~3200 Grafts FUT, Dr. John Diep 7/14/2014

[PP2]

7/23/2014

*I slept well again. Pain level in the back of my head was about the same as yesterday.

 

*I shampooed again normally today and some more of the dry blood and crusting came off but I still feel there is a good amount on there. Hmmm…

 

*Tomorrow I get my sutures out! Yay!

[PP2]

7/24/2014

 

Some pictures immediately following the removal of my sutures. The pictures are a little disturbing to viewers and I apologize for it, but I thought I share.

[PP2]

7/24/2014

 

*I slept good again. Pain level in the back of my head didn’t change from yesterday.

*I visited Dr. Diep’s office today to get my sutures removed, can’t believe it has already been 10 days! When the nurses looked at my head they noted that I still had a lot of scabbing on my head. They mentioned that I really need to start trying to get the scabbing off or else it can hinder the growth of the graft. They told me I should try to be more aggressive when massaging my hair to try and remove the remaining scabbing.

 

*The suture removal was a bit painful but bearable. Some parts were more painful than others but it wasn’t too bad. It took about 45min. I also had a good amount of scabbing along the suture line so before beginning the suture removal the nurse had removed the scabbing first.

 

*After the sutures were removed, I felt I had some more mobility with my lower jaw but the pain in the back of my head was still there. Still about a level 2/10 pain level.

 

*Later that day I took a shower and this time I was more aggressive with the massaging of my scalp. I applied more pressure to the recipient area in an attempt to remove the remaining scabbing that I had. After the shower, a good amount of the scabbing on top of my head had come off but afterwards I had some slight pain on top of my head, Iwhich most likely was caused by the increase in pressure I applied when shampooing. The top of my head felt irritated and looked a bit pink. I hope I didn’t overdue anything but I’m will stay positive.

[PP2]

7/25/2014

 

*I slept well again. I still continued to have some pain in the back of my head, about the same pain level as yesterday.

 

*Having the sutures out gives me a little more mobility with my lower jaw but when I open my mouth or smile too big, I can still feel the scar stretching so I still try to be careful.

 

*I still have a decent amount of scabbing on top of my head. And so I washed more aggressively again by applying more pressure. Some of the scabbing came off but there was still some left behind. My head turned a bit red in some areas and got irritated even after the aggressive wash, but still there are scabbing that remained, this stuff is like glue! The doctor tells me not to pick them out and to just massage them out, which is hard. I’m hoping I’m not damaging anything.

 

*The scar area is slowly healing. I apply Neosporin daily along the scar.

[PP2]

7/26/2014

 

*Slept well again. The pain in the back of my head receded a little bit, but still there.

 

*Since I shampooed pretty aggressively yesterday, I only washed my head with water and conditioner today, very gently. No shampoo. I wanted to give my head a rest.

[PP2]

7/27/2014

 

*Slept well again. The pain in the back of my head didn’t change from yesterday.

 

*I shampooed again normally and applied some more pressure in attempt to get rid of any remaining scabbing. And more scabbing came off but there is still a little bit that remain. My head felt a little irritated because of the added pressure when massaging my scalp, hopefully I’m not overdoing it but this scabbing is really hard to come off.

 

*I had to go to a family get-together and decided to wear a hat. I was instructed that I could start wearing a hat after 2 weeks. Wearing a hat didn’t bother me on the recipient area but it was a little discomforting in the donor area. And I wore my heat really loose but after about 5min of wearing I felt the discomfort slowly went away.

[m0dthispny]

nice updates, just give it time, its a long process.

 

i had my fue HT with dr. diep in late january, check out my thread to see the updates.

[machman]

good updates how much did they charge you ?>

[PP2]

nice updates, just give it time, its a long process.

 

i had my fue HT with dr. diep in late january, check out my thread to see the updates.

 

I just saw yours, yours is looking incredible even at 5 months, wow!

[PP2]

good updates how much did they charge you ?>

 

Sent you a PM

[m0dthispny]

I just saw yours, yours is looking incredible even at 5 months, wow!

 

thank you. yours will turn out nice too, you just have to give it time.

 

and the recovery is like a roller coaster, so many times i sat there regretting the surgery in the 2 month, 3 month mark, but every day things improve, and just know there will eventually be light at end of tunnel.

 

do you know if he placed more emphasis on the hairline area. vs the crown?

[PP2]

thank you. yours will turn out nice too, you just have to give it time.

 

and the recovery is like a roller coaster, so many times i sat there regretting the surgery in the 2 month, 3 month mark, but every day things improve, and just know there will eventually be light at end of tunnel.

 

do you know if he placed more emphasis on the hairline area. vs the crown?

 

Thats what I heard too, the 1st 3 months are an 'ugly duckling' phase of the healing process. I think Dr. Diep placed more emphasis on the hairline because naturally my hair line was pretty much gone. I still had some hair towards the front but the area's around my temple had no hair. During my second consultation we talked a lot about how I needed to restore my hairline because of the fact that was the area I was losing my hair the most.

[PP2]

7/28/2014

*It’s officially been 2 weeks! Still have a lot of time to go but I’m pleased that the hard part is over. The 1st week especially was pretty tough. So far I think progress has been positive.

*Dr. Diep had called to ask and check on how I was doing, which was nice of him.

 

*I slept well again. I have been feeling pretty much back too normal mentally. I still have some pain on the back of my head but a lot of the scabbing on the recipient area has gone away, still small amounts remain.

 

*I’m allowed to start wearing a hat now, but I need to wear it loosely. I went outside several times and it felt really good, I’ve been sitting at home these past 2 weeks. Wearing a hat is a little discomforting along the donor area but not too bad. I got used to it after about a minute.

 

*I think the scar is healing up nicely, still have a long way to go but there is still some scabbing along the scar line that I need to try and remove. It feels like now that scar is closed, and I still apply Neosporin daily.

 

*I’m going to start posting pictures and updates on a weekly basis for this 1st month, no more daily pics. Then after the first month, I will be posting on a monthly basis.

[BayArea510]

Sorry for responding back late I've been busy. To answer your question, yes after about 2 weeks you should have no scabs on the transplanted area. Although it will be slightly pink color for a little while longer. The scar is still very visable especially on the sides for me because the hair has not grown back completely around the strip yet but it has gone from dark red to more pink showing it is healing. FYI the transplanted hairs will fall out between week 3 -4. Got some small stubbles of hair growth at week 6 but not expecting to see much until month 3-4 which sucks but expected.

[PP2]

Sorry for responding back late I've been busy. To answer your question, yes after about 2 weeks you should have no scabs on the transplanted area. Although it will be slightly pink color for a little while longer. The scar is still very visable especially on the sides for me because the hair has not grown back completely around the strip yet but it has gone from dark red to more pink showing it is healing. FYI the transplanted hairs will fall out between week 3 -4. Got some small stubbles of hair growth at week 6 but not expecting to see much until month 3-4 which sucks but expected.

 

No worries! Thank you for reply, I appreciate the input.

[PP2]

8/4/2014

 

*I slept really well this past week. I had no more issue's of getting up in the middle of the night. The pain level in the back of my head has gone down since week 2 and it has allowed me to sleep like normal now.

 

*I don't have necessarily much pain in the back of my head, I just mainly have discomfort when I move my head in certain positions. When I look to far down, up, left or right, I still have discomfort but not so much pain.

 

*I think the scar has been healing up nicely so far, the scarline is still red but I still put Neosporin daily, as the doctor recommended. I'm going to continue applying it the one month mark and I may stop depending on how it looks. This scar is still very noticeable from behind. I have some patches of minimal hair, hopefully its not shockless.

 

*Pretty much all the scabbing and crusting has come off. This stuff was like glue and it took a lot of massaging to get off but its gone now. Its hard to tell if I still have scabbing along the scarline but I believe a lot of its gone. Showering is not bothersome anymore, it almost feels like normal now.

 

*I have been wearing a loose hat periodically now because I have been going out and seeing people more. I try not to wear a hat for too long but I only wear it when I go out of the house.

 

*I started noticing a few pimples along the hairline​ and I have some now on my forehead. I called Dr. Diep about it and they perscribed me some Doxycycline (anti-biotic drug) and Erythromocyin Topcial Ointment. I take the antibiotic & apply the ointment twice daily. I will be takng this for a week so hopefully the pimples will go away. They said it could be due to ingrown hairs but I'm not sure why I see more on my forehead.

 

*Overall I have been feeling ok, I am no where close of starting to see growth but I can't wait to start seeing it because I look like crap right now lol, but staying positive ​

[uiya]

How much does it cost???

[PP2]

How much does it cost???

 

PM sent

[PP2]

8/11/2014

 

*So far I think recovery has been going ok. I have been able to sleep really well and back to normal this past week. No more troubles for me sleeping.

 

*I noticed a lot of the transplanted hairs now have already started to and have already fallen out.

 

*Only disappointing thing that I have noticed so far is that I do have a good amount of shockloss along the scar line, especially on the left side of my head. I contacted Dr. Diep and sent him and a picture and he confirmed it was shockloss. His staff mentioned that shockloss hair could take up to 12 months to grow back and I hope it does! It looks really bad! The shockloss has gotten a little worse from last week, thats when I first start to notice it. I have been disappointed about this but I will continue to stay positive as I am still in the early phase of the transplant.

 

*I still do have some slight discomfort in the back of my head because of the strip but it has been getting much better every week. I can still do my normal activiites but I still try to avoid looking too far to the extremes with my head, I try to turn my body in those situations.

 

*Since its been 1 month, I am cleared now to start exercising and lifting weights again! I love to exercise so its been really great getting active again. Exercising was a bit of learning curve too because I try not to move my head to much to avoid streching the scar. The staff warned me about exercising too much because it can delay the healing of the scar and so I exercise with caution.

[ckkhoo]

Nice write up, hang in there, you will see a full crown of hair in no time! Keep the updates coming...

 

I have been losing hair for 5 years, I have been thinking of seeing Dr. Diep and using the FUE procedure instead. I have been told for asian, FUE would be preferable since the hair graft is thick and FUT will be very noticeable since the standing hair doesn't cover the scar much. FUE heals faster than FUT since it's less invasive. The only concern is yield rate and cost.

[PP2]

Nice write up, hang in there, you will see a full crown of hair in no time! Keep the updates coming...

 

I have been losing hair for 5 years, I have been thinking of seeing Dr. Diep and using the FUE procedure instead. I have been told for asian, FUE would be preferable since the hair graft is thick and FUT will be very noticeable since the standing hair doesn't cover the scar much. FUE heals faster than FUT since it's less invasive. The only concern is yield rate and cost.

 

I appreciate the kind words. Yesterday was the 2 month mark and I took pictures and I will be posting a 2 month update later tonight!

 

As far as FUE, I think its a really good option as well. I'm not too familiar whether or not FUE is a preferred technique for people of asian decent. That will be a good question to ask Dr. Diep. Dr. Diep is asian too and I believe he is vietnamese. I would definitely recommend just going in for a in-person consolation and he will educate you the pro's and con's of each procedure, FUT & FUE. Each procedure has their pro's & con's. If you think you will need a large number of grafts then maybe going with FUT may be a better option but it also the type of hair you have can play a factor on what method is better for you.

[refuse2lose]

I have some shock loss under my scar as well. Its tough to handle at first but part of the process. The good thing is you don't look to have any shockloss in your forelock.

 

Have you looked into dermmatch? I use it in the scalp areas in the back and it does a really good job at hiding them. I will try to post some pics.

[PP2]

I have some shock loss under my scar as well. Its tough to handle at first but part of the process. The good thing is you don't look to have any shockloss in your forelock.

 

Have you looked into dermmatch? I use it in the scalp areas in the back and it does a really good job at hiding them. I will try to post some pics.

 

No I haven't tried dermmatch! I will look into it. I have just been using Nanogen and its doing a good job too.

[PP2]

9/8/2014

*So far I think my recovery has been going ok. I look about the same as I did before the transplant now, some of my native hair has grew back. But I still have noticeable shockloss along left and right side of the scar line.

 

*All the scabbing has came off by now. And the redness has gone away completely in my opinion. I still have some numbness around the area around where the scar is and the area's near the transplanted areas.

 

*About 2 weeks ago I just started applying Nanogen again to help cover up the top as well as the shockloss along the scarline. Dr. Diep said it was ok for me to start applying it after the 1 month mark but I waited too about the 1.5 mark to start using it. I make sure after each time I use it I wash it off that following evening. Using it hasn't bothered me head nor have I noticed any irritation. It hasn't bothered me in any way so I will try to use it but I plan not to use it every day. About 3-4 days a week I use it.

 

*I have been getting out and exercising more. I feel more comfortable now working out. I started playing soccer last week and I felt fine, the top of my head got slightly sun-burned.

 

*I don't have much discomfort anymore along the scar line. The only discomfort that I have there is when I am lying back on it, like when I'm sleeping on my back and the pillow is applying pressure on the scare or when I rest my head on a head-rest in a car seat. Its discomforting in those situations so I try to avoid those.

 

*I apologize for the smaller pictures, I'm living on my own now and don't have someone to take pictures of me. Hopefully next time I will.

Edited September 10, 2014 by PP2

[ckkhoo]

9/8/2014

*So far I think my recovery has been going ok. I look about the same as I did before the transplant now, some of my native hair has grew back. But I still have noticeable shockloss along left and right side of the scar line.

 

*All the scabbing has came off by now. And the redness has gone away completely in my opinion. I still have some numbness around the area around where the scar is and the area's near the transplanted areas.

 

*About 2 weeks ago I just started applying Nanogen again to help cover up the top as well as the shockloss along the scarline. Dr. Diep said it was ok for me to start applying it after the 1 month mark but I waited too about the 1.5 mark to start using it. I make sure after each time I use it I wash it off that following evening. Using it hasn't bothered me head nor have I noticed any irritation. It hasn't bothered me in any way so I will try to use it but I plan not to use it every day. About 3-4 days a week I use it.

 

*I have been getting out and exercising more. I feel more comfortable now working out. I started playing soccer last week and I felt fine, the top of my head got slightly sun-burned.

 

*I don't have much discomfort anymore along the scar line. The only discomfort that I have there is when I am lying back on it, like when I'm sleeping on my back and the pillow is applying pressure on the scare or when I rest my head on a head-rest in a car seat. Its discomforting in those situations so I try to avoid those.

 

*I apologize for the smaller pictures, I'm living on my own now and don't have someone to take pictures of me. Hopefully next time I will.

 

Did the doctor remove the sutures already?

 

BTW, from my experience since I have lesser hair on top, every time I'm under the sun for more than 1hr, I got sunburnt, and after that I lost bit more hair than usual, so now I always wear a hat if I know I'm gonna be under the sun for long period of time.