3,100 grafts FUT Dr. Cooley

[dragonbo]

Hi everyone, I had my first HT with Dr. Cooley in Charlotte, NC, five days ago. I'm local to Charlotte, so choosing Dr. Cooley was a no-brainer.

I wanted to start this thread not only to share the results but also to keep track of the progress of this journey for myself.

After a consultation, we agreed on a 3,000-graft FUT, which ended up being 3,100.

Here are some updates after the first five days. One thing I wish I had considered prior was how long my hair needed to be to help blend in the scar/stitches, but there is nothing I can do now but wait until the hair grows longer. Right now, even being able to see a potential hairline has given me new confidence for the future, so I'm super excited for the next year!

 

 

[Melvin- Admin]

Dr. Cooley is one of the best, the work looks exceptionally clean. Happy growing 🙏

[Samson1]

From seeing his previous results, I highly doubt the scar will look that pronounce once things have healed!

Your staples aren't even out yet right?

On top of that, being really pale (like me) helps hide the scarring lol

[dragonbo]

8 minutes ago, Samson1 said:

From seeing his previous results, I highly doubt the scar will look that pronounce once things have healed!

Your staples aren't even out yet right?

On top of that, being really pale (like me) helps hide the scarring lol

Right, stitches don't come out for another 13 days, so very fresh still. I actually think it's healing very well and is already close to my skin color. It's deceiving since my hair is short, and they also shaved that section all the way down. This is what I would expect it to look like if I shaved a line across the back of my head. I'm not concerned about it at all, just wish I grew my hair out more prior to the surgery to hide it better. Lesson learned!

[Samson1]

37 minutes ago, dragonbo said:

Right, stitches don't come out for another 13 days, so very fresh still. I actually think it's healing very well and is already close to my skin color. It's deceiving since my hair is short, and they also shaved that section all the way down. This is what I would expect it to look like if I shaved a line across the back of my head. I'm not concerned about it at all, just wish I grew my hair out more prior to the surgery to hide it better. Lesson learned!

A fair enough, a few months from now you won't care at all wither way dude.

If anyone gives you grief just say you had a brain tumour removed or something, that should quieten them down (I'm partially joking)!

[Jim478]

I am 16 months from my transplant with Cooley.   I usually get my hair trimmed to a 3 on the sides.   I let it grow for about a month before the surgery in anticipation to cover the stitches.  
 

I later regretted that because it was harder to take care of the scar through all my hair.  I had a hard time putting the ointment on the scar,  so that was a different problem.   I thought that I should have cut my hair shorter.  
 

Either way,  I love my results and the scar is really thin.   I cannot even find it now.   I can get my hair cut with a 3 on the sides with no worries.   And my hair and skin are lighter as well.  
 

 

[dragonbo]

4 hours ago, Samson1 said:

A fair enough, a few months from now you won't care at all wither way dude.

If anyone gives you grief just say you had a brain tumour removed or something, that should quieten them down (I'm partially joking)!

Thanks for the tip! 🤣

[dragonbo]

17 minutes ago, Jim478 said:

I am 16 months from my transplant with Cooley.   I usually get my hair trimmed to a 3 on the sides.   I let it grow for about a month before the surgery in anticipation to cover the stitches.  
 

I later regretted that because it was harder to take care of the scar through all my hair.  I had a hard time putting the ointment on the scar,  so that was a different problem.   I thought that I should have cut my hair shorter.  
 

Either way,  I love my results and the scar is really thin.   I cannot even find it now.   I can get my hair cut with a 3 on the sides with no worries.   And my hair and skin are lighter as well.  
 

 

This is great feedback, glad you've had positive results. I will say having my hair short makes applying the ointment very easy, so maybe it is a good thing.

[dragonbo]

Day 7. Today was the first day I was allowed to shampoo gently with the pads of my fingers, which removed some of the smaller scabs that were ready to come off.

Now that I've documented the first week, I'm going to hold off posting until the scabs are gone, hopefully in a few days.

The one thing I still struggle with is that I have no idea what to expect for my new hairline in terms of density. My only complaint with Cooley was that they didn't explain what it could potentially look like a year and a half from now. I brought it up a few times during consultation and pre-surgery, but the only response I got was that I would be "very pleased with the results". During the consultation, I asked if they could send me examples of previous clients that were similar, but I never received those. To be clear, the decision was 100% mine to sign up for the surgery without getting my questions answered, but that would be my ONLY complaint. Everyone at Dr. Cooley's office was amazing.

I don't know the breakdown of the grafts since he did most in the front, some in the back, and then some on the temples as well. I do have an appointment to get my stitches removed in 12 days, so maybe he can give me those answers then.

With that, I've been searching the forum for other people who have similar balding patterns to myself and a similar number of grafts. I am pretty realistic about my expectations, but I also have no idea what those expectations are. I also think a lot of this is just coming from the excitement and nerves of this entire process.

 

[forgotpassword]

congrats on joining the "Cool" club

Because of the procedure being FUT I imagine the coverage/density will be good to keep your hair at a medium length?

Are you on any preventative medication?

Worst case right now is to stress yourself out; it's a journey so just take it one day at a time and focus on healing

[dragonbo]

Just now, forgotpassword said:

congrats on joining the "Cool" club

Because of the procedure being FUT I imagine the coverage/density will be good to keep your hair at a medium length?

Are you on any preventative medication?

Worst case right now is to stress yourself out; it's a journey so just take it one day at a time and focus on healing

Appreciate the advice! I'll definitely try to not stress about it, I just needed to get that out for my own sanity. I was on topical Minoxidil for about 8 months leading up to surgery. They had me stop taking it 2 weeks prior and I can start again 3 weeks after surgery (in 2 weeks). I will be starting on finasteride at that time as well.

[dragonbo]

Day 11. The scabs are gone and I still have some redness but not really noticeable with my skin color. My hair length is somewhere between a 3-4 guard right now, just waiting for the hair that was shaved around the stitches to grow in longer. Stitches come out in a week but I'll post another update at the 1-month mark.