I can't understand why some of you are in such a hurry when it comes to inflating. My doctor told me not to activate the implant before six weeks are over. I had spoken to the head of urology as well, a professor. He said exactly the same.
After six weeks were over I pumped the implant as much as possible. No pain whatsoever. From that day I inflate twice a day, two hours in total. Sometimes I forgot that that thing is pumped up, which means the dick is thick a very long time. I don't feel any discomfort. Only when I hit something with the tip it hurts a bit, but that's getting better every day day.
My advice: leave your dick alone for six weeks. Why to be in a hurry??? Let it heal! Remember, amongst the doctors are a lot of incompetent people, don't trust them completely. When studying at university, I did four years night watch at hospitals. I'm not a doctor but I know a bit about doctor's stuff.
Becoming Bionic
-
strongagain
- Posts: 594
- Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 11:17 am
Re: Becoming Bionic
Born in 1950, ED since 2007 (colon cancer)
08/2015 Titan Zero Degree 22 cm + 3 cm RTE
Dr. Leiber, Freiburg, Germany
6.5" x 5.7" - Very happy with implant
Living in Freiburg, Germany
08/2015 Titan Zero Degree 22 cm + 3 cm RTE
Dr. Leiber, Freiburg, Germany
6.5" x 5.7" - Very happy with implant
Living in Freiburg, Germany
Re: Becoming Bionic
Thanks for the udpate
I would ask all those questions to Kramer if I was you. But since you ask them here, I will give my best guesses to all your questions.
Over- and undersizing: I don't know if you have signs of both. Your bulges and kinks when inflated, is not really when inflated. My bulges and kinks do not go away when I am semi-inflated. They gradually disappear during my inflation process, but does not go completely away till I am very near full inflation, and not till I do have an erection which is already very hard.
I never measured before, but just did now. My glans measured one minute ago in deflated state and completely without arousal, is 4 cm long. The cylinders go approximately (this is not possible to measure by the mm) 3 cm in to the glans, and hence stops 1 cm short of the tip. Since the glans is narrower at the top than the base, it means the cylinders can easily be felt with the fingers from the sides at the top. Not so easily when pressing the fingers from the top though. However, when inflated and aroused, I cannot feel the cylinders with my fingers from any direction.
I have said before that in my (non-doctor) opinion, I think it sounds strange that the cylinders move when inflating/deflating. Mine have been fixed at the exact same position from day one, and it doesn't change a mm between inflating/deflating. If they move, then either they will continue to move all the time or they will eventually fix themselves at a fixed location at some stage later. If they will move all the time, it means the whole penis will always be movable up and down the cylinders and the 'pullable glans' will always be there. If they fix into position later, then how is there any guarantee they fix at the 'right' position? Why would they get fixed high up in the glans if that's not where they are sitting during 23 hours of the day (the deflated hours)? Again, I am no doc, and this is just my layman's thoughts.
I cannot pull my glans. It is stuck and fixed just like it was pre-implant.
By what Eid told me, your cylinders do not go as far up as he would say they should. On the other hand, I have a Titan, maybe a CX is installed in a different way and works different. Plus, it is of course possible that Eid is just telling his patients what they want to hear, and had my cylinders stopped before the glans, he'd told me that was perfect as well. I can never know. But I doubt that. Especially since he told me already before the surgery that the cylinders should and will go at least halfway in to the glans. I don't know if he uses a different apporach for the AMS.
Is it normal to be unable to achieve full inflation at 5 weeks?
Again, my only idea of normal is what I have myself, what Eid has told me, and what I have read on internet (incl. FT).
Based on that, I'd say no it's not normal. I guess there are two normals. One is the fast track protocol where inflation starts earlier. And one is the 'six-weeks-protocol' where inflation is not even tried at five weeks.
If I do remember correctly, Eid does the six-weeks-protocol as well, but only for elder patients. His normal protocol for younger patients is the fast-track with inflation asap (1-3 weeks).
Speaking from my own experience, I had a terrible pain for 2-3 weeks and was basically tied to my bed for 2+ weeks without being able to stand up for more than 30 seconds before a really bad pain set in. Pulsating pain in the scrotum from swelling. However, I never had any pain in the penis itself. The only thing that stopped me from inflating earlier than the 13 days it took me was scrotum swelling (not able to palpate the deflation valve) and scrotum pain (from pressing the deflation valve). Once I could bear the pain from pressing the deflation valve I could inflate. There was pain the first time (at day 13), but after that, just some at the tip of the penis. Never in the shaft.
And Eid was surprised with my slow start. He said most his young/healthy patiens could inflate earlier. I saw with my own eyes one of his patients (older than me) who inflated himself to 100% without any pain at day 3 or 4. That was surprisingly early even according to Eid though.
I have also mentioned that I have pulled back on the daily inflating lately. I did twice per day for 30-60 minutes each time during weeks 3-6. Weeks 7-8 I have only done once per day for 5-20 minutes on the days when I have not used the implant. On days of using it for sex I have done no further inflation. And I have seen an improvement in my tenderness. And my size still increased from 6 to week 8.
High pump
I have been referring before to Eid's opinion that AMS pumps normally sit higher than Titans, simply because their shorter tubing. So I guess it is normal for an AMS to sit slightly high. Mine sits behind the balls and when I stand up it cannot even be seen. On the other hand, it can be felt from the front between my balls, since the balls move if they are pushed. They will move further out/back if pushed from the front and make the pump palpable. And that's good, since they would be squeezed between my wife and the pump when having sex... I have asked my wife if she can feel it during sex. But she says she can't.
What would I do if I was you (for whatever that is worth)?
I'd talk to Kramer about the cylinders not being fixed high up in the glans. If he says it is ok and can explain how it will work later and how things will progress to there, then I'd be fine with it.
I'd also talk to him about the shaft pain from inflating. Why is it there and how/when will it go away? Again, if he has a good answer, I'd be fine.
And finally, I would probably hold back on the inflating. Plenty of guys don't touch it for six weeks and get good results. I would not push through the pain. I would reduce to trying to inflate once per day. I would inflate only to the point where there is no pain. Keep it there for 30 minutes. Then give a few more squeezes till there is very light pain. Hold that level for another 10 minutes and then deflate. I don't think it is good to expose oneself to pain. If it hurts, it's a warning something is wrong. Your body's way of telling you to stop it or somehting will break. I would listen.
And to refer to Eid, I asked him about early inflation strategies (he recommends 1-2 times per day till implant is put to use, then no dry cycling at all) regarding pain. I had some pain in the tip of the penis when inflating close to max in the early days. He said: "Only pump till there is light pain/tenderness. Don't go till the point where it really hurts".
I would ask all those questions to Kramer if I was you. But since you ask them here, I will give my best guesses to all your questions.
Over- and undersizing: I don't know if you have signs of both. Your bulges and kinks when inflated, is not really when inflated. My bulges and kinks do not go away when I am semi-inflated. They gradually disappear during my inflation process, but does not go completely away till I am very near full inflation, and not till I do have an erection which is already very hard.
I never measured before, but just did now. My glans measured one minute ago in deflated state and completely without arousal, is 4 cm long. The cylinders go approximately (this is not possible to measure by the mm) 3 cm in to the glans, and hence stops 1 cm short of the tip. Since the glans is narrower at the top than the base, it means the cylinders can easily be felt with the fingers from the sides at the top. Not so easily when pressing the fingers from the top though. However, when inflated and aroused, I cannot feel the cylinders with my fingers from any direction.
I have said before that in my (non-doctor) opinion, I think it sounds strange that the cylinders move when inflating/deflating. Mine have been fixed at the exact same position from day one, and it doesn't change a mm between inflating/deflating. If they move, then either they will continue to move all the time or they will eventually fix themselves at a fixed location at some stage later. If they will move all the time, it means the whole penis will always be movable up and down the cylinders and the 'pullable glans' will always be there. If they fix into position later, then how is there any guarantee they fix at the 'right' position? Why would they get fixed high up in the glans if that's not where they are sitting during 23 hours of the day (the deflated hours)? Again, I am no doc, and this is just my layman's thoughts.
I cannot pull my glans. It is stuck and fixed just like it was pre-implant.
By what Eid told me, your cylinders do not go as far up as he would say they should. On the other hand, I have a Titan, maybe a CX is installed in a different way and works different. Plus, it is of course possible that Eid is just telling his patients what they want to hear, and had my cylinders stopped before the glans, he'd told me that was perfect as well. I can never know. But I doubt that. Especially since he told me already before the surgery that the cylinders should and will go at least halfway in to the glans. I don't know if he uses a different apporach for the AMS.
Is it normal to be unable to achieve full inflation at 5 weeks?
Again, my only idea of normal is what I have myself, what Eid has told me, and what I have read on internet (incl. FT).
Based on that, I'd say no it's not normal. I guess there are two normals. One is the fast track protocol where inflation starts earlier. And one is the 'six-weeks-protocol' where inflation is not even tried at five weeks.
If I do remember correctly, Eid does the six-weeks-protocol as well, but only for elder patients. His normal protocol for younger patients is the fast-track with inflation asap (1-3 weeks).
Speaking from my own experience, I had a terrible pain for 2-3 weeks and was basically tied to my bed for 2+ weeks without being able to stand up for more than 30 seconds before a really bad pain set in. Pulsating pain in the scrotum from swelling. However, I never had any pain in the penis itself. The only thing that stopped me from inflating earlier than the 13 days it took me was scrotum swelling (not able to palpate the deflation valve) and scrotum pain (from pressing the deflation valve). Once I could bear the pain from pressing the deflation valve I could inflate. There was pain the first time (at day 13), but after that, just some at the tip of the penis. Never in the shaft.
And Eid was surprised with my slow start. He said most his young/healthy patiens could inflate earlier. I saw with my own eyes one of his patients (older than me) who inflated himself to 100% without any pain at day 3 or 4. That was surprisingly early even according to Eid though.
I have also mentioned that I have pulled back on the daily inflating lately. I did twice per day for 30-60 minutes each time during weeks 3-6. Weeks 7-8 I have only done once per day for 5-20 minutes on the days when I have not used the implant. On days of using it for sex I have done no further inflation. And I have seen an improvement in my tenderness. And my size still increased from 6 to week 8.
High pump
I have been referring before to Eid's opinion that AMS pumps normally sit higher than Titans, simply because their shorter tubing. So I guess it is normal for an AMS to sit slightly high. Mine sits behind the balls and when I stand up it cannot even be seen. On the other hand, it can be felt from the front between my balls, since the balls move if they are pushed. They will move further out/back if pushed from the front and make the pump palpable. And that's good, since they would be squeezed between my wife and the pump when having sex... I have asked my wife if she can feel it during sex. But she says she can't.
What would I do if I was you (for whatever that is worth)?
I'd talk to Kramer about the cylinders not being fixed high up in the glans. If he says it is ok and can explain how it will work later and how things will progress to there, then I'd be fine with it.
I'd also talk to him about the shaft pain from inflating. Why is it there and how/when will it go away? Again, if he has a good answer, I'd be fine.
And finally, I would probably hold back on the inflating. Plenty of guys don't touch it for six weeks and get good results. I would not push through the pain. I would reduce to trying to inflate once per day. I would inflate only to the point where there is no pain. Keep it there for 30 minutes. Then give a few more squeezes till there is very light pain. Hold that level for another 10 minutes and then deflate. I don't think it is good to expose oneself to pain. If it hurts, it's a warning something is wrong. Your body's way of telling you to stop it or somehting will break. I would listen.
And to refer to Eid, I asked him about early inflation strategies (he recommends 1-2 times per day till implant is put to use, then no dry cycling at all) regarding pain. I had some pain in the tip of the penis when inflating close to max in the early days. He said: "Only pump till there is light pain/tenderness. Don't go till the point where it really hurts".
43 yo, ED forever from VL
Fit and active
Implanted December 2015
Titan XL 24 cm, no RTEs
Dr. Eid
Activated day 13
Sex after 3 weeks
Gained length and girth
So far It works perfectly
Only one advice: Find a world class surgeon
Fit and active
Implanted December 2015
Titan XL 24 cm, no RTEs
Dr. Eid
Activated day 13
Sex after 3 weeks
Gained length and girth
So far It works perfectly
Only one advice: Find a world class surgeon
-
roninhouston
- Posts: 255
- Joined: Tue Mar 03, 2015 2:25 pm
- Location: Houston
Re: Becoming Bionic
This is from one of my prior post.............
Dr. Dineen in his paper describing the VED Protocol, he stated he starts his patients inflating at 9 to 12 days after the op. However other papers found most patients were not comfortable [read painful
] inflated that soon. One paper said the average person started the inflation per the VED Protocol Therapy was 43 days.
I started the VED Protocol weeks before my IPP. I believe this conditioned me for post-op inflation. Dr. Cornell activated me at 33 days, was able to pump to the max two days later and continued going for a total of 60 minutes for several months. This means I would do 30 in the morning and 30 at night, do to time constraints. At nine weeks post-op and somewhere around week 7 to 8 weeks it became less painful to pump to the max, i.e. the pump is flat. Since you are breaking the scar tissue you will have some discomfort for brief periods of time. You can always push the deflate button if it is too painful.
The pump will get easier to use the more your inflate it. I use a curled indexed finger and push my thumb against it. Am right handed, pump with my right and deflate with my left. At about 10 weeks I started pumping with my left hand, come to find out the pump rubber had not been soften for that position. So I had to work on pumping with my left to soften up the rubber.
Cycling: At inflation my doc wanted me to recycle three times a day, each time going one more pump than the last. Don't remember how long. After a couple of days I was comfortable enough to hold for an hour with the pump flattened. Then I followed the VED Protocol Therapy, the paper suggest 60 minutes a day. The paper suggests at three months you will have gotten the maximum benefit (length). However others on FT and online blogs have said additional length can be reached up to 18 to 24 months. I made it a habit of always pumping to max in the shower and continue through morning grooming with a Fleshlight (Stamina Training Unit) Shower Mount attached to my bathroom sink top.
I think I was able to pump to max because 1. had done the VED Protocol Therapy Pre-Op and 2. I was further along in the healing process than you. I don't see the advantage of rushing to inflate if it is painful as I think you should be able to flatten the pump each time (maximum). I am now eight months post-op and have reached pre-op length.
Good luck, welcome to the brotherhood.
Dr. Dineen in his paper describing the VED Protocol, he stated he starts his patients inflating at 9 to 12 days after the op. However other papers found most patients were not comfortable [read painful
] inflated that soon. One paper said the average person started the inflation per the VED Protocol Therapy was 43 days.I started the VED Protocol weeks before my IPP. I believe this conditioned me for post-op inflation. Dr. Cornell activated me at 33 days, was able to pump to the max two days later and continued going for a total of 60 minutes for several months. This means I would do 30 in the morning and 30 at night, do to time constraints. At nine weeks post-op and somewhere around week 7 to 8 weeks it became less painful to pump to the max, i.e. the pump is flat. Since you are breaking the scar tissue you will have some discomfort for brief periods of time. You can always push the deflate button if it is too painful.
The pump will get easier to use the more your inflate it. I use a curled indexed finger and push my thumb against it. Am right handed, pump with my right and deflate with my left. At about 10 weeks I started pumping with my left hand, come to find out the pump rubber had not been soften for that position. So I had to work on pumping with my left to soften up the rubber.
Cycling: At inflation my doc wanted me to recycle three times a day, each time going one more pump than the last. Don't remember how long. After a couple of days I was comfortable enough to hold for an hour with the pump flattened. Then I followed the VED Protocol Therapy, the paper suggest 60 minutes a day. The paper suggests at three months you will have gotten the maximum benefit (length). However others on FT and online blogs have said additional length can be reached up to 18 to 24 months. I made it a habit of always pumping to max in the shower and continue through morning grooming with a Fleshlight (Stamina Training Unit) Shower Mount attached to my bathroom sink top.
I think I was able to pump to max because 1. had done the VED Protocol Therapy Pre-Op and 2. I was further along in the healing process than you. I don't see the advantage of rushing to inflate if it is painful as I think you should be able to flatten the pump each time (maximum). I am now eight months post-op and have reached pre-op length.
Good luck, welcome to the brotherhood.
Bionic@68 AMS CX 8/2015. Inflated September Dr. Robert Cornell.
69 with VL. Pre-Op VED Protocol Therapy & Post-Op VED Therapy: 6th month Pre-Op length. 76 Prostate Cancer(12/22). HormoneRT & Radiation Treatments. PSA of 0.01(6/2023)
69 with VL. Pre-Op VED Protocol Therapy & Post-Op VED Therapy: 6th month Pre-Op length. 76 Prostate Cancer(12/22). HormoneRT & Radiation Treatments. PSA of 0.01(6/2023)
Re: Becoming Bionic
C_lab and Merrix, I can relate to aspects of what you're both saying. As I've said in many other posts, the tips on mine barely reach the glans. Purely from a practical viewpoint, it just doesn't "feel" right. Now I'm not talking about length but purely the erection quality itself. The glans just feel unsupported while the rest of the penis is hard, it just seems wrong and impractical. My glans have started to droop lately (unless I'm aroused) due to being unsupported. As Merrix pointed out, Eid thinks that the tips should go 3/4 of the way into the glans and I tend to agree. I don't know how it would work any other way (though this may depend on the severity of the ED but most of us are here because we have severe, or at least moderate ED so can't rely much on the natural erection mechanism). In my case, I can get glans engorgement through stimulation and a little bit from sexual arousal but I don't think I can purely rely on just the engorgement as after a few minutes it feels like I'm losing the engorgement even when aroused. However for the time being this is great for exercising the area and get some blood flow in there to keep the whole thing stretched.
Even in my case the tips are actually fixed and don't move relative to the glans whether I'm inflated or deflated, so I would definitely have that checked out C_lab. I'm also not sure how they will suddenly attach themselves higher up in the glans when most of the day in the deflated state they're well behind the glans. I'm no expert but sounds like you've got the right sized implant but its just not fully inserting into the glans. Now this could be that Kramer made a slight mistake (human error is still possible I guess) or that he knew exactly what he was doing and it will work itself out in time.
As for pump placement, mine is not too high but is at the front. I have tubing which is a bit forward and I also worry about the pump hindering the sexual experience. I personally don't like having the pump at the front as it may make things awkward the first time with a new partner. It's not a showstopper by any means but rather a nice to have, which is one of the reasons I'm considering Eid as he is an supposedly an expert in posterior placement of the pump. He even went as far to say that he pioneered the technique, though I don't know if it's true or not and I guess it doesn't really matter.
As for thoughts on cycling after the op, I think it's wrong to set hard limits that it should only be done after 2 weeks or 6 weeks etc etc. There are a few factors that can determine this and this includes the doc's preference and age of the patient. A few of us here are relatively young and we were able to begin relatively early. I think most guys have been following the advice of their doc anyway and seem to do well.
Even in my case the tips are actually fixed and don't move relative to the glans whether I'm inflated or deflated, so I would definitely have that checked out C_lab. I'm also not sure how they will suddenly attach themselves higher up in the glans when most of the day in the deflated state they're well behind the glans. I'm no expert but sounds like you've got the right sized implant but its just not fully inserting into the glans. Now this could be that Kramer made a slight mistake (human error is still possible I guess) or that he knew exactly what he was doing and it will work itself out in time.
As for pump placement, mine is not too high but is at the front. I have tubing which is a bit forward and I also worry about the pump hindering the sexual experience. I personally don't like having the pump at the front as it may make things awkward the first time with a new partner. It's not a showstopper by any means but rather a nice to have, which is one of the reasons I'm considering Eid as he is an supposedly an expert in posterior placement of the pump. He even went as far to say that he pioneered the technique, though I don't know if it's true or not and I guess it doesn't really matter.
As for thoughts on cycling after the op, I think it's wrong to set hard limits that it should only be done after 2 weeks or 6 weeks etc etc. There are a few factors that can determine this and this includes the doc's preference and age of the patient. A few of us here are relatively young and we were able to begin relatively early. I think most guys have been following the advice of their doc anyway and seem to do well.
Developed ED at 32.
11/20/15 implanted with a botched Titan Coloplast 18cm + 3cm by urologynow.co.uk
03/23/16 Revision by Dr Eid - implanted a Titan Coloplast 24cm
04/08/16 Started cycling the implant
11/20/15 implanted with a botched Titan Coloplast 18cm + 3cm by urologynow.co.uk
03/23/16 Revision by Dr Eid - implanted a Titan Coloplast 24cm
04/08/16 Started cycling the implant
Re: Becoming Bionic
This thing is still barely useable, and I'm in a lot of pain when I pump it up past a certain point. I am really not sure about this result right now. In the half erect useable state, it is weak, thin near the glans, and droopy. It is about a 4 o'clock erection. Not very natural feeling or looking. And the pump is just flat out too high. I'll attach a pic and let others see what I'm talking about.
- Attachments
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- 20160216_034225.jpg (253.71 KiB) Viewed 2926 times
Re: Becoming Bionic
C_lab34 wrote:This thing is still barely useable, and I'm in a lot of pain when I pump it up past a certain point. I am really not sure about this result right now. In the half erect useable state, it is weak, thin near the glans, and droopy. It is about a 4 o'clock erection. Not very natural feeling or looking. And the pump is just flat out too high. I'll attach a pic and let others see what I'm talking about.
Dr. Kramer did my implant six weeks before yours. I would give things some more time. I still have some pain when I pump to the max. But every week I can pump more before I have any discomfort. You are not going to get tissue expansion without pain. I can see that both the length and my penis are continuing to expand, albeit very slowly. If your recovery is like mine I would expect that you will have a very hard erection without pain soon. Insofar as your pump is concerned, mine is approximately in the same place. One of my concerns with the implant was that it would interfere with bicycle riding. If the pump were lower, it might interfere with riding. What is your concern with the placement of the pump? I don't see how it would interfere with penetration, which would be my only concern about the pump's being too high.
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strongagain
- Posts: 594
- Joined: Tue Aug 25, 2015 11:17 am
Re: Becoming Bionic
I'm glad that I have my implant already. I mean with all your stories and images - I would have thought twice about getting an implant 
I love my implant: penis is straight like an arrow, glans supported perfectly, no visible tubes, no visible pump either.
I love my implant: penis is straight like an arrow, glans supported perfectly, no visible tubes, no visible pump either.
Born in 1950, ED since 2007 (colon cancer)
08/2015 Titan Zero Degree 22 cm + 3 cm RTE
Dr. Leiber, Freiburg, Germany
6.5" x 5.7" - Very happy with implant
Living in Freiburg, Germany
08/2015 Titan Zero Degree 22 cm + 3 cm RTE
Dr. Leiber, Freiburg, Germany
6.5" x 5.7" - Very happy with implant
Living in Freiburg, Germany
Re: Becoming Bionic
strongagain wrote:I'm glad that I have my implant already. I mean with all your stories and images - I would have thought twice about getting an implant
I love my implant: penis is straight like an arrow, glans supported perfectly, no visible tubes, no visible pump either.
Good way to kill a very informative thread Strongagain.
Several posts per day, then you come with an inappropriate, borderline insulting post which definitely doesn't encourage anyone to post about real issues, and then no posts for two weeks.
But if what we want is all sunshine stories and no real life experience posts which will be useful for intelligent people, then that's the way to go.
Last edited by merrix on Sat Mar 05, 2016 8:06 am, edited 1 time in total.
43 yo, ED forever from VL
Fit and active
Implanted December 2015
Titan XL 24 cm, no RTEs
Dr. Eid
Activated day 13
Sex after 3 weeks
Gained length and girth
So far It works perfectly
Only one advice: Find a world class surgeon
Fit and active
Implanted December 2015
Titan XL 24 cm, no RTEs
Dr. Eid
Activated day 13
Sex after 3 weeks
Gained length and girth
So far It works perfectly
Only one advice: Find a world class surgeon
Re: Becoming Bionic
Good for you, Strongagain! I guess I have to join the group with good results. I must admit it was a rough ride at the beginning, but now I join the ranks of the 80%.
Born 1951. Radical Robotic Prostatectomy on October 6, 2013. Bionic with Titan Touch with Bioflex Zero Degree 18cm w/ (1) rte Implant, Infrapubic, on July 13, 2015.
Re: Becoming Bionic
That pump is clearly to high. I thought mine was too high as well as 2 docs who looked at it but yours is higher than mine! Hope you can get that thing remedied.
LGX 21cm .Milam 01/13/16. Horror; both service and surgical outcome. hated infrapubic installation. Kramer revision 03/01/17. 22cm Titan +1.5cm extender. Those who think their opinion is the only one that matters are a danger to themselves and others.
