Posted on May 29, 2023, 6:04 am
#1
Background
I did my tibia surgery in early 2019 in Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh, with a lengthen distance of 6.5 cm. Other than a mild case of ballerina feet, I did not experience any major complications. During the recovery phase, I was able to recover most of my daily functions (walking, running, jumping) albeit not in its original form and power.
Femur surgery
I began my surgery in late December. Both surgeries were similar, waking up feeling dazed with slight pain in one leg and numbness in the other. Couldn’t eat anything for the first day post surgery, as eating would always cause me to throw up, due to the medications. Also, I was bleeding a lot more on my femur. The doctor was considering a blood transfusion, but luckily didn’t go through with it, as my condition stabilized in the upcoming days.
10 days post op, i got to go back to the apartment to begin the lengthening process. The lengthening process consisted of using a hex key to turn a part of the frame, 90 degrees, 4 times a day, 4 hours apart.
From my experience LL on the femur is a lot more painful than tibia. A week into lengthening, I started to experience a numbing pain in my left leg, starting from my glutes, traveling all the way down to my toes. This would only occur when I lay down. I tried to find out what the cause was through an internet search. I found that it may be caused by two things: sciatic nerve damage and/or piriformis syndrome. Luckily it was piriformis syndrome, which occurs when the muscle around your glutes and hips weaken and compress on the sciatic nerve. I remedied this by doing abductor exercises with a band on my glutes and hips on a daily basis, and in a few days the pain began to subside.
About 3 months in, I finally reached my desired goal, which was 7 cm. After that, I went for frame removal and two weeks after frame removal I began my recovery phase.
Right now I am in my recovery phase and currently using a walker to move around. I made the mistake of focusing my work-out on my upper leg and neglecting my lower leg, so when I began to walk, I experienced severe tightness in my calf muscle. I haven’t experienced any major pain from walking. Most of the pain experienced is predominately in my feet, from walking too long.
In one week I will be flying back home. I hope to update my diary once I return home.
I did my tibia surgery in early 2019 in Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh, with a lengthen distance of 6.5 cm. Other than a mild case of ballerina feet, I did not experience any major complications. During the recovery phase, I was able to recover most of my daily functions (walking, running, jumping) albeit not in its original form and power.
Femur surgery
I began my surgery in late December. Both surgeries were similar, waking up feeling dazed with slight pain in one leg and numbness in the other. Couldn’t eat anything for the first day post surgery, as eating would always cause me to throw up, due to the medications. Also, I was bleeding a lot more on my femur. The doctor was considering a blood transfusion, but luckily didn’t go through with it, as my condition stabilized in the upcoming days.
10 days post op, i got to go back to the apartment to begin the lengthening process. The lengthening process consisted of using a hex key to turn a part of the frame, 90 degrees, 4 times a day, 4 hours apart.
From my experience LL on the femur is a lot more painful than tibia. A week into lengthening, I started to experience a numbing pain in my left leg, starting from my glutes, traveling all the way down to my toes. This would only occur when I lay down. I tried to find out what the cause was through an internet search. I found that it may be caused by two things: sciatic nerve damage and/or piriformis syndrome. Luckily it was piriformis syndrome, which occurs when the muscle around your glutes and hips weaken and compress on the sciatic nerve. I remedied this by doing abductor exercises with a band on my glutes and hips on a daily basis, and in a few days the pain began to subside.
About 3 months in, I finally reached my desired goal, which was 7 cm. After that, I went for frame removal and two weeks after frame removal I began my recovery phase.
Right now I am in my recovery phase and currently using a walker to move around. I made the mistake of focusing my work-out on my upper leg and neglecting my lower leg, so when I began to walk, I experienced severe tightness in my calf muscle. I haven’t experienced any major pain from walking. Most of the pain experienced is predominately in my feet, from walking too long.
In one week I will be flying back home. I hope to update my diary once I return home.