Stryde CLL with Dr. Tim O'Carrigan in Sydney, Australia, 2020

This will be the location of my diary where I'll record my experiences with Dr. Tim O'Carrigan. He studied under the GOAT, Dr. Paley.

Starting age: 28
Starting height: 170cm, aka 5'7".
Targeted height: 5'10.5"
Planned approach: 1.5" lengthening of tibias followed up by 2" lengthening of femurs 2 years later.

Dr. O'Carrigan offers external fixators, the precice nail and the stryde full weight bearing nail. I am aiming to use the stryde nail.

Context:

I am a software engineer, reasonably successful in a very niche area of software development with high job security and steadily increasing salary. I am extremely interested in economics, politics, philosophy and law. I am highly motivated and ambitious. Typical highly motivated short Napoleon type of guy wanting to do great things.

I wrote a very demanding, niche private software project from scratch starting around 17 years of age while attending university. That demanding software project attracted attention to me and I got my first job at 25, starting at AUD 60k/yr. Within 3 years I had got 2 promotions and was earning AUD 80k/yr at that job.

During those same 3 years I also read all of Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations from cover to cover, followed by several other books on econ, philosophy, etc and I have decided to move out of software and into politics later on in life, perhaps in my late 30s - all while also improving my dayjob skills and also undertaking new private projects.

At my current job I earn low 6 figures in AUD at a company in the top 5 of the Forbes list and am well adjusted, confident and able to strike up a conversation easily with anyone and so on.

I started off in a 3rd world country, and worked hard and continue to work hard to improve myself and to be able to move into politics so I can go back to the 3rd world and fix my own country's politics and break the cycle of dysfunctional politics.

Reasons for undergoing LL:

I don't have problems with my height. Other people have problems with my height. Unfortunately, people don't take short politicians seriously, and I don't have the time to let all of this reading and studying and planning that I've done, go down the drain.

I am tired of the 3rd world being left behind because of incompetent politicians. It is about time that corruption and religious nonsense get expunged from 3rd world politics so people in the 3rd world can live modern lives and have freedom and prosperity.

My relationship status:

I am single and intend to remain single for a very long time since I don't have the time to accomodate another person in my life. A lot of people want LL to get girls or something. I'm not interested in that: I want LL for respect, so that other people can get past my height and look at my achievements and take me seriously.

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Preparations for LL:

I currently have this list of items I think I'll need:

• Wheelchair, approx 350 AUD.
• Calcium supplements and multivitamins
• painkillers
• bedside lamp, Approx 100 AUD

I plan to hire a helper to buy groceries and clean my studio apartment and so on. Overall, I plan to just use this COVID-19 pandemic situation as an excuse to stay home and recover from my surgery.

Ideally I won't even have to tell my employer that I broke my legs or anything because I would just not see him for at least 2 months. Then, I'll just gradually increase in height by 1.5 inches under everyone's noses and well, that's the plan.

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The initial consultation day:

Preparations and lead-up:

Yesterday I went to get a GP referral to see Dr. O'Carrigan because the instructions (sent over email before the scheduled initial consultation day) say to have a GP rreferral.The GP immediately recognized O'Carrigan's name and said he had studied leg surgery for fractured limbs, etc. under him in medical school and that he is a very competent surgeon. Also, he told me an anecdote about him having been driven somewhere by Dr. O'Carrigan and having seen him stop the car and carefully pick a lizard of some sort out of the way before proceeding, and said that he is a very compassionate man. Curious.

Today is the day of the initial consultation. I'll edit this post with more details when its done. The instructions say that it will be a long day and that you should come in comfortable clothes with some shorts as you'll be asked to disrobe.

Further, you are likely to be asked to do checkups with a psychologist and a "Pain Specialist", and the pain specialist is apparently very well decorated so ideally this means your pain will be well estimated and managed.

9:45am:

I arrived on Macquarie University campus and went into the Limb Reconstruction center. My appointment was for 9:50am. I filled out forms and then was asked to go to the imaging clinic to get xrays done.

10:15am: sitting in the imaging clinic waiting to be xrayed.

exciting! i didnt know of any aus docs offering cll

how much is he charging for stryde?

cheers

@wannabeidol I don't want to advertise prices for the good doctor; but if you email him, you can ask him for a price range. I expect to get an exact quote today.

He gave me a minimum price which was very reasonable and very affordable (still in the tens of thousands). He was reluctant to give such a quote, and I caj understand why since the actual price quote for each patient will be different because different treatment regimens may be required.

I would encourage you to contact him directly and ask for a price range (don't ask for a quote. You'll be given a quote on your initial consultation day.)

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