It is finally my time to get LL done.
Tomorrow I will be getting LON with Monorail on my Tibia with Dr. Inan in Istanbul Turkey. I checked in the hospital at 3 PM today and am awaiting my surgery that is scheduled for 8:00 AM tomorrow. I am kind of nervous but have thought about it a lot and have tried to prepare mentally the best I could.
I hope this diary can help other people with there decision. Dr. Inan I felt was the best choice for me as the facilities are top notch and I felt his personality was very similar to mine. I also feel that Turkey is a relatively stable country both economically and politically which makes me feel more secure. The only thing that made me apprehensive was the lack of patient experiences and diaries. However that is why I am calling myself Trailblazer because I will be the first diary of his using LON on Tibia:) (ChrisIsaak/Upinthesky was the first diary on here as he did Fitbone on his femur so he is the real pioneer.) ChrisIsaak/Upinthesky has helped me a lot with the whole process so I have him to thank for helping me get here.
I don't plan on posting pictures as I do not want anyone to know who I am, like most of the people on the forums, but maybe I can post a few of the hospital. I am going to be living in an apartment about 30 minutes away from the hospital. The apartment is probably nicer than my house which I never thought I would be able to have during LL. The only thing that sucks is there is no one to socialize with or take care of me. I think I will be able to manage though as 6 months is not that long and hopefully I will be done by then and on my way home. I, also like everyone else, am just ready to be taller and go on with life. I am only doing this surgery once and than hopefully I never visit the forum again and forget about it! 
I am 22 years old and am currently a student at a University in the United States.
Height: Morning: 5'7" (170 cm)
Evening: 5'6.25" (168.3 cm)
Wingspan: 5'8.5" (173.99 cm)
Weight: 150 pounds
Goal: 5-8 cm (Would be ecstatic with 8 but would be very happy with 6 or 7 as well, would kind of be disappointed with 5cm. I might be one of those guys that really wants a certain number haha)
I don't really know what else to write about. Hopefully, I can answer anyones questions and for the people that are also going through this journey maybe we can help each other get through it. I am also an avid football fan (that is american football) so feel free to talk about that on here as much as possible! lol. I will be posting the same information on both forums as I really think that both forums have helped me immensely and I would love to be able to give back a little bit.
Hopefully all goes well, wish me luck!
TrailBlazer LON Tibia - Dr. Muharrem Inan
Haha I kind of an interest in soccer since the world cup but it would be hard to beat American Football. I probably need to educate myself more on it.
I am paying about $7,700 for six months for the rent and then I also have to pay for Wifi. It maybe isn't quite as nice as my house, actually it is my parents house lol, but it is definitely not too big of a step down.
Thanks for all the support. Yeah I am nervous about the first couple of weeks, I heard they suck. I never really was much of a tough guy so at least the pain will toughen me up haha. In all seriousness, I am focused and will do whatever it takes to get my goal.
@Frihet I am not sure how long the surgery will take. I will let you know tomorrow!
I am alive, very groggy still! That went so fast. I am staying 6 months to stay away from family and just recover. I hope to be frame free by Christmas and just consolidate after that. The prices are just on the doctor information that Is what I paid. I will cook meals by myself as I loaded up on food to cook mostly pasta and oatmeal, my two favotites.
I am doing okay, I really don't have pain but I am concerned because my knees have swelled up a lot. I just want my knee swelling to go down. Like I said the pain has been nothing so far and I can move my feet really easily. However, I am getting off of the pain killers so I am sure it will suck soon enough. They also tried to move me to a different room in the hospital. I don't mind going to a different room but I am in no condition to move right now as I feel very nauseas when I get up. I am kind of being paranoid right now about everything for some reason haha. This is definitely a challenging procedure, don't ever go into it thinking it will be easy. But I am up for the task.
I wouldn't blame you. I think all the nurses are pretty good looking haha. There is one I think is especially good looking (the blonde haired one). I can be your wingman ChrisIsaak haha 
Dr. Inan actually I think only does monorails for cosmetic purposes. I am definitely okay with that as long as I get the desired result obviously. The monorails aren't nearly as bothersome as I think the classic frames would be. When you sleep on your back your calf is touching the bed which I think would be more comfortable as the pins would have no pressure on them unlike most illizarov frames. I really can't feel a whole lot still in my legs so I don't know about the pin sites. I will let everyone know how they feel once I get to walking. I am going to take a guess and say they aren't going to feel great but hopefully not to bad lol.
I guess I was just thinking about LON versus external only while lying here in bed and wanted to start a discussion about it. I know a lot of people are adamantly opposed to LON but I was reading today about Paul George. I am a huge NBA fan so I follow this stuff pretty closely. Paul George did get the nail put inside his tibia bone with pins to hold it into place. If nails are so damaging to the knees wouldn't they do everything to ensure that an elite athlete who relies so much on his knees would not have this procedure done. Why didn't they plate his leg instead, or use a purely external fixator to keep it in line until it was healed? It is just interesting and I thought it would be a good thing to discuss because his knees are much more important than ours lol.
Just to be clear I am not saying people's opinions on here are wrong it is just a good thing to discuss and think about.
I asked him about that but I cannot remember what he said. He said that LON was much easier on the patient but was a much more difficult surgery. He said he would do external only but it would take a long time and would be tough on the patient. I really had a hard time deciding but ultimately thought it was better to take the knee pain risk and get back to life quicker. It seemed to do 7 cm you would need about 14 months in the fixator and that just was too long. I also thought the risk of the bone breaking kind of freaked me out if it wasn't consolidated enough. But that is just my thought process, I think it is just about what the person feels is best for them. Life is all about tradeoffs and LL is a perfect example of this.
I tried walking today and it was very challenging. I got lightheaded quickly and had to sit down before I even got to the door. My left leg is much stronger than my right leg. It was good to get up but it was very painful. My legs are still very swollen and I am still receiving pain medication so I cannot feel them yet. I feel the monorail is pretty solid but I didn't put nearly my full weight on it so I don't know yet. I will be doing leg exercises and hopefully sitting up throughout the day.
I used to be a pretty good cross country and track runner and this feels like competition again, which I like. I remember having practices that were like hell and this may be quite similar. As a runner your competition was many times yourself. I wasn't just trying to beat the guy next to me I was trying to beat what I ran before. So tomorrow I will try to get to the door and back and improve from yesterday. That is how i look at it anyways, if that makes sense haha. My goal someday is to run a 5K at a new height and I do think it is possible with work. The start of the journey is definitely tough. I have to stay positive all the time.
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