JohnnyDrama

Dr Bisanga - FUE

Numbing Injections: Nurse

Punching of donor grafts: Dr Bisanga

Removal of grafts: Technician

Cleaning/Separating of Grafts: Technician

Incisions in recipient: Dr Bisanga

Placement: Placement Technician, with Dr Bisanga checking in regularly. He may place some.

I had FUE one month ago, and I was also VERY gently with washing, particularly for the first 2-3 weeks. I noticed some hairs at maybe day 10-11, but only a few as I was barely making contact. Your situation sounds normal though.

If shockloss is to happen, then it is just a case of biting the bullet. Minox can be used to speed up the regrowth of the shocklossed grafts however, but it certainly wouldn't be used as a preventative.

One month mark today guys, and all going to plan by the looks of it. Eventful weekend again......my first visit to the barber!!

My barber is the only other person who knows about my procedure, along with my parents and gf. Her first comment was that she always knew a short hairstyle would suit me......and then she inspected. She asked if hair was taken from the back of my head, and when I confirmed her response was "Wow". She said my head looks untouched, which is obviously good to hear from someone who looks at hundreds of scalps per week.

I got a 3-2-1, blade from top to sides.....just to tidy things up as was beginning to look a little scruffy. Think I'll be doing this every 2-3 weeks until December at least.

Went out for more beers on Saturday and met 4-5 other mates who had yet to see me, and again it was just p1ss taking from the point of view of my shaved head.

I have shed a LOT over the past week, which is to be expected. I'd say I have shed close to all, at least I hope so as I have some coverage right now, even though it is quite sparse. Buzzing my head was definitely the best option considering all my work was forelock/midscalp. People just getting hairline work could get away with it but with midscalp everything is better off going.

I'm definitely in the ugly duckling stage now though, but I'm glad that I'm nowhere near as traumatised as I thought I would be. Had planned all along on staying away from beer for Oct and Nov so as to financially recover from the recent hit too......so I dusted off the PS3 at the weekend and have GTA5 to keep me company (awesome btw)!

Have pics taken so will post later this evening.

Saw Palmetto and Nettle Root would be two of the main ones.

Excellent news Dr Mwamba. It's great the HT community has a doc like yourself looking into this kind of procedure in such detail. Exciting times for sure and it will be fascinating to see how things pan out in your clinic re results of your patients over a period of time. Thanks for posting.

Rob, from my research....not everyone is an FUE candidate. This is why I still believe FUT certainly has a role.

E.g. a 30 year old has extensive loss. Say he has 2 procedures, so first is 3,500 FUE to address frontalthird/half of scalp, then 2 or 3 years later he has another 2,000 FUE to crown/touch up frontal region.

He is now 32/33 with a tapped out donor region. In 5-10-15 years time he is likely to have more loss.

By adding FUT, it gives him so much more grafts to give him a look he will be happy with when 40 plus.

Don't get me wrong, I love that top class FUE is an option now, as you probably know I have just gone ahead with it and can appreciate it first hand. I went to a composite clinic that does not shy away from telling patients that FUT may be in their best interests, from that individuals point of view. If I was told this, I would more than likely have gone the FUT route. Not that I would have wanted to, but I would have trusted that my long term prospects would have been better if FUT were included. Thankfully I was told otherwise, but I would have bitten that bullet if it were presented.

Their reactions were to be expected.......all along the lines of "Wtf have you done / Are you sick / etc etc" but after a few minutes everything was back to normal. A lot commented that the look in fact suits me. Strangely, one of my mates gfs whom I thought would be most supportive of the buzzed look came over and before even saying hi said "Johnny, you need hair." Nice!

All in all it was a definite success. There was also some heavy petting and a pulled away a few times as I'm still quite wary that I'm in the healing process, but from the perspective of surgery, it looks like it has gone completely unnoticed which is all I can really ask for at this point! Very happy on that front and it's obviously a big weight off my shoulders.

Wow, Denny that's awful man. My condolenses.

I know there is never a good time for any family loss but the timing for you is particularly cruel. Hope you are ok!

3 weeks post op today. Will get pics up tomorrow. Hard to tell what kind of % of grafts have shed, maybe 30-40%.

I'm now about to face the acid test.......meeting up with about 10 of my mates for a night out! I might be mad doing it so soon but it just so happens a lot of them are back home for the first time in ages, and if I pulled out of it I probably wouldn't see them for another month or two. It'll be like reintroducing myself to them all!

I never thought I'd be willing to show up so soon but it probably reflects how well I've healed and that the buzzed look hasn't totally rocked me.....yet!

Looks good JD!!!! I'm sure it will be a knockout result !!!

Jonny,

 

Apologies for not commenting sooner. I was away on holiday when you originally posted and i missed this. Congrats mate - heal and grow well!!!!:cool:

 

Regards

Spence

Looks very good indeed. Congratulations

Looking good jonny, everything is going to plan. I'm sure it will be a big success!

Thanks for the comments guys!

This is really starting to take shape Stu! To think of the difference 2 months makes.......the next 4-5 months should be even better! Should be in for a good xmas!

18 Days Post OP

2 Weeks Post OP

Took these on rooftop in evening daylight to give a different impression. Note my gf has been taking pics since 1 week post op so much better shots of donor.

At the 2 week point I purchased 100% pure Aloe Vera spray for use on recipient. Having spoken to BHR, I wanted to do as much to reduce redness/contrast in recipient as possible. Redness wasn't huge in any case but returning to work in under a week I wanted to cover all bases. I also begun applying Rogaine 5% Foam nightly. I plan on applying this twice daily in a few weeks time.

Re my donor, to be honest to the untrained eye it would have just looked like a normal buzz cut at around day 7 or 8. The post op application of Aloe Vera gel and Hydro-cortisone cream worked wonders. Obviously I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for no late onset shockloss.

11 Days Post Op

Just landed in Spain so now a cap was of high importance. I still used the bandana when sun bathing as it is more adjustable and allows sun to get to your forehead which a cap does not. Cap was only used in direct sunlight mind, and was off at every other opportunity to let the scalp breath. Healing was coming along well.

From day 7 I was also now washing with baby shampoo.

1 Week Post OP

Night before these were taken I ate out without a cap which was great progress one week on. I didn't imagine I'd be in that position at this point.

Day 3

Day 1 Donor

Sorry for the poor enough photos but I was having issues with my phone unfortunately, not helped by me forgetting my charger and having to get it charged at hotel reception on a daily basis.

The term 'gold standard' does frustrate me a little. It is used as a generic term, for a global scale.....when surely 'gold standard' should only apply to an individuals needs.

E.g. someone in their mid 30s needs 4,500 grafts. FUT is obviously going to be his 'gold standard', because FUE would make no sense because he would be exhausting his donor.

Likewise, another bloke in his mid thirties only needs 1,000 grafts to strengthen hairline. Obviously FUE in this case 'should' be his gold standard, because if his loss is stable and it doesn't look like he will have extensive loss, why not go FUE.

Again, it comes town to so many variables........but the GS term just gets to me a little.

Regarding the op.....I think FUE would be the way to go. I was also a little surprised to see you on Fin for 9 years. Seems very young to start the drug with minimal loss.

Day 19 post op for me today and I've just returned home. My parents were delighted and commented that I just looked as if I decided to buzz my hair. No sign of work from their perspective.

Neither of my sisters know about my ht or buzzing for that matter, so a relief that they think the buzz suits me! The gfs parents reaction was a little more "Oh.....", but to be expected as I had a lot of hair the last they saw me. The office reaction tomorrow should be interesting!

llooks good, thx for posting. can u post some pics of the donor post day 1 and day 2.

Will do mate, it's 2am here now and I've had a long day travelling so I should get them up tomorrow with the pics covering the last 2-3 weeks as well.

Best of luck. Big procedure but you have chosen well!

can somebody explaim me how i can upload my fotos?

Click 'Post Reply', then 'Manage Attachments', then browse to pics on your pc.

Currently awaiting the post day#2 pics from the clinic, but here's a few I took myself.

Post HT day #2

Day 1 HT - post op clinic pics - 1,279 grafts placed

Ok guys, as promised......I'm just back from my 3 weeks break and will get started on getting my pics up. I've got a few 2-month pre ht pics in my folder, but I'll get started with posting the clinics pre-ht pics.

As you will see, I have quite a bit of native hair, being a diffuser. My kind of loss is a dream from the point of view that concealers work very well in covering things up, particularly Dermatch. Obviously these pics are without concealer or styling products, so I obviously wouldn't look this 'naked' on a day to day basis. In that regard, some of these pics spooked me in terms of just how thin my centre had been.

As you will also see, I pretty much have my entire hairline in tact and I'm pretty happy with where it is. The plan was to fill in the forelock and midscalp. My hairline admittedly is quite soft........and such is the nature of a diffuser, it's largely unpredictable as to how it will behave over the next few years. Hopefully the meds will maintain but I wouldn't be overly surprised to need work to strengthen it in a few years. For now my goal was simple though......fill in that midscalp to give me even coverage everywhere. Rain and wind were my enemy, and the wet hair shots that the clinic took illustrate this with scary accuracy.

The length of my hair here is quite a bit longer in how I would typically 'like' to wear it. The loss was beginning to make me lazy/reluctant to cut it too short because concealing made it harder. In the past I would have had what resembled a slightly longer version of a military-style cut.......4" back and sides and short cut on top with it messed about a little.

Looks like there is little or no trace of any work done, particularly to the untrained eye. That's all you can ask for!

BaldieTwo........I'm using an Aloe Vera spray (100% purity). Started it 14 days post op. Came recommended by BHR.

Now I haven't shed anywhere near the rate of you.....yet.....but I don't think I have too much pinkness, and it seems to be improving daily.