it no way. the theory say the new bone should be same or stronger but i don't know why people strugle