Scared because of stretched length

[noot1991]

So, I'm turning 28 next month, but have basically already been struggling with mild ED over the last 5 years. Most of the time, I've been able to hide this using some occasional 5mg Tadalafil/Cialis (recently switched to daily 5mg dosing), but I notice that the effects are diminishing and now becoming unreliable, unfortunately. I'll probably still be able to manage in the short/mid term by increasing the dosage, but since I do not want to consider injections for various reasons, in the long term I'll probably need to prepare myself for an implant. Far from ideal at my age, but it is what it is.

There's one major concern holding me back there, however: size. I'm not that large to begin with (measure around 5.5", a bit shy of 6" when measuring bone-pressed), so naturally I worry about becoming even smaller. Now, being realistic, I do realise that some size loss might be unavoidable, and I'd still be happy if I ended up with a functional 5" penis afterwards (that seems to be the limit of "decent size" vs "is it in yet?"). My major concern, however, is that I'm not only a grower, but also have a significantly shorter stretched flaccid length! I'm talking max 4" here (say 3.5"-4.25" depending on its current state) when pulling it to a point where it already gets really uncomfortable (it also gets super thin when I do this, but I guess that's normal?). Now, as I understand it, stretched flaccid length is the best way to estimate your post-op inflated length, since you'll also be measured "from the inside" by having your penis stretched maximally with a stick/ruler. Obviously, I'd be pretty disappointed if I end up with a 4" penis afterwards. I know it shouldn't matter that much, and I'm sure that if you are 7+ inches it really doesn't, but it's really a completely different matter when you don't have much to lose to begin with.

So, am I basically doomed here? Are there any other members who also had such a big difference in stretched vs erect length (and if so, what did you end up with after getting your implant)? Also, any ideas on why there can be such a big difference in my case? Perhaps there is some fibrosis/scar tissue that I'm not noticing, but in that case my erect length would also be shorter, right?

Thanks in advance!

I was a grower also, less then an inch flaccid but 5.5" erect. My stretched length was about 4.5", so I was concerned. If I was going to have sex again I really had no choice but to have the implant. Boy am I glad that I did! 4" flaccid and still 5.5" erect, love it. We are all different so I can't say you will have the same results, but I looked at the choice of ether a limp dick or a hard one even if it was a little shorter.pre-implant 2.jpgDSCN1982 (Copy).JPGDSCN1944 (Copy).JPG

Wow, great results indeed! Thanks for sharing, this is exactly the kind of experiences I was looking for
Did you do any pre-op VED / traction to avoid size loss?

[DougAnd]

That's a lot of questions with no real answers. I would buy a vacuum device and use it for a few weeks. You can Mark the outside of the Bell and then measure afterwards. By inflating your penis that should give you something comparable to a real erect length. Try using this method for your flexion stretch. Buy a brand new wooden pencil which has an eraser. Place the eraser tightly against your pubic bone just above your penile base. Hold the pencil straight out in front of you and pull up your penis just beneath it. Now while pushing the pencil in is tightly as you can pull your penis stretched out beneath it as hard as you can. Then mark the pencil. Then measure the mark from the eraser. And see what you get. The real answer is to get an LG X and use vacuum therapy after your operation. I came home partially inflated and that night measured just under 4 in. Using vacuum therapy 9 months later I measured just over 7. The very minimum gain and two different studies was one and a quarter inches. So no matter how you look at it if you can get an LG X you should be good.

Alright, thanks for the tips, I'll look into it! Do you usually get to choose which model you get implanted (I always thought that was mostly up to the surgeon?). It's incredible the LGX gave you such much extra length though!

In one of the studies the maximum gain from the LG X using Ved was two and three quarters inches. After I quit using v e d I quickly lost one half inch. If you want to make sure that you get an LG X contact Boston Scientific online and have them send you a local AMS representative RN. That representative will tell you which doctor in your area they prefer to use. If it matches your insurance you are good to go. As long as you don't have scarring there should be no problem and getting an LG X with the doctor that they refer you to. Good luck

[tomas1]

noot wrote:
Right, a VED does indeed sound like a good idea. Does it help with elasticity/stretchability as well? I've been thinking about getting one (because, as you say, I don't want to lose more size by the time I get an implant, and I don't know how soon/late the pills will stop working entirely). That being said, some people seem to say it's good for penile health, others say it's dangerous and could cause more damage. I would definitely do it a few months before surgery (because I've read studies showing that pre-op VED has a positive impact on cylinder sizing), but I'm not sure if now (when I still have some erectile capability left) would be a good time to start already (I do have some, albeit weak nocturnal erections when on tadalafil/cialis).

I'm not an expert, but I think some products might get too high a suction which could damage you.
A high quality device should prevent this. Which ever you get, don't pump until it gets uncomfortable.

[2435tjklAS]

Now, being realistic, I do realise that some size loss might be unavoidable, and I'd still be happy if I ended up with a functional 5" penis afterwards (that seems to be the limit of "decent size" vs "is it in yet?").

Losing size is very avoidable, actually. The most common patient complaint is size loss, but the research and other experiences seem to disagree these days.

For stretched length I went from 8.75" to a touch over 9" (well, for full details sometimes it takes a stretch or two before getting to its longest). Flaccid size has been a huge winner for me as I went from ~4.8" flaccid to now a touch over 7", which might be a weirdly obnoxious bulge, lol.

Though for specifics about size I think I recently realized something that (might) be accurate: I'm really close to getting measurements exactly like my pre-implant erections, and I'm gonna keep exercising it all the time, VED, Bathmate, stretches/pulling/etc. etc. etc., and I'll probably get to over 9" erect at some point. But then if I go a month or two without these very frequent exercising, well, it won't be 9" anymore. It's what always happens, if you exercise anything a lot but then stop, you lose some or most of what you gained. I don't know what I would drop to, but I will bet you it will not drop to less than your pre-implant dick with ED.

Just my theory, that post-implant your flaccid size is definitely going to be bigger and you'll suddenly be a shower instead of a grower, and your erect size seems unlikely to decrease, and instead very likely to increase, especially with effort put into exercising it.

You asked if now is a good time to already start using a VED, the correct answer is that it's not a bad time.

[Happy Toy]

So, I'm turning 28 next month, but have basically already been struggling with mild ED over the last 5 years. Most of the time, I've been able to hide this using some occasional 5mg Tadalafil/Cialis (recently switched to daily 5mg dosing), but I notice that the effects are diminishing and now becoming unreliable, unfortunately. I'll probably still be able to manage in the short/mid term by increasing the dosage, but since I do not want to consider injections for various reasons, in the long term I'll probably need to prepare myself for an implant. Far from ideal at my age, but it is what it is.

There's one major concern holding me back there, however: size. I'm not that large to begin with (measure around 5.5", a bit shy of 6" when measuring bone-pressed), so naturally I worry about becoming even smaller. Now, being realistic, I do realise that some size loss might be unavoidable, and I'd still be happy if I ended up with a functional 5" penis afterwards (that seems to be the limit of "decent size" vs "is it in yet?"). My major concern, however, is that I'm not only a grower, but also have a significantly shorter stretched flaccid length! I'm talking max 4" here (say 3.5"-4.25" depending on its current state) when pulling it to a point where it already gets really uncomfortable (it also gets super thin when I do this, but I guess that's normal?). Now, as I understand it, stretched flaccid length is the best way to estimate your post-op inflated length, since you'll also be measured "from the inside" by having your penis stretched maximally with a stick/ruler. Obviously, I'd be pretty disappointed if I end up with a 4" penis afterwards. I know it shouldn't matter that much, and I'm sure that if you are 7+ inches it really doesn't, but it's really a completely different matter when you don't have much to lose to begin with.

So, am I basically doomed here? Are there any other members who also had such a big difference in stretched vs erect length (and if so, what did you end up with after getting your implant)? Also, any ideas on why there can be such a big difference in my case? Perhaps there is some fibrosis/scar tissue that I'm not noticing, but in that case my erect length would also be shorter, right?

Thanks in advance!

I was a grower also, less then an inch flaccid but 5.5" erect. My stretched length was about 4.5", so I was concerned. If I was going to have sex again I really had no choice but to have the implant. Boy am I glad that I did! 4" flaccid and still 5.5" erect, love it. We are all different so I can't say you will have the same results, but I looked at the choice of ether a limp dick or a hard one even if it was a little shorter.pre-implant 2.jpgDSCN1982 (Copy).JPGDSCN1944 (Copy).JPG

Wow, great results indeed! Thanks for sharing, this is exactly the kind of experiences I was looking for
Did you do any pre-op VED / traction to avoid size loss?

I have one that I tried to use for sex but although I could get it hard, the bands did not feel very good, were hard to get off and my dick wobbled around, it just wasn't for me. I did not use it for any other reason.
PM me if you like, Andy

[DougAnd]

Like I said I used it pre-op and regained 1 and 5/8 inch loss however that much stretching apparently gave me soft penile tissue and that's what caused my distal crossover. Still if I had to do it again I wouldn't change anything other than going to the right doctor. And after surgery because of my severe scarring I had to use it again to regain all of that length. With me the issue was consistency. If you use Ved you have to use it every day you can't even miss one day until things settle down or you'll lose all your g a i n.

[Gt1956]

DougAnd, off topic question. I remember your crossover from back when it happened. Curiosity makes me ask. Didn't that require some kind of repair to your tunica?

[indusvalley]

Go to a good doctor, tell him to size you aggressively and you will be the same or more than your current erect length. You will not lose anything. In the beginning it may be less but 3-6 months of cycling will restore your length, this is normal and happens with all implant users.

Hi indusvalley! Actually, I've read your story (being a similar size) and it gave me a lot of hope. I would love a similar outcome, but you can never have such a guarantee that of course... In your case, did dr. Hakky also do a stretch test first?

I think he did but I also think he said that the stretch test isn't necessarily important because the true length can be found during surgery only. He asks his patients if they want the implant to be normal or aggressive sizing. Just ask him to go for aggressive sizing and you will recover your length and heck get even more maybe. The Dr is really open, you can shoot him an email via his contact form on his website and ask him anything, however many times you want.

[seekonk]

I feel ya. My stretched length was 7" on a Monday, yet in the surgeon's office the next day I had such shrinkage from being very tense that when he stretched it went into spasm so it could only stretch to 6". By the time I got home very upset it was spasming into such a hard knot it would only stretched to 5". So now what?

[Anonymous FT Member]

You are younger than me. It seems you should go with the less invasive treatments for your ed concerns. I agree with another member when they suggested vacuum device.

What caused your ed, or when?
Have you tried sildenafil or others?
Herbal supplements or just exercise?