hi everyone! i have never written a review like this, so i don't really know where to start. my surgery is scheduled in a little over two weeks. my surgery date is march 8 to be exact. this is the first invasive surgery i've ever had, so i'm very nervous. i'm having a hairline lowering procedure and a brow lift with dr. jason dudas in san francisco. initially, i sought a couple other doctors in regard to having a brow lift and they suggested a hairline lowering, especially since any sort of brow lift would push my hairline back even further. so, i sought consultation with dr. dudas because he specializes in the procedure. he's a great listener and very kind. he answered all of my questions and talked over the procedure with me thoroughly. i was even 30 minutes late for my appointment because i couldn't find parking in the city and he still waited for me! very kind. i believe i'm currently at 7.5cm. i have a widows peak that i believe is as low as 6/6.25cm. i addressed that i would like to have it lowered to the widows peak by 1-1.25cm, which is what he agreed upon and i'll probably talk about more in my pre op. my scalp has normal laxity, so i hope it won't be an issue. i'm not seeking a huge reduction because i'm more focused on the brow lift and i still want to look like me. i just want to slightly lower my hairline and lift my brows. i have my pre op on wednesday (2/22) and i'm super nervous about the whole thing. i see a lot of reviews about hairline lowering; a majority of them are positive, but then i see the negative ones reporting lots of hair loss (sometimes permanent) and terrible scarring. all and all, it doesn't make me feel better. i've been a bit uneasy as the surgery date gets closer and closer. a lot of patients have reported nausea and vomiting with the pain meds as well. so, i expect a difficult recovery process. i'm just praying i'm lucky. overall, i trust my doctor, especially since i'm not going to have a very large reduction. also, dr. dudas specializes in hairline lowering and he's very skilled with incisions/scarring. i've seen a lot of his post op photos and a majority of his incisions are practically invisible by 3 months. i'll give more updates after my pre op! xo Updated on 27 Feb 2023: i had my pre op last wednesday! dr. dudas and i discussed my aesthetic desires. i spent more time going over the pre operative packet in regards to what not to consume. i have to refrain from foods, herbs, medications, and liquids that may thin my blood. other than that, i've been approved to continue taking my current medications except for the morning of surgery; also, you cannot eat or drink later than midnight the night of surgery. i am not going to eat or drink hours earlier to be safe. more updates to come the morning of surgery! xo Updated on 8 Mar 2023: Updated on 8 Mar 2023: when i woke up after the surgery, i wasn't in any pain. i was very comfortable. there was some goop left in my eyes, so it was difficult to see, but that was all eventually wiped off. i had some discomfort after i got home. which was approximately 3-4 hours after the procedure. fortunately, i took a zofran (anti nausea med) a couple hours before (on the ride home) i took a pain med because my body takes longer for things to kick in. i waited and then took some bites of some soft foods (i ate smashed avocado and smashed banana) and i drank a load of water. i took a pain med soon afterwards. i wasn't nauseated at all, but when i did feel a bit nauseated, i could take another zofran again (every 6 hours). i feel like a lot patients are prone to feeling this way after the procedure, so it's important to be diligent about the timing of taking your medications, so you don't feel too much discomfort or nausea. a majority of the discomfort i feel now is from my throat because i was intubated. it's really the only thing that aches at this point; it's hard to swallow and open my mouth after sleeping. i'm still not having any pain in my head or experiencing any nausea, i just feel tightness. it's kind of like a mild/moderate headache, so it's very bearable. dr. dudas approved me to take an ibuprofen. the pain meds help, but i don't like feeling even just a little bit nauseated. my face is very swollen, but i haven't bruised (at least yet). i'm sleeping in a 90 degree, borderline 45 degree, angle to make sure the swelling doesn't increase and i allow it to subside. sleeping is important for me because it helps any nausea subside too. my eyes are closed a lot. my mom helps me get up and walk every two hours to maintain my blood flow and health. i've been drinking A LOT of water to make sure all of the IV fluids get out of my system. i've had my mom take me to go pee 3 times already. it's important you're 24/7 adult is comfortable doing that with you. it's especially important when the pain meds kicked in. overall, the recovery process hasn't been difficult so far. i'll update more soon. :) Updated on 8 Mar 2023: my head is completely covered and wrapped, so i cannot show my incision. i will post pics once the wrap has been removed during my post op. Updated on 16 Mar 2023: i was slightly nauseated the first few days and experienced mild to moderate discomfort. after the first day of recovery, i got off of the pain meds and i only needed to take tylenol/advil to keep the discomfort at bay! awesome. i had my stitches take out yesterday. the incision is currently skin toned because it hasn't healed completely. dr. dudas said i can expect it to become red/pink as it heals within the next two weeks. the swelling process in the first week was brutal; i couldn't take any photos. my forehead was like a balloon, but now i'm beginning to recognize myself more and more as it subsides. i can already tell that i would look like myself in a month. the incisions were very clean and dr. dudas did a great job, but i underestimated my ability to actually inspect them and take photos everyday. i didn't realize how much it would gross me out, so i could only take one. the yellowish stuff on the incision is from the petroleum dressing placed on top. wrapping my head includes: - applying bacitracin - applying petroleum dressing (the yellow strip) - wrapping gauze - wrapping bandage i'm still applying antibacterial ointment and wrapping my head to reduce swelling. i'll be applying ointment and wrapping my head for another week until the incision completely closes. i miss being able to take a real full shower, but i know it will feel so good when i can do that in a couple weeks, maybe sooner! i haven't had any signifiant shock loss yet, so i'm keeping my fingers crossed ???? it usually begins/appears in the first 2-6 weeks after surgery. i'm definitely shedding a lot more than i used to, but i'm only losing the short fine hairs. i only noticed one tiny bald spot on the side of my incision; which is expected. i'm praying i won't lose too much hair in case i forgot to mention: i had 1 cm reduced from the front and 2 cm reduced at the very end of my frontal hairline to round out my hairline, because it was boxy before and i wanted more of a soft, rounded shape. the very top of my scalp is completely numb, but i think i feel a tiny bit of sensation coming back - working its way from the back to the front of the scalp. i feel tiny tingling (not itchy) sensations on the top of my scalp night; its so wonderful to feel. super super lucky people begin to feel a sensation coming back after the first month, but it can take several. i'll let everyone know if i'm fortunate and how soon it comes back. i'm going to start taking vitamins to help my body heal and stimulate hair growth. i'll update next week ! :) Updated on 16 Mar 2023: Updated on 24 Mar 2023: I already 100% regret this procedure. I feel like I've ruined my life, I'm not sure if I'm being too quick to judge. If it gets better, it will be a miracle. 16 days out and my forehead looks small and boxy. I told Dr. Dudas that I like my forehead size and only want to alter my hairline. Less than 1 cm was taken off. I was at 8cm and now I'm at 7cm with a mild brow lift, but for some reason it looks way too small. I measured it multiple times to make sure I'm not crazy. I'm already severely depressed and Dr. Dudas won't answer my emails. I'm completely heartbroken and I feel like this is completely my fault. I remember calling Dr. Dudas assistant and trying to cancel the procedure and get hair transplants instead, but she led me to believe that I would be happier with hairline lowering. I'm crushed inside. I don't know why my forehead looks small and boxy. I'm still swollen. The shape is coming back, but I know it will never be the same. I've already shed a lot of hair, but for some reason I don't have any bald spots. My anxiety is through the roof. The most I can do after I heal is laser the incision and the hair and incision will go back by maybe 0.3 of a centimeter. I think it will make a little of a difference. I feel like I want to die, I'm so so heartbroken. Updated on 4 Sep 2023: as you all can tell by my previous post, this has been a serious journey of emotional and physically healing after a crisis. i have learned so much. identity crises are far more common after cosmetic surgery than we think; so common and intense that i had been admitted into a psych ward, hospitalized in the ER, and have had intensive trauma therapy since. with that being said, i'd just like to say that dr. dudas is an phenomenal surgeon, truly. he has been with me every step of the way of this very difficult process, answered every late night call, and has kept in touch since. but, i would also like to thank God that i went with dr. dudas rather than any other surgeon. even though i regret what i put myself through, his work is remarkable. he's truly an artist, he pays so much attention to detail and values the quality of life his patients have. at the beginning of my journey, i suffered from a serious identity crisis in regards to my physical appearance after the procedure. at the time, i believe i had made a mistake, but as time progresses, i'm accepting more and more of my decision. physically, i am healing completely and nearly perfectly. i'd like others to know who are interested in this surgery to either completely avoid it or proceed with serious, serious caution. i wouldn't trust just any surgeon with this procedure. it is invasive and intense, requiring months of healing and post operative care. with that being said, i'd like to say that my results are astounding ..i mean seriously optimal. i'm not going to change anything. all of the numbness is my scalp has resolved as i can feel it 100% once again. all hair i lost due to shock loss or expected shedding has completely grown back. and more importantly, you can never tell i ever had anything done. the scar is invisible. i have showed my extended family my "scar" and every single cousin, aunt, and uncle replies with "what scar?" the reduction was just as conservative as the plans i had made with dr. dudas before the operation. it was only reduced it by 1 cm in height (currently at 7.25cm) , so yes, my forehead is still "round and high" and i wouldn't change a single thing. secondly, i would like to explain the reason of my crisis. i suffer from serious OCD and BDD (body dysmorphia disorder) and that is in no way dr. dudas' fault. i had no idea i had these conditions prior to surgery and if i had known the magnitude of my illnesses, i would not have gone through with the procedure. i made a decision with a silent mental disorder and didn't realize until it took its toll on me. i was in pain and darkness for what seemed like forever until i reached a certain point in my healing; emotionally and physically (especially with the help of anti depressants), where i could finally see a light. although i did have this surgery and in no manner want to be paint myself as a hypocrite, the lesson i have learned from this journey is "gratitude over everything". prior to surgery, i had been so warped into the way i looked that i believed i needed cosmetic surgery to improve my happiness and the way i felt about myself. like many of you, i was on social media constantly being shown products and ways to look "prettier", "younger", "thinner", or "more attractive". it got so bad that i would come across reddit groups dedicated to criticizing foreheads of female celebrities saying "if she had a smaller forehead, she would look prettier" and "large foreheads make women appear older". at this point, i just want to scream to the world ENOUGH. i have deleted all social media. physical perfection is a delusion, it's simply not real and will never exist. emotions and opinions about such are not truth. there's so much more to us than our physical appearance. the quality of life is not based off of how we look, but rather what we do with our time. i wish i had spent more time going on walks with friends, travelling, reading, painting, or heck SKYDIVING rather than constantly critiquing my physical appearance in the mirror. for the longest time, i regretted my decision because i believe i didn't appear "normal" after the procedure due to swelling and my scar not appearing flat yet. i missed the life i used to have; not having to wear a hand or a hat, or hide my face whenever i went out in public. i never realized how ungrateful i was. i wish i just had more gratitude for my health or my life! i was so sucked into this idea of "perfection" that i forgot who i was and how much i had to be thankful for. so before you, yes the one reading this, decides to pursue cosmetic surgery think of all the things that you have rather the the things you could have. lastly, i'd like to say BIG FOREHEAD SUPERIORITY. pm me if have any more questions for me or want more photos. i haven't been able to post for a long time because i couldn't manage to take photos of my progress. ty for being so patient. [PHOTOS BELOW] note: the white streak across my forehead and along my hairline is not the scar. it's an embarrassing tan line on my noggin from wearing a headband outside for the entire summer to protect my hairline.
The best decision I ever made was calling Dr Dudas’ office to schedule my forehead reduction surgery. I was so insecure about my forehead so I decided to do something about it. If you’re insecure about your forehead, don’t hesitate to call him. This decision will literally change your life. Dr Jason Dudas knows what he’s doing. I recommend him 100%!!! Thank You Dr Dudas!
Amazing doctor!!!! Very nice and professional!!! Made me feel super comfortable from the minute I’ve met him. Explained the procedure to me. What and how , what to expect through procedure and full recovery expectation. He has this amazing demeanor about him and their whole office staff that made me feel that I am in the right hands. Highly recommend to anyone who is considering neck lipo or anything else!!! I am very happy with the results !!!! Love my new contoured face and neck thanks to DR.Dudas!!!
I had my procedure completed early this morning, which began at 7:30am. The surgery itself took around 1.5-2hrs. My hairline was successfully lowered by 2.3-2.4cm which is what I requested. The most challenging aspects post op: 1.) Sleeping at a 45 degree angle and I was in bed most of the day. 2.) Mild to moderate head pain mostly on my right side and back of head. Not enough for tears to start welling up, just some consistent dull pains. 3.) The nausea is annoying and uncomfortable, but not entirely intolerable. At the end of the day these are typical issues associated with this procedure. Dudas and his entire team have been helpful and courteous. I felt like I was in good hands all around. Dudas was sympathetic regarding my concerns. He consistently made me feel reassured along the way, including the day of the scheduled procedure. Tomorrow the bandage comes off! I will keep everybody posted with updates. Updated on 3 Aug 2019: I’m super happy with the results so far. Not too low and not too high. My face and profile look more feminine, but I’m still me. Just an improved version. Waiting for my hair to dry post showers Then peroxide over the stitches/hairline, neosporin, and then wrapping it back up. Stitches will be taken out this Thursday. Updated on 3 Aug 2019: Updated on 10 Aug 2019: I was very excited to have my stitches removed on 8-8-19. One week post op. I feel that my scar is healing up nicely. I’ve been wrapping my head 50% of my days. Mostly to avoid unintentional scratching, especially in my sleep. Some minor itching. Top of head is still quite numb. I anticipate getting all the neosporin out of my hair will be challenging. Following up with Dr. Dudas in two more weeks. Overall, I’ve experienced a quick recovery! Updated on 10 Aug 2019: The close up pics of the stitches are after I removed the bandages from a long sleep. My forehead isn’t usually so wrinkly and warped. Updated on 10 Aug 2019: 8-head before pics. Whew, what a difference! Updated on 12 Aug 2019: I feel like everything is continuing to look great! I can’t wait to properly wash my hair. Today, I had my first full workout since my procedure. I took a 45 min spin class with some strength training. I read that working out helps with blood flow and follicle stimulation. It’s a bit early for shock loss, which I’m apprehensive about, but staying positive. Updated on 14 Aug 2019: Every day gets better and better. The top of my head is still numb, which doesn’t really bother me. The back of my head and sides by the incision are slightly tender. My incision looks so good! I feel at this rate my scar will heal quickly. Yesterday I was finally able to wash my hair more properly. I was directed not to run my fingers or shampoo directly over the incision area, however, I could suds up the area nearby as long as I was careful. I’ve been quite cautious during my entire recovery. So, after I concentrated the shampoo on the back of my head, I used a mirror to carefully suds up the rest of my hair. I took my index finger and thumb and placed suds on the strands closer to my incision line. Finally, a less greasy head:) Yesterday I actually noticed baby hairs already sprouting by the incision on both the front and sides. I’m not sure if this is a common sign that is indicative of little or no shock loss. Fingers crossed! Attached is a photo of my normal everyday hair loss in the shower. It’s gross, but I wanted to share for myself others. I also have very long hair. I’ll be sure to keep an eye on the loss during the coming weeks to see if it gets worse. Updated on 29 Aug 2019: I’ve had little shock loss from my sides, but absolutely none in my front forehead incision. Baby hairs have been sprouting everywhere! I can’t say enough great things about Dr. Dudas, his assistant Liz, and the rest of the team. I was super apprehensive about my post op healing, but it’s been going really well. I’ve been applying scar gel with silicone to the incision area. I have a good feeling that my scar will be undetectable in the coming weeks!
I had permanent red silicone bumps and scar tissue in the center of my face for many years. I tried 5-FU and steroid injections, lasers, microneedling, fillers, lifts and every concealer on the market and nothing helped. I'm a professional model and 9 doctors (including "the best" in NY and LA) told me to live with it and sent me away. I was losing jobs, especially for filming, and can't stand to watch old clips of myself on television. I only dated at night so the bumps would not be as noticeable close up in the daylight. Dr. Dudas excised the lesions and put in 25 of the smallest stitches I've ever seen. The next day, I [RS bleep] you not, if it were not for the black stitches, I could not find the lines where this board certified surgeon cut me. It was seamless. The clusters of red blood vessels surrounding the lesions immediately went away. 6 days post-op I was back on camera and met my husband. Waking up next to someone in the morning without shame is priceless. I have referred friends and family to Dr. Dudas for hairline lowering and hair restoration. One of my friends just now joined Facebook because he looks unrecognizably gorgeous with a full head of hair. Dr. Dudas is humble and genuinely nice. This meticulous man comes to mind every time my fiance puts his arms around me and we look in the mirror and smile. It's wedding season and I have more work for him! If you have a challenge that feels hopeless, or are botched, meet Dr. Dudas before you give up. He cares more about putting his talent to work to permanently improve your life than covering his ass.
My hairstyles have always involved bangs due to a high hairline. I have been considering 2011/2012 and I finally ready for this day in May of 2017. I had been conversing with Dr. Kabaker on this, however by the time I was ready to do the surgery I was referred to the new practice in San Francisco. I live abroad and so I have the added expense for lodging and airfare. I met with Dr. Dudas a few days before the procedure and he answered all my questions and he was very caring and concerned for my well being. Dr. Dudas had a lot of experience in these procedures as he had worked with Dr. Kabaker in the past. I decided to move forward and for a fee I also requested Dr. Kabaker to be present for my surgery. After much discussion, I chose 2 Stage forehead reduction procedure to improve appearance seeking a more feminine look by advancing the scalp. I have small head and very tight skin that would make it difficult to advance the scalp in one procedure, thus I have requested for the 2 stage procedure, where a tissue expander would inserted under my scalp. The expander would be filled with saline to expand my skin to where I can lower my scalp without having limitation on how much reduction I could do. The costs doubled because it would require two surgeries. The first surgery would involve the insertion of the tissue expander and the second surgery would be to remove the tissue expander and complete the final surgery to advance the hairline. My initial surgery on May 25th went well. The procedure was done under general anesthesia. Upon waking up I was very weak and had a sore throat from the breathing tube. For a feww I had to hire a nurse to pick me up from the operating room and to stay with me the entire night to make sure I was well. The following morning, the nurse took me back to the doctor's office. That morning I was still very weak from the surgery. All seemed to have gone well with the surgery and I received a surgery guide and post care instructions from the Doctors. I received detailed instructions and the doctors filmed a video the way the tissue expander could be filled. Since I am residing outside of the united states and cannot stay in San Francisco to do have the doctors fill the expander and for this reason the doctors were very kind to give me all the tools and instructions I needed to do the fills myself or my doctor or clinic abroad do them. Updated on 3 Aug 2017: About five days from the procedue my face is pretty swollen and my undereyes Are very dark, I use make up as I had a family event to attend. I brought a wig made with remy hair to cover the area of my forehead where I had the incision. I forgot to take picks of the insicion that was done to insert the expander. I look very terrible for the event, my eyes are almost swollen shut. The doctor had mentioned this would happen and it would go down in about a week and a half or two. Updated on 3 Aug 2017: This is about 10 days after initial surgery. I forgot to take pics of the insition but at least you can see face is almost back to normal. I did get the expander at a local doctor while abroad, however I feel that the expander leaked, it flat and not puffy and I cannot hear the saline water move. I communicated with the doctor office and it may have leaked possibly. I scheduled a flight back to San Fran to have this tissue expander replaced. Updated on 3 Aug 2017: I am back in San Fran to replace tissue expander. For a fee I had to replaced. The doctor tried to duplicate the issue, however he did not find it leak. He still replaced it with one a bit smaller so that it better fit with my small sized head. There is still no way to explain how the fill leaked as it is pretty flat with with old expander. Still I am glad it was replaced regardless. I feel the new expander fits a lot better, and this time I requested the insertion port be left outside, the last time with old expander the port was inserted internal so that it did not show, however it was very difficult for me to do the fill like that and it hurt a lot and bump into it too many times with the kitchen cabinet. (Lol) Thus per my request, external port was left outside This time I took pics I can share of the insition and how the expander with the saline fill look like. Updated on 3 Aug 2017: Still a little swelling and dark undereyes from second surgery to replace tissue expander. I was able to finally book final surgery date and by end of August hopefully I can finally get the final surgery done to remove the tissue expander and get the hairline moved lower. I have stayed in San Fran to get the saline fills done. I have been going to the doctors office daily. I wear a hat to get around the city without getting much attention with my bandaging and the enlarged head with the expander. So far I get compliments of my hats. It has been so far a good way to cover up and I like it, so far I have been touring the city without drawing too much attention from having the surgery. So far staying in San Fran has been a fantastic tourist experience. I love the museums, especially the Academy of Sciences ,I love the aquarium and the planetarium there. Updated on 3 Sep 2017: 3rd Surgery to remove tissue expander and advance the hairline. Updated on 8 Sep 2017: Update: Stitches removed. Follow up in two weeks. Updated on 23 Sep 2017: Only experienced slightly thinning along the sides. See pic. Updated on 7 Nov 2017: Some pics about 6 months post op. Updated on 11 May 2023: This was definitely a long journey. I did get hair grafts in Istanbul Turkey in 2022 because after four years I could not see the desired volume of hair growth along the new hair line. What remedied this was to get hair transplant. I chose Turkey because of their expert talent in hair transplant and also because it was very affordable under 1500 US dollars. Updated on 11 May 2023: This pic is from 2021 post 2 stage hairline surgery but before getting hair transplant. No significant hair growth. Hair thinning persisted all around the sides of head and top of scalp. Just using vitamin supplements. Updated on 11 May 2023: Because of Thinning all around the sides and top of scalp. Underwent hair transplant in Istanbul Turkey. The hair transplant was another journey that I believe was worth it and I am planning to return to Turkey to continue to address other areas of the scalp that are still thin and where you can see thru the scalp.
Ever since I was little, I've always felt that something looked off about my face, but at a young age I couldn't tell what it was. In middle school, I began to feel super self conscious of my forehead. I used to get a teased sometimes, but ultimately my forehead was something I never liked myself, not just because other people had made comments about it. Starting in 7th grade, I started wearing hairstyles to cover it, and having really bad anxiety on windy days or if I was invited to a pool party/water park. I wore hats whenever it was going to be windy. I stopped going swimming, something I used to love since I had a pool growing up. I also stopped going boating with my best friend, always making up excuses of why I couldn't go. Boating with her was my favorite thing in the world, but the anxiety I had developed about my forehead overruled that enjoyment. In 8th grade, I stumbled across this surgery when looking up that frequent search, "how to make your forehead look smaller" lol. Ever since then I spent hours doing research and planning to save up money for it. After I bought my first car, I began saving all my money from babysitting, and also got a job at 16. I am now about to graduate this week and finally am having my surgery next monday! I am super excited to finally have this weight lifted off my shoulders, but also a little nervous! However, I trust that Dr. Dudas knows what he's doing and will do great! Updated on 16 Jun 2021: Sorry it’s taken me a few days to be able to be on my phone, but i’ll post a separate review for each day. My surgery was at 7:40 AM and I woke up about 3 hours later. Going into surgery, the nurses were super sweet and when they took off my mask, they said that I was so beautiful and this surgery was only going to make me prettier than I already am. When they put me under, I remember the lights above the operation table warping for a second before I fell asleep. I don’t remember anything until I woke up. When I first woke up from anesthesia, it was superrr hard like my brain wanted to wake up but my body couldn’t. After about 10 min or so I could finally function. I didn’t feel any pain in my head yet, the local anesthesia hadn’t worn off yet. I was worried when I couldn’t move my eyebrows, but later on I realized it was just from the anesthesia and I am able to feel/move them now. I was also very swollen the first day. They prescribed me with anti nausea meds and oxycodone for the pain. I ended up throwing up three times that day because my stomach couldn’t handle the pain meds. By about 8:45 PM the pain had gotten excruciating and I couldn’t do anything but cry and try to control my breathing. My mom had to call my doctors 24 hour number (which they were super helpful the whole day), and my surgeon called her back shortly. He said that I was heavily under medicated from throwing up so much, and basically feeling all of the pain from the procedure. He gave me permission to take more of the pain medication and some ibuprofen. This helped enough to whereI could breath normally again and fall asleep for short periods of time. Updated on 16 Jun 2021: Last night I had only been sleeping in about hour intervals, and was extremely weak. My mom had to basically carry me to the bathroom all yesterday and this morning. My checkup appointment was at 12, so in the morning she helped me wash off in the bath and I was also able to brush my teeth. My head was throbbing but not awful. However, my nausea was still bad. Since my doctor is in SF we had to park somewhat far and I had to walk to the office with my moms help. This made my nausea even worse and I ended up throwing up again in the bathroom of the doctors office. I did get to see my incision finally though, which looked clean and like it will heal nicely. Dr Dudas also showed my mom how to care for my incision, since I was so out of it from the meds. We decided it would be best for me to stop taking the pain meds and switch to just tylenol and ibuprofen. One of the nurses wheeled me in a wheelchair back out to my car which was very helpful. I had about a 2 hour drive home which was completely awful. If you’re traveling to have this procedure do yourself a favor and stay at least an extra night in the hotel. I spent the whole two hours trying not to throw up and manage my pain. When I got home and laid in bed the nausea began to get better. I couldn’t do much but get up to go to the bathroom, in which my head would start throbbing. My boyfriend came over for a few hours and laid with me as I tried to get some sleep. The most difficult part of sleeping was staying elevated. I always sleep in fetal position so this was extremely hard, and I ended up turning to my side to fall asleep. The pain was still pretty bad day 2 since I stopped taking the prescribed pain pills, but ultimately that was what was best for my body. Updated on 16 Jun 2021: swelling went down a lot Updated on 17 Jun 2021: Yesterday and today have been much better. I still have a constant dull pain, but it has improved enough that tonight I haven’t taken any pain meds. I have been able to walk around my house and do light cleaning. My mom helps me wash my hair and re wrap my head daily as instructed by Dr. Dudas. I took pictures each day before I wrapped my head. Lookin a little scary with the stitches still but I can tell it’s already healing! Updated on 27 Jun 2021: Looking a lot better, got my stitches out a week after my procedure and the suture holes are starting to heal and fade. One thing I wish I had known prior to having this surgery is how long you are supposed to keep your head wrapped. You have to wrap it was several layers including an ace bandage until you get your stitches out (one week), which meant I couldn’t go anywhere or do anything without people noticing. At my stitch removal, they told me I could stop wearing the ace bandage, but I still had to wrap my head in a thin layer of gauze if I wanted to go anywhere, meaning I have to wear a hat or headband until my next appointment (3 weeks post op). Also I have started noticing more hair loss than normal. I don’t have any bald spots yet, but I’m sure I will start to get some. Updated on 21 Jul 2021: You couldn’t even tell I had a procedure done if it weren’t for the ointment on. However, the doctor did warn me it gets red over the next couple months and then will start to fade again. Updated on 21 Jul 2021: Updated on 21 Jul 2021: I did get a little bit of shock loss on the sides of my incision, but it’s not noticeable when my hair is down. Dr. Dudas said it should all start filling in around 3-4 months. I lost the hair around 2-3 weeks post op and after 3 weeks i stopped losing hair so that’s a plus! Updated on 22 Jul 2021: Around 2 1/2 weeks post op, my incision went from basically being invisible, to becoming super red within a few days. At my 3 week check up, my doctor said this was completely normal and that it may even get more red before it starts to fade. He told me to start using a silicone scar gel, which is the only type of scar gel that has proven to actually work. He also said that basically all my restrictions are lifted, so I could go back to the gym and at 4 weeks I could dye my hair if I wanted. My boyfriend and I even went to Six Flags after my appointment (after confirming with Dr. Dudas of course). Since then, I’ve been living normally and using the scar gel. It hasn’t gotten more red, but I haven’t had any noticeable improvement. However, I am only 5 weeks out and Dr. Dudas said it typically continues getting red for the first couple months and then will start to fade. I have noticed indentation in parts of the scar, which I’m hoping will go away. I have my next appointment in two weeks, so I will post an update then! Updated on 2 Oct 2021: My scar is nearly gone now. It’s still a little red on the sides but it is hardly noticeable and will continue to fade. I have been using silicone scar scream 2x a day for about a month and a half and it has definitely improved the redness. The indentations and bumpiness has also improved a lot. Again, it is worse on the sides than in the middle, but it’s not that bad anymore. I also have a TON of baby hairs along my hairline and all of the shock loss spots have filled in. The feeling in the top on my head began coming back about a month ago, and I am continuing to gain back more feeling. Overall, I do not regret this procedure at all and I would highly recommend it to anyone who is extremely self conscious of their forehead!
My surgery is next week with Dr. Dudas in San Francisco. He's the Dr. that took over Dr. Kabaker's practice. I'm surprised not a lot of people left reviews about him on this site and that's why I decided to leave one cause I really wanted to see results from other people that went with him. I met him for a consult about a month ago, he did most of the hairline Lowering with Dr. Kabaker before he retired and took over the practice. He measured me at about 9-9.5. He is very sweet and seems to know what he's doing :) My surgery is booked for April 12. I am very nervous and scared but I try not to think about it and keep myself busy. Everyday i feel like picking up the phone and cancelling but then I tell myself that I might regret not going through with it cause I really want it. I'm mostly worried about hair loss just like most people, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed everything will go well. I'm very active and maintain a very healthy lifestyle so hopefully that will help me in recovery. Will keep you posted... Updated on 16 Apr 2018: Before the surgery started Dr. Dudas measured me at a 9 and told me he could get at least 2.5. I told him I was good with 2.5 and that he could go up to a 3, what ever he thought looked good enough during the surgery. He was able to get 2.7. I also asked for a little brow raise while he's at it.... The first 48 hours after surgery were brutal, I mean really rough. I did not expect it after reading most of the reviews here. I was nauseas the whole time, couldn't keep anything down, not even water. So because I was vomiting the painkiller I was in pain. I hardly slept the first night. Called Dr. Dudas at 11 pm and asked him to call the pharmacy for anti nausea pills. Sent someone to pick up the prescription at 11:30pm at a local pharmacy. Couldn't keep down the anti-nausea pills as well :( . I think that maybe my system was not tolerating the painkillers cause once I stopped trying to take them the nausea went away. About 8 hours after surgery I began to develop a bruise under my eye, or a black eye in other words. I didn't have anything while I was there and only saw it in the evening. I think if I have iced the area right away when i got to my room I could of maybe prevented it, or some of it. But I wasn't thinking about it. IMPORTANT- Ice a lot after surgery even if you don't see any swelling or bruising in the beginning!!! So I'm on day 4 after surgery. I still have a big black eye but I'm currently taking Arnica pallets and using Arnica bruise cream to try and get rid of the bruise. I feel much much better and my appetite is coming back. I took my first shower yesterday and tried to get all the gross stuff out of my hair as gently as possible but there are still a lot. I'm gonna do it slowly every other day till everything gets out. So far I'm happy with the results, hoping the bruising will go away fast. Today I went to buy a full cover concealer to try and camouflage the bruise a bit. The sales lady asked me if everything was ok at home :) Updated on 21 Apr 2018: I took the stitches out 2 days ago. The scar looks good, still healing. Top of scalp is numb but it's not that bad. When I looked in the magnifying mirror I saw baby hairs starting to sprout out in front, Yay!!! :) I'm still taking the multi vitamin that the Dr recommended I start before surgery, I'll probably stop with it next week cause I usually don't take Multi-viatamins. I'm taking Evening Primose oil soft gels, I took that regardless before the surgery and will continue to take it (Taking the Sports Research brand) Drinking carrot juice everyday (if you can't get carrot juice load up on carrots) - I know everybody says it's good for eyes but it's also great for hair growth, loaded with Vitamin A, read up on it... I also eat one red bell pepper everyday, red peppers are very high in Vitamin C which is also crucial for healing. They have a lot more vitamin C then oranges. I will wait one more week before I start styling my hair and will post more pics. Updated on 30 Apr 2018: So Happy! It's looking better and better every day, I know I still have a few more months till it heals completely but I'm currently satisfied with the healing process. Things that happened this past week: 1) Over the weekend I had 3 social events I had to attend, I was so nervous someone would notice but all i kept getting was compliments on my hair. Everybody thought I had gotten a haircut, which I did about a month ago but nobody said anything then... :) Nobody knows anything about the procedure except my husband. But I guess people noticed something was a little bit different and they immediatly thought it might be a haircut. I had gotten an Ok from Dr. Dudas to style my hair. I used a blowdryer and a curling iron as gently as possible. The reason the Doc's say not to use heat on your hair in the beginning is because the scalp is numb and if you get too close with heating tools you won't feel if you get burnt. So I stayed away from the scalp and tried not to pull my hair. 2) On day 14 I stopped using Neosporin on the scar and switched to Biocorneum. Biocorneum is a silicon gel with spf, it supposed to fade and flatten the scar. I brought it at the Dr's office. It cost there $88. I know you can get it cheaper online but I've read reviews on some sites from people that bought it that said it was not authentic so I didn't mind paying the extra $20-$30 and not worry about it being fake. 3) Got the Ok from Dr. to get back to my workouts which I did on day 14, it feels great! 4) Baby hairs are still growing through scar. The hairline is starting to look more natural everyday that passes. In the beginning the hairline looks weird and straight, it felt and looked like I had a wig on. But now it's starting to form it's shape. The scar has really faded and flattened, not noticeable at all. 5) I stopped taking the multi-vitamin, I didn't think I needed it anymore since I eat all the vitamins I need. Just keep in mind that diet plays an important role in the healing process. I've attached some pics. I tried to get as close as possible but it's hard to get the phone to focus on the scar. Hope it helps. Updated on 9 Jun 2018: Nothing really new to report. I've been feeling great, no side effects. I've had a little hair loss along the incision on the sides a few weeks ago but it's not noticeable cause the hair is covering it. I feel that my hair is strong now and I can do anything with it. I haven't really pulled it back yet into a ponytail when I go out cause of the little hairs still growing out in front, it looks funny and I can't keep them down till they grow out :) My scalp is still numb in front but in some areas I feel like i'm starting to get back sensation. I'm still using the Biocorneum scar cream at night before I go to sleep. I'll continue to use it till I run out. The scar in front has faded completely but the sides are still red where the hair is covering, it will probably take longer to disappear since I'm not treating it with any cream.
Mild, temporary hair loss can occur after hairline lowering surgery. It is not common, but it is not rare either. Significant and/or permanent hair loss is very rare with hairline lowering. In cases where there is permanent hair loss, it is usually very mild and can be treated with hair transplants at a later time. Moderate to severe hair loss will almost certainly recover, at least for the most part.
That is correct that most patients wanting or needing more than 1 inch of forehead reduction will likely need a two-stage procedure requiring a tissue expander. The expander is usually placed in the midscalp (top of the head) or crown area, underneath the scalp skin. The length of time needed for expansion depends on how many inches of hairline lowering is the goal. It can usually be accomplished in 1 to 2 months for most patients. Several inches of extra scalp skin can be created if needed though. There is mild to moderate discomfort for a few days immediately after the expander is placed. There is also some mild discomfort each time the expander is filled.
There is no absolute minimum age required to have a hairline lowering, but most surgeons would recommend a patient wait until at least 18 years of age so that they can make an informed adult decision. If there were an extenuating circumstance, such as severe teasing or bullying at school, surgery on a teenager could be considered. For male patients, it’s important to defer hairline lowering as long as possible in case there is a hereditary tendency toward male pattern baldness.
It is possible to make some modifications to the shape of the skull, including by bone shaving and/or implants. The specific plan to achieve this will vary depending on the patient’s anatomy and goals. It is important to discuss the personalized plan with a surgeon who is experienced with these type of procedures because they are quite specialized.
We recommend you consult with a Board Certified Plastic Surgeon to address your issues and get a sense of your specific hair distribution (remaining and receding). There are several options such as FUE or strip transplantation to help fill in the areas of thinning hair, but, as you noted, there is risk of placing hair that will become island when the surrounding hair recedes. PRP injections may or may not help enhance hair health/growth. The biggest thing would be to slow down the loss of hair and a surgeon would probably want to know why you cannot use finasteride since this is a great first line treatment for thinning hair. Nonetheless, a consultation with a surgeon should be done to answer this complex issue.
