Dr. Monegal - Tibia and Femur - Fitbone - glenn

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Quote from: G-Man on September 14, 2015, 07:56:05 PMOf course, he's Canadian! 

That explains it.

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Today is the one-month anniversary of my surgery! Although I must admit it feels like a lot longer time has passed than that.

I've lengthened about 31 mm so far. To update a few things:

1. A few days ago, Dr. Monegal took user Bohemia and I to do some x-rays to check our progress. We went to a hospital about 400 meters from MIC. Part of the path towards the hospital is a steep slope, and Dr. Monegal told me to wait at the foot of the hill so he could wheel us up one by one. I didn't listen of course and tried to follow behind Dr. Monegal as he wheeled Bohemia up first. It was a lot more difficult than it looked, but luckily for me, partway up the hill a young man, walking his dog, offered to help. Very nice of him.

Dr. Monegal was very happy with both Bohemia and my x-rays and said the results were "A++" I'm glad to receive Dr. Monegal's expert opinion and it gives me a certain peace of mind that he thinks things are going well so far.

2. Thanks Penguinn and G-man for the nice compliments! Truth be told I'm just a normal everyday guy with the same skepticism, cynicism, fear and doubt as anybody else. I feel very strongly though, that a positive attitude is required for a healthy recovery and I work very hard to keep myself optimistic about everything during this time. LL is tough enough, and inner negativity serves no one.

Also, I've met some really exceptional people here at MIC that have endured so much in their lives, it really makes me in awe of their humanity. There's something very transcendent and beautiful about the human spirit that seizes the day and pursues their dreams despite obstacles and hardships. When you see things like that you automatically become inspired to become more appreciative and helpful with those around you.

3. Sleep is still difficult for me, though. I find myself more and more in "zombie state" during my waking hours. I have to push myself hard to stay focused and concentrate when doing my coursework. Aside from the sleeping pains, I would say this is one of the most difficult things for me at my current stage. Even writing this post has taken more effort than I care to admit.

4. Somebody PM'ed me and asked if I feel that LL is worth the pain, money, and effort. I suppose the answer would differ from person to person. For me, it is something that I've wanted for many years so there is no question in mind whether it is worth it. But for others that are only borderline short, their motivation might not be as potent. In the end, I think the only thing a person has to ask is, how bad do you want it?

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(Loss of focus, forgot to mention some more things...)

5. Remember how I said MIC was charging me extra in a previous post? Well, Dr. Monegal saw that post and talked to the MIC. The next day the MIC came back to me and gave me the original price of 1470 EUR for a double room. Thank you Dr. Monegal!

6. KrP1 and I didn't room together and decided to get our own apartments ultimately. For the better I think since the sleepless nights would have driven both of us crazy  Everybody is on their own sleep schedule at the MIC anyway

7. The day after my x-rays I decided to only lengthen 0.81 mm per day (instead of 1.08mm previously). Dr. Monegal is ok with that, he said the only downside is that the number of lengthening days increase proportionally.

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hey glenn,

nice to hear that you seem to be fine!

can you describe your pain level when:

(1) lying in bed

(2) moving your legs

(3) transfer with the walker

(4) PT


you said it's hard to focus during the day. is it because of your sleep deprivation or the pain or both?

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Hi Axelf,

For the most part, pain is not too much of a big deal considering the other options. Other Barcelona diaries have also said the same thing.

To put it in perspective, I still have 3 different types of painkillers from when I was discharged at the hospital (entyneum, nolotil and tramedol, for different degrees of pain). I actually haven't even opened the tramedol yet. A few times I thought I was taking tramedol, but it turns out it was just nolotil..just goes to show you the power of the placebo effect.

At my present stage, muscle stiffness is more of an issue. I'm not even sure I would call it pain; It's more like a nagging nuisance (like a migraine).

1. Lying in bed: The first inch of lengthening, up to pain level 3 or 4 perhaps? I relied mostly on ice packs and occasional nolotil. Nowadays, there is not much pain (level 2 at most?), but my legs get stiff if I don't move them around for a time.

2. Moving Legs: zero pain, except in the mornings when I wake up and my muscles are cold.

3. Using the walker: There's no sharp pain at all, but there is stiffness pain from all the tightened ligaments and muscles.

4. PT stretches: about 7 or 8 pain when I'm challenged at the extreme end of my flexibility. That is a good thing: If PT doesn't hurt then you're wasting your time and you might as well stretch at home. 

Difficulties concentrating during the day are probably due to about 65% lack of sleep and 35% muscle soreness.

....

Interesting thing happened just now as I took my clothes to the laundry room. The "laundry room" of the MIC is actually just a small closet space on the second floor with one washer and one dryer. The space can fit only one wheelchair so I would estimate it's about 2 or 3 square meters.

As I wheeled in, I met one of the staff here at the MIC, who was folding up towels. She introduced herself as Rosa, and we got talking. She was keen on practicing her English but my non-existent Spanish skills made communication difficult. Luckily, Google Translate saved me again. 
 
What I found interesting in our conversation was the lack of discrimination towards LL. The staff here talk about limb lengthening matter-of-factly. "Did you do tibia or femur?" "How many centimeters will you do?" etc. etc.  I didn't feel like I had to give reasons for my decision or make any excuses. It was really liberating to just be myself to a stranger like that. Maybe it's because the staff here at the MIC have seen so many LL'ers by now so it's not a big deal for them.

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Hi Glenn,
sounds like you are doing just fine! I now how hard it is to sleep. will let you know how it improves after the lengthening phase...
31mm in a month is really good, I couldn't do as much over the whole period but if you are not in a hurry .8 should be sufficient and it makes like easier...

I never went to 7-8 pain level during PT, but I think I should have...more work for me now, but good for you...

keep up your positive attitude, you know its worth the effort...

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Hi Aturro,

Good to hear from you again! I read your diary update and am happy for you now that you've finished your first leg without problems. Please do let me know about your sleep patterns now that the lengthening is over.

Thank you for your kind words again, let's both keep up the positive attitude!

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How's it going? No updates?

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Hey Penguinn!

Nothing much to update on. Days are quite uneventful (which is a good thing, I think. Been reading about the different complications experienced by Programdude and Crimsontide..ouch). Every day is eat-lengthen-sleep-study, with PT on Monday/Wednesday/Friday. Basically I just try to stay safe and not do anything excessive that might injure myself.

Just lengthened to 40mm today so feeling pretty good. My tibia is great, no ballerina yet so far. My ankle has better-than 90 degree flexibility still. Femur is good, but I have to constantly work on hyperextension everyday to maintain my flexibility and straight knees. Quadriceps I have 90+ degrees ROM as well. Muscles can be pretty stiff and weak when I first wake up, but everything is fine when I get them warmed up. Soft tissue tension is expected and comes and goes.

Other than that, nothing too exciting really... Honestly, hope to keep it that way! And to all those other users on the forum that are going through issues right now, stay strong and hope you guys sort out those issues!

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Yesterday Dr. Monegal came to the MIC with three prospective patients. It was nice to talk to them and relate my experiences and tell them what to watch out for. People ask me all the time, "what would I do differently, knowing what I know now?" And the answer I give everyone is the same: stretch, stretch, stretch! I stretched like a maniac the months before my surgery, but even now I wish I had stretched even more. I could do standing pike stretches no problem, but maybe I should have stood on some books or something to increase the difficulty.

Also, people ask me if I feel any difference, or if I feel taller. Not really, since I'm always on a wheelchair and all the counters and tables at the MIC are lower anyway. But yesterday, after standing next to Dr. Monegal I was pleasantly surprised to see how much I had grown. That was a good psychological boost for me. Dr. Monegal even joked that he wouldn't complete the second round of surgery for since I was getting too tall (I still remember his joke when we first met: "There's one rule to LL, Glenn. You can't be taller than me!" hahahaha).  So although I'm still considerably shorter than Dr. Monegal (who I estimate at 180), it was cool to see how the gap was lessened.

How tall am I now? I estimate I should be nearing 170 or so. The reason is because I was definitely shorter than user Adonis, who I met days before my surgery. He measured his height on a stadiometer and was 165.5cm, so I was definitely shorter than that before my surgery.
 
Anyways, the three people I met yesterday were great guys. They said they were all on the forum, but I didn't get their contacts at the time. So fellas, if you're reading this, feel free to drop me a message or something. Would love to stay in contact and see how your journey turns out.

In other news, I'm almost done my tibia. It was getting tough and I started losing 90-degree-flexibility on my ankles at about 42mm or so. I've been fighting hard to stave off the ballerina feet, but it's ok since I'm almost done. I am at 47mm today, aiming for 50mm, so things should ease up in another 3 days.

Barcelona is getting cold now. I need to sleep in long sleeves and long pants to sleep comfortably. Mornings are nippy.

Off to physiotherapy now!