The deed is finally done!

[Teddw2ds]

Well, after lurking on this board for nearly two years, and posting since early this year, I can finally say I have moved my tassle from one side of the mortarboard to the other!!

 

I completed my first (and hopefully only) procedure just today, with Dr. Rose in Tampa. Much to my surprise, it was a great experience, and I am just so happy with it, I am still just giddy every time I look in the mirror. I can't wait to see what it looks like 6 or 12 months from now!

 

I was really surprised by how little scabbing there is in the front. It is obvious that there's been something done, but it certainly doesn't look like I've run my head through a meat grinder. As for the back, I feel almost nothing different. I can barely tell any tension whatsoever.

 

Dr. Rose took a strip of 21 x 0.8 CM and harvested 1535 grafts. I was a Norwood 3, and while I still have some slight recession at the temples, I think any lower than what it is now would have looked unnatural.

 

I want to especially thank Vocor1 for some very helpful posts. You are very similar to my situation in a lot of ways... close to my age, similar Norwood pattern, and the same doctor. Your words were a big help in giving me that nudge to go forth with what I knew I wanted to do, even when those nagging doubts started haunting me (a few thousand times or so).

 

I have before and during pictures that I will post sometime. I am not making any promises as to when, because now I am off to Miami for a few days of "recovery." I can use some beach time!

 

Tedd

[Teddw2ds]

Well, after lurking on this board for nearly two years, and posting since early this year, I can finally say I have moved my tassle from one side of the mortarboard to the other!!

 

I completed my first (and hopefully only) procedure just today, with Dr. Rose in Tampa. Much to my surprise, it was a great experience, and I am just so happy with it, I am still just giddy every time I look in the mirror. I can't wait to see what it looks like 6 or 12 months from now!

 

I was really surprised by how little scabbing there is in the front. It is obvious that there's been something done, but it certainly doesn't look like I've run my head through a meat grinder. As for the back, I feel almost nothing different. I can barely tell any tension whatsoever.

 

Dr. Rose took a strip of 21 x 0.8 CM and harvested 1535 grafts. I was a Norwood 3, and while I still have some slight recession at the temples, I think any lower than what it is now would have looked unnatural.

 

I want to especially thank Vocor1 for some very helpful posts. You are very similar to my situation in a lot of ways... close to my age, similar Norwood pattern, and the same doctor. Your words were a big help in giving me that nudge to go forth with what I knew I wanted to do, even when those nagging doubts started haunting me (a few thousand times or so).

 

I have before and during pictures that I will post sometime. I am not making any promises as to when, because now I am off to Miami for a few days of "recovery." I can use some beach time!

 

Tedd

[Guest]

Hi Teddw2ds, Glad your happy and everything went so well for you.

I was just wondering if Dr.Rose is performing FIT in the tampa office ? With the number of graft's you had done strip was the way for you to go, I was just wanted to find out if FIT is an option in Dr.Rose's Tampa office.

 

Have fun in miami...

[NW]

Tedd,

 

Congrats !!!

 

NW

[Teddw2ds]

Billorbob

 

I asked about that when I was there yesterday, and you're in luck my friend. He is indeed now doing that procedure. I'm not sure how many he has done, though.

[Guest]

Thank's Teddw2ds for the info.

I'll have to setup a consult with him very soon, I'm finally almost ready. If Dr.Rose is as good as I hear he is Maybe I'll be ready for some fun in Miami soon...

 

Also as far as how many he has done, I don't know either but from what I have read it sound's like he and Dr.Cole are working on fit together. In fact I don't read as many post about Dr.Rose as I do Dr.Cole, but when I do it sound's like there talking about the same guy. I just don't see bad thing's posted about these two doctor's. I have a feeling it should be a good consult....Have fun and keep posting on how your doing.

 

[This message was edited by billorbob on August 07, 2003 at 11:10 PM.]

[Teddw2ds]

Well, It's the morning of day three. The first full day post-op continued to amaze me with how uneventful it was. Of course, there are some expected changes in your routine, but I was certainly not laid up and out of commission. I had not problems with the flight to Miami yesterday. I got here around 4pm, got checked in, and I was out having dinner and shopping on Ocean Drive by yesterday evening.

 

Let me tell you, Rodeo Drive has nothing on Ocean Drive.I swear I saw a shirt in one of these "Boutique" shops for $250 that I saw in a thrift store in Tulsa for 4 bucks! Sorry if any readers make their living in the fashion industry! )

 

But back to the subject at hand.I really can't tell you just how amazed I am at how simple this whole experience has been. Dr. Rose was great, his staff was fun, the procedure was nealy painless (the worst part was the injection of anethetic prior to the strip excision). There is absolutely no pain in the donor area. The only discomfort (and I'm reluctant to even classify it as that... more like just an out-of-the-ordinary sensation) is in the donor area. I still have the scabs, of course, but I am following the post-op instructions to the letter and everything seems to be taking root nicely. There has been zero swelling so far, and nothing has hindered me from enjoying my first day in Miami. Today, I am off to the beach! No underwater swimming, of course, but I can't wait to wade up to my waist. I walked along the beach late last night and the water is fine! And that's good enough for me.I don't need to get my hair wet to enjoy that!

 

More later... but for now, I couldn't be more pleased!

 

Tedd

[Franklin]

You probably know this but make sure you keep you head covered from the sun when you are at the beach even if you go wading in the water.Should do this for a couple of months but check with your doctor.Good healing!

[Guest]

Congratulations on your ht surgery. You made an excellent choice in Dr. Rose.

 

I myself could not be happier with my result as well. It will be 8 months soon, and hairs are still popping up and maturing. It has definately exceeded my expectations.

 

Again, good luck and good healing. Please keep us updated.

 

Regards, Snowblind.

[Teddw2ds]

Yeah, I know to keep it out of the sun, and that has been tough.But right now, I am still full of scabs, so that's not exactly something I want to show off anyway. I have just been wearing my hat, even when wading in the water.

 

Progress continues to be good. Only one small letdown this morning, though.I woke up with blood on the pillow... the first hint of any sort of negative affect at all so far. My bleeding had stopped on its own during the night, though, and I didn't even know about it until I saw the pillow, so there was no pain. Even the blood that was there was minor... nothing like the prom scene from Carrie or anything. But as I showered that morning, I found one plug floating its way into my hand... DAMN!! But it was only one and it was a single-hair unit, so I'm not too worried about it. I guess that's not too abnormal.

 

Other than that, things are still just going great.Just tired of always wearing the hat, because that's something I normally don't do and it's irritating. I look forward to day ten, when I can pretty much resume all normal activity.Right now, I'm on day three, so not that much longer!

[Guest]

I thought 1,535 graft's for a nw3 was too many anyway, but 1,534 graft's I think that will look just right...LOL

[Teddw2ds]

Yeah, that 1535th plug was really causing a crowding problem I guess. It looks just right now! But seriously, it kind of freaked me out when it happened, but since the othes seem to be staying nicely in their new home, I am a little less nervous today.

 

Last night was a big milestone. Even though I still have some scabbing, I went out in public without my hat for the first time! Of course, I stayed in the dark cormers of a Miami night club, and I used some Toppik to cover things up, so it looked okay in dark lighting. I was just thrilled to finally be rid of that damn hat for a few hours!

 

So far today, things are going well, except that it is getting really itchy a lot of the time. The scabs are starting to fall off more and more now, though, so I am getting really excited about the prospect of being able to get around without the hat more and more.

[Guest]

I have hurt myself I don't know how many times in life playing sport's and stuff, one thing is for shure when "itchy" show's up I know I'm healing real good and fast. But make shure that "itchy" wasn't coming from someone in the dark corner of that night club, you might have made a new friend...LOL

[Teddw2ds]

There's been very little change over the last couple of days. I've just lost a few more scabs, and it looks like most are ready to jump ship today or tomorrow. That will be a relief.

 

But I can say, at day 7, there has been no swelling, no infection, only that one graft lost. The biggest pain that I didn't really count on is just how much of a hassle the first few days of post-op procedures are. It just takes a very long time to wash, I hate mopping that spray off my forehead every 30 minutes or so, and I normally blow dry my hair, so I hate drip drying. I know you can use the cool setting, but that really does not much of anything.

 

Oh, well, I guess just more annoyances than any real problems, and that will soon be past. Seems like at the 10 day point, life tends to get pretty much back to normal. Is that the experience of others?

 

Thanks!

Tedd

[Guest]

vocor1,

it's good to hear that Dr. Rose is also doing FIT now. do you happen to know how much he charges a graft?

[Teddw2ds]

Okay, a couple more days have gone by and I was right... most of the scabs have dropped off in the last couple of days. Except for the stark difference in length of my original hair and the transplanted hairs, it would be hard to tell anything was weird with my head. I am getting my stitches out in 2 days and then I plan to get my first post-op haircut right after that.

 

I am really looking forward to that, seeing how natural things look with a more even length. I never wear my hair this long! I usually buzz it down to a #2 on the sides and back and a #5 on top. I would say my transplanted hairs are now at about a #3 length. I would estimate I have lost maybe 30% of those so far, but according to the experience of others, I imagine many more of those will go in the coming days as well. Either way, I don't think it will look too weird, since I normally wear my hair so short anyway. Considering the scar in the back (which, by the way, is already almost undetectable), I will probably leave the length on the back and sides at a #4 and the top a #5. I'll just have to play with it to see what looks best. But I am so looking forward to that haircut! It is now day 8, and life feels pretty much back to normal. That's not a bad waiting period at all for how much of a difference it will make on the rest of my life!

[PD]

Tedd,

 

Good to know that you now look pretty much normal..

what is it ? 10 days? not bad.. a few questions for you !

 

1. Why did you choose on Dr. Rose?

 

2. Have you seen any patients in person, who had the procedure done with him ? If so, how did their density or coverage look?

 

Everyone,

 

3. Recently i was talking to a guy who had the procedure done by a recommended doctor on this website, he claims he had a "severe" pain during operation and also the pain persisted for about 10 days on his scalp - I asked if he had any issues, infections, etc., he said 'no' what do you guys think?

[Teddw2ds]

Tedd,

 

Good to know that you now look pretty much normal..

what is it ? 10 days? not bad.. a few questions for you !

Thanks... today is the 8th full day after the procedure. I don't count the day of, since I was not done until about 5pm (and because I was doped up, so I don't really remember that day anyway! LOL)

 

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>1. Why did you choose on Dr. Rose?

Of course, all the standard criteria came into consideration... reputation among clients and colleagues, feedback from users on this board, years of experience, IAHRS membership, etc.

There were several reasons, but I think it really comes down to the fact that he was the only doctor that I got a chance to visit with in person for a consultation, and I just really liked the man personally and professionally. He came across as extremely ethical and caring, plus he agreed to see me at the last minute, which really impressed me.

 

I had been in Tampa to have a HT done with another clinic. I thought I had done enough research, but I was wrong. It was not until I showed up that they informed me the doctor, whose reputation I had based my decision on, was no longer associated with that clinic and that someone else would be doing my HT. I canceled and immediately called Dr. Rose's office to see if he could see me for a consult.

 

I also had email consultations with Dr. Jones in Toronto, Hasson and Wong in Vancouver, and Dr. Nusbaum in Miami.

Dr. Jones came across as more interested in getting my business than assuring my needs were met. I thought Hasson and Wong wanted to go too aggressive, even after hearing that I wanted to stick to a more conservative reconstruction. Dr. Nusbaum was just the opposite of Dr. Jones. I felt like he didn't really care whether I went with him or not. I constantly was the one following up with him. Dr. Rose seemed to take a genuine interest, was not pushy, took the time to listen to my needs and desires, and was exceedingly accomodating. Plus, as I mentioned, he just struck me as a very caring, genuine person. Those are just my individual impressions, and others may have different experiences, but I am certainly happy with the choice I made. I think Dr. Rose was great, and if my experience so far is any indication of my final result, I am sure I will be thrilled beyond my expectations.

 

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>2. Have you seen any patients in person, who had the procedure done with him ? If so, how did their density or coverage look?

No, I did not get a chance to see any previous patients in person, but I did look at photos and testimonials from previous patients (particularly Vocor1 on this site) and I was satisfied that I would be happy with the result.

 

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Everyone,

3. Recently i was talking to a guy who had the procedure done by a recommended doctor on this website, he claims he had a "severe" pain during operation and also the pain persisted for about 10 days on his scalp - I asked if he had any issues, infections, etc., he said 'no' what do you guys think?

 

Throughout the entire experience, my pain and other side effects have been far LESS than I expected. I have had no swelling whatsoever, so far no shock loss, no infections, only very mild pain in the donor area, no pain whatsoever in the recipient area. I know each person has a unique experience, but I think anyone who goes to a highly skilled doctor should have an experience more similar to mine than what you are describing above.

[PD]

Tedd,

 

First of all thanks a lot for your detailed comments.. Dr. Rose happens to be my top priority among the doctors i met or talked to.. and hence i needed your valuable input.

 

I was really surprised that a guy i know mentioned he had severe pain during and even some pain after the surgery.. and the doctor was not Dr. Rose but he is very much recommended by the memebers of this forum !!!.. I wonder if it has something to do with individual's tolerance.. i guess one will find out only if he/she had a procedure..

[Teddw2ds]

You're welcome. I really couldn't recommend Dr. Rose any more highly. As I said earlier, my expectations have been exceeded in every way.

 

Also, just for an update... it's now day 9 post-op and I think the very last of my scabs has fallen off!! Yeah. So tomorrow I'll get a haircut and see how the new guys blend in with the natives. I was kind of hoping more of the new ones would fall out so it wasn't so obvious right at first, but they have held their guns pretty well. I would estimate no more than 30% have fallen out, leaving a very noticeable stubble where I was previous shiny bald! Guess that will be hard to dance around if people start asking questions.

[Guest]

tedd,

i'm interested in your procedure. how many grafts per cm2 did Dr. Rose give you? i want to know your density. Also, do you have any pics you can show. if you are a shy about putting up pics, can you email them to me?

[Guest]

That's a good qustion. I was wondering about the grafts per cm2 also. Can or does Dr.Rose do dense packing if he need's to ?

[Teddw2ds]

My density was 82/cm^2 and the grafted area averaged 45/cm^2. I didn't even ask about dense packing because I wanted to go very conservative. I am still fairly young (32) and I am a Norwood 3, so I may need to conserve a lot more donor area for future use. Hopefully that won't be necessary, as my Proscar & Minox regime has done wonders to halt my hairloss progression, but I want to have the resources available if need be.

 

I just got some diagnostic photos from Dr. Rose today, and I also took some myself before during and after the procedure. I have several angles taken immediately after, the next day and also 7 days out. Once I get those developed, I plan to create a website fully documenting my whole procedure. (By the way, I'll go ahead and start the disclaimers now... I am in no way, shape or form paid, sponsored, compensated or otherwise reimbursed by Dr. Rose or anyone affiliated with Dr. Rose for my testimonial... I'm just very happy with my experience, that's all).

 

No promises on when the site will be up, but I'm shooting for about a week from now.

 

Oh, and billorbob, you'll be happy to know, at 9 days out, the itching is all gone by itself... no antibiotics or medicated shampoos required. I guess it was just the healing process after all!

 

Tedd

[Guest]

45 grafts per cm2 is good. that will give good coverage. i would be satisfied with 45 g/cm2. if i need some additional coverage, i could just use some toppik.

 

a few more questions:

how much did you pay total for the HT?

 

does Dr. Rose do FIT or FUE?

[Teddw2ds]

yeah, I have used Toppik myself and may still continue depending on the coverage.

 

I had a total of 1535 grafts (no discount for the one that fell out!) for a total of $6200, including lab work.

 

And yes, Dr. Rose is now doing the FUE/FIT technique. If my hairloss stabilizes for 4-5 more years, and I am comfortable that I won't need the extra donor supply, I may go back to have more frontal work done, since I did go very conservative. I'm not at all unhappy with the result, but if I don't need the extra supply, I might as well use it up front, right?