jttx85

What if the second procedure is a mini one just for a touch up (500 grafts)?

The staff where I got my transplant at told me it was ok to wear a baseball cap after a couple of days. Also, I forgot to mention, bring a neck pillow with you. The first couple of nights will be hard to sleep because the donor area will feel like hard clay. Keeping your head elevated while sleeping also will help with the swelling.

3 weeks in and I haven't experienced the dreaded mass shedding yet, hopefully I'll be in the very lucky 5%!

hi jttx85,

 

Congratulations for your HT, hope it will be perfect.

 

i'm going to do this next month and i wanted to know how it was like in the first and second night? how you dealt with the scratching?, i mean, i scratch my head now every time so i don't know what will i do after the surgery, scared i would touch my head while i sleep although i'm guessing i won't be able to sleep the first 2 days.

The first two days will feel like a really bad hangover and chances are you'll have some swelling in the forehead. Fortunately I had a week off work after my surgery so I was able to just rest at home.

You really want to avoid scratching your head the first 10 days. The itching never got too bad on my recipient area, but I'm 3 weeks post op and my donor area will still itch every now and then, especially when I go to sleep. I avoid using nails and just gently rub with my fingers.

Showering will also be a hassle because you don't want the water to directly hit your grafts from the shower head, for the first week, I had to wash my hair by pouring shampoo and water gently on my head from a cup.

Which doctor are you going with? If you're able to take a few days off work right after your surgery, I would recommend that. If not, hopefully you'll be able to wear a baseball cap at work, but I waited 5 days before wearing a cap just to be safe.

I'm almost 2 weeks post OP after FUE surgery and I've noticed in the past few days, after I shower, there's a lot of dead skin and peeling skin on my forehead right under the hairline. If I just rub on it, it starts falling off. Is this normal?

I was using OGX Renewing Moroccan Argan Oil Shampoo post op. But I've been hearing baby shampoo is preferred?

Damn OP, based on your before and after pics, this is honestly one of the best hair transplants I've ever seen! Any straighter and lower and you'll have a teenage hairline lol. I would have never guessed the person in those pics had a hair transplant. I just got my first HT, if my results turn out as good as yours, I promise I'll never make fun of a bald person again

How much did Dr. Lupanzula charge per graft?

Does he offer any specials for clients from overseas?

What's the punch size he uses?

It's highly unusual, and very unlikely you had 500 plus 5 hair grafts at your surgeon's disposal.

 

You could be very unique, but I feel that is highly irregular physiology, especially since I think I just watched some youtube videos of that music guy that touts McGrath essentially say he had mini-grafts placed in the back to punch up the density.

 

It's wait and see time for you now, what's done is done, let's see how it grows in.

 

But in a year's time if you don't like it you may have to get a doctor to remove those, cut them under a microscope and replant them somewhere on the scalp.

 

I don't want to cause you undue anxiety, I know this is a nerve-racking time so let's just hope for the best and take things as they come.

 

We'll cross those bridges when we get there if we have to, so keep us posted.

I can attest to that. When the assistant did my extractions, he complimented how thick my donor was and how he was getting a lot of 2's and 3's. When I asked him what was the highest, he said he was able to get a few 4's and 5's but even with an amazing donor, you aren't going to get many 4's and 5's.

And to the OP, I'm only 11 days post op so I can't say how good my results are since it's too early, but I can also attest to giving Dr. Arocha a call and at least just meet him and see what he has to say if you end up deciding to do a second HT. Based on the before and after pics of all the recommended doctors on this forum, it would appear the density he is able to provide is definitely one of the best. And he doesn't have any complicated marketing system, he's pretty much upfront with how much he'll charge per graft. I paid for 2000 and right before the surgery,I was paranoid about 2000 grafts not being enough and said I can pay for more even though he thought 2000 should be enough - but he ended up giving me about 100 grafts more for better density and didn't charge me for it

Holy crap, 7000 grafts by FUE in one surgery?! And by a family doctor?! If this turns out well (and I hope it does!) for you in a year, your cousin will be banking because of this forum:)

Jtx85,

 

I am honestly very surprised that nobody has responded yet because many patients on this forum have had a procedure from Dr. Arocha and have been very happy. He is one of our recommended and Coalition physicians which means he's had to pass demanding standards and acquire approval by a multitude of people (patients and doctors). He's an excellent physician and a very nice guy - I've spoken with him a multitude of times I recommend consulting with him ASAP.

 

Best wishes,

 

Bill

One thing that impressed me at the consultation was I got to meet him personally instead of just a sales rep. I spent about 45 minutes with an assistant and then Dr. Arocha sat and spoke with me for a good 30 minutes about what kind of loss I was dealing with and what hairlines he would recommend before taking some before pictures.

I think what made me choose Arocha was his before and after pics seemed to provide the best density out of all the other doctors I was considering,and I believe he said he was one of the few doctors that had the skill to use a .7 mm punch. My biggest concern was having an even hairline again but with poor density.

For those that had the surgery with Dr. Arocha, how were your results in the end in terms of growth, density, and healing of the donor area?

I'm 11 days post op. People weren't lying when they raved about his customer service. He actually contacted me a week after the surgery asking me if I wanted to come in for a check up and then asked me to come in again in 3 weeks for another check up to monitor my progress. So the experience was definitely great, but now these next few months can't come fast enough lol.

Definitely one month should be fine for haircut, as long as you mention to the barber to take it easy on the grafted area. No rough passes with the clippers.

Ask your doctor this one to make sure.

 

I've had both FUE and FUT and one thing I absolutely love about FUE is being able to train again in just 2 weeks time after.

It helps me keep mentally focused and get back into the swing of things. One month would be more than ample time.

Gotcha. I've been wearing a baseball cap when I go outside and read online that people advise not wearing a beanie. Would 2 weeks also be fine for a beanie?

Basically after 10 days but I like to play it safe and baby everything and take highest care up to 2 weeks post-op.

 

Most docs will provide a timeline of what you can do and when.

I would never ever scratch the grafted area as scratching can damage even native hair follicles.

 

But things like regular shower pressure etc can be started after 2 weeks for sure.

 

The biggest question is was your procedure FUT or FUE?

After 2 weeks post-op FUE you can basically do anything such as starting back up light weight training and sports, as long as it doesn't involve actions that could possibly lead to head injury.

 

But with FUT the risk of stretching the scar is great and you shouldn't do any lifting or extreme sports for a few months or so.

 

As for sweating, as long as you keep the area clean to avoid possible infection sweating should be fine after a week or so.

If any particular questions ask your surgeon to make sure.

FUE. Would you say a haircut 1 month post op is no problem at all? And also back to your regular routine involving vigorous weight training and cardio? What about wearing a beanie?

I assume by permanent you mean they are grafted into your body and can't be dislodged.

 

10 days is a safe number, truthfully after 6 it becomes difficult, after 10 near impossible, and after two weeks or so it would take a surgical procedure to move them.

 

Whether or not they'll now grow is another matter, assuming they took root and weren't damaged during the surgery or in post op then you should see 90 to 95 percent of them yield hair in their transplanted location.

 

Consult your respective surgeon on the timeline they want you to observe for your grafts.

Thanks for the input. I've been pretty careful with not even touching my grafts and avoiding pressure on them as much as I could, but yeah, I hope the growing process meets my expectations. I had the procedure with Dr. Arocha and while he's not as popular as someone like Dr. Diep, so far I've found nothing but good reviews on him via google. I'm 10 days OP and I've had 2 follows up already (1st was the next day and the 2nd was a week later), and am scheduled for a third follow up in 3 weeks to make sure there's no complications. The thing is Dr. Arocha seemed pretty genuine in his positive reaction the day after the surgery and was the one that requested all 3 follow ups so he was excited about monitoring my status. It's nice to see a doctor do the actual requests for follow ups.

I'm 10 days post op and to maximize my potential results, I'm still being conservative with my scalp (gentle showers only, avoiding sweating and touching, wearing only loose caps).

How long before the grafts are permanently yours and you can do whatever you want to your scalp and it won't matter, whether it's cutting your hair or scratching your hair or not being able to pull out your grafts even if you tried.

I recently had a FUE transplant with Dr. Arocha in Houston, TX, and I was slightly confused because he only did the hairline incision and not the actual extracting. I was under the impression that he would be doing the extracting too since a lot of other doctors, I read about, actually do the hairline incision and the extraction of the grafts. As long as the results will be the same, it doesn't matter to me, but I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't an exception and that other patients with Dr. Arocha had the same treatment.

My operation was in 3 parts -

Dr. Arocha draws the hairline and does the incision.

Assistant 1 extracted my grafts.

Assistant 2 and 3 inserted grafts into new hairline.

I just had a FUE transplant a few days ago and I was emailed post op instructions recommending that I use a Procyte Graftcyte kit. I can't seem to find much information about this online, does anyone know where to purchase this online? Or is this something you would usually buy from the hair restoration clinic?

I had an FUE surgery last Thursday and was emailed post op instructions where they recommended I use the Procyte Graftcyte kit. They are not open during the weekend so I don't know if it's something they sell at the clinic. Does anyone know where to buy this kit online?