fitnessjunkie

Hi all,

Sorry for the delay, I haven't been on much lately. Overall I think it's been a dramatic change from where I started, as you can see I can style my hair now after doing the FUE + SMP. I still have a lot of thinning all over and plan on getting another FUE procedure done potentially next year. The photos below have a bit of wax/paste in it which makes my hair look a bit thicker. Essentially, my head was 'painted' with ink and so I can't shave it super short to a #1 grade. Even though the scalp is covered with ink, it's important to realise that under harsher lighting, you can still see the shine of the scalp where the hair is thinned.

Overall though I feel as though it was definitely worth it and a great option for many.

Cheers

Thanks for the well wishes scar5.

I fly out Sunday night for a two day procedure on Monday and Tuesday, somewhat excited!

This is at almost 1 month. Instead of rubbing aloe vera cream on i've put it into a spray which does the job as the hair was shedding when i applied the cream. Still a bit of redness in the donor and recipient areas. Ill try update every month.

Everything looking spot on mate. Months 1-2 are probably the worst in terms of shedding. Looking forward to the future updates mate!

Hi folks,

I had a hair transplant 5 1/2 months ago in Belguim with Dr Reys. My plan from the outset was always to have temporary SMP done on my scalp on top of the FUE procedure, as there is a lot of thinning all over, even after the transplant which really only focused on the temples and crown. The procedure is still a few weeks away, but I will try to ensure I get some pre and post pics.

The business doing the temp. SMP work is based in Sydney and was trained by Milena Lardi.

I will update this thread over the next few weeks.

Cheers!

Things look good mate. Haha unfortunately you can expect to lose nearly all of the transplanted hair over the next month or two.. but don't worry, they will grow back (eventually)

I had several pimples in the donor too, but these disappeared completely by about 3 months post-op.

Here's the response I received from Dr Reys' rep. I've began to re-apply the aloe vera gel so will see how the redness and small bumps progress:

"Dear FJ,

Dr De Reys has looked at your photos and says that this does not look like folliculitis. He says it is normal for the skin to show small bumps as some of the new grafts start to appear.

Folliculitis bumps appear as pustules with seepage. The folliculitis pustules are large and very visible. This is not folliculitis.

What often happens is that small bumps appear as new hairs start to push through the surface of the skin. Since you are at 5 and a half months, this is exactly the time when the hew hairs start to grow.

Dr De Reys asks if you are using the aloe vera shampoo regularly. This helps to alleviate redness. Both the redness and the bumps will disappear as the new hairs start to grow.

Dr De Reys asks whether it was a medical practitioner who suggested you had folliculitis. He suggests that of course you should see your general practitioner if you are still concerned although in his opinion, this is a normal skin development after a hair transplant.

Can you let us know if you are in any pain?

Kind regards,

Nick"

Nah not yet mate, i arrived the night before the procedure however there was a bicycle race in town with some of the guys from the tour de france so the streets were packed even though it was raining. After a long day travelling i didn't really feel like being around a few thousand people! I should be able to get out to one tonight but im here by myself so it feels a bit awkward eating out by myself, especially with a dark red hairline and some scabs on the back. Ill probably get over it and head out to one tonight, these people will probably never see me again after tonight anyway haha

 

10:30pm! wow i was pretty lucky i was done by 6pm both days. Don't know if i could have done another 4 hours on top of that... too late though already took the leap i suppose

 

Yeah the Dr told me no sunlight for 3 months. Thats going to be a bit difficult seeing as its summer over here and then im back in aus for summertime.. anyway hopefully all goes well.

 

Thanks for the support mate

No problem mate. Your forehead/eyes/cheeks might swell up over the next few days but it's nothing to worry about (I looked like I had gone a few rounds with Mike Tyson lol although I think I definitely swelled up more than the average HT patient).

If you get a chance, maybe check out La Sita which is pretty much across the road. The steak there was great!

In 3 months it'll be the beginning of November - you'll have plenty of summer time to enjoy and you can always wear a hat in the mean-time so no dramas there mate.

Cheers

Good write-up mate and glad everything went well (besides the pain). I had a lot of pain as well, especially on the second day going all the way to 10:30pm!

The hardest bit is behind you now! Just make sure you don't go around banging your head on anything

Looking forward to seeing some post-op photos!

Also, did you check out any of the restaurants in Heist-Op-Den-Berg?

Hi Everyone,

 

I had a FUE procedure from a top clinic 23 days ago. From day 15 until now, I had to be outside for up to 6 or 7 hours. Needless to say, I wore a hat which didn't touch the grafted area. However, it's been extremely hot in the DC metro area, and my head would get very hot under the hat. I know sun exposure is bad, but what about this type of heat? Is it any harm to the grafts? I'm a little worried. I took a shower and washed as instructed afterwards.

 

Thanks for this great resource

t1983

I don't think you have anything to worry about!

Next Sunday. Arrive London on the 29th going to stay the night there and train it to Heist Op on the 30th. Dr Rudi said hell meet me at the train so thats good. HT is on the 31st/1st. Thats the plan anyway!

All the best for your journey and procedure mate! If you have any questions or concerns feel free to get in contact with me.

Here is a 5 month update. I am happy with how things are progressing

Still waiting on the pics SRK!

Hi folks,

I am almost 5 months post-op after 3000 grafts (FUE) with Dr De Reys. I shaved my head to a #1 grade on the weekend and have noticed small bumps in the recipient areas in the temples and crown (actually pretty much everywhere where grafts were implanted). However, I can only notice these bumps under bright lighting. There is also lingering redness in the temples. Could this be cobblestoning and should I be concerned? I am reasonably happy with the hair growth I have got so far.

Cheers,

Thanks! All seems to healing well so far, but have quite a few spots/pimples in the donor and recipient area, which are itching me a bit! I am not sure whether this because of the aloe vera cream/spray aggravating my skin.

All normal mate! I had plenty of pimples in both the donor and recipient area.

Great write-up, I am looking forward to your updates Edsarn!

Awesome write up mate. Good luck with the new growth!

Hey Koot, thanks for the info and the assurance. Looking forward to everything except the travel!

 

Cheers

You'll be fine mate! When do you fly out?

Hang in there Stu!

I'm the same in that I will always try and compare my growth at X months to somebody elses. I'm sure most of us do this and can certainly add to some anxiety and disappointment early on after the procedure. We all know Bisanga is world class and I am sure you'll start getting decent growth over the next couple of months!

Nice write-up!

Johnnydrama - Not quite correct. I paid 7000 Euros for 3000 grafts which is less than 2.50 Euros per graft.

Cheers

Yeah it sure has. Not really, im staring to plan a bit now. Looking at the Eurostar from London to Brussels and then im hoping there will be a connecting train to Heist Op. Is that how you got there? Any suggestions?

 

Cheers

Hi mate,

We caught the train from Brussels Airport to Leuven Station, and then straight to Heist-Op-Den-Berg. As long as you can get to Leuven Station you shouldn't have a problem, but I would double check online

Did you need a map of Heist-Op-Den-Berg in order to find the hotel from the station? I still remember the 20min walk to the hotel - first time in the snow and we were wheeling our suitcases - what an experience for me and my folks (their first time overseas)! lol

1978 Matt,

Thanks mate - hopefully things continue to improve!

Thank you for all the support you have given me buddy, its something i will never forget.

It's been my pleasure mate, any time

I feel as if it is lasting more than 2-3 days. It is almost a week since my HT and it seems the swelling is increasing as opposed to decreasing

There is nothing to worry about!

I had a FUE procedure and the swelling starts at the forehead and slowly moves down your face until your throat where it disappears. Mine lasted about 5-6 days. I looked like I had gone a few rounds with Mike Tyson!

Looking great! Very interesting case because of the norwood pattern and exclusive use of FUE. Already looking great at such an early stage.

Thanks Mickey, appreciate your support and help over the last 12 months since I've signed up to the HTN.

Cheers

Hey FJ, thanks for the update mate. Looking pretty sweet there, i'd be pretty happy with that too! Im off in 3 weeks to see Dr Rudi, getting bit nervous but looking forward to it. Im sure it'll come in stronger over the next few months, all the best

Hi mate,

Wow - time has flown by! Have you worked out how to get to Heist-Op-Den-Berg by train? If you have any more questions feel free to send me a private message!

Cheers

Looks really good fitness junkie. Being from Australia , I am also interested in Dr De Rey for FUE . Can you explain whether Dr De Rey did all of the manual punching and extracting , incisions and implanting and how much was performed by his wife?

My possible concern is about how long the grafts are out of the body before implantation into recipient area considering he does so much of the work himself over many hours , as some docs seem to not want the grants exposed for longer than abouy 4 hours.

Further , how long was it before your transplanted area scalp redness returned to normal?

Hi mate,

Dr Reys did all of the manual punching, extracting and incisions himself. His wife Gina who has worked with him for years did maybe 15-20% of the implanting as Dr Reys would have a 20min break every 90 mins or so, with him doing the rest of the implanting. The grafts would definitely have been exposed for longer than 4 hours (especially because on my two days the procedure finished at 9pm and 10:30pm due to my fungal condition on the scalp). I'm not sure the of the solution these were placed in. It probably took around 3 1/2 months for the redness to go away, but that was mainly in the temples and not the crown which wasn't really red.

Cheers,

ANy preop pics?

KO

You can see some pre-op photos here:

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/169024-help-fue-graft-placement-combined-temporary-smp.html

Cheers