My Journey with Dr Pili(HEF)

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Quote from: totallyred on June 23, 2018, 10:19:10 AMHow do you manage to go to office..in specifics:-
-do you take a bath regularly?
once in 2-3 days
-do you use a cab for pick up and drop?
yes
-do you use wheelchair apart from crutches? Is it possible to use only wheelchair?
i dont use wheelchair anywhere excpet in airport to skip the queue . Dr pili did not say you require wheelchair. IMO weight bearing is key to recovery
-what if your team goes on outings?
If its like lunch/dinner I go along else I skip if it involves outdoor sports
- what if you have to go to meet outside client?
I dont
-what if you have to meet your manager?
Manager knows I had an operation, not the exact cause though
-do you lengthen while being in office?
I lengthen when I goto the washroom
-you must be taking medications multiple times in a day is it possible to do it there?
I do not take painkillers at all
-what about PT there?
I do not get time at work to do excercise. Probably why my flexibilty reduced. If you can afford to take lesve while lengthening I would suggest you do that and focus more on your own self.
- how much do you walk per day in total?
2-3 km or 1 hour in total
- has your doctor given any advice regarding office going?
nothing, he told to walk frequently, I do that when I get time
-your manager look at you with  sympathy or otherwise?
A bit may be.
-can you work without any issues I mean as you did during your preCLL phase?
Yes.
A lot of questions I know, if you could answer it would help future CLLers a lot. Thanks in advance?
Find my answers inline in italics

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Quote from: fivetenneeded2016 on June 23, 2018, 10:25:25 AMFind my answers inline in italics
A hearty thanks...If you could please specify..
- with crutches can you walk at normal speed or even half of the normal speed?
-at any point did you feel that you'll hurt yourself due to misalignment etc of crutches?if yes how often?
- in your x ray the callus was quite transparent, it is supposed to be so?

Wish you a very good recovery and thanks!

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Quote from: totallyred on June 23, 2018, 10:37:56 AMA hearty thanks...If you could please specify..
- with crutches can you walk at normal speed or even half of the normal speed?
it depends on the state of motion prior to walking...if you were sitting/lying down for long time you walk very slow for first 100 steps may be...but in general you can walk from .4x-.7x speed of a normal person
-at any point did you feel that you'll hurt yourself due to misalignment etc of crutches?if yes how often?
No, may be sometime initally, at times you feel the bones touch(even now i feel like parts touch as i walk) but the misalignments can be corrected.
- in your x ray the callus was quite transparent, it is supposed to be so?
I guess so, Dr. Pili was happy with my callous formation. I guess it becomes more opaque over time.
Wish you a very good recovery and thanks!

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u r a badass dude!
ur x-rays look solid. congrats. external tibias look very temtping. apart from the need for ATL which i hope does not lead to complications and having to wear frames for months you are able to live a normal life while lengthening.

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Quote from: fokid on June 23, 2018, 01:18:40 PMu r a badass dude!
ur x-rays look solid. congrats. external tibias look very temtping. apart from the need for ATL which i hope does not lead to complications and having to wear frames for months you are able to live a normal life while lengthening.

Thanks man, I feel encouraged more. I don't know how normal it would be after ATL. Although Dr Pili said having the pins for ATL would make it much easier for walking, and I could walk my way out and fly back after a day the surgery, I have heard that the surgery is the real pain. But again, living as normal is the key to recovery, ATL would release the tightness i feel these days. And to others, I would get the ATL done, I know there are threads and debates against it, but still if my doctor feels I would be better, I would do it. So please do not discourage me as I would stop visiting the site if I find hate/demotivation in PMs or on my diary.

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Thanks for taking the time to answer the questions, some interesting stuff in there. And yep, some of us have seen your old pics/videos, so feel free to upload and delete as you please if privacy is a concern. Put yourself first.

I've been wondering how you've been dealing with the recent topics about Dr. Pili and ATL. Surely additional surgery isn't desired, but I'd trust my doctor, my gut, and people on the internet; in that order. Good luck.

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For a last time, don't do atl exactly after finish lengthening and furthermore if you have at least 15degrees+ permanent plantar flexion.

Give yourself some time, do some good PT and walk a lot at least 3 months after finishing lengthening.
If your equinus havent imroved at all (very rare) then its up to you to do atl or not.
But not from the begining. I've said a lot of times my opinion and my experience about atl but it doesnt matter.
You should always give yourself some time before taking the most extreme solution (which here is a new surgery like atl).

I wish you the best.

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Quote from: Body Builder on June 24, 2018, 10:47:07 AMGive yourself some time, do some good PT and walk a lot at least 3 months after finishing lengthening.
If your equinus havent imroved at all (very rare) then its up to you to do atl or not.
But not from the begining.

Agreed, good advice. You had ATL almost immediately after lengthening, which was drastic.

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Quote from: Body Builder on June 24, 2018, 10:47:07 AMFor a last time, don't do atl exactly after finish lengthening and furthermore if you have at least 15degrees+ permanent plantar flexion.

Give yourself some time, do some good PT and walk a lot at least 3 months after finishing lengthening.
If your equinus havent imroved at all (very rare) then its up to you to do atl or not.
But not from the begining. I've said a lot of times my opinion and my experience about atl but it doesnt matter.
You should always give yourself some time before taking the most extreme solution (which here is a new surgery like atl).

I wish you the best.
Thanks BodyBuilder, I really consider your advices, but ATL I feel has its pros as well. Equinus may distract the bones less than turned. And having equinus post lengthening, itslef could cause subsidence, specially pure ilizarov. If you see lumiere/'s diary, he lost 1-1.5cm since he opted out of ATL. Also after ATL the stretching excericese(which are painul) would be less and yo would only be doing ATL rehab excercises, and the remaining lengthening would be easy.

Its not about the money that Dr Pili is suggesting ATL, as for italians, it is covered by insurance. I feel he is suggesting for the better. He was so confidant about ATL that he said I could have the surgery on a thrusday and fly 13hrs back home on saturday and resume work by monday. Hs said the walk would be much better. He must know his stuff too based on his experience.

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update: 61 days post op, 47days since lengthening
gain: 3.6cm
stats: left knee is quite a lot of pain while i try to straighten it. Dorsiflexion still okay though. The calfs are also carrying a lot of tension. A minute pain, but constantly. Knees pain if I dont have the inertia of walking, and start to walk. I had to take a painkillers after so many days to get to sleep the other day. Based on these factors and my doctor advice too, I have decided to undergo ATL next month.