Hey Puru and hi everyone.
It's been a year after my surgeries (see
my diary) and thought I would give some answers to the same questions that Puru got since I stopped updating my diary, so you guys can compare outcomes. I hope Puru doesn't mind (and I'll also reply to a few posts of his)! I've also posted a longer update on my diary.
Quick summary of my stats vs. Purus: late 30's, 5'5 -> 5'8, quadrilateral, used to lift a lot more (deadlift ~325lbs, squat ~300), but haven't been as serious as I should have about training post-surgery. Don't do what I did.
Do what Puru did.Now (April 2019): walking is pretty normal. Nobody seems to notice anything unusual. I can jog but for 2 minutes max; can't really run. Can do 40 jumping jacks. Pain in the right knee when squatting or going down stairs, esp. if the stairs are tall. Dr. Paley said not to do deep squats, but leg presses until the knee pain disappears. I don't know when and if that will happen - so keep in mind that even with the best doctors, there can still be complications, especially if you're older. The left knee has no problems whatsoever - so my right knee pain isn't because I haven't trained properly - I assure you that I trained both knees equally.
Dr. Paley did acknowledge a risk of permanent knee pain after the tibia surgery:
Very little if any knee pin[sic] in our patients with CLL after tibial lengthening. I think it has to do with the minimally invasive we[sic] we insert the rod and avoid damage or irritation to the patellar tendon.
Surgery isn't an exact science. Just like Puru - his
left leg was totally normal after the rods removal surgery, but the right one was in pain.
A week ago I started training hard, every day, so let's see what that does. Already I ended up with severe right knee pain one day after training (I was limping), but it went away with ice and after a good night's sleep.
I also have trouble stretching. Pain level 3-5 if I try touching my toes with knees locked. I can't do a
heel sit - there's ~3cm between my heels and the butt. Puru can.
After the surgery, I had no sensation in the left calf. That's been coming back slowly, but it's still at ~70% compared to the right calf.
I know if I just reduce my expectations I could have a very happy life without LL but honestly I want the best for myself and
Be aware that CLL will also negatively impact your life. There's always the risk of complications, and depending on what "the best" is for you, you might find out that you can no longer enjoy it (e.g. martial arts, fast-action sports, effective self-defense, running, competitive dancing etc.). It's extremely rare to recover 100% of your athletic abilities after this surgery. From what I've read, only very young individuals who trained very hard, managed that. Of course, if your desired life doesn't involve activities like the ones I've mentioned (e.g. you plan to golf instead of playing basketball), you may still have 'the best".
the older I get the more I see the importance of height or more specifically I should say the negative of being short.
In my case, that was actually the opposite. In my late 30s, nobody gives a about my height, or anyone's. For context, the crowd I'm in are intelligent, Westerner or well-traveled people, with occupations related to high-tech. Not just software engineers, but also marketers, program managers, startup founders etc. They're from the US or Europe, or have lived there enough to be culturally acclimated. Not sure what it would be like in other cultures or demographics.
Anyway, I've told pretty much EVERYONE I've met about my surgery, along with the real reason (in maybe 10% of the cases I said I was born with one leg shorter than the other because I didn't have time or didn't want to get into a conversation and didn't care about the person). Some people were curious, others mildly impressed, but no negative reactions whatsoever. In general, people care much less about us, than we think they do. There was a famous experiment in which a guy walked around a university wearing a really weird t-shirt that made him feel self-conscious, and then the researchers asked those who saw him if they remembered anything unusual.
Puru, how do you explain your suddenly becoming taller to your close friends and family? diet, exercise and improved posture? just curious, thanks.
I'm curious if Puru wants to share some background about his family or friends. Maybe they're very conservative. I respect his choice to not mention the surgery. Myself though, I tell everyone who asks, the truth. However, very few people noticed my 3" increase in height.
I never had trouble making friends before and I don't feel any differently now so I don't think my height really had an effect on that.
Yup. Same here. The extra height basically has only helped me not feel weirdly short by comparison to women.
I wasn't having trouble dating before, but it was chicks that I was not really attracted to.
Same here. I used to win women with my personality. Problem was, they weren't very physically attracted to me, and that showed in one way or another (e.g. temptation to cheat). I was also not very physically attracted to them, because I "settled". This was even worse - after a while, I would want out of the relationship. Now I know I can do better. Haven't started yet because I'm focused on recovery and launching my own startup.
Before surgery, did you do any sports or training? If so, have you been able to do those things since you go surgery?
I used to practice martial arts 3 times a week. No way can I do the legwork part of that now. My agility is poor, so activities like dribbling in basketball/soccer, boxing, or dancing fast, are not something I can be good at.
Paley says that you can reach your pre LL level of athleticism (granted it would be much faster with just 5 cm). There was a golfer (college level) who had 4 cm in one leg. He was competing again after that.
I haven't practiced golf, but it doesn't seem to be that intense on your legs. You swing a gold club while staying in one place, then walk around the golf course. Correct me if I'm wrong, but this is far weaker of a proof for recovering athletic ability than, say, a skier, basketball player, or boxer.
There was a dude lengthening with me who was about your height. He did the entire 8 cm (so he became 5'8"). He was 18 and trained really hard after. He started boxing (and winning international competitions).
That's better proof, but the guy was 18 - still growing.
You will shift from 6th percentile (5'4.5") to 19th percentile (5'6.5"). If do 6.5 cm, you will go to the 26th percentile (5'7.2"). If you do the entire 8 cm you will be 32nd percentile (5'7.8"). I personally think it will be worth it.
Source: https://dqydj.com/height-percentile-calculator-for-men-and-women/
At 5'8", I'm in the bottom 25% percentile, rather than 34%.
Source:
Paley Institute.
Here's a question for you - what would you say to your old self to make him get over the height issue without the surgery?
Excellent question! The truth is that I could have had the surgery when I was 29. I was an idiot and didn't do it. So I'd tell myself,
"If you're under 30, do it ASAP. Don't worry about the money too much you'll make it up after. But if you're after 35... it's gonna be worth less and less. People mature, and put more emphasis on your personality than your looks. (Or if they don't, you might want to surround yourself with different people.) The older you are, the slower the recovery. If you're in a happy relationship with someone who loves you despite your height, consider not doing it."Yeah my legs definitely feel a lot lighter and limber.
This.
This made me decide to have the nail removal surgery ASAP. Dr. Paley said you can have it 2 or 3 years after insertion, but I'd rather get those rods out and work on recovering my original body, not one with rods in. Plus, I can do it now without disrupting my life too much (6 weeks without heavy workouts or running is fine now). That might not be the case later.
I don't mind. I think theres a lot of software engineers on this forum. ShortLivesMatter and OverrideYourGenetics are both SWEs as far as I know.
I'm also a full stack software developer. Quick career counseling for those interested in programming: start to learn JavaScript. It's the most popular programming language, and the only one that runs in browsers. Here is a
JavaScript tutorial that doesn't require prior programming knowledge. See how you feel about it while you go through it. Some people have a natural talent for programming. I started from basically zero and got to the top few in my country within less than 6 months. It was fun and even effortless. But when it comes to sports or dancing, I don't have any sort of natural talent. See where you are on that scale. There's nothing wrong with having natural talents for other careers. Capitalize on those.
The more I bend my knee repeatedly, the better it gets. I'm going to try to get at least an hour of biking daily for the next couple of days. Each pedal motion hurts like hell (I was wincing a lot at the gym), but the progress is incredible.
Yep. Had the same experience after the insertion surgery. Cycling made the legs a lot more flexible.
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Topic: Femoral Lengthening with Dr. Paley (Read 128652 times)