Femur lengthening with Dr. Betz - 7cm

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Im actually going to do another one with cyborg in a few weeks where I'm going to go into further detail on what COULD have gone wrong because of his carelessness because I feel really strongly about this. Even with my issues I was still kinda lucky that worse complications didn't arise guys so please also watch the second one in a few weeks, I want this to go around because it's NOT okay and also very dangerous to leave patients to their own devices after surgery.

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34 days post surgery
Amount lengthened: 3.51cm

I haven't been here much recently as it's been busy after I got back home. I was originally planning to stay in Germany until end of October but changed plans as the PT I was planning on working with was going to be out on holiday the week after I left the hospital. I stayed two days in Park hotel to do a couple of physio sessions with Peter Woll and flew back home afterward. The flight was pretty straightforward. The driver picked me up at the hotel and dropped me off at Frankfurt airport- I was able to check-in by myself and requested wheelchair assistance.

I'm currently doing 20 clicks per day as recommended by Betz but will soon reduce to 15 clicks. I'm spending 2-3 hours everyday on streching alone (morning, afternoon and evening) and also using heat pads every evening before going to bed to help with sleep. I'm also doing physio 3x week. Clicking has been relatively painfree so far although my hipflexors and IT bands are starting to get tighter since the past week or so. At the moment, my biggest issue are the hipflexors on my right leg which for some reason have been lot more agitated than my left leg. I get random pain while sitting or standing up from a seated position - streching has been good for temporary relief but I haven't yet quite found a permanent solution to this. I'm keen to see if reducing the clicks will help resolve this.

I also started walking 30-45 min every other day in the nearby park. I've a spinning bike at home which is typically use 3-4 times a day for 7-10min to relieve stifness. Also, I've noticed that the streching requirements for femus are definitely exponentially larger than for tibias. It's almost a full time job. I admire people who go back to work after 2 weeks and continue lengthening while working full time.

I've a video of me walking with crutches from earlier this afternoon, will try to post it later.

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Quote from: LegendKiller on October 28, 2021, 06:04:29 AMBest of luck on our jorney! I lengthened my femurs 10,5cm with betz in March, your diary brings back the memory like it was yesterday.... I found betz to be very carrying during my Hospital stay unfortunately during lengthning that changed for the worse.
I wish you a safe journey and speedy recovery.
@LegendKiller Thanks! Congrats on finishing your lengethening - 10.5cm is a phenomenal result! I haven't had much interaction much with Betz since I left the hospital, as I currently spending most of the time working with physio guys. Betz has been amazing so far - very attentive and caring - will keep you posted if it changes.

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Quote from: eric.cartman on November 12, 2021, 09:41:23 PM@LegendKiller Thanks! Congrats on finishing your lengethening - 10.5cm is a phenomenal result! I haven't had much interaction much with Betz since I left the hospital, as I currently spending most of the time working with physio guys. Betz has been amazing so far - very attentive and caring - will keep you posted if it changes.

Thanks man, yeah def keep us updated. It will get harder, until 3-4cm it's quite easy, after that it becomes more challenging but you'll power through it for sure. I actually went back to work 2 weeks post surgery in hindsight I would have done it differently, very hard to do that and stay on track with stretching and everything.
What is your end goal, how much do you plan on lengthing the femurs?

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I have been struggling with nerve pain on my right leg since the past 7-10 days. I've reduced my clicks to 10 per day and also stopped clicking for a couple of days to let it settle. It got better for a few days but came back again. This has significantly slowed down my lengthening, but I'm taking it slow at the moment. The nerve pain is at times 11/10 to the point I was barely able to move my leg without screaming in pain for the first two days

I 've reached out to Betz who immediately prescribed Pregabilin. But, as it happens the pharmacies in UK are now not allowed to take EU prescriptions anymore due to Brexit. So, I'm now scheduled to see my normal GP later this week - until then I'll most likely stick with 10 clicks and hope that it doesn't get worse in the meanwhile.

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Quote from: LegendKiller on November 13, 2021, 07:36:37 AM
What is your end goal, how much do you plan on lengthing the femurs?

My goal is 7-8 cm but I'm also going to listen to my body and stop earlier if needed.

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Quote from: eric.cartman on November 29, 2021, 09:40:35 PMI have been struggling with nerve pain on my right leg since the past 7-10 days. I've reduced my clicks to 10 per day and also stopped clicking for a couple of days to let it settle. It got better for a few days but came back again. This has significantly slowed down my lengthening, but I'm taking it slow at the moment. The nerve pain is at times 11/10 to the point I was barely able to move my leg without screaming in pain for the first two days

I 've reached out to Betz who immediately prescribed Pregabilin. But, as it happens the pharmacies in UK are now not allowed to take EU prescriptions anymore due to Brexit. So, I'm now scheduled to see my normal GP later this week - until then I'll most likely stick with 10 clicks and hope that it doesn't get worse in the meanwhile.
What do you intend on telling your GP in the UK? Does he know that you're undergoing limb lengthening?

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Quote from: eric.cartman on November 29, 2021, 09:40:35 PM....I 've reached out to Betz who immediately prescribed Pregabilin...

You mean that you had not been taking pregabalin all this time!?

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Quote from: eric.cartman on November 29, 2021, 09:40:35 PMI have been struggling with nerve pain on my right leg since the past 7-10 days. I've reduced my clicks to 10 per day and also stopped clicking for a couple of days to let it settle. It got better for a few days but came back again. This has significantly slowed down my lengthening, but I'm taking it slow at the moment. The nerve pain is at times 11/10 to the point I was barely able to move my leg without screaming in pain for the first two days

I 've reached out to Betz who immediately prescribed Pregabilin. But, as it happens the pharmacies in UK are now not allowed to take EU prescriptions anymore due to Brexit. So, I'm now scheduled to see my normal GP later this week - until then I'll most likely stick with 10 clicks and hope that it doesn't get worse in the meanwhile.
I had severe nerve pain on mi right leg from 3.5 cm to 4 cm, but it went away after stopping a couple days. But of couse, I was already taking Lyrica. I think it will improve after you do.

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@V21 My nerve pain also started exactly around 4cm mark. I'm hoping Pregabilin will provide some relief.

@Arcon: No, I wasn't. The daily medication is Tramal, Novalgin, Xaralto and a muscle relaxer combined with Vitamin supplements (Calcium, magnesium etc.). Betz doesn't prescribe Pregabilin unless necessary.

@thankscience: I'd need to tell him about LL. No way around it I'm afraid.