I wanted to share my story because this forum helped me tremendously before my surgery. Reading the experiences of other members gave me information, reassurance, and most importantly courage.
Now that I am three weeks post-op, I feel it is time to give something back to this community.
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My profile
I am 57 years old and I have suffered from erectile dysfunction for about six years.
At the beginning, medications like Viagra and Tadalafil worked partially, but over time they gradually stopped being effective.
After several medical examinations, the doctors diagnosed the main cause as venous leak.
This means that blood enters the penis correctly during erection, but escapes too quickly through the veins, making it impossible to maintain sufficient rigidity.
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Attempted treatment: venous embolization
In 2025, during a previous trip to Paris, I underwent a procedure called venous embolization, performed by an interventional radiologist.
This procedure consists of:
• inserting a micro-catheter into a vein
• navigating to the veins responsible for the venous leak
• blocking them using coils (small metallic spirals) or medical glue
The goal is to reduce the venous leak and allow the erection to remain firm.
Unfortunately, in my case, the embolization did not provide lasting results.
After this unsuccessful attempt, I decided to move forward with a penile implant, which is known to be the most reliable solution when other treatments fail.
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My measurements before surgery
Before my erectile problems began, my erection length was probably between 17 and 18 cm, although I never measured it precisely at that time.
During the preoperative consultation, the doctor measured:
16 cm in stretched flaccid length.
For 60 days before surgery, I used a vacuum pump twice a day in order to prepare the tissues and maximize the possible cylinder size.
During that entire period I was obsessed with one sentence I had heard somewhere:
“The surgeon implants the cylinder size that matches your penis on the day of surgery.”
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The trip to Paris
After a 13-hour journey from Kinshasa to Paris, I arrived with my wonderful partner who has supported me through this difficult journey for many years.
I must confess something that still makes me feel guilty.
Our flight was on February 14th — Valentine’s Day.
My partner asked me:
“Did you plan anything for Valentine’s Day?”
Completely focused on the upcoming surgery, I answered simply:
“No, nothing.”
Looking back, I realize how selfish that answer was. She has supported me through this entire process and I am deeply grateful to her.
We arrived five days before the surgery and stayed in a beautiful Airbnb in Paris. We prepared everything in advance, buying groceries so we could stay about 10 days in recovery without needing to go out.
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First consultation with Dr. Sébastien Beley
On February 17th, 2026, I met Dr. Sébastien Beley, whose office is located near the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
During the examination he observed that:
• my penis tissue was soft and flexible
• there was no fibrosis
He concluded that my corpora cavernosa were in good condition.
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Surgery day – February 19, 2026
On the morning of surgery something strange happened.
Because of stress and the cold Paris winter, my penis was extremely small.
I did not even dare mention it to my partner, who was already a little tired of hearing about my worries regarding size.
When I entered the operating room, extremely nervous, I said to the anesthesia team:
“Please tell the doctor to put the biggest implant possible!”
I immediately realized how ridiculous that sounded.
The entire operating room burst into laughter.
The anesthesiologist, Corinne, understood that I was very stressed and reassured me about the surgery.
In reality, she had identified one of my deepest fears:
not waking up from anesthesia.
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Waking up
According to my internal clock, the surgery lasted about 8 minutes.
In reality, it took a little over 60 minutes.
When I woke up in the recovery room, my first instinct was to lift the blanket to check.
There was no doubt.
It was done.
I had become bionic.
My first thought was for my partner waiting in the room.
My second thought was for FrankTalk, and all the members whose stories I had read again and again.
Special thanks to:
• Kodixx
• Swork17
• Tewas
• Cbinspok
• Goodwood (New York)
• Richard Bionic
And of course my amazing partner who supported me through this entire journey.
Without her, none of this would have been possible.
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Implant details
Implant installed:
• Rigicon Infla AX
• Cylinders: 22 cm
• RTE: 3 cm
• Reservoir: 110 ml
The surgeon explained that approximately:
• 10 cm are internal
• 12 cm are external
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Current measurements
At the moment, without inflating the implant, my visible length is approximately:
14 cm
My goal now is to maximize length through cycling and rehabilitation exercises.
I hope to recover something close to 17–18 cm, which was likely my size before my erectile dysfunction began.
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Post-operative pain
During the first three days, the pain was quite strong.
I would rate it around 8/10.
However, I quickly understood that I could combine several pain medications and alternate them approximately every three hours.
By alternating three different medications, the pain quickly dropped to around 3–4/10, which became very manageable.
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Three weeks post-op
I am now three weeks post-surgery and back in my home country.
The pain has decreased significantly.
The next step will be a telephone appointment with the nurse and Dr. Beley to begin:
• pump massage
• exercises to move the pump downward in the scrotum
• centering it between the testicles
These massages are important to prevent the pump from being surrounded by scar tissue, which could make activation more difficult later.
At the moment, the pump sits high on the left side of my scrotum, and I will begin repositioning exercises once the doctor gives me the green light.
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Final thoughts
The journey is not over yet.
Healing, exercises, and patience are still ahead.
But today I can proudly say:
I am now one of you.
A bionic brother.
Thank you FrankTalk.
