Quadrilateral Lengthening with Dr. Paley

They did the initial 1mm to test the nail.  I start lengthening Tuesday. A week after the surgery. Hopefully I get through tonight without needing them to remove and inset another catheter and it will be all I could ask for.

Still more catheter Problems.  No sleep.

Hang in the man. The first week or two is apparently always the worst.

Which segment did the Operate first on? I'm assuming the tibia since it typically lengths slower.

Quote from: Iamready on October 30, 2015, 10:07:31 PMI have a day left before I get discharged. The epidural didn't work for my right side so I dealt with that but believe it or not my greatest pain has been in the bladder. My urine wasn't passing through. I had the catheter stuck in 4 times in and out. It's a bitch but there are people in the world who suffer a great deal more pain than I so I don't feel right complaining.

I had the same problem as you. They don't actually have to stick a catheter back in! I learned that after they did the same thing to me. But the way I got to peeing again was to get a rubber glove full of ice chips. Then put that glove on top of your penis for a while. Eventually you'll want to go. It's much easier than using the catheter!

Another option would be to keep the catheter in for 24 hours and let things settle down. Yes having a prolonged (>48hours) indwelling catheter increases your risk of urinary tract infection, but so does doing multiple in and out catheterizations.

Hi Iamready

Congrats on making the first step!
I am sorry that you have a serious problem in peeing. That sounds quite painful.  Try what DoingitforMe suggests.  It may work for you.
Be strong and hang in there.  The pain will be less and less eventually!  Hope it is getting better soon for you!
Thank you so much for sharing your invaluable experience with us!

That sounds quite scary.  Luckily you fell flat on face without damaging your legs, although it must be hurtful.  Anyhow, I am glad you will see you father.  Having your family be supportive is really huge, since a lot of people who want or did LL need to hide LL even to family.  I am also going to pretend nothing happens to my height. 

looking forward to hearing more from you!

Take care! 

Ever since they removed the catheter my mood has been much better.  I am at homewood suites now.  Completed 2 physical therapy sessions and lengthened 1.5mm so far.  Took my first   Sunday night, and just dropped a bomb tonight which hurt a lot more.   You can really feel the pain in the legs.  All I have to say is that I wish the pain pills actually worked for me.  They just make me sleepy.  Perhaps someone has suggestions?  Most of the pain I feel is while on the walker.

Quote from: Iamready on November 04, 2015, 12:13:16 AMEver since they removed the catheter my mood has been much better.  I am at homewood suites now.  Completed 2 physical therapy sessions and lengthened 1.5mm so far.  Took my first crap Sunday night, and just dropped a bomb tonight which hurt a lot more.   You can really feel the pain in the legs.  All I have to say is that I wish the pain pills actually worked for me.  They just make me sleepy.  Perhaps someone has suggestions?  Most of the pain I feel is while on the walker.

The pain will drop significantly after 2 weeks or so. Hang in there. What pain meds are you on now? Oxycodone? Get some Tylenol and take it with the Oxy. It will enhance the effect. Don't get Advil and the like, because they don't mix well with the blood thinners. It's not worth the risk. Tell the Paley team about the pain. They will prescribe stronger pain meds for you. For me, it was Oxycontin that saved me. That stuff is like $5 a pill, but it was worth every dollar. If your health insurance isn't paying for your drugs, get your drugs from Walmart. It's the cheapest. But give them the prescription for Oxycodone a week in advance. It takes them that long to fill it. Garden Drugs has some kind of deal with the hospital, so the hospital pushes their drugs. But their prices are almost double or triple. Don't fall for their trap, especially when drug costs are in the thousands of dollars.

If you see an asian kid or an indian guy, say hi to them for me. Try to get to the pool as soon as you can - usually 2 weeks after discharge. If the pool isn't warm, complain to Paley's team. They will yell at the Homewood Suites management for you. If the pool is warm, you're welcome. It was our group that got them to turn up the heating in the pool.

Hi, thanks for your response. During my first pt session there was an indian fellow- i'm not 100% sure- and he had just finished lengthening his tibia's 7cm.  My father spoke to him but it was my first day after being discharged from the hospital and I was out of it.  They gave me generic vicodin and oxycodone.  I absolutely will not be getting my medicine from Garden Drugs if they are over priced. 

Since they did the tibia's first on me I have this boot that i'm supposed to wear 23 hours a day.  It's problematic for me because I have some bruising and swelling from how tight it fits on me.  When you speak about the Paley team do you mean the physical therapists or the doctors I visit every 2 weeks?  Thanks for your reponse I really appreciate that you took the time to respond.  Have a nice night.