kirkland

@WhatComesNextby the time you board the plane, enough time should have passed to allow you to wear a hat rather than the surgical cap. But if there is discomfort in the donor region, keep a few surgical caps on hand (Eugenix should have provided you with 3 or 4 of them) and wear that instead. I had a hoodie so I wore the surgical cap and then the hoodie. I knew people stared at me in the airport and on the plane but I chose not to give two f*&@s because I was never going to see any of those people ever again!

I already have a script for Zopiclone to help with sleep. The clinic will provide you with meds for sleep, discomfort if you need.

11 minutes ago, Berba11 said:

I think Eugenix can supply one, no?

I didn't see any available at Eugenix. You won't have any options to buy one in the area where Eugenix is located (at least from what I saw).

1 hour ago, Newyear newhair said:

 These are really good quality and so comfortable 

That seems like a good one, too. Lots of neck support with a high back for keeping your donor area clear of a pillow for a couple of days plus a neck strap to keep it secure.

1 hour ago, Domino said:

@Melvin- ModeratorNot looking forward to the flight one bit. I don’t sleep to well on planes. But it’s a small price to pay. I wasn’t evening thinking about a pillow at home for recovery but I think I need to get one like you got pictured to.  

It's really helpful for flying long distances and for recovery - particularly recovery. You can't sleep on sides or stomach for a couple of days and this props your head up so the donor area is not in contact with a pillow.

This is the one I bought for my flight to and from India and for sleeping on my back for the first few days after the surgery. I was inexpensive, comfortable, washable (which was good since I had some blood and iodine stains on it) and had an adjustable belt to secure it more tightly around the neck.

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B07P61Y2BK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

Yes I agree. I have been up front that there are mitigating factors with SMP just like with all other interventions that can cause local trauma. I never dissuade anyone from seeking out the treatment. I just encourage them to understand that there is always a risk involved, even if that risk is minimal.

Here are my convos with one of those individuals on reddit (or at least their responses). I was also in conversation with another person on r/SMP about their experiences with lasting erythema from the treatment. 

I'm not at all against SMP. It is an effective treatment but it does carry risks, even if some of those risks are not likely to impact most people. I have avoided referencing the clinic I went to because I do not blame them for the outcome. I went into the treatment with a sunburn on my scalp, the practitioner shared their concerns with me about my condition, I proceeded nonetheless and I bear all responsibility for what happened. I was surprised to hear about a similar reaction from two other people who did not have a sunburn when they did do SMP but did experience lasting redness. It can happen.

21 minutes ago, ciaus said:

 

 

@kirkland I appreciate you sharing your experience and knowledge about SMP, but I've noticed when you mention your lingering redness you often leave out that your scalp area was sunburned when you got your SMP. I think that's an important factor to mention every time you talk about your erythema. I just did a forum search and found your post from late last year where you mentioned it for reference.

 

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Posted November 25, 2020

There was one mitigating factor that likely contributed to my outcome: sunburn. When I went for the treatment, I had a sunburned scalp after just having come from vacation. It was ill-advised for me to have the treatment in that condition and it most likely led to the trauma from the treatment. Make sure you don't make the same mistake I did and you should be fine but please make sure that the tech/clinic/tools are all above board

 

 

Yes - you are correct that it is an important piece of info when sharing my SMP experience but you should be aware that semi-permanent erythema can occur from SMP even without a pre-existing condition, like a sunburn. Over the last few years, I have been contacted by two other individuals who had SMP and developed a lasting redness from the treatment. They did not experience sunburn prior to the SMP - the only other similar factor with me was that they were also fair-skinned and prone to redness. 

So when I mention the risks of SMP more broadly speaking, I am not misrepresenting the risk itself due to my own experiences. 

While the innovation of SMP has been a great addition to the menu of choices for hairloss sufferers, it does not come without its own risks. @Dayneyou have touched upon one significant risk - the 'bluriness' of the treatment itself over time. As the pigment breaks down in the epidermis, it migrates at the edges and blends into a series of shadows over time, losing its effectiveness at producing an illusion of distinct follicles on the scalp. You can't stop the body from doing its job but I will leave it to @EnhancedScalp and other SMP artists/users to advise on how best to avoid such a development over time.

However, SMP does come with other risks so if you are interested in the procedure, please be aware of all of them. Choosing the right tech/artist, the right pigments and understanding if the maintenance required for maintaining the 'illusion' is aligned with your own lifestyle is critical to success. 

@Gatsbyhas had a positive experience with SMP. My own SMP treatment left a semi-permanent erythema on my scalp which (fortunately for me) pushed me towards a hair transplant sooner than I had anticipated. And my SMP artist was experienced and used all the right tools. My skin is prone to redness and that seems to be part of why my treatment failed.

@WhatComesNextI'm glad to hear the hard part is over and now comes the healing and the growing. Thank you for the detailed write-up and the open and honest expression of your experiences. It helps others with concerns or questions about their own choices for hair restoration surgery and rightly pays it forward. 

Get some rest, enjoy India's hospitality and good luck on your flight back to Canada.

Whether those miniaturized hairs thicken will depend on a number of factors including your individual response to dut and oral minox. Your age, length of time those hairs have been in that state, genetics - all will play a part in how those hairs respond to those meds. If you are going for a HT, then those meds will be beneficial for reducing shock loss and further miniaturization of the donor area.

I've been on oral minox for almost a full year, going from 1.25 to 2.5 mg per day. No sides. Increase in thickness of body hair but not really transforming into Bigfoot so I'm good.

1 hour ago, anyhair said:

In addition, FUE/FUT/DHI?

There are two types of surgery: FUT and FUE. DHI is a type of FUE surgery. Individual follicles are extracted in FUE but entire strip of follicles is extracted in FUT.

1 hour ago, Andres said:

where did you go get your HT any clinic you can recommended me.

I went to Eugenix in New Delhi, India one month ago. 

You can contact them for a consultation. 

Fair enough and sorry - I had noticed in your original post that you had stopped taking fin.

Your hairloss amount was similar to mine and I also recently had 3500 grafts. It's a lot of area to cover and you can't always achieve desired density in the first pass.

The good thing is that you have good beard growth so if you choose a clinic that can do BHT, then you can get overall more density from the hairline to the crown.

The results aren't bad - the hairline was re-built, there is added density throughout the mid-scalp and crown but overall, the density looks low. Your donor looks thinned out in many areas but you have a decent beard. You could get more volume in the crown with beard grafts alone and a boost in overall density from the donor. 

Have you been taking finasteride?

If you provide pictures of your condition prior to your HT, that would help forum members better analyze the success of the surgery.

It looks really good! Such a dense, natural result. Happy for you @Wandererind

@StrongmanDude, your username says it all. Having four FUT's and still keeping the faith is strength unto itself. I wish you all the best of luck in your hair growing journey! 

And, yes, there is a strong sense of ethical responsibility in the Eugenix mindset. I appreciate how they have developed the trust of many of those who would have every right to trust no one in this business.

Dr. Lindsey mentions his wife is a cardiologist and it makes sense that slowing the metabolism through cooling preserves tissue/organ integrity. Could it be that since follicles are small organs, they are more susceptible to extreme environments, even for a short duration?

If it makes you feel good and provides peace of mind, absolutely go for it! So long as you understand that it is still a surgery and the outcome is never guaranteed, and that you chose a professional and reputable clinic (recommended here, of course), then you can feel at ease with your decision. 

Good luck and document your journey so others can find this website a positive resource for coming to their own decision.

Dr. Zarev seems like a skilled surgeon who prefers to do most of the steps involved in the surgery so he can better control the outcome. The trade-off is that he spends less time marketing and costs are higher since he is involved so much in each surgery. He may have improved the engineering of some of the tools of the trade but no doubt, his results are reflected in the amount of personal involvement in his cases. If he's building a new clinic, then I imagine the demand for his services are behind it. But I think his skills, his involvement in each surgery and the individual donor characteristics are all significant factors in the results he gets.

As for @Zoomsterand being turned down by one HT doc for weak donor characteristics only to find success with Eugenix, many doctors set their own boundaries as to what they feel comfortable in taking on for surgery. If you don't think you can satisfy the expectations of a patient, then you may turn away the case. Another doctor may have more confidence that they can achieve a successful outcome (success being measured subjectively by both patient and doctor). I was turned away from two prominent HT doctors in Canada because I had SMP and they didn't feel comfortable with surgery unless the pigmentation was removed. Dr. Sethi has performed HT surgeries on patients with existing SMP with no problems. Surgeons set their own limits along with the limits already set for them. 

It's funny how, even when you know the shed is coming, that it still feels like the transplant has failed.

Coming up on my fourth week post-HT and the shed is now happening.