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Hair Dr Clinic - Dr Arshad 26/11/2020

Tomuk85

Tomuk85

member
Skip to my second post for more surgery related story.

So I've decided to document my hair journey on this forum , as a long time follower this forum has helped me a lot in making the choices I have and avoided common mistakes as well as unrealistic expectations. Thanks to the admins for making this invaluable data source available.

So onto my story , 35 years old and noticeably thinning hair around 4 years ago however took it seriously just over 2 years ago. The first sign was my hair getting lighter in colour which at the time I took no notice of and didn't have the knowledge to know it was a sign of DHT kicking in and miniaturisation setting in.

The last 2 years I've been on 1mg of finasteride taken daily and 5% topical minoxidil applied daily. I had also dermarolling with a 1.5mm roller.

Ironically I nearly made a big mistake 12months ago by going to a clinic in the Midlands who offered a fixed price FUT without stating any numbers with a hairline which was below where it had ever been which tbh I was happy with being self conscious but my partner said one it wouldn't look right and two it sounds too good to be true. I then found this forum and avoided a BIG mistake.

My partner was only really happy with me visiting a clinic in the UK which limited the number of clinics that met the standards I wanted.

I have been in contact with the common clinics which have appeared on this forum over the years and more recently the hair dr during the current lockdown.

As you can see in the picture below my hair at first glance doesn't look "too bad" as people would say however this is due to the way i style it and the tuff of hair at the front hiding what is behind.

My family history is a tricky one as my father died before reaching my age but didn't really show any signs of male pattern boldness however there is some male pattern boldness within family on that side with my uncle and grandfather.
 

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Tomuk85

Tomuk85

member
Day 0:

8:30 I met Dr Arshad in person and we looked closely at my current hair loss pattern and the number of graphs requested. Originally I was going to just improve my hairline with 2000 graphs however I was under no illusions I have diffused hair loss throughout the mid scalp putting me at a possible Norwood 4. There was no pressure but I was more than happy to increase my graphs to give me a long lasting result that still left my donor area in good enough condition for a second transplant should I ever want a top up or touch the crown.

I knew I had the finances to do this so I was prepared and I'm glad I may have been able to avoid a second surgery at least for a few years.

The hairline I was hoping for was obviously too ambitious but again I had already come to terms with the fact if Dr Arshad feels it's not possible I'm going to put trust in him. I think that an important part of choosing the right clinic , if you're not willing to trust them then they're not right for you. That being said it was a two way conversation designing the right shape for my head / face.

The rest of the day: next was a head shave which actually didn't look so bad. Then the most painful part which was the anaesthetic , this was just about bearable and Dr Hamza did it as quickly as he could and if I asked he would have stopped but I knew it was just a couple of minutes as it all done.

Dr Arshad then used a .8mm extractor to remove my donor hair which he said was fantastic and very dense as well as lots of 3,4.He off course also got plenty of soft 1s for the hair line. These were then pulled out by the rest of the technicians and checked and sorted under microscopes. The 1s were also then double checked for the best hairline results by the Dr.

At this point I was feeling great about the fact that my donor area was in great condition and the graphs were strong.

The feeling at lunch was hard to describe but I was buzzing with no regrets having chosen Dr Arshad and the team.

Finally Dr Arshad identified which hairs should go where with the technicians and then it was just a case of getting through the next 5 hours. Dr Arshad came into the room regularly to check all was well and the placement was going well.

Graft count.
singles = 288
doubles = 1069
tripples = 1577

I can't speak highly enough of the clinic , from the top down all the team are there for you and are patinate in hair restoration. This is clearly great management and I feel I've got in while the clinic has yet to peak at least on forums / social media.

you can now see where the tuff at the front and hairline was in place with thinning behind it, we also went further back than the second line
 

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Tomuk85

Tomuk85

member
Day 1

so far the biggest issue has been sleeping due to the travel pillow but its just a case of getting through the next 7 days.

im hoping that the density will be great on top due to the fact i have existing hair there and lots of 3-4s have been added but i guess only time will tell. Will also interesting to see how the shedding will happen as my native hair may stay and therefore recovery may look quicker but again I've not seen much of that online so if anyone has been in a similar situation please share.
 

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B

Baldingman23

Valued member
Glad you had a great experience with The Hair Dr. Hair line looks nice and I remember how annoying sleeping with a travel pillow was. To be honest i think that was the worst bit about my HT
 
theshape1122

theshape1122

Valued member
Great result! the first 7 days are the worst for sleeping but after that when you can get rid of the travel cushion it gets much easier
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Hi Tomuk. Welcome to the forum although you've been around reading before posting. It's good to hear it helped you with your research. Choosing the right clinic and getting it right the first time is important.
The hair loss regime you're on should help you hold onto your remaining native hair for a long time, maybe a lifetime.

Everything sounds like your hair transplant experience went very well, a little discomfort with the anaesthetic but that's soon forgotten. The work looks good and I reckon you'll be very happy once everything has grown in.
You look to have very good donor too, plenty in reserve just in case you decide you want more hair in the future.

Post op can be a little tiring with the irregular sleeping so it's important to eat and drink a good balanced diet. Keep yourself in tip top condition. Sleeping wise, I found travel pillows not the best. Nearly all clinics give them out but for me, simply propping up a lot of pillows and sleeping at a 45 degree angle worked well. A lot of people would use a V shape pregnancy pillow which helps keep your body and head in a certain position.

When you shed those grafts you may lose some native hair to shock loss. In my opinion a higher percentage of people don't suffer that much from shock loss. Your updates will show this.

I'll look forward to following your journey.

All the best.
Bm.
 
Tomuk85

Tomuk85

member
thanks , starting to get used to the sleep although only a few more days to go. I did buy a decent travel pillow but let just say im in the spare room ATM due to snoring :) luckily no issues with swelling ect. Going smoothly so far which i hope will continue and if i can keep the native hair even better.

also added a couple of new photos from the team sent over.
 

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Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Keeping your scalp moist with your post op spray or a saline spray really helps with the healing. It helps prevent scabs from forming.
You're nearly over the most uncomfortable part. Good to hear there's no swelling. Your native hair will most likely be ok, sometimes it just takes a little longer to grow again due to the stress/trauma to the scalp.

Being in the spare room, been there and done that on a few occasions.

Your post op picture looks good. I think you'll be very happy with it once it grows in.
 
R

Richie888

member
Looking good mate, I went in the day before you. Can finally wash tomorrow which I am looking forward to so I can hopefully see how its starting to develop.
On a side note are you from Liverpool? You can get a train direct to Dewsbury from Lime st FYI. I drove up on the day and the Mrs got the train up and drove us back which made life easier not spending the night after surgery in a hotel.
 
Tomuk85

Tomuk85

member
No mate I'm just s bit Liverpool fan based near Birmingham so was a decent 140 mile drive.
 
Tomuk85

Tomuk85

member
Day 7 first wash, very scary the first time I've touched the top of my head since the transplant. Hair feels wiry and I'm probably treating it far too delicately but it feels fragile compared to the native hair.

Been lucky that I didn't really have any swelling after day 2 and other than the odd shooting pain my donor area feels fine and has more or less full feeling beck.

Also finally added my final count, let's hope those 3/4 help to improve the look of density.

Although I can sleep without s travel pillow now I may just give it a couple more days
 

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Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Looks good for 7 days. You can definitely massage the shampoo into your scalp quite firmly but it`s totally understandable when patients still take it very gently.
Those 2`s and 3`s will give you a nice density.
I noticed your crown is a little thin. Are you using any hair loss medications to prevent more loss and possibly regrow miniaturised hairs?
 
Tomuk85

Tomuk85

member
Looks good for 7 days. You can definitely massage the shampoo into your scalp quite firmly but it`s totally understandable when patients still take it very gently.
Those 2`s and 3`s will give you a nice density.
I noticed your crown is a little thin. Are you using any hair loss medications to prevent more loss and possibly regrow miniaturised hairs?
Thanks , I'm.sure over the next few days I will become more confident. The mentality for the last 7 days have been to protects the grafts like my life depends on it .

I've been on 1mg of finesteride for the last 2 years , plan on starting topical monoxidil again in 3 weeks time . Never used to focus much on the crown as that was the area that bothered me least but after the transplant it might be the weakest area so may still see improvement
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Yes, you will feel more confident now knowing the grafts are secure. Hopefully, the meds improve your hair in the crown as well as maintaining.
 
Tomuk85

Tomuk85

member
Day 14 , scabs all gone by day 10 since then lots of shedding which is continuing. Seen a few people who just thought I shaved my head so feel more confident going out without a hat.

The top native hair has only recently started to grow which I guess is to be expected as that area has been through the most trauma and the hair is obviously not as strong. So going to be rocking a strange hair style and ATM feel like I have less hair than before, keep telling myself it's all part of the process.
 

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bullitnut

bullitnut

4 awesome repairs with SMG
Welcome to the forum dude...sounds like you had a great experience with the Hair Dr team....thanks for sharing your journey too I look forward to following as things progress.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
A lot of people do look worse once shedding and shock loss has occurred but it soon grows back. You look to have healed well. It’s good others just think you’ve shaved your hair down.
Everything seems right on track for 14 days post op.
 
S

slaphead35

Member
Day 14 , scabs all gone by day 10 since then lots of shedding which is continuing. Seen a few people who just thought I shaved my head so feel more confident going out without a hat.

The top native hair has only recently started to grow which I guess is to be expected as that area has been through the most trauma and the hair is obviously not as strong. So going to be rocking a strange hair style and ATM feel like I have less hair than before, keep telling myself it's all part of the process.
 
S

slaphead35

Member
Hi mate , any chance you could post a photo of the back of your head weeks 3 and 4 ? . Just got back from Turkey after FUE and I’m stressing about going back to work with my old FUT scar on show.
I’m off for 4 weeks so wondering how long my donor might be by then ‍♂️
 

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Tomuk85

Tomuk85

member
So today marks 4 weeks , lots of shedding and just starting monoxidil again. Very hard part as the top is far worse than before my HT but it's to be expected while the native hair recovers I hope. Had the odd pimple which I've just left to sort themselves out. Can see my new hairline now the hair has shedded which I'm excited about.
 

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