Topic: Dream_catcher: Dr. Guichet internal femur - summer 2016 (Read 43778 times)

dream_catcher · « **Reply #93 on:** July 09, 2016, 11:47:03 AM »

Quote from: ortholengthening on July 07, 2016, 05:46:11 AM

Dr G stated before that with hyper fast track some of his patients are able to reach 44 mm in 1 month.
Now that you are half a month post surgery,
Where would you say you are at? Is it possible to hit 44 mm in 1 month?

I don't know whether I'm in the hyper fast track, but I'm supposed to gain 40mm in 1 month if I click according to Dr. Guichet's schedule.

dream_catcher · « **Reply #94 on:** July 09, 2016, 11:49:33 AM »

Quote from: paddy10tellys on July 09, 2016, 08:59:24 AM

Hey Dream_catcher, hope things are good. How are you?

I'm just trying my best to survive ;p

dream_catcher · « **Reply #95 on:** July 09, 2016, 12:13:44 PM »

As YellowSpike and others had experienced, I indeed felt a lot better after two weeks. However, a lot better on top of where we came from is nowhere near comfortable. My mood fluctuated a lot. Most of the time I was suffering from pains, stiffness, frustration s, worries, etc. Occasionally I did feel like a king when all the bad feelings suddenly vanished for a short period of time.

Clicking on my left leg started to become very difficult and painful a couple of days ago. For an entire day, I tried and tried and tried...without any success. Painkillers didn't seem to have any helpful effect. Trying different methods only added more frustrations.

Only at very late in the night, between 1am to 2am, maybe when my nerves became sleepy and less sensitive, I was able to do clicks for my left leg. Making every click took about 6 minutes because the pain of it was barely tolerable. And I had to make up all the missed clicks in the day, 14 clicks, in a row. Yes, I spent about one and half hour in the midnight clicking my left leg for each of the last two days.

ortholengthening · « **Reply #96 on:** July 09, 2016, 02:32:32 PM »

hang in there
there are many cheering you on
focus on the end goal!

goldenegg · « **Reply #97 on:** July 09, 2016, 04:55:46 PM »

Hang in there dreamcatcher! It's great that you're sharing your experience here. clicking can be really difficult for some patients, which I think dr. G downplays a little and doesn't get mentioned as often in diaries as I saw firsthand.

have you tried taking a painkiller before clicking? that helped some of the other patients I saw who also had trouble clicking to relax their muscles, which like you said can be the cause. another cause can be fast consolidation, which is a good problem to have in the long run though it may not seem like it now. those same patients who had clicking problems returned to walking unaided much faster than me and seem very satisfied today with with their results

Moubgf · « **Reply #98 on:** July 10, 2016, 03:45:54 AM »

Quote from: dream_catcher on July 09, 2016, 11:49:33 AM

I'm just trying my best to survive ;p

whats that suppost to mean?. is ll really that bad?

Alu · « **Reply #99 on:** July 10, 2016, 03:53:22 AM »

Quote from: Slim_tim on July 10, 2016, 03:45:54 AM

whats that suppost to mean?. is ll really that bad?

You sure sound a lot different from the guy who was here for a long time...

Just my one observation...

dream_catcher · « **Reply #100 on:** July 14, 2016, 09:42:40 AM »

Quote from: goldenegg on July 09, 2016, 04:55:46 PM

Hang in there dreamcatcher! It's great that you're sharing your experience here. clicking can be really difficult for some patients, which I think dr. G downplays a little and doesn't get mentioned as often in diaries as I saw firsthand.

have you tried taking a painkiller before clicking? that helped some of the other patients I saw who also had trouble clicking to relax their muscles, which like you said can be the cause. another cause can be fast consolidation, which is a good problem to have in the long run though it may not seem like it now. those same patients who had clicking problems returned to walking unaided much faster than me and seem very satisfied today with with their results

Yes, I tried paracetamol and paracetamol + codeine, but they don't seem to have any effect. I'll try Tramadol once Dr.G renewed my prescription for painkillers. As instructed by Dr.G, I increased my rate of clicks for the last few days and the pain had reduced a bit.

BTW, how much did you gain and how long did it take before you can walk unaided after stopping the clicks. goldenegg?

dream_catcher · « **Reply #101 on:** July 14, 2016, 10:10:15 AM »

For the last several days, I had a few new (bad) developments:

1. My calves especially left one started to have a feeling of tickling or chilling and sometimes burning. According to another patient Mr.M who had similar experience and talked with Dr.G a couple of days ago, this is an early warning of possible nerve damage

I'll ask Dr.G what to do when I see him this afternoon.
2. The pain of starting the initial click for my left leg reduced a lot, but my left leg became so painful right after the initial click and I had to be very careful and move my left leg very slowly to do the return click. In the past, I had no problem doing return clicks either for my left leg or right leg.
3. A 0.5cmx0.5cm dark red or brown spot appeared on the outside of the rightmost toe of my right foot. I sent a picture of it to Dr.G, but he said he will have to take a look directly to figure out what it is.
4. The lymph at the back of the left side of my neck had a small swelling, which probably indicates some infections.
5. My lower back became tense. I had chronic back pain occasionally and I hope this won't get worse as a result of LL.
6. My appetite dropped sharply. I have my helper to prepare hot breakfast and lunch for me, but I can't finish the usual portion of them as before. And I have to force myself to eat some food for dinner as I don't really feel hungry at night.

Whereintheworld? · « **Reply #102 on:** July 15, 2016, 02:44:38 PM »

Dream_catcher,

I love reading your diary. You're constantly evaluating the situation and potential problems. This is good in that future ll patients do not get the impression that they will simply lie down in bed for a few months and walk out the door 4 inches taller.

I hope everything turns out well, good luck

goldenegg · « **Reply #103 on:** July 16, 2016, 04:52:04 AM »

Quote from: dream_catcher on July 14, 2016, 09:42:40 AM

BTW, how much did you gain and how long did it take before you can walk unaided after stopping the clicks. goldenegg?

I did 8cms and it was about 2 months after lengthening until I was ok to walk unaided, but my consolidation was very slow compared to other patients. if dr. G told you to increase clicks you prob won't have the same issue and be walking much sooner than I did

sorry to hear about your other troubles. the pain and exhaustion of LL killed my appetite too. keep eating and stay strong!

CCMidwest · « **Reply #104 on:** July 16, 2016, 02:45:49 PM »

Quote from: dream_catcher on July 14, 2016, 09:42:40 AM

Yes, I tried paracetamol and paracetamol + codeine, but they don't seem to have any effect. I'll try Tramadol once Dr.G renewed my prescription for painkillers. As instructed by Dr.G, I increased my rate of clicks for the last few days and the pain had reduced a bit.

BTW, how much did you gain and how long did it take before you can walk unaided after stopping the clicks. goldenegg?

I'm confused.

You increased the clicking amount, and pain was reduced?

ortholengthening · « **Reply #105 on:** July 22, 2016, 04:06:44 AM »

any updates?
hope you're doing well

dream_catcher · « **Reply #106 on:** July 23, 2016, 11:48:09 PM »

Quote from: CCMidwest on July 16, 2016, 02:45:49 PM

I'm confused.

You increased the clicking amount, and pain was reduced?

Yes, I guess my pain was caused by fast healing which makes clickings difficult and thus increases the pain. Once the rate of clickings increases, the rate of healing slows down. As a consequence, clickings become easier and thus the pain reduces.

dream_catcher · « **Reply #107 on:** July 23, 2016, 11:57:00 PM »

Quote from: Whereintheworld? on July 15, 2016, 02:44:38 PM

Dream_catcher,

I love reading your diary. You're constantly evaluating the situation and potential problems. This is good in that future ll patients do not get the impression that they will simply lie down in bed for a few months and walk out the door 4 inches taller.

I hope everything turns out well, good luck

Thank you, Whereintheworld. I made exactly the same mistake what you said that future patients can make. I was too eager to gain height before the surgery and as a result only listen to what I want to hear and treat potential problems as if they don't exist or won't happen to me.

dream_catcher · « **Reply #108 on:** July 24, 2016, 12:20:12 AM »

As usual, Dr.G gave me two kinds of advice: 1) for pain in clickings, increasing the rate of clickings; 2) for other issues, doing more exercises, after he checked the x-rays and the flexibility of my legs. Well, I followed his advice and my problems either were gone or alleviated, if he considered they were related to LL, or remained the same, if he considered they were irrelevant, which luckily didn't get worse.

The last two weeks were at least unpleasant for me. There was almost always a new challenge or problem everyday, like some other current patients in Milan also had. Yesterday the difficulty of clicking my left leg came back again

The 1st set of just three clicks took me 30 minutes. The 2nd set of three clicks took me 40 minutes. And the last set of four clicks took me over an hour to finish at 3am! I guess you might be able to imagine how stressful, frustrating, helpless, and last but not least painful I had...

Thankfully Dr.G noticed the problem from my online form and instructed me to take some unusual medicines and also increase the rate of clickings today, before I had the chance to consult him.

dream_catcher · « **Reply #109 on:** August 02, 2016, 09:33:20 PM »

Today is a remarkable day: I have gained 5cm, which is my minimum goal for LL. From now on, I won't regret if I have to stop clicking due to any reasons. I'm satisfied with what I have already achieved. As always, I believe that people should not be too greedy in anything he or she pursues. "No matter what it is, say food or money, don't take more than you can handle." And actually I am planning stop clicking somewhat before 6cm, which is the gain that Dr.G has planned for me, as I want to be able to walk back home before or around the beginning of September, which is less than a month away. I think reducing my goal will have the two-fold effects of not only giving me more time to recovery but also reducing the recovery time.

The lengthening procedure has too many unpredictable risks from its beginning to its end. And today it was also the third time that I had intolerable difficulty clicking my left leg. In the morning, I attempted six times to click my left leg, but it didn't click even after I bent my leg to unusual large angles, which took more than ten minutes for each attempt and caused so much pain during my attempts and after my attempts. Frustrated, I recalled Dr.G's prescription for the last time when I had similar difficulty, which I finished just two days ago. So I took one pill of the prescribed medicine and retried to click my painful left leg. To my surprise, this time the pill didn't work and my leg still didn't click. After another three unsuccessful and painful attempts, I decided to ride 15 more minutes of bike before trying again. And you know what, my first pedaling with left leg resulted in a loud click! What a big relief for me! The only explanation is that I had already made the initial click after taking the pill, but somehow I didn't hear the click ;(

As you can see, not taking the pill for only one day started to give me this repeating problem. And the worse thing is unfortunately the pill has a severe side effect of stopping bone formation, as Dr.G told me. He said that some patient didn't know that and unexpectedly took the pill for a month due to misunderstanding of the prescription and without letting Dr.G knew. As the consequence, this increased the recovery time for him to walk unaided after stop clicking by at least a couple of months. Given that, I've decided that I'll not hesitate to stop clicking if it ever happens again. As the prescription of the pill requires to take it for 10 days, I think I have at most 10 days before stop clicking then.

Well, height is important but there are way many other things in life that are more or equally important than it, such as family, career, fun, etc. Yes, this anything but fun. I already start to miss so many good things that I had in my life and to expect many other good things that are coming my way. I'm ready to stop clicking and start recovering any time from now on.

CCMidwest · « **Reply #110 on:** August 02, 2016, 09:47:19 PM »

Yes!

Good job man, happy for you!

Stay strong, the end is near.

Quote from: dream_catcher on August 02, 2016, 09:33:20 PM

Well, height is important but there are way many other things in life that are more or equally important than it, such as family, career, fun, etc.

Wise words my friend.

Alu · « **Reply #111 on:** August 03, 2016, 02:37:00 AM »

Congrats on the gain!

ortholengthening · « **Reply #112 on:** August 03, 2016, 03:36:51 AM »

Quote from: dream_catcher on August 02, 2016, 09:33:20 PM

Today is a remarkable day: I have gained 5cm, which is my minimum goal for LL.

what is that just short of 45 days post surgery and you are already 5 cm?

congrats

dream_catcher · « **Reply #113 on:** August 03, 2016, 05:26:35 PM »

Quote from: ortholengthening on August 03, 2016, 03:36:51 AM

what is that just short of 45 days post surgery and you are already 5 cm?

congrats

Yes, I think that my progress is normal among Dr.G's patients. Some patients click much faster than me. One patient who had the surgery one or two days after me has already gained 5.7cm. I call him "the clicking champion" as he was almost always clicking whenever I saw him at the gym. I was told that his bone consolidates fast and as his goal is 7.5cm, Dr.G instructed him to click a lot more than usual.

dream_catcher · « **Reply #114 on:** August 03, 2016, 05:32:46 PM »

Thank you all, CCMidwest, Alu, and ortholengthening!

YellowSpike · « **Reply #115 on:** August 03, 2016, 06:05:43 PM »

Congrats Dreamcatcher! I wasn't worried because you're with Dr. G, but LL is really hard. I remember I was really happy when I got to 5cm (that's about when I started to actually feel taller). It should be mostly downhill for you now, since you achieved your bare minimal goal. Congrats again and keep fighting. You're almost there!

dream_catcher · « **Reply #116 on:** August 04, 2016, 07:10:35 PM »

Thank you, Yellowspike.

dream_catcher · « **Reply #117 on:** August 04, 2016, 07:31:55 PM »

Guys, the final day has come, much sooner than I expected. I was hoping to keep fighting until the end of next week, but today is the last day of my lengthening.

To be honest, this week is my best performing week since the surgery: I came to the gym everyday and did a lot more exercises at the gym and at home than ever. I wanted to end it strongly, like I usually did for other tough tasks. But this afternoon I started to have great difficulty clicking my left leg again, after coming home from the gym. I tried again once after an hour and once after two hours, without success. So I think it's probably the sign for me to stop.

I consulted Dr.G and he said I could either unlock the clicks by taking another medicine, which is a blood thinner, or stop lengthening. I checked the possible side-effect of the medicine, and they all look terrible, though I know Dr.G would always has a solution if any problem occurs. As a consequence, I choose the latter without a doubt.

Yes, that's it. I achieved a little bit over my minimum goal, though I hoped to achieve more, without any complications. And I'm happy to start recovering now because it's more likely that I can walk back home by the end of the month as my recovery started earlier

CCMidwest · « **Reply #118 on:** August 04, 2016, 07:43:20 PM »

Hey, at least you met your goal!

Welcome to 5'7 man!

Hope you will stick around and periodically update us on your recovery and athletic ability.

YourSpaceBoyfriend · « **Reply #119 on:** August 04, 2016, 07:52:01 PM »

Glad that you are happy, that's the most important thing.

I hope your recovery will go smoothly.

Auron · « **Reply #120 on:** August 04, 2016, 07:53:18 PM »

Congratulations on your new height DC!

You've reached your minimum goal and so you won't be damaging your proportions too much.

Thank you for sharing your experience with us so far

Hope you'll stick with us a bit longer.

Takanori · « **Reply #121 on:** August 04, 2016, 08:11:39 PM »

Hey Dream catcher!
it was nice to see you at the gym and the isokinetic these last days. now be careful with your crutches ok?!

It's the good decision I think that the process was a little bit harder for you than for some other patients, I could fell your pain everytime I was next to you. You made it bro. Congrats!

For me it will be 1 month after surgery on monday, so i still got a month of pain and sadness....Hopefully in the second month, there are less less clicks and i will fell better.

See you tomorrow héhé

Taka

dream_catcher · « **Reply #122 on:** August 04, 2016, 08:33:01 PM »

Thank you all, guys! This is such a friendly forum that I won't just leave. I'll stay around and keep you posted on the progress of my recovery.

dream_catcher · « **Reply #123 on:** August 04, 2016, 08:37:31 PM »

Quote from: Takanori on August 04, 2016, 08:11:39 PM

Hey Dream catcher!
it was nice to see you at the gym and the isokinetic these last days. now be careful with your crutches ok?!

It's the good decision I think that the process was a little bit harder for you than for some other patients, I could fell your pain everytime I was next to you. You made it bro. Congrats!

For me it will be 1 month after surgery on monday, so i still got a month of pain and sadness....Hopefully in the second month, there are less less clicks and i will fell better.

See you tomorrow héhé

Taka

Taka, it was nice to see you around too. Unlike before, we will meet more for the rest of the month, as I'll come to the gym everyday. And I hope you achieve your goal with less pain. See you tomorrow

Limb Lengthening Forum

Author Topic: Dream_catcher: Dr. Guichet internal femur - summer 2016 (Read 43778 times)