Quote from: Great321 on November 27, 2018, 05:15:54 PMUpdate 3,3
Muscle problem
I noticed that when I sit 90° with my legs stretched out on my bed the muscle problem isn’t as annoying. Still it bothers me at night. I tried a hot devil’s claw balm. I applied it on my butt and upper left leg. It helps for 1-3 hours. The burning sensation distracts me from the discomfort letting me fall asleep. One of the physiotherapists explained again that it comes from the immobility. When I wake up in the middle of the night with the same problem, I apply some devil’s claw again.
Pain
After the last PT session I developed a new pain somewhere above my right heel. I told my PT to stretch that foot again, so he did. As I didn’t felt any pain or discomfort he stretched it very firmly. Maybe that was too much in the end. In general my feet always look a bit swollen.
Stiffness
When I sat or lay too long in bed (after sleeping) my left leg feels stiffer as if the muscles there are shorter and I need to stretch that leg more. My right foot is a bit less stretchable than the left one. When I stand straight (which is only possible with the help of my walker) I can’t immediately touch the floor with both of my heels. It needs some time. So I will definitely stop at 4cm to not worsen the situation too much. I also don’t want to extend the recovery process too much.
Walking
Walking didn’t become easier. It’s still exhausting but doable. Didn’t notice any improvement. It’s very annoying to be so slow with the walker. Very short distances feel far away. The day I will be able to walk again normally, make myself comfortable by sitting however I want on the sofa, will be one of the luckiest days.
Mental health
I’ve lost energy. The first three weeks felt easy. The days passed by fast and I was able to sleep without much disturbance. My mood changes depending how tired I am. Yesterday I slept several hours during the day because I was very tired. I don’t know why. Tiredness on top of being almost immobile depresses me a lot. But again, I don’t even want to imagine how it would have been If I was alone here with only a caretaker who would only come for a few hours a day. I need my family for almost the whole day for many little things (we take for granted). And their company is the most important thing for me. A few days ago when the weather was better we spent some time at the seaside. It’s nice to see something else.
Hang in there...
I too believe that mental health is very important during lengthening. Thats why its important to have family with you or lengthen together with other patients.
A LLer will face psysical issues aswell and psychological. That is why I asked Köhne if I could lengthen at home after 1,5 months. Being in familiar environment, eating food you are used to and hanging out with friends and family will make one forget time.
Dr. Giotikas - external tibia/Stryde - Diary 2018/2019
Quote from: jcayabo on November 27, 2018, 05:55:39 PMYou and I are almost at the same spot in our lengthening, I'm doing externals ilizarov, same problems. I would say the previous 2 weeks had some awful depression and pain, where I didn't even lengthen, sometimes 1 turn a day. It's all turned around, I'm training a lot in bed and doing hours of PT, and lessening pain killers as well. Keep strong man, every week it's a new struggle. Just keep smashing down walls until you get there.
Yes, everyday there are some moments where you think...when will this end? We have to celebrate on the day when our frames will be taken off 
I wish you the best recovery!
Quote from: BladeRunner on November 27, 2018, 07:16:41 PMHang in there...
I too believe that mental health is very important during lengthening. Thats why its important to have family with you or lengthen together with other patients.
A LLer will face psysical issues aswell and psychological. That is why I asked Köhne if I could lengthen at home after 1,5 months. Being in familiar environment, eating food you are used to and hanging out with friends and family will make one forget time.
Yes I will and soon at least the lengthening part will end. Thanks for your words! I appreciate it!
Update 3,525cm
Muscle problem
Since one of the physiotherapists showed me a certain stretching exercise my gluteus muscle feels a lot better now. Problem is not completely gone though.
Pain
The pain above my right heel had stopped 2 days later. Instead the place below my right knee started to hurt since yesterday whenever I walk.
Stiffness
Dr. Giannakos was seeing me right before PT and he told the physiotherapist to stretch my feet very firmly until the limit. The young woman was really confused because she was stretching my right foot so much but I just didn’t feel any pain. Later, I was lying on the treatment couch on which I was strapped, the bottom of my feet were leant on something. Then the PT elevated the treatment couch until I was “hovering” in the air with my body straight and with my weight on my feet. That lasted around 5-10 minutes. Afterwards there was much less distance between my heels and the floor when I tried to stand straight.
Infection
Two days ago my skin around one or two pins (under the knee) of my left tibia started to hurt. I wasn’t able to sleep on my side anymore. Walking and bending my knee was also very painful. Some skin there looked swollen and reddish so I took pictures and sent them to Dr. Giotikas. He told me that Dr. Giannakos will come see me. So he did today and I was prescribed antibiotics for the next 6 days(Augmentin). Dr. Giannakos was asking me if I took any antibiotics in the past weeks and I said no. He was disappointed which is confusing because no one told me to take any antibiotics. I have to clarify that.
Update 3,675
„Equinus“
I’m pretty sure that I can’t walk straight due to my heels that can’t touch the ground and not because of some weak muscles (as the PT told me in the beginning). I’m a bit disappointed by myself, I’m 20, yet not as flexible as thought. I wonder how long it will take until the heels touch the ground without pre stretching again. I walk even more bent over now which on top of another problem makes it difficult for me to hold my balance.
Knee pain
4 days ago one of my PTs just suddenly pushed down my right knee to make my leg straight. A sharp pain followed. I told her about it but she just acted as if that it’s normal. I’m sure she made a mistake. Because after that day I had developed pain right below my knee. When I told Dr. Giannakos about my pain he thought it’s because of my weak muscles. Can’t be true, since my right leg was strong enough a few days ago to do a lot of things on its own. The PT on friday was ordered to do a lot of stretching how I already mentioned. The young woman also pushed my knees down while doing that and even though I felt the pain there I thought it’s normal as I was told so.
But now both of my knees feel very weak. When I walk, I don’t put as much weight on my feet as before out of fear of the pain. My arms do most of the work. And when I have to stand on my feet to move the walker my knees hurt and I fear of falling. It is so frustrating to have two weak legs now. Things I was able to do without assistance (like PT exercises or just lifting my leg onto the bed) aren’t possible anymore with my right leg.
I walk much less than before now and I don’t want to walk at all actually. Because whenever I do, I feel too weak and it reminds me of my misery. After a few steps I needed to sit down again today. I feel kind of “betrayed” of my health. This could have been prevented.
Mental health
I slept until around 2:30pm today. Not only because I woke up several times at night again but also because I feel really down. The uncertainty of how long each pain will last or if you will ever walk similar as before, if you will have long lasting pain in the future isn’t easy to handle. I feel guilty of not walking enough or not doing enough PT, how much does this damage my recovery? Is walking only necessary for the bone formation or what else?
Update 3,75
Good news!
"Equinus"
I noticed yesterday that my left foot actually is still pretty flexible. I have almost no problem touching the floor with it after a short time or even immediately sometimes. It's only my right foot that can't touch the floor for a longer time.
Knee pain
I told my other PT to be more careful. The physiotherapists are in general very good there. This one woman who had pushed my knee wasn’t of course intending to hurt me but I will also tell her to be more cautious with my knees because even though some pain during PT is normal it shouldn’t cause the patient to not walk for a few days. Anyways after PT today I felt stronger. My right knee feels stronger again and I can walk again! So weird how so much can change overnight. Yesterday evening I wasn’t able to walk at all. I was very sad and today I feel rescued. There’s hope! My left leg in general is still very weak. But that will change, too.
Side note
When I felt depressed about my situation, I had written my doctors about it. Dr. Giotikas had called me yesterday evening and we talked about my concerns. He tried to motivate me and advised me to find things that make me strong (mentally), that there is light at the end of the tunnel and that I’m almost there. He also explained that the antibiotics matter was a misunderstanding. Everything went right.
That's great to hear man! Your diary is slowly but surely making me believe that Giotikas is one of the best options for tibia LL, and If all goes well i'll be doing 5 cm in my tibias in 2022 just like you Hang in there my friend, you're so close to the finish line and once you get there you'll be 5 cm taller and a thousand times stronger. Godspeed on your lengthening process and subsequent recovery, and I hope your good luck continues into the future <3
Thank you so much for this diary. Wishing you the very best. I will be seeing this doctor quite soon, consultation already booked. I’m planning to do just 5 cm also if my body can cope with it that is. What I like about him is that he also does work here in the U.K. for the National health service. He’s one of the few who performs this here also.
I can see you also mentioned a second operation later on.
Quote from: Great321 on December 03, 2018, 05:52:52 PMUpdate 3,75
Good news!
"Equinus"
I noticed yesterday that my left foot actually is still pretty flexible. I have almost no problem touching the floor with it after a short time or even immediately sometimes. It's only my right foot that can't touch the floor for a longer time.
Knee pain
I told my other PT to be more careful. The physiotherapists are in general very good there. This one woman who had pushed my knee wasn’t of course intending to hurt me but I will also tell her to be more cautious with my knees because even though some pain during PT is normal it shouldn’t cause the patient to not walk for a few days. Anyways after PT today I felt stronger. My right knee feels stronger again and I can walk again! So weird how so much can change overnight. Yesterday evening I wasn’t able to walk at all. I was very sad and today I feel rescued. There’s hope! My left leg in general is still very weak. But that will change, too.
Side note
When I felt depressed about my situation, I had written my doctors about it. Dr. Giotikas had called me yesterday evening and we talked about my concerns. He tried to motivate me and advised me to find things that make me strong (mentally), that there is light at the end of the tunnel and that I’m almost there. He also explained that the antibiotics matter was a misunderstanding. Everything went right.
Would you recommend someone doing 7.5 cm in one lengthening for tibia?
Quote from: Sara123 on December 06, 2018, 02:05:00 AMThank you so much for this diary. Wishing you the very best. I will be seeing this doctor quite soon, consultation already booked. I’m planning to do just 5 cm also if my body can cope with it that is. What I like about him is that he also does work here in the U.K. for the National health service. He’s one of the few who performs this here also.
I can see you also mentioned a second operation later on.
Thank you, too! Will you see him in the U.K. or in Athens? Looking forward to read about your experience:)
Quote from: wants2growtaller on December 06, 2018, 02:18:16 AMWould you recommend someone doing 7.5 cm in one lengthening for tibia?
No. At least my body couldn't cope with that amount. I'm 20 and my right heel couldn't touch the ground already at around 3cm. Also I wouldn't want to wear the frames for such a long time. Each cm means about 1,5months more of the frames.
Update 3,975
X-rays
Today new X-rays were taken. Dr. Giannakos said that they look very good. This time I can post them since they weren’t given via CD. According to the number of clicks I made I should be around 3,9cm but I guess the X-rays will show less like last time. The exact numbers will be given to me soon. Then I know how many days more I have to lengthen.
The callus is more or less visible depending on the light in the pictures. So the callus of the fibula isn't as visible because I focused on the bigger bone.
Left tibia: https://i.imgur.com/9ZYuiHc.jpg
also Left tibia: https://i.imgur.com/ZNOselu.jpg (In this one two holes are visible..strange, I have to ask about that)
One of the fibulas (close up): https://i.imgur.com/dUZzDq5.jpg
Right tibia: https://i.imgur.com/c6BypMB.jpg (doesn't seem to look as good...but at least Dr. Giannakos was pleased)
Walking
The last two days we went outside by the seaside and I walked about 250meters each day. It was sunny and didn’t feel like December at all. That was the first time I walked so much without a stop in between. With healthy legs that’s a ridiculous small distance but with frames on that was a milestone. My next goal is to slowly increase the distance I could walk.
Muscle pain
My gluteus muscle is still causing problems at night. I apply that devil’s claw balm twice per night. Sometimes when I have to stand up in the morning it is very uncomfortable, there is tension going from lower back to foot (only left side) which makes it difficult to walk. It gets better later in the day. Without this problem the whole LL process would have been a lot easier to handle.
Appetite
I had lost my appetite after the surgery. Sometimes after a few bites I felt sick already. Every next bite was a fight. On top of that my digestion was too fast if you know what I mean so I might not got all the vitamins and stuff of the food I ate. Eating became a burden for me. I stopped drinking normal water from the supermarket, now I only drink fennel tea and my digestion system got better. Recently I noticed that I can eat more, too.
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