Socialdrinker's Dr. Cooley Surgery 6/18/04

Robert_ · June 18, 2004

Well, its done! 2,300 graphs in all! I cannot begin to express how relaxed and easy this procedure was for me.

First off, please forgive me for my inevitable leaving anything out of this post tonight, as I have already taken the two Valium that will help me sleep soundly tonight, and Im sure I will be missing something or another.

I will say, though that the hair on the back of my head was extremely short. I had it in a "high-and-tight" hair cut so it was no longer than 3/8" or so. Looking at the stitiches, though, hardly noticeable. I feel very relaxed and only a SLIGHT tight feeling in the donor area. Im sure it will be sore tomorrow, but, I really still cant believe how painless and (dare I say it???) FUN the entire procedure was.

I did an interview on camera beforehand. There is footage of Dr. Cooley mapping out the new hairline and narrating the planned process the entire way. Some more pictures were taken, and I was shown to the room where the magic would happen.

I saw no less than 3 (though there may have been 4) microscopes along the far wall for dissection. The process began with my vitals being read and me taking some anti-biotics and two Valium to soothe me.

I then laid face down on the chair (its just like one of those massage chairs where your face pokes throught the bottom, so its very comfortable). I was then given a shot to further soothe me for the extraction.

Now, Ive read some stories on here about the application of the local anesthesia being painful, and I can see how it could have been, but Dr. Cooley has this really cool technique where he holds some kind of massaging apparatus next to the place its being administered while its being administered. This helped alot. I barely felt a thing. Not one time did I feel anything but a small prick.

The donor area was shaved and I could feel something being spread on the surrounding area to separate the hair so they would have an unabstructed area to work with. Now, for the actually extraction, I apologize in advance because I wont be able to tell you much.

To say the least, I was feeling pretty dang good at that point. I do remember the sound of them working, but as far as what was taking place, it beats me. Im pretty sure Brandy (the technician that was there the entire time...THANKS BRANDY!!!) was telling me what was going on, but who knows what I was thinking about.

The next thing I remember, I was being lightly nudged awake. At any given interbal throughout the day, my comfort was ensured by the entire staff. I noticed that there were no less than three technicians dissecting the graphs under the microscope when I stood up. I really had no idea how tedius this job is. I saw pictures in the album and this job takes some kind of attention to detail!

I was on cloud 9 (but never uncomfortably buzzed, just pleasantly euphoric) and went to the restroom for a quick break. This was the last time I would see my huge forehead the exact same way again.

When I returned to the room, I sat down and was even able to kick off my shoes so I was more comfortable. Let me tell you, this is NO DIFFERENT than kicking back in your recliner at home. A list of movies was presented to me, and since I hadnt seen Monty Python in a while, I opted for "Monty Python and the Holy Grail". Funny stuff, but I tried my best to refrain from laughing, I certainly wanted to make their job as easy as possible.

I fell asleep after only about 20 minutes into the movie, and awoke during the credits. By this time, it was lunchtime and I was given some Quiznos I had ordered earlier. Awesome stuff.

Back to business. Im given another Valium and given another look at the movie list. I pick a James Bond flick. I'm thinking I got through approximately 3 and a half minutes of this movie before I was out like a light again. It was just so comfortable. I awoke and saw the last ten minutes or so of this.

After that, I was immediately offered the list agian, but I opted to just say "nah". Seemed like a waste of time to keep popping movies in if Im just gonna snooze through them. They turned on the golf tournement, which was nice. Again, I drift off. I dont think it was so much the drugs as it was the fact that I had awaken at 5 a.m. to get to the office by 7:30 and didnt sleep the best the night before I was so anxious.

When I awoke, the radio was playing softly. That was nice too. Dr. Cooley and Becky assured me to speak up at any time I felt anything remotely discomfortable, so occasionaly if I felt something like a mild pin prick, Id say so and immediately another shot of anesthesia was given.

They both worked so diligently for hours and hours. The longest break I saw either of them take was for no longer than 5 minutes. Even then, one would break, while the other continued to work. Heck, MY bathroom breaks lasted longer than that!

This is just my best memory (they warned that I wouldnt remember much) but I think that I was in the chair until a little after 7 p.m. After all the graphs (2,300! can you say WOW!) were placed, a few photos were taken and I talked to Pat. He congratulated me and asked how I felt. I felt great, couldnt wipe the smile off my face. Me and Dr. Cooley took a picture together and my post care instructions were re-itterated to me. I was given a take home bag with some sterilewater-cleansing solution, a ball cap, some rogaine, some other topical foam, and some Valium to help me sleep soundly for the next couple of days.

There is a likely chance that I wouldnt remember everything that was instructed, so Dr. Cooley gave me his cell phone number to call him tomorrow (how many Dr.'s can you call on a saturday???) so he can go back over it with me.

I once again thanked him, Becky, and Ailene as profusely as I could and got driven back to Columbia, SC by my roomate. I sit here now, feeling no less than awesome and excited.

Like I said before, I will post pictures tomorrow, and it will give everyone a good look at my new hairling and redness (which is not bad AT ALL). But for right now, its bed time, for socialdrinker. Ill re-read this post in the morning to fill in any blank spots that Ive most assuredly missed and post those pics.

Once again, thanks so much Dr. Cooley, Ailene, Becky, and the rest of his staff, Pat, this forum and everyone that has given me the tremendous advice and encouragement that made today possible.

*UPDATE 6/19/04*

I awoke this morning feeling refreshed and with even less soreness than from when I went to sleep. I slept on my back. With the help of the Valium, it doesn't appear that I rolled around much, or even any at all. I decided that since I was feeling a bit more level-headed, some pictures were in order. So, without further ado, here they are. Now, remember, these are taken with my phone under a bright bathroom light as to ensure the limited capabilities of the phone will capture the most detail.

My awesome new hairline!!!

Scar? What scar? Actually, one can upon inspection see the stitches and Ill try to get a better shot tomorrow of them. Keep in mind that the hair on the back of my head is VERY short (about 3/8", a 1/2" is really pushing it)

Robert_ · June 18, 2004