Firstly you have to be aware many doctors consider recovery as being able to perform everyday tasks e.g going up and down stairs, walking relatively normally etc. So the standard is set pretty low. The most detailed response on what to expect was from Dr Lee. Make up your own mind.
Dr Donghoon Lee who has followed up with over 400 CLL patients had this to say
"I personally asked Dr. Lee what he thought about this (lengthening past 6 cm) and he has told me that from his experience in talking to former lengthening patients (2-3 years post recovery) those that only lengthened 5 cm recovered fully and their previous athleticism returned close to 100% to pre-LL levels. On the other hand, those who chose to lengthen between 6 and 7 centimeters recovered 100% in performing daily functions (walking, light jogging, etc), BUT only recovered about 60-70% of their pre-LL athleticism when engaging in serious sports/strenuous activities (full sprinting, jumping, basketball, rugby,etc..). Additionally, those that lengthened beyond 7 cm saw an ever greater decline in their previous athletic abilities.
In short, those who lengthen beyond 5 cm will not be able to recover all of their pre-LL athletic abilities because their muscles, nerves, tendons will be stretched well beyond their natural limits and will be permanently damaged. He used the rubber band analogy and Dr. Lee believes strongly in this. Once a rubber band (muscle) is stretched beyond its natural limit, even if its by only half a centimeter, then it will begin to tear and will forever lose its previous elasticity. The muscle's natural limit seems to be at 5 cm for many patients, though it can be higher or lower depending on the patient's initial tibia/femur length."
Obviously the less you lengthen the less long term problems. The issue on this forum is you have people with really bad height complexes who have to justify unwise lengthening at any cost. E.g having to get to 175cm because 173cm is unacceptable instead of just being taller. If you're smart with this surgery it can be a real benefit, over lengthen and you'll look like a goof who runs like a retard.
Here are a couple of reflections from the old forum from patients after lengthening.
From Walk6
1) No more than 5-6 cm. Even as someone who started with short tibias, I still feel that my tibias are now long. In hindsight, I should have stopped at 5-5.5 cm for proportions sake. Listen to Sweden on this one.
2) Go with the BEST doctor you can afford. If there is no good doctor in your price range, wait until you have enough money. Honestly, if I had to do it again, I would ONLY have this done with Lee, Paley, Rozbruch, Betz or Guichet. This surgery is ridiculously complex. Don't risk your health/life with someone unexperienced. I can only say from experience though that Dr. Lee is one of the best at what he does.
3) Don't do LL if you are using up your life savings to do it. You WILL be unhappy afterwards.
4) LL will not significantly change your life in any aspect other than how you perceive yourself. Most people will not even think or know that you did something like this. People will not suddenly treat you differently or with more respect just because you are taller. The real world really doesn't work like that. Give respect to get respect. Unless you are already super-model good looking, your physical appearance will not change by much and people will treat you similar to how they treated you before. You're basically the same pre-LL and post-LL; the only real change comes from how you view yourself.
4.5) Don't tell people about this. You will regret it later.
5) You are taking a huge risk with your health, so always keep that in mind. I went in understanding that I may never fully return to my pre-LL form athletically. But, now that I am in the process of recovery, this fact has hit me quite hard. I was extremely athletic before LL and I really really miss the aspect of out-sprinting people, going all out in the gym, etc. I feel like one part of my identity is currently gone and that may be the reason that I feel down at times.
6) There are many ups and downs. Highs and lows. The whole process is a rollercoaster so expect that.
7) LL is very difficult. Even with a near perfect recovery (up until now...during my last consultation, Dr. Lee said that my bones are almost fully consolidated and everything is A-ok except for my atrophied quad muscles. They are really really hard to get back), I have days where I want to just sit and cry. It's hard and takes A LOT of time to feel normal again.
From Farewell
-I know this has been said and suggested many times from the veterans, but I also want to repeat again to remind people not to lengthen more than 6cm on Tibias, not only it takes longer to recover but it is also not good on your soft tissues. If you don't care about your athletic abilities then consider 6cm as the maximum. If you value your athletic abilities then just do 5cm and have a better recovery.
I might sound like regret doing 7cm, but actually not. However, the main reason is that my starting height is only 160cm. If my starting height is 161cm, then I will gladly do 6cm and be ready to remove the frame by next month. Folks, every mm counts after you hit 5cm.
-I might take a photo to let you see my proportion with clothes on of course. I think it actually improves a lot since I have big bulky short tibias to start with. Without clothes on I think I still look okay as I have seen myself in the mirror except having longer tibias than normal. I believe my wingspan is around 162/163cm. With shoes on I am 170cm without counting the hair and still look normal. However, If I do my femur for another 5 or 5.5 cm I might see my self with short forearms.
Good luck with whatever you decide OP.
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