Surgery Complete

[hendrix]

I want to document my journey a bit to help provide help for others.

So, at 21 years old my penis stopped working randomly. Canadian health care was sort of frustrating as they would book me in with an endocrine Dr. which would take 6 months to get in. Then that Dr. would tell me to come back in 6 months for results. etc.... etc.... I've literally gone to hundreds of Dr's appointments trying to get someone to help me and it was very frustrating. I'm now 31 have suffered depression and anxiety due to this and missed a big chunk of my life.

Finally in June of 2014 (9 years later) my family Dr. scheduled yet again, another urology appointment. It took 10 months to actually see a Urologist (April 2015). The Urologist said after a ultrasound that I had some scar tissue that doesn't expand like normal tissue which is preventing the penis from holding the blood in the penis. In-flow was good but it was just flowing back out. He said to do 'Cialis therapy' for 6 months and come back. He said that by using Cialis it can make the scar tissue more playable which could help keep the blood trapped in the penis.

So 3 months go by, and I'm not seeing any improvement. I start looking into penis implants and to my surprise they have a very high satisfaction rate. My original perception was that you would be this weirdo, but the more I looked into it the more I realized that this is a pretty nice option, people don't have to know, it's not going to be obvious, etc...

Once I decided I wanted one I researched USA Dr's that would do it for a reasonable price that also performed 100+ a year. I did this because my experience with the Canadian health care system is that they just always say "come back in 6 months" and these add up. Plus I was seeing numbers like 2-3 year waitlists for penile implants here, and there is only 1 Dr in the province performing them. There use to be 2 doctors, but the other one just retired so I didn't want to waste another 3 years of my life. I'd rather just go pay for it in the States than get it free in Canada .

The doctor I found in my price range in the USA was Dr Martin Dineen out of Florida. He performed 100+ a year (important) at $15k USD (which would have been over $20k CDN + hotel, plane, etc...)

My experience with Dr. Dineen's staff was up and down. I must have called them 20 times over the course of a week without getting a shred of info. Horrible administration. Receptionists would pick up the phone maybe 30% of the time then forward you to another department who never once picked up the phone and never returned a single voicemail.

They don't even have an email address listed. What I had to do? I found the email address for the CFO of these clinics listed on some obscure site and directly emailed the CFO saying I want to come get a surgery and nobody will help me. I immediately got an email back from them and then a follow up from Tom Sellers.

Tom Sellers was great. He called me promptly, told me to go through him from now on, and spent a decent chunk of time helping, and accommodating my request. All interactions with him were great, and if anyone goes here, ask for him he's top notch.

Anyways, I scheduled an appointment with my Canadian Urologist in October of 2015 to let him know I've made up my mind that I'm getting this done, and that I'm going to the States to get it done quick. His response? Normally the wait-list is long in Canada; however, he's doing a special day in 2.5 weeks where he's training people and doing 10 surgeries in the same day and just got the 'better' version of the Titan with an easier to work pump (that's already available in the USA for a while).

I said yes and bing, bing, bing I had the surge performed today. 2.5 weeks after I found out about this. I called the Dr's office in Florida 4 times to let them know I would not need their services as the surgery is free and immediate in Canada now. Nobody picked up the phone any of those times. I left a message saying the circumstance and requested them to call me back to verify. They haven't called back in the last 2 weeks. I'm not sure if I'm suppose to keep calling or what but seriously, it shouldn't be my responsibility to make up for their beyond terrible staff.

One downside of either the Canadian system or my specific circumstances is there is very limited time available for bed-side care/appointments. I think maybe in the 4 times I've seen this Urologist I've on average spent 3 minutes per encounter. Pretty small amount of time considering the severity of the situation and what was being discussed. But I had read some of his papers online, know how many surgeries he performs, and that helped me feel at ease. It's defenitley not like the USA where they'll talk to you for an hour and help with all your questions.

Anyways, I showed up at 6am today went into surgery at 8am. Work back up from the general anastesia at ~10:30. Tried asking some pretty basic questions to the nurse that was there (can I talk to the surgeon to see how it went, etc...) and my memory was a little fuzzy. I think I may have asked one question twice and the nurse was kind of snarky about it. I'd hate to have Alzheimers, it must suck having people talk back to your snarky/frustrated when you genuinely just don't know.

Over the next few hours I started getting my memory back, was given a couple bags of antibiotics, rested a bit, and was generally bored. I talked to the surgeon and he told me everything went great. They put in 18cm titan w/ 2 rear tip extenders. I'm currently 50% pumped or so. He also said that where the scrotum attached to the penis he didn't like, so he moved it back a bit to add some more length. I have a follow up with him on Tuesday.

One thing that kind of sucks is generally I've been a 'grower' (that didn't have the ability to grow haha) and my whole package would be somewhat shriveled including scrotum size. Well I can't see much down there currently cause it's bandaged, but I can tell there isn't a lot of room in my scrotum for testicles and this pump. There's been quite a bit of discomfort if I don't sit right.

After I got out around 1:30 I went and looked at a new apartment, then went to the pharmacy, then walked around a few furniture stores of an hour or so. Maybe not the best idea so I'm going to try and lay in bed for the next couple days and probably work from home on Monday.

Happy to answer any questions an will be updating as time goes on. Currently I'm not even going to think about size. Looks smaller but from what I can tell this doesn't appear to be a great thing to evaluate at this time.

[dg_moore]

Congratulations! We hear so many stories here of men having trouble finding a doc, getting an appointment, etc. Your saga is a familiar one, but it sounds like it worked out great. We're a bit more fortunate here in the US because it's often pretty easy go get an appointment and surgery date. In my case, I saw Dr Kramer for a consultation - that appointment took a couple of weeks to secure - and he was able to schedule me for surgery 3 weeks after that. Having read of so many difficult experiences I was thankful for how easy mine was.

[hendrix]

Congratulations! We hear so many stories here of men having trouble finding a doc, getting an appointment, etc. Your saga is a familiar one, but it sounds like it worked out great. We're a bit more fortunate here in the US because it's often pretty easy go get an appointment and surgery date. In my case, I saw Dr Kramer for a consultation - that appointment took a couple of weeks to secure - and he was able to schedule me for surgery 3 weeks after that. Having read of so many difficult experiences I was thankful for how easy mine was.

Thanks DG!

WRT Canada vs. USA, it wouldn't even be the end of the world in Canada if you went to a Urologist, and knew quickly that the best option was an implant. I mean I got a bit lucky in that from the point where I discussed "implants" with my Uro to the point that I actually got it, was only 2.5 weeks. But, if it was normal circumstances with a 1-2 year waitlist it would suck, but wouldn't be the end of the world. Taking 9 years to get to the point of realizing an implant is the way to go is the really shitty ordeal imo.

[hendrix]

I just took off the bandage and am a little worried about some size issues.

1) From what I can feel it seems like the tips end before the head. The cylinders are 50% filled but feel pretty firm altered and the head is just hanging out past them. Is this going to be a floppy head issue? Clearly the length of the cylinders aren't going to change in size so it's not like they'll all of a sudden extend farther, right?

2) Where did half 40% of my penis go? lol. Again the cylinders are the same size regardless they aren't getting any longer and I'm at 3:00 right now as it is and have gone from 6 inches to 4 inches. It feel like everything is 'tight' down there. Did the penis get retracted inside and once everything relaxes will come outside the body more? I'm confused where I'm going to make up 2 inches here.

[RelievedofED1]

It is soooo difficult to predict what length will be at 6 months out when you are in immediate post op period as things are swollen and cylinders likely shorter and maybe even folded over at this point. I know it is worrisome but if you look at tthe posts lots of guys here were verrrrrry worried initially, then less so a month or two out then they stop posting after a final things are going well with my hard penis final post. I totally understand being nervous but give it time and try not to obsess on anything but resting, not lifting and following your doc's recommendations. Congrats!

[PCHelp76180]

I want to document my journey a bit to help provide help for others.

So, at 21 years old my penis stopped working randomly. Canadian health care was sort of frustrating as they would book me in with an endocrine Dr. which would take 6 months to get in. Then that Dr. would tell me to come back in 6 months for results. etc.... etc.... I've literally gone to hundreds of Dr's appointments trying to get someone to help me and it was very frustrating. I'm now 31 have suffered depression and anxiety due to this and missed a big chunk of my life.

Finally in June of 2014 (9 years later) my family Dr. scheduled yet again, another urology appointment. It took 10 months to actually see a Urologist (April 2015). The Urologist said after a ultrasound that I had some scar tissue that doesn't expand like normal tissue which is preventing the penis from holding the blood in the penis. In-flow was good but it was just flowing back out. He said to do 'Cialis therapy' for 6 months and come back. He said that by using Cialis it can make the scar tissue more playable which could help keep the blood trapped in the penis.

So 3 months go by, and I'm not seeing any improvement. I start looking into penis implants and to my surprise they have a very high satisfaction rate. My original perception was that you would be this weirdo, but the more I looked into it the more I realized that this is a pretty nice option, people don't have to know, it's not going to be obvious, etc...

Once I decided I wanted one I researched USA Dr's that would do it for a reasonable price that also performed 100+ a year. I did this because my experience with the Canadian health care system is that they just always say "come back in 6 months" and these add up. Plus I was seeing numbers like 2-3 year waitlists for penile implants here, and there is only 1 Dr in the province performing them. There use to be 2 doctors, but the other one just retired so I didn't want to waste another 3 years of my life. I'd rather just go pay for it in the States than get it free in Canada .

The doctor I found in my price range in the USA was Dr Martin Dineen out of Florida. He performed 100+ a year (important) at $15k USD (which would have been over $20k CDN + hotel, plane, etc...)

My experience with Dr. Dineen's staff was up and down. I must have called them 20 times over the course of a week without getting a shred of info. Horrible administration. Receptionists would pick up the phone maybe 30% of the time then forward you to another department who never once picked up the phone and never returned a single voicemail.

They don't even have an email address listed. What I had to do? I found the email address for the CFO of these clinics listed on some obscure site and directly emailed the CFO saying I want to come get a surgery and nobody will help me. I immediately got an email back from them and then a follow up from Tom Sellers.

Tom Sellers was great. He called me promptly, told me to go through him from now on, and spent a decent chunk of time helping, and accommodating my request. All interactions with him were great, and if anyone goes here, ask for him he's top notch.

Anyways, I scheduled an appointment with my Canadian Urologist in October of 2015 to let him know I've made up my mind that I'm getting this done, and that I'm going to the States to get it done quick. His response? Normally the wait-list is long in Canada; however, he's doing a special day in 2.5 weeks where he's training people and doing 10 surgeries in the same day and just got the 'better' version of the Titan with an easier to work pump (that's already available in the USA for a while).

I said yes and bing, bing, bing I had the surge performed today. 2.5 weeks after I found out about this. I called the Dr's office in Florida 4 times to let them know I would not need their services as the surgery is free and immediate in Canada now. Nobody picked up the phone any of those times. I left a message saying the circumstance and requested them to call me back to verify. They haven't called back in the last 2 weeks. I'm not sure if I'm suppose to keep calling or what but seriously, it shouldn't be my responsibility to make up for their beyond terrible staff.

One downside of either the Canadian system or my specific circumstances is there is very limited time available for bed-side care/appointments. I think maybe in the 4 times I've seen this Urologist I've on average spent 3 minutes per encounter. Pretty small amount of time considering the severity of the situation and what was being discussed. But I had read some of his papers online, know how many surgeries he performs, and that helped me feel at ease. It's defenitley not like the USA where they'll talk to you for an hour and help with all your questions.

Anyways, I showed up at 6am today went into surgery at 8am. Work back up from the general anastesia at ~10:30. Tried asking some pretty basic questions to the nurse that was there (can I talk to the surgeon to see how it went, etc...) and my memory was a little fuzzy. I think I may have asked one question twice and the nurse was kind of snarky about it. I'd hate to have Alzheimers, it must suck having people talk back to your snarky/frustrated when you genuinely just don't know.

Over the next few hours I started getting my memory back, was given a couple bags of antibiotics, rested a bit, and was generally bored. I talked to the surgeon and he told me everything went great. They put in 18cm titan w/ 2 rear tip extenders. I'm currently 50% pumped or so. He also said that where the scrotum attached to the penis he didn't like, so he moved it back a bit to add some more length. I have a follow up with him on Tuesday.

One thing that kind of sucks is generally I've been a 'grower' (that didn't have the ability to grow haha) and my whole package would be somewhat shriveled including scrotum size. Well I can't see much down there currently cause it's bandaged, but I can tell there isn't a lot of room in my scrotum for testicles and this pump. There's been quite a bit of discomfort if I don't sit right.

After I got out around 1:30 I went and looked at a new apartment, then went to the pharmacy, then walked around a few furniture stores of an hour or so. Maybe not the best idea so I'm going to try and lay in bed for the next couple days and probably work from home on Monday.

Happy to answer any questions an will be updating as time goes on. Currently I'm not even going to think about size. Looks smaller but from what I can tell this doesn't appear to be a great thing to evaluate at this time.

hendrix, as billb603 says its way to early to worry about length. You need to stay focused on healing and keep the area clean, trust me the last thing you want is an infection like I had.

[Anonymous 3]

I'm in Canada as well and went with a local guy from the AMS list. My wait times to see the urologist were reasonable and from the time I decided to go ahead until laying on the table was about 12 weeks. This included time for the approvals from MSP to come through. And of course it was "free". I am approaching 6 months out from surgery and things are working well. Do not fret about size at all, especially at this early stage. Even if you lose some length it is a whole lot better than facing the next 60 or more years of your life never having intercourse. I don't know if you tried all the other stuff like vacuum pumps and injections, but trust me on this, the implant is so much better for normal spontaneous sex than anything else except maybe the pills (and they have their own set of problems).

You sound like me, with a pretty stuffed scrotum. After a while you won't even notice.Whatever sensations you are feeling now will diminish and the whole pump thing will just feel like a normal part of your body.

Be patient, don't overdo, it is going to hurt some but it all gets better.

Take care.

[hendrix]

I'm in Canada as well and went with a local guy from the AMS list. My wait times to see the urologist were reasonable and from the time I decided to go ahead until laying on the table was about 12 weeks. This included time for the approvals from MSP to come through. And of course it was "free". I am approaching 6 months out from surgery and things are working well. Do not fret about size at all, especially at this early stage. Even if you lose some length it is a whole lot better than facing the next 60 or more years of your life never having intercourse. I don't know if you tried all the other stuff like vacuum pumps and injections, but trust me on this, the implant is so much better for normal spontaneous sex than anything else except maybe the pills (and they have their own set of problems).

You sound like me, with a pretty stuffed scrotum. After a while you won't even notice.Whatever sensations you are feeling now will diminish and the whole pump thing will just feel like a normal part of your body.

Be patient, don't overdo, it is going to hurt some but it all gets better.

Take care.

Thanks, appreciate hearing from another Canadian.

I don't think I'm worried about size so much as about how the tips of the tubes don't come up and support the head. Even things change around down there, I'm not understanding how the head will be supported.

I'm also wondering when this pain will subside, because I'm pretty beat up at the moment. Yeah I'm only 2 days out, but I can't walk around well without being hunched over, and peeing sucks.

[Anonymous 3]

Everything is still very swollen after only two days and you might even get more bruising still, I did. I had very little bruising right after surgery but it really settled in a few days later. It looks awful, but harmless. I would wait until the swelling has gone down and things look a bit more normal before worrying about anything. Everyone is different in how they tolerate pain. I was sore still after a couple of weeks but feeling pretty good after 4 weeks. It is no small operation, as my urologist kept reminding me, and in a pretty delicate area. Take your pain meds as needed and stay ahead of the pain cycle, that is don't wait until it is very bad until you take your next dose. Good luck with it. You may be regretting your decision now at day 2 but at week 8 or 10 or whenever you get to try it out you will be a happy camper

[hendrix]

Thanks Catsup, I greatly appreciate the comments. It's definitely a weird mental space being in currently post op, going from ED to having the surgery, to not yet knowing how things will shake out. It looked gnarly immediately after, lol.

I want to keep a detailed rundown of how things go, as it may be beneficial information to those that are getting this done in the future.

I had my 4 day post op today. I brought up some concerns I had with feeling a bit floppy near the head and that it was significantly different in length (with the Titan not growing in length). I mentioned I'm 2" shorter than before. More than anything I think I just wanted some reassurance that I will get some size back. He talked a bit about stretched length and how when he stretches it out it is not a 2" difference, but rather less. Then he said it was "unusual for someone to be so concerned about size 4 days after surgery".

On one hand, ok I understand that it's 4 days after surgery and I should probably not judge at this time. But, on the other hand when you go from an average-isn 5.8" dick and then look down and see a 3.5" dick post op, knowing that the Titan doesn't grow in length, I don't feel like it's odd to be concerned about that. Are other guys looking down post op and seeing 2" less, and not bringing it up as a concern? To me that seems unusual.

To be fair though (and great news), it seems to be coming back in size a bit. I'm measuring at ~4.8" now and there's still some obvious swelling at the fad pad so that is not bone pressed or even going into the fat pad. I took it out for a whirl earlier and while aroused it was around 5". So, -.75". Based on this new knowledge I may have overreacted at the docs, but I swear it looked like a significantly smaller dick a couple days there.

As far as the floppy head he said he was happy with the tube placement, and when aroused, with the pump actually inflated, it should firm up.

He said that I'm healing really quickly and the incision looks great. He's planning to activate it in 3 weeks.

For now I'm just going to wait and let it play out with some ice on my groin for a while. Less stressing, it seems like it may work out and from what I read around here it's not unusual for a guy to gain back 0.5"-1.5" over the next 6 months and get back to a small (ex. 0.25") loss. From the numbers I'm seeing and swelling down there it seems within reach. I'm not really worried about girth as everything I've read seems to suggest you can re-gain or even gain girth over time.

So, there's where I'm at 4 days out.