Dr. Steven Gabel - My First HT - FUE 2102 graphs

[Willit]

Wanted to share my experience I just had today with Dr. Steven Gabel. I did my first hair transplant today, opted for FUE and we got 2102 graphs. Majority of 1800 was put in the temporal areas, and the remaining 302 was put in the crown.

 

After reading rigorously through tons of these forum post, I consulted with 9 different doctors and did my research, finally decided on Dr. Gabel due to reviews, location, and cost factors. I am really glad I did, this was an excellent experience with their team.

 

I flew in the night before, and had the procedure the next day, beginning at 630am (today). I did have some normal apprehension and questions, which I tried to tell myself don't make a big deal outta this, and I was right. Dr. and his assistants were so professional, very thorough and I especially like that they were perfectionist at everything they do.

 

I don't have any office pics yet, but they allowed me to take some of my own. We were going for FUE at about 1500-2000, and he gave me a line on my head that was a starting point, and then I adjusted it, and he adjusted once more. We both liked it and we finalized the hairline, then looked at the crown which was much smaller. We went to the procedure room I think around 8 or 9am, where everything was prepared and ready to go. They hooked me up to the heart rate monitors and the I lied face down, got covered by a blanket, and he began to shave the back of my head.

 

He numbed up the area for extraction and then began with the FUE extraction. When Dr. Gabel started he was soon very happy with the extractions and how everything was going and verbally let me know about it. All the time we talked with the whole team making jokes and conversing, which made the procedure even less threatening. They constantly checked on my pain level and made injections when I did have even a hint of pain.

 

By lunchtime we had about 1300 graphs pulled, I had lunch, and returned, then by early afternoon we had the full 2102 graphs pulled.

 

I went back to finish the lunch, then we began the insertions, 900 on each temporal area and 302 in the crown. The insertion of the graphs went even faster and better than the extractions. I don't know if it's because I made sure I drank 8-9 glasses of water every day a 2 weeks before the procedure, or maybe because I tried to eat healthy too, like drinking spinach shakes in my Nutribullet every day; but Dr. Gabel and his team said graphs were coming out really well and inserted really well too.

 

The only pain I had was the injection of the anesthesia shots to numb the donor and recipient areas, but I guess I got used to it after a while, like a bunch of small pinches on your head.

 

We finished at about 7pm, Dr. Gabel is awsome and gave me a ride home.

 

I have to just say I was extremely happy with my decision to go with Dr. Gabel and his staff, it was an amazingly comfortable experience.

 

Now just to fly home with an awkward haircut.

 

Here are some pics.

Hair Restoration Social Network - Hair Loss and Transplant Photos

 

Willit

[Dutch]

Good luck with the growth, keep us posted. Not sure if it's the camera quality but wondering why the area is like blue when usually it's bright red. Maybe it was swelling up already. You chose a good surgeon.

[Spanker]

It could be lighting but it appears that you have a nw 4 to 5 pattern developing. Was this discussed? You choose a great doctor but it does seen aggressive for the pattern you seem to be developing. I think you should be pretty choosie with where your future grafts are placed.

[1978matt]

Good luck with the growth, keep us posted. Not sure if it's the camera quality but wondering why the area is like blue when usually it's bright red. Maybe it was swelling up already. You chose a good surgeon.

 

That's a dye for making the recipient sites more visible. I know Farjo and Cooley use it and no doubt a few others.

[Willit]

I just got home after my flight, and am sitting quietly, so thought I would post and update.

 

I got my hair counts:

 

1's - 498

2's - 1165

3's - 391

4's - 48

total 4193 hairs with 2102 graphs.

 

Day 0 evening I had a new gauze on as you can see in the pics, in the morning, I had quite a bit of blood on the pillow pad protector, and on the back of my head gauze. I went back to the doctors for wash and cut at about 11am.

 

I have to say on Day 1, after I went back and got my wash, I began agonizing over the haircut and the flight back, mostly afraid of the security checkpoint and bumping into someone while heading home. In the pics you can see the blue dye Dr. Gabel uses, some scabbing and redness.

 

The back is where you can see the spot that was bleeding the most, and then my crazy funny Jim Carrey (Dumb and Dumber) haircut. We were all laughing so much when they were trying to cut my hair, because they couldn't keep a straight face, and I figured I would trim better when I got home. Even that part was funny and brightened my day.

 

Luckily my hair in the front was long enough to be slightly covered, but the back, there was no way of hiding it because I would have a big gauze over the back for about 3-4 days.

 

So I thought why not cover it with some wig hair, or clip some hair to my back hair.. even thought of bobby pinning the fake hair into my hair. Or gluing it,...that's when I knew I had to go watch a comedy movie to get my mind off of it. That was a great idea.

 

Day 2: morning, you can see there is mostly pussing and no bleeding. So I woke up to get ready for my flight and you can see the swelling started in my forehead, at least it makes my wrinkles go away! But for the back gauze I said screw it....on the hair wig thing.

 

In the end, I decided to put clear packing tape on the whole side of the medical gauze and then took a black magic marker too it so at least it wouldn't stand out like a white one would. That actually eased my mind, to know that people far away really couldn't see it, only those within talking distance. Someone should make black or brown type gauze. I also decided to put Polysporin on the left side and Neosporin on the right side, to see which one would heal better and faster. I've had great luck with Neosporin before, so we'll see.

 

I decided to wear my hat and jacket also, which happened to have a hoodie on it, so I wore that whenever I was out in public. The hoodie laid on top of my existing longer hair, so the graphs were safe, no rubbing. Then when back in the car or house would take off the hoodie.

 

Going through the security check point at the airport, I had to just say screw it...so I wore my hoodie as long as I could til I had to go through. Then off it came, and I only saw one security person mention it to the other guy, but that was it. When my jacket came through I put it right back on, but had to stand and send my backpack through again. So I decided to ease my anxiety by joking and talking with the security guy, now that my hoodie was back on, it was all good, and it helped.

 

Next was the flight, and guess what, I knew the main flight attendant, YUP, just what I was fearing. But I kept my hat and hoodie on, said hi and went to sleep. Everytime I went to the bathroom, I would take off my hoodie and hat, and let my head breath. I used the bathroom a lot, but I did notice that the swelling had gotten bigger and moved down to my temples. So I had brought some travel ice packs, and used that to reduce the swelling. In the end, my flight attendant friend came and talked to me for a while, and didn't bat an eyelash or ask any unusual questions, and my hoodie jacket is bright red by the way.

 

We arrived home and I had already arranged a cab ride. Came home and quickly iced and washed the areas. I already notice the donor area healing really well.

 

End of Day 2.

[win200]

It could be lighting but it appears that you have a nw 4 to 5 pattern developing. Was this discussed? You choose a great doctor but it does seen aggressive for the pattern you seem to be developing. I think you should be pretty choosie with where your future grafts are placed.

 

Really? I'm not sure I see the NW4/5 pattern emerging. Are you talking about some of the scalp exposed under the wet hair? It seems pretty full to me... there's always going to be some scalp showing with wet hair.

[Spanker]

Really? I'm not sure I see the NW4/5 pattern emerging. Are you talking about some of the scalp exposed under the wet hair? It seems pretty full to me... there's always going to be some scalp showing with wet hair.

 

Pictures are deceitful sometimes with angle an lighting. I could be wrong. I am sure that if it is a pattern emerging that it was discussed with him prior to surgery. Dr. Gabel is top notch.

[Blake Bloxham]

Willit,

 

Congratulations! Look forward to updates.

[Willit]

Thanks guys for the comments, I believe i'm a Norwood 2 or 3, and have stabilized with Avodart. Dr. Gabel shaved the front a bit more into the hairline for the procedure. If I do another procedure I'm hoping to focus more on the crown area.

 

I noticed today I had quite a bit of swelling in my forehead and around the eyes, so I was doing a lot of icing today periodically.

 

Here are some updated pics also, but I have a question, I have been sleeping with a slightly elevated head, afraid to touch the graphs. When is it ok to not worry about hitting or touching the graphs? They seem so solid already, but I'm being really cautious.

 

And final question, I still have my hair a bit long, but am debating if I should just trim down the whole thing for when I go back to work in a week, or leave it and try and cover it? I'm mainly thinking for the frontal temple recipient area. Any advice on what to do?

[hsrp10]

Dr. Gabel's post-op always look clean and not so red as other surgeons, just like Dr. Konior's work

makes sense as he trained under Dr. K

 

you should be in for some very nice changes in a couple months

[hairthere]

Love the hairline design! Good healing and growing to you!

[Willit]

Pics from days 4, 5, and 6. If they areas look wet it's because these are the days the regimen is to put mineral oil on the recipient area and polysporin on the donor area. I have some small pain in both areas, but they are small dull pain that I'm taking 2 Advil for.

 

I've also decided to eat as healthy as possible with foods that promote good hair growth, like Salmon (Omega-3 fats), sweet potato, Nutribullet Spinach shake x 2s a day; acai, blueberry, strawberry bowls (antioxidants), coconut water, lots of regular water, lentil soup. Pretty much trying to stay away from preservatives and fast foods.

 

Also taking:

MSM - 3000mg

Bioastin - antioxidant

Hair, Skin, and Nails - by Nature's Bounty (w/ 5000 mcg of Biotin)

Collagen

Vitamin E - 400 iu

Avodart

Multivitamin

Iron

Fish Oil

 

Taking them at different times in the day, so they are spaced out.

 

Thanks for the continued support, tomorrow I start my bath soaking day for the graphs.

[win200]

I love Dr. Gabel's work--always so clean. And he's such a nice guy; I've met him on a few occasions.

 

How old are you, BTW? I think it's always interesting to gauge surgical approach against a patient's age.

[Willit]

I have to say, I've been resting all week, and have pretty much stayed in my house, reading books, watching movies and tv, pretty much getting bored by now in my hermit phase. As the days go by, I've been able to slowly take more trips outside, used a hat, gone to a movie theater, shopping, and slowly becoming normal again. With every person I talk with or passer by that looks at me normally I gain more confidence. The biggest hurdle will be work, family, and friends.

 

It just so happens that my Day 10 will be Father's Day and my first really long encounter with people and my Dumb and Dumber haircut, at least it will be with my parents (who don't know), so we'll see how it goes.

 

Here are some updated pics of Days 7-9, when I began my bath soaks, white crusts formed and were gently removed in the bath. I've begun using Graphcyte shampoo as well, am no longer using Baby Shampoo. Still using mineral oil on graph area til all white crusts come off. Stopped using Polysporin on Day 9 on donor area, and every now and then use Aloe Vera Gel 99% on the donor area if I feel a tingle or pain or anything. I have to be honest, I still decided to use the cup method for wetting and rinsing the hair, and lightly put on shampoo for the graphed areas. I've also put all these pics in my profile alblum

 

One thing I would recommend is to grow out your hair as long as possible to cover over the recipient area when you have to go back to work, or the opposite, go fully buzzed so people get used to that look for a while before your procedure. I like the long hair method, because even if there is redness on my scalp I could cover it up with longer hair. Any ideas for cover up let me know.

[Willit]

I began thinking Day 10 would be Father's Day with my parents, but the cancelled due to being ill. My next challenge was going to work, I ended up asking Dr. Gabel for a doctors note to wear a hat at work for the next 2 months. He quickly obliged, and did so in a discrete letter, this was my saving grace. I submitted to my boss and was off and running, explaining to my co-workers along the way that I had a procedure and my doctor is asking me to wear a hat at work. Most coworkers don't ask much other than: "Are you ok?" and as soon as I say "I'm ok, just need to take it easy." and they usually don't ask much more than that. I am lucky because I have an office and can close my door when I need to and take off my hat and let my graphs breath, which I do as much as possible.

 

I am still using Graphcyte shampoo on the transplanted area, and regular non-sulfate shampoo on the rest of my hair. Around the 16 day time I began to hurt from the dryness on the scalp so I decided to not shampoo or wash for a couple of days, which turned into 3 days. When I checked it on day 3, it looked like the transplanted area got bumpy and some zits formed, perhaps infected? So I decided to wash every 2 days, but upon looking again I thought it best to wash every day, and consult with Dr. Gabel about this.

 

I notice that there is some shedding starting in the right temporal areas and the native hairs are starting to grow back.

 

I've been putting Aloe Vera 99% on the donor area and you can see hair growth in that area are good. I still feel very awkward with the front hairline area being noticeable and don't know what to do about that other than wearing a hat when being with other people.

 

I tried to go to the gym at the 14 day mark, and did cardio for about 10 minutes when my head started to hurt a bit, I thought it might be psychosomatic so I continued. After another 2 minutes I still had some dull pain in my head, so I decided to stop. I went and did a little bit of machine exercises, but stopped after 4 different exercises of 3 sets of 10 reps.

 

I decided to wait another week before going to the gym again, but I'm getting stir crazy from just sitting around and watching tv or surfing the internet. Today I'll try the gym again lightly on day 21.

 

Here are some pictures from Day 14 and Day 21

[densedream]

Looks so fresh and so clean clean. You're going to be happy with these results in a year from now. Good Luck!

[hairweare]

Getting a good short graduated haircut might look a lot better. A funky long-short look which you now have I think brings out more attention. In a week or two the redness will start to fade and you will look much more normal than you think. You have enough hair to get it styled and then just forget about your grafts for the next four months and get it cut every 4 weeks. Your new hairline will come in so gradually no one will ever notice it but rather think you lost weight, started to work out more, or just came back from a long restful vacation.

[hsrp10]

agreed that looks like it's healing well.

 

if you're wearing a comb over or comb down might want to stick with it as the shedding of the grafts should start soon. always nice to have the hair behind it long at this early phase, unless of course you're going to buzz everything which would be hard to do at this point I think

[irishsailor]

Congrats on yr ht with dr gabel, he's a great surgeon. Everything seems to be healing well. Hope it all goes well for u man .

[Hairtastic]

Looks good so far mate.

[Pete-from-Farjo]

Liking the look of this.

 

Look forward to future updates.

[Willit]

Now 4 weeks post op, the donor area is completely covered with hair and probably the only thing is I get comments about my bad haircut from my parents, so I passed one test there.

 

Lessons learned: the procedure was a snap, the after growing part and waiting is harder, especially trying to cover up the donor and recipient areas.

 

I am not doing too much exercise at 4 weeks because I get a head ache after about 10 mins, so I'll be taking advil to help with that.

 

If I did it again, I would shave the back down and grow the top front and sides as long as possible, with a comb forward to cover it up, but that's just me. The other option of course is full shave. At least my hair is to the point that I can conceal the recipient area with my hair a bit better, it just still looks dorky, especially since I normally comb my hair up.

 

Here are some pics at 28 days, I've started Revivogen 1 x a week and have used up about all of my Graphcyte. At 28 days, I do notice a little bit more shedding, and I'm washing 1 x a day....

[Mickey85]

Dr. Gabel's post-op always look clean and not so red as other surgeons, just like Dr. Konior's work

makes sense as he trained under Dr. K

 

you should be in for some very nice changes in a couple months

 

Was Dr Gabel trained by Konior? Gabel's recipient sites are so immaculate much like Koniors. The cleanliness and angles and the grafts... Just perfection.

[OtherSyde]

Was Dr Gabel trained by Konior? Gabel's recipient sites are so immaculate much like Koniors. The cleanliness and angles and the grafts... Just perfection.

 

I have no idea who he trained under, but I can vouch for the immaculate cleanliness and graft angles.

 

 

Looking great thus far Willit! You're past the worst of it - the part where you actually look like you've had surgery - and now with the swelling and redness gone down and the donor site covered up with hair you can skate by with people only thinking you got a bad hair cut, and it will only get better! Hang in there and make friends with Netflix and in-door activities for a month or three and you'll be a new man by the end of summer/beginning of fall!

[Britanium]

Really liking the work here. So clean and refined. Great hairline too ! look forward to the updates :-)