I've selected Dr. Paley

Edit Post

Deposit has been made and surgery date reserved. For those contemplating their choices, my criteria for selecting Dr. Paley was as follows:

• Experience. I don't think I need to belabor this when it comes to Dr. Paley, there is no one like him in this field and particular specialization
• Organization. Of the Drs. I considered, Dr. Paley's staff was leagues above the others in order, process, organization. This, to me, was indicative of the precision and detail that goes into patient care. This was a really really big deal to me in selecting a doctor for this surgery
• Emphasis on safety. It was literally in every sentence, and every shred of research I could get my hands on (and I went through a lot, including most of the diaries in this forum, from all the other surgeons) showed that Dr. Paley consistently has the lowest number of problems and complications with his patients. Drs. Paley and Packer's advice of "come to us healthy, and we will get you back healthy" really resonated with me. Same for the PT and other procedures (IT band release, etc.), and that are done both preventively and proactively to get me as fully back to normal activity, including my many athletic activities, as possible
• Supporting cast. Dr. Packer has thus far been wonderful, as has everyone at the Paley Institute. No one has never been not available to answer questions, return calls, etc.
• Transparency. I asked a lot of questions, and felt I got very honest answers. Both Drs. Paley and Packer were up front about the initial pain, every medical option, the new (close-to) full weight bearing nail, and whether that would be a better option for me (if it's available, I will use it, but I am not waiting for it), and so on

Physically, this will be the hardest thing I've ever done. I am as prepared as I can be, including a degree of flexibility I haven't had (full splits, JCVD style !!). I'm going to continue to prepare both physically and mentally to get there in peak condition, follow Dr.'s orders to rehab, and after 3 tough months, come out smiling.

The surgery is early next year. I'm not sure if I'll keep a diary (initially I wanted to, I've stated my reservations for doing so now on another thread). I will post a summary of lengthening process, recovery, and any complications (hopefully none of the latter), once I am off crutches and walking.

I hope my summary and posts helped someone. This forum has been a great source of information for me personally. At some point, medicine will have evolved to where a pill will be available instead of having limbs broken, but sadly, we're not there. For others considering this and looking at a variety of physicians and options, my advice would be examine the entire ecosystem around the surgeon, and do not look at cost as a driving factor. You get what you pay for seems to ring very true in this case. I suppose I will test that theory personally soon.

Regards,

--JBC

Edit Post

Thanks everyone. Some answers, in order .

bander72: I hope you find a doctor that you feel comfortable with within your price range. Keep in mind that consequences from this procedure going bad can be disastrous. This is mostly what drove my decision. I don't know if I would have saved for a decade - that's tough - but I would have certainly prioritized safety and track record over price.

bravotobe: The Drs. were very upfront about the fact that it will be painful for the first 2 weeks, and medication would be administered to control the pain.

programdude: Thanks and will do - do you recommend that I request him if possible?

The Kaiser: Thanks!! Going into this eyes wide open and preparing as much as I can, hoping for the best possible outcome

Edit Post

Wow - thanks for the insight, this is incredibly useful!!

Regarding stretching: I plan to stretch all the time . I won't have anything else to do other than rehab, so I'm going to be doing this quite a bit. I also plan to put an exercise bike in the hotel room - any thoughts about this? Has anyone else done this?

Also regarding stretching: As I mentioned before, the EOS scan revealed that I have a scoliotic spine (moderate). I don't plan to have surgery for this, but I've been undergoing intensive PT and Pilates for this, as well as Yoga. After 2 months, I'm pleased to say that I've "grown" roughly 1.5 cm (maybe a bit less).

This was expected, so it's not a surprise, but figured I'd post it here for people that wonder whether Yoga and Pilates help increase your height. They do, when your spine is out of alignment, as it is for most people. It's not a miracle, you just get back what you lose due to poor spinal alignment. I have been told my spine will never get to 100%, and that going forward, I can expect incremental gains at most (so most likely another 1 cm, maybe another 1.5).

My results are not typical - my scoliosis was not severe, but it was not a light case either. I'm thrilled I got the EOS scan, it was an unexpected medical discovery that needed to be fixed. Also, postural alignment does not help with scoliosis, my posture was good to begin with, but supposedly Yoga and especially Pilates help with that as well.

FWIW. Thanks so much for the tips on PTs, I'm now sufficiently scared of Mike .

Best,

--jbc

Edit Post

Quote from: LLuser1 on October 07, 2016, 11:11:24 PMSome people get soft scars but some people get very ugly scars even with internals. I know some cases, Musicmaker, an American guy and the teenage boy all from Monegal.

I hope a moderator, somewhere, is paying attention to this. I'll write a diary when this guy is banned. Otherwise I won't.

Dude, please get off my thread, spew your garbage elsewhere.

Edit Post

.. and, my thread is fully hijacked by a lunatic. Awesome.

Dr. Monegal, I honestly suggest not responding to this guy anymore. I'm sure it gets under your skin, and I'd be pissed as well, if I were you. But engaging him in written arguments on some anonymous forum really doesn't serve you professionally. Continue focusing on your practice and your patients and let your results speak for themselves.

(FWIW, I looked at many Drs., you included, and the comments here didn't scare me off. I trusted the Precise more than the other nails, as well as Dr. Paley's practice, and ultimately decided on staying in the US. I have to admit that there was not a lot of data on your patients, none that I could find, so I would advise you to publish your statistics if possible, other Drs. have done so with total patient anonymity).

Edit Post

Quote from: bander72 on October 10, 2016, 03:26:30 AMUnless he starts telling people to kill themselves I dont see why he should be baned. He kinda has some valid points. Dont you guys think Its weird that the doctor has time to post alot here and he usually ignores other questions that others ask him. Only responds when hes getting bashed.

There are limits, however, between warning and flat-out spam and defamation/character assassination. And there are tradeoffs. I'll be spending over 100K with a Dr. everyone wants to know about, and I'm now determined to keep that experience and knowledge to myself for the sake of keeping LLUser1 off my diary (I said I would stop posting if he hijacked my threads, he promised he wouldn't hijack my threads, and well, here we are).

I mean, every SINGLE freaking thread is completely over the top.

Most likely my last post on the forum. A lot of the people here are really good, seem genuine and want to help. I've appreciated interacting with everyone, as well as learning from those that gave of their knowledge. Best of luck.

--jbc

Edit Post

Quote from: Mtall on October 12, 2016, 07:31:12 PMI have always harboured ill-will against forum users who use the forum to their full advantage, gather whatever info they need, ask questions, PM veterans,  and then don't pay tge community back by writing a diary of their own experience.
I consider it freeloading.
Writing a diary can be of massive help, it's what teaches others from one patient's or doctor's mistakes, and can include valuable information.
Anyway...freeloading is not new. Either to the forum or the world as a whole.

Cmon guys, think about it! How would it have been if we didn't have thos forum with all it's diaries and extensive information?

I agree. I also think I've given back quite a bit already, from my short time here. I've answered many more PMs than I've sent out.

I will start a diary. The minute LLUser1 and/or anyone else talking about Dr. Monegal shows up, I will formally request a moderator to take it down - others have done same, for the exact same reason.

Up to you guys now, especially mods, to police this guy.

Best,

--jbc