How long does it take for a transplant to heal?
You’ve had your hair transplant and you’re patiently waiting for your donor and recipient area to heal. You’re afraid to sleep without elevation, dread every time you’ve to wash your hair and you’re starting to wonder when the inflammation will subside. Sound familiar?
First things first, the hard part is over. Now that you’ve had your treatment you’re very much on your healing process already, and it won’t take as long as you might think before you’ll be back sleeping and washing your hair without a second thought.
The healing process – how long should it take?
It goes without saying that everyone that has a hair transplant has a different healing journey, but hair transplant experts, Total Hair Restoration Ireland say it’s probably a lot quicker than you think.
In fact they reckon that they average healing process time for a hair transplant procedure is between ten days and two week – so not bad for life changing surgery right?
Helping your healing process
There are a couple of things that can help move your healing process along more quickly. Here’s a rundown on Total Hair Restoration Ireland’s top post op tips.
Sleep elevated and use a travel pillow
One of the main questions that patients ask Total Hair Restoration Ireland about in their free aftercare sessions is sleeping. What if I move around and disturb my new hair follicles?
Arguably the best way to stop yourself from tossing and turning is by using a travel pillow to help you sleep for the first ten days after your hair transplant surgery. By doing this your head will be elevated and you will be restricting your movement, helping the areas to heal, and decrease in inflammation levels.
Sleeping on your back on an incline is the best way to sleep for the first ten days after your surgery, and then for the following week you can sleep on your side once you don’t put any pressure on the donor or recipient areas.
Don’t wear a hat
It might seem tempting to cover your head in a hat straight after hair transplant surgery, but it’s probably the worst thing you could do to halt your healing process, so try to stay away from the baseball hats and woollies for a while longer!
It can take up to ten days for your transplanted hair follicles to take root in your treatment area, so wearing a hat could seriously impact on this special process. By going without a hat, you’re allowing each new follicular unit to stay in place and preventing any damage, to ensure the best results possible.
Wash your hair daily
Many patients find washing their hair stressful in the days after a hair transplant, which is understandable. Your mind might be telling you that you might be undoing the good work of the hair transplant surgeon and medical team, but actually you’re doing quite the opposite.
Shampooing and washing hair is an essential and important part of the healing process because as your scabs start to form, washing will essentially exfoliate the area and promote new growth – but only when it’s done at the right time in your healing process.
So when should you first wash your hair after a hair transplant?
To avoid damaging the hair roots, you should avoid touching or wetting this area for at least three days, because in the first three days after your surgery your scalp will be sensitive to touch.
At Total Hair Restoration Ireland, your surgeon will tell you about the products that are safe to use as part of your aftercare programme, as using the wrong products could impact on your overall healing process.
Protect your head from the sun
As your head is still healing, it’s essential that you protect your head and scalp as your hair grafts still need to be looked after and protected from anything that might impact on the hair transplantation process.
Safeguarding your head by using SPF 50 and staying in the shade will protect your new hair growth from sun exposure, and ensure that your healing process is allowed to continue.
Results and when you will see them
Results will differ between patients but based on experience, Total Hair Restoration believe that most patients will start to see some type of hair regrowth from two months after their procedure. A full result will be noticeable from 8-12 months.