Days 6 and 7
It finally happened! I got to the one-week post-op mark! The most relevant items to mention are that my donor area finally stopped leaking around the evening of Day 6. I used an underpad for my nap on Day 6, but when I noticed that there was nothing on it, I slept without one that very same night. The other relevant item is that I have stopped sleeping at a 45° angle. Really, you’re only supposed to do that for the first 3 days to prevent swelling. I kept doing it for a couple more nights just to be safe, but I am no longer doing that. I am still sleeping on my back so the grafts don’t rub touch the pillow, but at a normal angle now. I did notice that I was pretty tired throughout the day by Day 6, mostly because I don’t think I was sleeping deeply when I was sitting up. I am sleeping a little better now, but I can’t wait until I can sleep on my side again. I will probably wait until Sunday night (Night 11, Day 10) to do that, but it will depend on how I’m feeling.
I found this interesting medical study the other day: https://www.bernsteinmedical.com/research/graft-anchoring-in-hair-transplantation/
Through a series of tests, they found that pulling on a transplanted hair always results in a lost graft during the first two days post-op. The risk of losing a graft starts decreasing on the third day, and by day 9 (tomorrow), the grafts are no longer at risk of being pulled out! Most websites say that the grafts are secure by day 10, although some say that by day 14 (two weeks after your surgery). I want to play it safe and wait until at least day 10 to sleep on my side, wear hats/wigs, etc.
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Now for the pictures. This was Day 6:
And here is one week post-op:
Now let’s compare the front from Day 0 to Day 7:
And the back from Day 1 (the bandage covered it on Day 0) to Day 7:
I am super impressed at how healed the donor area looks in just one week. Not only are the wounds closed, but the hair on the back has even grown a few millimetres already to make the donor area less evident.
I have also noticed that some of the scabs seem to be about ready to fall off. Unlike some websites, Santé Medical does not recommend doing anything to make them fall off (they advise to just let them do that naturally), so I will leave them be until they’re ready. I think they will start falling off by themselves (probably during the daily washes) by Sunday.
I think I will continue to lump these entries together, with daily pictures until the two-week mark. After that, I’ll likely move on to monthly updates unless there’s something to report.
That’s it for now! Thank you for reading if anyone is reading this. Speak soon!
