kw877

10 hours ago, Legend007 said:

There’s no pain when u numbed up with anesthesia . It’s afterwards when u are left with thousands of puncture wounds from the donor n thousands of slit wounds in the recipient .. but I guesss it’s all worth it .. no pain no gain .. 

Yeah the procedure itself was painless, after the anesthetist jacked me up with some more meds in my IV haha the needles in my scalp beforehand were horrific though, but only when at the nape of my neck. How I thought I’d be fine with 6000+ holes on my scalp I don’t know lol

I have a sleeve, including on my elbow and inner elbow, one on my ribs, and on my spine and top of my foot. They were a piece of cake in comparison haha everyone’s different I guess. I was one of the unlucky minority lol

5 minutes ago, BigBen said:

Yeah I missed coffee too but at least we could have tea which is also nice.

It’s strange because tea has just as much caffeine apparently

4 hours ago, BigBen said:

Hey mate, my scabs also fell off quite quickly. Now we have to be ready for shedding. We'll keep in touch.

 

One thing that we should add to the list is that patients should not drink any coffee or alcohol days before and after the surgery. Eleven days later and I still haven't drunk any alcohol.

For me coffee was the hard part, especially early on surgery day ha

1 hour ago, BigBen said:

Let us know how everything is going. When did you undergo the surgery?

Everything’s going good so far! All the scabs were off a couple days ago (around the 9th day) I think my surgery was on the 26th? Im just waiting for it to all fall out now haha 

I recently underwent a HT with Dr Erdogan, 3000 grafts. I thought id share a few things I wasn't fully prepared for and maybe it can help prospective patients. 

1. It is not a painless procedure. I have quite a high pain threshold, have previously had surgery whilst awake (and will again next week in fact!) but the injections sting like a mf. Don't be afraid to ask the anesthetist for a little something extra in your IV to counter the injection pain, as there are many injections. The techs and my coordinator were so nice though and made sure I was comfortable at all stages. The thing I don't see many people talk about either is the pain following the procedure. My donor area felt like it had been burnt. I couldn't sleep decently for a week after, it was constantly aching and burning and stinging. I wish to god id asked for some strong painkillers as I didn't really experience this pain till after id flown home. 

2. The staff at the Radisson are very knowledgable when it comes to Asmeds patients, they will literally bend over backwards for any request. They had someone running up and down from my room to freeze and refreeze my ice packs as theres no freezer in the room. They will pretty much bring you anything they reasonably can if you just call them. Also, the breakfast buffet ran till 1 or 2pm I think, so if you get hungry after an early breakfast, hit the buffet again. I didn't realize this till my last day that it was on for so long. I also didn't want to venture far due to my swelling and the hot sun, so room service was much appreciated.

3. The swelling. My god I looked like id been hit by a truck! this is a more rare reaction to the surgery though im sure, as I always swell ridiculously after surgeries (ive had my share of facial procedures!) but this was another level. First my entire scalp ballooned, then my forehead, they it came down to my eyes and nose and at its peak I could hardly see. My entire face bruised yellow too and I had the worst black eyes ever. It dissipated within a week though, except the eyes, I still have minor bruises. My advice is to cut out all salt and sugar a week before, sleep upright after the surgery and be diligent in applying the ice packs. Maybe (with the Drs say so) take bromelain supplements a week before and after.

Ive probably just repeated what a lot of people have posted so my apologies if so. Its just that I considered myself well researched for the op (even the Dr was surprised at how prepared I was and how much id researched lol) but I didn't expect the pain and swelling to the degree that I experienced. Again im a special case, but it is a possibility nonetheless! Ill be posting pics and a review soon

14 hours ago, wheretogo said:

KW877, use aloe-vera on the donor, it really worked for me, very soothing.

I’ll have to pick some up and give it a try. Pain killers don’t seem to have much effect lol

23 minutes ago, AB2000 said:

I had the same thing happen my first hair transplant.  It stretched from three to four days and by the end of it my head was so full of injections that my face began to resemble the shape of a football.  After the last day of surgery, when I had to check into a new hotel since my original reservation was for only the three days someone at the new place asked me if I was alright and if I needed help.  I guess I looked pretty beat up at the time.  I am sure it varies by person, but I was told to expect the swelling to take up to a week to subside completely, as the injections could take that long to break down.

Im a week post op now and id say 80% of the swelling is gone, I have some significant bruising under my eyes still, looks like blood has collected under my eyes as I have red and purple splotches all around them and some fluid. Never expected my donor to hurt as much as it has been, but then again it was punctured 3000 times lol

9 hours ago, Sean said:

Yes, i have been pretty swollen.  That whole lower eyelid thing is a big concern to me.  I never had that issue but noticed that i have it still under one eye more than the other at different times.  The skin is no longer tight there and it seems to sag after so much fluid built up there after surgery.  It looks like an aging eyelid but i am not even in my 40’s.  It happened so drastically and not sure if this issue goes away.  Let me know how it works out for you and I  have to see if i can get this additional krap treated too.  

Best of luck.

This is terrifying! But I feel like mines snapping back more each day. I think by the time this weeks out I’ll be back to normal. Fingers crossed! I moisturize and hydrate my skin like a maniac so maybe this would be helpful to you too? Hydrated skin is more elastic. If you’re is still a little crinkly try a tca peel. Might as well do the whole face (I’m gonna have it same time as my eye op) might help to even things out and tighten it a bit.

8 minutes ago, wheretogo said:

Bet you look like a boxer right now  it will go away.

when my donor area hurt me i use to rub aloe vera cream.

Ive been putting aquaphor on the donor as its super crusty lol leaving the recipient alone though other than the designated washes. Honestly can't wait to have a normal face and wear a hat! I can wait for the growth but it'd be nice to go outside haha

Thanks guys, I look pretty terrible right now haha just want the bruises and swelling to dissipate. My donor area hurts so much too! I wasn’t prepared for the side effects haha

So I hadn’t my surgery on the 26th (asmed 3000 grafts) and since I’m super prone to swelling, I had/have a head like a balloon. It’s gone down a lot but now I have really purple and black eyes. My under eyes are also hugely swollen. Has anyone else experienced this? Is so how long did it take to clear up?

 I’m due to have a lower eyelid surgery (cosmetic) on the 16th and worried that I’ll have to push it back if the swelling and bruising isn’t gone by then.

just wondering as I watched youtube videos of the graft counter and was confused as to whether im paying for 3000 grafts or 3000 hairs?