Regular Member FUEgetaboutit Posted January 24, 2021 Regular Member Share Posted January 24, 2021 Has anyone had an issue with, well... what the title says? I got my first transplant on Friday. Friday night was a breeze. I had no problems sleeping. But early this morning, I woke to myself unconsciously scratching my recipient area. Luckily, the recipient area happened to be covered by some hair, so I didn't end up really digging into the grafts. I didn't find any grafts on the pillow or in the bath, so I don't think I did any damage. Has anyone else had any trouble with this? I figure there's not much that can be done. I hear that wearing any kind of cap to bed can be overall harmful to grafts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Future Hair Doc Posted January 24, 2021 Senior Member Share Posted January 24, 2021 Are you scratching because of an itch? Try diphenhydramine if that's the case 1 My advice does not constitute a patient-physician relationship nor as medical advice and all medical questions/concerns should be addressed to your medical provider. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member FUEgetaboutit Posted January 24, 2021 Author Regular Member Share Posted January 24, 2021 Yes, I do notice that my head is a little itchy around the recipient and donor areas. It's not bad when I'm awake, but I guess when I'm asleep, it's annoying enough that I can't help scratching. At least this morning, I couldn't help it. Interesting. I use diphenhydramine to help me sleep on occasion, but I never knew that it had anti-itch properties. I'll give it a try. Thanks, Dr. Khokhar! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member ciaus Posted January 24, 2021 Senior Member Share Posted January 24, 2021 You can also try actually restraining your hands before you go to bed, use some string/rope, and loosely tie each hand to a side of the bed with enough slack for you to still move your arms but not enough to reach your head. Or if you are a side sleeper you can cut a hole in small towel or old shirt just large enough for you to slide both of your hands through and then run some string/rope around that and tie it to a side of the bed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Melvin- Admin Posted January 24, 2021 Administrators Share Posted January 24, 2021 There was a thread where a guy tied his hands during sleep. How many days post op are you? 1 I’m a paid admin for Hair Transplant Network. I do not receive any compensation from any clinic. My comments are not medical advice. Check out my final hair transplant and topical dutasteride journey: View my thread Topical dutasteride journey Melvin- Managing Publisher and Forum Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Coalition Hair Loss Learning Center, and the Hair Loss Q&A Blog. Follow our Social Media: Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, and YouTube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member FUEgetaboutit Posted January 24, 2021 Author Regular Member Share Posted January 24, 2021 Whoa, that's intense. lol. I'm 2 days post-op. That gives me an idea, though. Maybe I can wrap my hands up, or wear mittens when I go to bed? I think I may be good, so long as I don't actually scratch my grafts with my fingernails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member giegnosiganoe Posted January 25, 2021 Senior Member Share Posted January 25, 2021 I'm worried about this possibility, especially as I've seen a few people on here do it recently. I plan on zipping up my arms inside the body of a sweater. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member TommyLucchese Posted January 25, 2021 Senior Member Share Posted January 25, 2021 On the first night, I came out of a deep sleep into a light one where you're sort of half aware, and I slapped myself on the top of the forehead. First and only time it's ever happened. I also hit my head on the compartment thing above the seats on the flight back. Luckily no damage but it's definitely a stressful time making sure you protect your grafts. 2,000 grafts FUT Dr. Feller, July 27th 2012. 23 years old at the time. Excellent result. Need crown sorted eventually but concealer works well for now. Propecia and minoxidil since 2010. Fine for 8 years - bad sides after switching to Aindeem in 2018. Switched to topical fin/minox combo from Minoxidil Max in October 2020, along with dermarolling 1x a week. Wrote a book for newbies called Beating Hair Loss, available on Amazon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member Stubble Posted January 25, 2021 Regular Member Share Posted January 25, 2021 I'm gonna chip in and say I also tied my hands the first few nights after my procedure Just like what Ciaus said. However, I think my solution was a bit simpler. I took a string that I tied around the side of my boxer shorts and then loosely around my wrists. (This doesn't work if you sleep naked. Or actually, if you manage to make it work naked, please don't let us know how...) Anyway, it worked really well. It was long enough that I could sleep comfortably, but short enough that I could move my hands just about to the edge of my chin. It was worth it. The first few nights, I woke up because the string tightened when I tried to scratch the recipient area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member giegnosiganoe Posted January 25, 2021 Senior Member Share Posted January 25, 2021 With a string I'd just tie my wrists together behind my back, letting them rest at my sides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member FUEgetaboutit Posted January 25, 2021 Author Regular Member Share Posted January 25, 2021 (edited) I'm a terrible sleeper, and I need things to be just right to be able to get a decent night's sleep. The tying of the hands seems like it would just be too uncomfortable and disorienting for me. Instead, last night I put on some mittens that I tied nice and tightly. I think this more or less worked. When I tried to do anything in my half-awake stupor, the feeling of the mittens was just out of place enough to wake me up. As far as I know, I didn't even try to scratch my head, but I think the mittens would have been a nice buffer between my hand and the grafts. (I'm also lucky that I have a decent amount of hair covering my grafts, which provides for a little extra protection.) I think the mittens should work. I didn't see a bunch of dislodged grafts on my bed, so I'll stick with them for now. And I mean, as long as I'm still seeing the transplanted hair shafts staying in place, I'll have to assume that I'm good for now, right? Edited January 25, 2021 by FUEgetaboutit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Al - Moderator Posted January 26, 2021 Moderators Share Posted January 26, 2021 Once you get past the first week you don't have to worry about it anymore. Al Forum Moderator (formerly BeHappy) I am a forum moderator for hairrestorationnetwork.com. I am not a Dr. and I do not work for any particular Dr. My opinions are my own and may not reflect the opinions of other moderators or the owner of this site. I am also a hair transplant patient and repair patient. You can view some of my repair journey here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member LondonRamen Posted January 27, 2021 Regular Member Share Posted January 27, 2021 (edited) Tying your hands with rope is probably going a bit too far haha. If you need to, wear a top while you sleep and pull your arms inside into the top through the arms (so the sleeves are empty) and then your arms can't wriggle about or be used to scratch your head. Or if it's too early for tops and you're wearing a shirt/ hoody - you should still be able to pull your arms inside them. Edited January 27, 2021 by LondonRamen 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member caricatura Posted January 27, 2021 Regular Member Share Posted January 27, 2021 Looking forward to your thread on this--I hope Dr. Wesley and team treated you well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member FUEgetaboutit Posted January 28, 2021 Author Regular Member Share Posted January 28, 2021 19 hours ago, caricatura said: Looking forward to your thread on this--I hope Dr. Wesley and team treated you well! Thanks! My experience was pretty smooth. I'm waiting a bit before I post anything, but once I have some concrete results, I will be sure to share! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member ciaus Posted January 28, 2021 Senior Member Share Posted January 28, 2021 23 hours ago, LondonRamen said: Tying your hands with rope is probably going a bit too far haha. If you need to, wear a top while you sleep and pull your arms inside into the top through the arms (so the sleeves are empty) and then your arms can't wriggle about or be used to scratch your head. Or if it's too early for tops and you're wearing a shirt/ hoody - you should still be able to pull your arms inside them. that's an excellent simpler idea, get a real loose fitting t-shirt etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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