I am nearly 72 hours after having 3500 grafts FUE hair transplant, what is the correct method of applying lotion and shampoo?

It is best to contact your surgeon for post surgery issues and care since all doctors have slightly different instructions.

For 7 days spray the lotion and wait for 15-20 min and then you can foam the lotion on your hands and tap it on the implanted area and massage it to the donor area. Then you can rinse it with still water of the bottle not tap water for 7 days. 

There are several acceptable ways to wash your hair after a transplant.  The first week is the most important as the grafts are very tenuous during this time.  The instructions you list are reasonable, as are the other ones listed in the responses.  This soon after surgery you're best served by following your surgeon's instructions.

Thanks for your question.  I recommend that patients place a small hand towel, ("wash rag"), over their transplanted scalp as they enter the shower.  Let the warm shower water pour onto the hand towel to avoid direct shower water pressure contact with the transplanted follicles, yet allow for softening the crusts on the scalp.  Shampoo or conditioner can be placed directly onto the hand towel.  "Press and pat" the hand towel with your flat hands for shampoo and/or conditioner.  When completed, "press and pat" the scalp with a towel.  Avoid scratching the transplanted scalp when shampooing, applying conditioner, or towel drying your hair, ("comb your hair, don't rake your scalp for styling"), for the first 3 or 4 days post transplant.  After that the transplanted follicles have sufficiently "glued" themselves into place and you can resume your traditional shampooing technique.  Best regards,  Robert J. Reese, DO, FISHRS.  Past-President:  ABHRS.

I give the patient a surgical sponge that has no soap in it. The patient then wets his recipient area with softly running water. Any good shampoo is use with the sponge so that it fills with shampoo. Then with a rolling motion (not rubbing) the soap from inside the sponge squirts on the grafts as the sponge holds a mild pressure on the grafts. This process is repeated until all of the crusts are off provided that it is started the day after the surgery. If you wait too long, the crusting (scabbing) gets fixed to the scalp and then there is a new problem, how to get off the crusts that have been there for a few days and are fixed to the scalp and the grafts. If you pull them off at this point in time, the grafts will come out.