Tag Archives: temples

Second Procedure: Day 1 Post-Op

If you would like to learn more about my story and how a hair transplant procedure can regrow your hair, feel free to email me or contact my patient educator Steve Cook at 305.416.8418 as well at steve@mcgrathmedical.com.

Hello everyone,

Today is Thursday, November 12, 2015 and I had my second procedure yesterday afternoon.

The procedure took about 5 hours to complete and it was overall a very comfortable and relaxing experience and I was the only patient yesterday.

The first night after the surgery is always the roughest part as I slept at a 45-degree angle and took some Hydrocodone to help me sleep.

Overall I am happy that I did this again and I can’t wait to share my progress with you all as I recover.

See you all tomorrow.

All my best,

-Lance

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Second Procedure: Day 0

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Hello everyone,

Today is Tuesday, November 10, 2015 and I am at Day 0, the night before my procedure.

I just wanted to share with you all what the physical preparation is for a transplant procedure.

A few months before my procedure I am given a list of pre-operative instructions to follow so that my procedure will go well.

The major things I must do is three weeks beforehand stop taking any protein or dietary supplements that contain vitamin E that would cause a lot of bleeding and then two weeks before my procedure hold off on getting my hair cut, and 2 days beforehand stop drinking any alcohol.

If it’s your first procedure the sutures will stay in for 10 days and if you’ve had two or more procedures they will stay in for 12 days and will be removed by my primary care physician. The most important part to getting a great suture line is to refrain from any heavy lifting or intense exercise for at least a month after my procedure.

The reason why the right middle side of my scar did not properly heal is because even though I waited about three weeks after my first procedure to resume working out, ideally you want to wait about a month after your procedure before you resume any heavy lifting. Exercises like the squat, bench press, deadlift, standing overhead press, and olympic lifts all tense the neck and after the sutures are out the scar is still healing so it could stretch from those exercises.

In all, I’m super excited to go down this path again and depending on how I am feeling after the procedure I will see if I can post another video with pictures.

All my best,

-Lance

3 WEEKS BEFORE YOUR PROCEDURE

⇒ STOP using Minoxidil or Rogaine (to minimize bleeding).
⇒ Eliminate Vitamin E supplements.
⇒ Eliminate Multivitamins.
⇒ Eliminate any supplements containing Ginkgo Biloba and Ginseng.
⇒ Eliminate protein shakes and protein bars (most contain Vit. E).

2 WEEKS BEFORE YOUR PROCEDURE

⇒ We need to be aware of all the medication you are currently taking.
⇒ Please hold on to your present haircut and keep your hair in the back as long as possible.

10 DAYS BEFORE YOUR PROCEDURE

⇒ DO NOT take Aspirin (ASA) or drugs containing Aspirin: Tylenol may be used instead.

24-48 HOURS PRIOR TO YOUR PROCEDURE

⇒ Please provide our office with your pharmacy phone number (to call in your medication).
⇒ For your convenience pick up your pain medication BEFORE your procedure.
⇒ DO NOT drink protein shakes, energy drinks or any alcohol (wine, beer, etc.).
⇒ Avoid strenuous, intensive physical activity (ex. working out).

THE NIGHT BEFORE YOUR PROCEDURE

⇒ Wash your hair well with HIBICLEANCE (or regular shampoo if not given Hibicleance).

THE DAY OF YOUR PROCEDURE

⇒ The morning of your procedure wash your hair well with HIBICLEANCE (or regular shampoo if not given Hibicleance).
⇒ Do not apply any hair products such as mousse, hairspray, gel, etc.
⇒ Have a regular breakfast or lunch (filling meal is necessary to minimize any chance of stomach queasiness or dizziness).
⇒ Avoid wearing clothing that needs to be pulled over your head. Please wear a shirt with buttons or zipper. NO T-SHIRTS! For your comfort we recommend to wear loose, easy-to-put-on shoes.
⇒ As a mild relaxer/sedative will be administered before surgery, you should not drive car afterwards.

One Year Update and Final Result (365 Days Post-Op)

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Hello everyone,

Today is July 14, 2015 and I am now one year post-op from my hair transplant procedure.

To give you all an idea of how much hair I have grown over the past year, below are my before, after, and today’s one year post-op pics.

Overall I’m really happy with the result I have and I think my pictures really speak for themselves. When you compare what I Iooked like a year ago to where I am now with a thicker, fuller head of hair it’s unbelievably believable.

For full disclosure, I think one part of the scar on the middle-right side of my head did not properly heal because even with a 4.5 around the scar, the right side still looks like a crease if I wore a baseball cap. I got a haircut on June 25 where the barber used a 4.5 around the scar and then he blended the hair below the scar with a 2 and then blended the top and front with scissors, and that one side showed a crease instead of my left.

It’s entirely possible that one side of a scar could heal better than the other so as far as I know, I didn’t do anything wrong during the healing process.

The next question is whether or not I will have a second procedure and I probably will. I was told coming into this that one procedure can get you 30 to 40 percent more density and realistically you might need a second procedure to have what many hair transplant doctors consider a finished product. I have some areas in my left and right temples that had no hair a year ago that could stand to be more filled in, but like I’ve said before, from months 12 to 15 there is even a 5 percent push, so we’ll just have to wait and see.

But overall, I’m am so happy with what I see in the mirror and how it makes me feel every day.

To all of my visitors and followers of this blog it has been my pleasure sharing my experience with you all and I hope that this blog will help anyone looking to embark on their own follicular journey, wherever it may take you.

It has been a pleasure serving you all.

All my best,

-Lance

Check out my one year post-op video on my YouTube channel.

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Before (7-14-14)

before-left

before-right

The plan (7-14-14)

1 year post-op (7-14-15)

10 Month Update (310 Days Post-Op)

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Hello everyone,

Today is May 20, 2015 and I am now 10 months or 310 days post-op. I was out of town the past couple of days hence, why I am behind on this month’s update.

I got my hair cut on May 1, so this month’s pics show how much more hair has grown in since my last haircut in February at the 7 month mark. Whenever I get a haircut I have to make sure that the barber doesn’t go too short on the sides and back so that the thin scar won’t be detectable. The barber went a little too short for me with a No. 3 (3/8 of an inch) on the back and sides so my scar looked like a crease in my hair like when you wear a baseball cap.

The thin areas behind my restored hairline are better filling in compared with last month and lately I’ve been styling my hair in a fauxhawk. Before my surgery I could have never worn a hairstyle like this without it looking terrible because of my receding temples.

Even though my hair looks better now than before I started losing my hair in my early twenties, I still have another two months to go before my final result.

Check back next month at 11 months post-op as I close in on my one year anniversary of my surgery.

All my best,

-Lance

Check out my 10 month post-op video on my YouTube channel.

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9 Month Update (275 Days Post-Op)

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Hello everyone,

Today is April 15, 2015 and I am now 9 months or 275 days post-op.

As each month goes by, I am just amazed at how much hair continues to grow in.

Since the 7 month mark I’ve been styling and combing my hair from the new hairline, however some parts behind my temples are slightly patchy but are filling in. Because of this, some hairstyles look much better on me than others so my temples won’t look thin.

At this point I have another 3 months to go before I reach the final result but I am more than satisfied with what I have.

To give you all an idea of what the hair transplant timeline is like, from months 1 to 4 post-op you’re just looking for the new hairs to start sprouting up and then from months 5 to 7 you start to see a lot of growth to where you can start styling your hair from the new hairline. From months 8 to 12 and even up to 15 months, you’re then waiting for it all to fill in.

Check back next month at 10 months post-op for my next update.

All my best,

-Lance

Check out my 9 month post-op video on my YouTube channel.

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8 Month Update (245 Days Post-Op)

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Hello everyone,

Today is March 16, 2015 and I am now 8 months or 245 days post-op.

I just got back from vacation so my hair is a shade blonder from being at the beach all week.

With each passing month, I am just amazed with how much hair continues to grow in. The fact that I am at 8 months with this kind of a result but I have another solid four months to go leaves me ecstatic.

Whenever I go on vacation, my girlfriend and I take lots of pictures and before my surgery I would avoid having my picture taken from certain angles and would often retake pictures that made my scalp look bad.

Now that my hair is growing in, I don’t have to worry about that.

Check back next month for my 9 month update and happy St. Patricks Day!

All my best,

-Lance

Check out my 8 month post-op video on my YouTube channel.

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7 Month Update (215 Days Post-Op)

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Hello everyone,

Today is February 14, 2015 and I am now 7 months or 215 days post-op from my surgery last July.

I got my hair cut right before this post and I am ecstatic with how things are coming in.

My temporal peaks have grown in very well and the restored hairline is long enough to style now and will continue to thicken up over the next few months.

To give you all a better idea of how much hair I have grown, compare today’s pictures with when I got my first haircut at 46 days post-op. Wow, what a difference!

Today is also Valentine’s Day and although it’s another commercialized holiday, the best relationship you can have is with yourself and it starts with taking care of yourself.

Since my procedure, my confidence has never been higher and I feel complete. I not only look much better than I did before my surgery but I also feel better than ever.

Check back next month for my 8 month update.

All my best,

-Lance

Check out my 7 month post-op video on my YouTube channel.

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This is Paul Mitchell Tea Tree Shaping Cream, the hair styling product I currently use. Prior to my surgery, I stopped using hair styling products because I was weary of how they would reveal how much of my forehead had receded.

6 Month Update (184 Days Post-Op)

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Hello everyone,

Today is January 14, 2015 and I am now 6 months or 184 days post-op from my July surgery.

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and I have a lot of great news to share.

I had my third haircut since my surgery on New Years Eve and now I can really tell that this surgery is working because take a look at these pics!

My regular haircut (4-guard on the sides and back with the top and front blended with scissors) finally blends my new hairline with my existing hair and you can barely find my old hairline.

In the pics below I show how my hair naturally falls followed by a pic of me flipping my hair back to where my original hairline should be. My temporal peaks have really grown in since the first month but the hairline still has a long way to go.

From what I gather I’m about 60 percent done at the 6 month mark. I can’t really style the new hairs yet so even though I am really happy with what I’ve got, I am excited that there’s a lot more to go.

Now that the New Year is here, I am ecstatic that this is the first year and ultimately the beginning of the rest of my life that I will have a full head of hair. Only great things to come this year so check back next month.

All my best and happy 2015,

-Lance

Check out my 6 month post-op video on my YouTube channel.

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3 Month Update (94 Days Post-Op)

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Hello everyone,

Today is October 16, 2014 and I am now three months and two days or 94 days post-op.

Not much has changed since my last update however I have noticed that more ingrown hairs are developing on the top of my head where many of the multiple follicular units were placed. This is a sign that more hairs are starting to wake up and sprout.

My skin is still pink in the transplanted areas and the hairs are getting long but looking patchy.

This is normal for the three-month mark and in the next two months is when the hair will really start coming in and thickening up.

Over the weekend I visited my sister, brother-in-law, and my parents and it wasn’t until we were standing side-by-side in the sun that my dad noticed my pink scalp and new hairs sprouting. I didn’t plan on telling my family until more hair grew in but they figured it out and were really impressed with the suture line and are also looking forward to my final results.

Check back in a month for my next update.

All my best,

-Lance

2 Month Update (71 Days Post-Op)

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Hello everyone,

Today is September 23, 2014 and I am now two months and 9 days or 71 days post-op.

More hairs are sprouting in the frontal hairline and temporal peaks but they look very wispy and don’t have much density yet. Some of the original hairs that were moved the day of the surgery never fell out and are super long now.

I’ve heard that if you have super long transplanted hairs that did not shed and have stopped growing, you can pluck them out and the follicle will restart and grow again. I haven’t tried this yet, but if some of the original hairs haven’t grown much over the next month I will consider doing this.

The transplanted area is still pink but is becoming less noticeable from when I first started.

Since my surgery I’ve had one haircut and about 10 ingrown hairs mostly in the recreated frontal hairline and a few on the suture line itself. The suture line is becoming less red and unless I run my fingers through my hair, you wouldn’t find it.

I’ll keep updating this as more hair grows so check back for my next update at 3 months post-op.

All my best,

-Lance

Check out my 2 month post-op video on my YouTube channel.

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