Ok first thing's first. Getting into debt over leg lengthening is stupid as fk. DoingItForMyself is a successful app-developer who has reaped millions from his craft and so is able to afford Paley's fees. Being money literate is the best thing, your height wont help you get a better job and it will not make you more likely to earn enough money to cover the cost of this surgery.
Debt is borrowing from your future self. Save the money. You will be sitting in a hospital bed, writhing in pain, far away from home and emotionally tested. Do you really think that you also want to put financially ruined to that list as well?
The importance of financial literacy is paramount to things like this as you want it so god damn badly but cant afford it. You just need to work smarter. Build a system, let the system run itself. Find safe investments and in 5-10 years you could sell the system (business) to somebody else or reap large amounts from investments and have all the money quicker than you thought.
Do not get into debt over this. You will ruin your life.
I agree with this. I don't think LL is worth going into debt for. I don't judge anyone who would do that. I think it's very brave to do so - like throwing yourself in a burning house type of brave. But perhaps I can talk you out of potentially committing financial suicide over vanity: It sucks to be 5'3". I know. But you know what sucks more? Being broke and in debt. You'll become a slave to your job. Your friends will not want to hang out with you, because you can't afford to do things. You worry every time you drive, because any crash or car problem means that you can't afford the repair bill and can't drive to work. Speaking of bills, you have to forfeit nice things like heat in the winter and AC in the summer because you can't afford the energy bills. Then you also have to eat the same cheap meals each day, because you can't afford the nice foods.
So ask yourself what you're doing LL for.
Is it to get dates? If so, get ready for disappointment, because nothing makes a girl leave you faster than a guy who's broke and can't afford to take a girl out on dates. I've seen guys your height get dates. It's a bit rare, but it happens. I'm actually single right now, and I enjoy being single. Don't have to waste money on dates. Everything is half off. Don't have to waste time on stupid small talk. This saves up a lot of free time and money for me to enjoy my life. I can play my video games in peace without worrying about the girlfriend bugging me to do something.
Is it because people make fun of your height? Forget them. They aren't your friends, and their opinions don't represent everyone's opinions. There are genuine people out there who could care less about your height. For example, I don't care how tall you are. As long as you're a cool and fun guy, that's all I care about. I'm sure that I'm not the only person in the world who thinks this way. And sometimes you think that everyone is judging you by your height, but in reality, people don't really care about other people. They care about how you make them feel, rather than how tall you are. As long as you make them feel good, they'll want to be around you. People are selfish in that way.
Is it because you are disgusted by the way you look in the mirror? Ah, this is what I suffer from. It's a never ending battle, though. Now that I'm average height, I'm starting to see other things wrong with my physical attributes. Maybe my head is too round. Maybe my stomach is too fat. Etc. Etc. It's called body dysmorphia, and it probably stems from the fact that I hold high standards for myself and am sort of a perfectionist. This can be harnessed to become a good thing. Maybe it motivates you to hit the gym. Maybe you use the perfectionist trait on your work. I know I have, and that's why my apps do so well. Anyway, this is more of a psychological issue. And can be remedied with therapy and learning to love yourself. I'm starting to learn to let things go and accept that I can't be perfect.
I'm going to assume by the way you talk that you're a young guy and don't really have your life sorted yet. My advice: Save up the money to buy yourself a nice house instead. In terms of things worth buying, here are some things I think made me happier than LL did: A nice house, a nice car, a trip to a foreign city, a nice TV/entertainment system, a nice bed, a pet, taking girls out to fancy places, getting Lasik surgery.
Am I saying that LL is not worth it? Nope. I'm saying that there are many things more worth spending money on first before LL. Getting LL didn't change my happiness or life as much as those other things did. LL is sort of a last resort kind of thing.