ht on jan 16 2009

[allen8158]

Just had ht 9 days ago, I am 50 years old and will return to work tomorrow. what did others tell there co-workers or do i just where a hat and say nothing? Dr. Thomas Law IAHRS member on Staten Island NY did procedure, didn't hurt a bit, stitches are out, and can't wait to take normal shower. Any have any other pointers or what to expect next as my countdown has started, Good day to all and thanks.

[Skeptic1st]

Hi Allen

Hi Allen, congratulations on your successful transplant.I had my HT procedure performed just four days ago and Im returning to work tommorow.Ive thought long and hard about the same question you posed,and now that I can see how my appearance has turned out since my procedure, Ive decided to just be honest with everyone and NOT try to hide it.I WILL however wear a semi loose fitting knit hat at anytime im outdoors because its so cold here in NJ and I dont want to risk my skin drying and scabbing too much if I can help it.I wish I knew of a topical lotion like a creme that would keep my head a bit moist,but I havnt heard of any that are safe so close to my procedure. Right now,Im using a spray bottle with saline every few hours.Allen, remember,If you attempt to hide your HT,you are going to have to do it for many months till you hair starts to grow.My advice would be to just go to work as normal and explain to others once they ask,even joke about it instead of being over defensive.Your likely to get more moral support that way and maybe convince other guys its not such a bad idea to have the work done.Good luck
Dale

[allen8158]

you are right!

Dale,
Don't forget vitamin E oil at night seems to work well keeping clean and moist, just don't over do it, maybe 7-10 drops ( any cvs has it) did you get edema at all? i had it day 3 & 4 , ice compresses worked well. yup, just go into work, they"ll be comments mostly from unknowns,WHO CARES! This friday , i can finally take regular shower, and be able to be a little rougher with drying hair. you must be as excited as myself, good luck and keep me posted on your progress! Been to Mt. Holly for youth baseball team i coach. By next December ,you and me , will have our celebration! Thanks for support.

[Skeptic1st]

Allen

I wasnt told anything about vitamin E oil...You said use it at night?? Your doctor recommended this? I will try it!I didnt get edema ,at least not yet.I am actually suprised at how easy this whole thing has gone for me,no complications(or even headaches/pain) at all.I just keep spritzing with the saline.I get my staples removed in two days and was told(not by my doc) to soak the donor area with warm water to loosen the skin prior to having them removed,otherwise, I might feel a bit more of a pinch,or soreness when removed.I'd love to stay in touch to measure our progress.
Dale

[allen8158]

Vitamin E oil

Dale,
Yes , my doctor recommended Vitamin E oil sporadically on transplant area at night , just have a cloth near you as it has a tendency to run just don't over do it. keep head with two pillows elevated and rolled up sock in base of neck, seems to work ok. also multi-vitamins, fish oil pills and any tylenol for any pain were recommended and never hurt you anyway. ask you doctor with spritzing, don't want to over saturate transplant area. How long where you debating getting HT? sure hope it pays dividends as i have researched it well, and seems to be the way to go for sure. also okay to soak donor area with shampoo under water just take a bath just stay off transplant area for two weeks with any direct hit from shower head water. nice to know someone who is going thru same procedure together, makes you feel secure in decision. be well, thanks again for advice with hat or no hat. Hey i'm 50 years old and if you can't laugh at yourself. enjoy your night. Allen

[Skeptic1st]

Vitamin E Oil

I just picked up some vitamin E to try tonight,but there is a warning on the bottle that says not to apply to broken or irritated skin or areas affected by rashes. My scalp is already scabbing pretty well so now im second guessing the oil use. Have you already had the effect of scabbing and flaking skin?Your question regarding how long I was debating having a transplant has been about 10 years at least.No one believes me when I tell them I couldint even run a comb thru my hair when I was around 20 or so,my hair was SO thick,mainly on the forehead, and even though I knew my dad was bald, I was sure it woulding effect me because of the huge amount of hair I had.Well nature proved me wrong but I told myself for the last 15 years that "bald isnt so bad", and I called myself a loser for questioning it all the time.After all,I knew plenty of other bald men that seemed happy with theyre appearance right? Once again, good luck at work tommorow Allen,enjoy your co-workers applauds and back pats!

[allen8158]

Dale

well, if you can, google vitamin e usage with hair restoration and formulate an opinion, or give your surgeon a call. my DR. recommended it ,but its not a life or death cure-all so no big gain either way if you are skeptical. WOW 10 YEARS, bet you are glad you finally did it. I have been thinking about it for about last 5 years steady, and convinced myself life is too short, side note, my wife had breast augmentation 15 months ago and have never seen her confidence and self esteem sky rocket higher. so i figured it is my turn. she is back in college chasing her R.N. DEGREE!. I retire in 4 years so life is good. will keep in touch. Allen

[TeeJay73]

Hey Fellas,

Just thought I'd chime in here and let you know my experience. When I had my hair transplant, about 1 year ago, my doctor (Doctor McAndrews) had me keep my transplanted area entirely covered in vaseline for a full week. I had to apply it twice per day. About one week after my surgery, when I returned to the doctor's office for removal of my stitches, they also washed away the vaseline out of my hair for me. And, I had no scabbing or crusting at all. The vaseline entirely prevented it. So, if you're interested in this route, talk to your doctors about it.

And as it relates to work, I returned to work about 10 days after my surgery. I guess I had enough native hair to cover up the work that had been done on my scalp, because no one made any comments. So, either they didn't notice, or they were just being polite! :->

Take care fellas,

TeeJay

[allen8158]

teejay

Thanks, Didn't try vasoline trick, was not mentioned and i am 10 days into HT. hopefully come this friday, when i can take a full shower , it will help. No comments here at work , but my wife and i will be going to philly this friday, and wife wants to go to comedy show. oh boy hope i sit front row!. gotta laugh. enjoy the day. allen

[Skeptic1st]

Hey Fellas,

Just thought I'd chime in here and let you know my experience. When I had my hair transplant, about 1 year ago, my doctor (Doctor McAndrews) had me keep my transplanted area entirely covered in vaseline for a full week. I had to apply it twice per day. About one week after my surgery, when I returned to the doctor's office for removal of my stitches, they also washed away the vaseline out of my hair for me. And, I had no scabbing or crusting at all. The vaseline entirely prevented it. So, if you're interested in this route, talk to your doctors about it.

And as it relates to work, I returned to work about 10 days after my surgery. I guess I had enough native hair to cover up the work that had been done on my scalp, because no one made any comments. So, either they didn't notice, or they were just being polite! :->

Take care fellas,

TeeJay

Thats interesting information TeeJay, In all the online searching Ive done regarding keeping the transplant area Moist,I didnt see a single thing about vaseline on the area(or vitamin E drops either) and its funny because I work in the cold during the day and use light vaseline on my face all the time.Now you said you didnt scab or crust at all?Wow. Did you still lose the initial transplant hairs or not? If you did, how long till they started to re-appear?I would think that non scabbing might certainly speed the healing/growing process.Thanks for the info, I,ll take it up with my doc.

[SpencerKobren]

Hey Dale,

Where did you read about spraying saline solution on the recipient area? I was just curious. It doesn't make sense since saline can actually act as a drying agent. Either way it won't hurt your growth, but I was curious about where you got this information.

Thanks!

[Skeptic1st]

Spencer

Hey Dale,

Where did you read about spraying saline solution on the recipient area? I was just curious. It doesn't make sense since saline can actually act as a drying agent. Either way it won't hurt your growth, but I was curious about where you got this information.

Thanks!

Hey Spencer
In my search for a remedy to keep my head a bit moist from scabbing too much, I found this web page that suggested the Saline solution idea.
hairtransplantcosts. com/hairmaintenance.html
I didnt know it acted as a drying agent,but I will admit it does soothe my head when I spritz it on.I dont overdo it, at first I was considering every few hours,now i just spritz a few times a day when I feel itchyness.

[Skeptic1st]

Spencer

Heres another site that promotes Saline solution to the recipient area, as well as that graftcyte stuff which appears very expensive.

http://www.hairtransplantadviser.org/hair_transplant/after_hair_restoration.htm

[SpencerKobren]

Heres another site that promotes Saline solution to the recipient area, as well as that graftcyte stuff which appears very expensive.
http://www.hairtransplantadviser.org...estoration.htm

Again, I was just curious. If you think it's helping you then stick with it. It's not going to effect your growth either way.

How are you feeling by the way?

[Skeptic1st]

Feeling pretty good

Again, I was just curious. If you think it's helping you then stick with it. It's not going to effect your growth either way.

How are you feeling by the way?

Im feeling pretty good all things considered thanks for asking Spencer.Like others on this site, Im anxious to be able to shampoo and scrub the flakes/scabs off my head as soon as I can,but Im only six days post op now so Im trying to be patient about it.