Hey everyone. 9 months post op.
Reasonable amount of ups and downs. Mostly trending positive though. By the time I was done lengthening, I couldn't extend my knees to 180, I was missing over 30 degrees of extension. Needless to say, that was very bad and mentally difficult. In the meantime, I have made it to today. Bone healing is complete on fibula, and is 80% complete on both tibias, the front part is almost done filling in. I will be taking out some annoying screws soon as I don't need them as the bone holds up the rod, just a quick 30 minute procedure in my local hospital. There is also a screw underneath my knee that is preventing me from putting weight on it, so having that taken out as well. I will take out the rod in April more than likely.
I am walking normally now. I still need a few more degrees of knee extension and dorsiflexion. All I can say is the best physical therapy was slant board stretching, and nothing else worked for me. Even greater than that, was time. Walking to rebuild my quad strength, slant board, and time. Some things just take time, especially soft tissues. My legs look proportional, and once I make a full recovery, I will tell you it was worth it. Have not started running because I seem to irritate my nerves every time I do. So, I will start to run when I regain full flexibility in a few months. Until then, walking mostly back to normal. Will update in a few months.
This surgery is not a walk in the park. I did have one of the best, most professional and responsive surgeons out there, but that alone cannot save you from how your body decides to react. I am relieved to return to normal, because there were months where I thought I was never going to get better. That was a major toll on my mind, and it seemed like no one in the forum had warned me of how tough it was mentally. S here I am telling you now, it was tough, it's not over yet for me, I expect to recover most function in time at this rate, but you must understand that I was only confident in walking normally 9 months post op. I am below average in performance, so likely the recovery timetable may be a little quicker on average for others. If you are willing to wait that long for 6cm on tibias, and can take off work, and can deal with the pain, and if you decide to hide things from family or friends, expecting not to see them, you have to think at it from every angle. I am confident in walking 9 months post op, but technically I could walk with a noticeable limp 7 months later. So 9 months its hardly noticeable. I just wanted to add this warning of hardship. I blame anyone on this forum who has a diary and doesn't tell it how it is to the excruciating detail. What writing on a diary omitting the hard parts boil down to is playing with peoples' expectations, which could be the difference from doing it or not.
It is painful, but doable. That's why it is so hard to make the LL decision. Stryde is not magical, it is still hard. Far from a walk in the park. Hardest thing I've gone through in my life to date. And if you're perfectly healthy and considered average height, I would say think about the road ahead carefully. Lots of good outcomes, but I am just preparing you for reality. No sugarcoating it here.
