Knowing how to sleep after a hair transplant is crucial. But have you ever thought that sleeping and hair transplants might be linked? Well, it is important to determine appropriate sleeping positions to prevent post-operative oedema after a hair transplant procedure.
Read this article to find out the answers to these questions and others like them:
- How long does it take to heal after a hair transplant?
- How can I sleep after a hair transplant?
- When can I sleep normally after a hair transplantation?
- When can I go back to normal sleep after a FUE hair transplant surgery?
- What is the best position to sleep in after a hair transplant surgery?
- How long can I sleep with a pillow after a follicular unit transplantation?
When can I sleep normally after a hair transplant?
After your hair transplant procedure, grafts that have been transplanted to bald areas will be very sensitive for 14 days. In general, your surgeon transplants follicular units – grafts to these bald areas: the vertex, hairline, and front of the head. Your task is to protect these recipient areas from contact with pillow and blanket while sleeping.
You need to protect your new hair from touch, cold or hot water, tight hats, sunlight, etc. That’s why you should adjust your sleeping position to ensure that the recipient areas do not come into contact with the pillow until the scabs fall off. Once the wounds on the scalp have scabbed over and started to fall off like dandruff, you can return to your normal sleeping pattern.
How many days after hair transplant can I sleep normally?
It’s best to sleep on your back on a slightly elevated surface for about 10 days after the operation. Keep your head elevated at about 45 degrees by placing a pillow under your neck. From day 10 to 14, you can gradually move to sleeping on your side. Be careful not to put direct pressure on the area where the transplanted hair follicles are located. From day 14, you can sleep in any position as usual because the grafts will have settled and adapted to their new location on the skin tissue.
Can I sleep normally after 5 days of hair transplant?
No. Be careful for up to 10 days to prevent your newly transplanted hair follicles from shedding and becoming damaged. During the first 5 days, the transplanted hair may not have adapted to the recipient area. The follicles in the dermis (middle layer of the scalp) are still very sensitive. The slightest shock can cause the hair shaft to become lost. You should not touch or scratch them.
Can I sleep normally after 7 days of hair transplant?
After a week, the importance of how to sleep after hair transplant begins to decrease. Alopecia treatment begins to show results and the difference between the transplanted and the existing hair slowly decreases. If the graft viability rate is high, it means that the surgery will give a positive result. You should be patient for 3 more days and then slowly return to normal sleeping positions.
Can I sleep normally after 10 days of hair transplant?
After the initial 10 days, your hair follicles will begin to adjust to their new position. By day 14, you can gradually resume sleeping on your sides. After this period, you are free to sleep in any position you find comfortable. If you encounter any issues such as heightened sensitivity, unusual itching, excessive follicle loss or scalp pain, we encourage you to contact our hair transplant clinic promptly for assistance.
What is the best position to sleep in after a hair transplant?
The best position for sleep after hair transplant surgery is on your back with your head elevated above your heart. This position not only reduces the likelihood of dizziness at night but also helps the swelling to subside quickly. You can sleep by placing a travel pillow on your regular pillow to keep your head stable. If the travel pillow irritates your skin, you can also try sleeping with two pillows.
Can I sleep on my donor area after hair transplant?
No, hair follicles are extracted from the donor area – the hairy part of your head. During this process, graft tissues containing groups of hair follicles are taken from your donor area using medical devices. This process also has a recovery period, which typically lasts about 10 days. Therefore, when researching the positions of sleep after a hair transplant, you should find positions that protect not only your recipient area but also your donor area.
Can I sleep on my side after hair transplant?
Yes, but after the first 10 days, you should gradually start sleeping on your side. On the 10th night, avoid sleeping by your side for hours! Initially, sleep on your right or left side for half an hour at a time. Gradually increase this duration until the 14th day. After 2 weeks, you can sleep as normal.
How long to sleep with a neck pillow after a hair transplant?
Neck pillows are recommended after every surgical procedure like rhinoplasty and FUE and DHI hair transplants. They are useful in facial operations as they allow you to keep your head stable for around 10 days. However, some travel pillows can irritate the skin by causing excessive sweating. If you do not want to use a neck or travel pillow, you can put 2 pillows on top of each other and sleep without turning left and right.
When can I sleep on my stomach after a hair transplant?
This can take about two weeks to 1 month depending on the patient. If there is a hair transplant in the frontal region on your scalp, you will undergo procedures such as receding hairline treatment or hair transplantation for thinning hair around the widow’s peak. To sleep on your stomach, you must wait until the tiny incisions in the frontal recipient area for the individual hair follicles of follicular units have completely healed. Although the wounds form scabs and fall off in the first 2 weeks, it is advisable to wait 1 month to achieve optimal results.
How long to sleep upright after a hair transplant?
When can I sleep normally after a hair transplant is a question almost every patient asks after the procedure. Hair transplant specialists recommend sleeping with your head elevated for the first 7 to 10 days after surgery. This helps to limit swelling, prevents the newly transplanted grafts from moving, reduces symptoms and promotes better healing.
Sleeping After a Hair Transplant: Dos & Don’ts
To avoid scratching and damaging grafts, please follow your surgeon’s directions regarding sudden movements and the correct position on how to sleep after a hair transplant. Your surgeon will suggest positions for you to sleep comfortably during the recovery process.
Healing process after hair restoration surgery will take time. Hair transplant patients should handle their hair gently and adopt side sleeping positions to prevent further hair loss. Below, we have compiled a list of do’s and don’ts shared by our hair transplant surgeon.
Dos After a Hair Transplant
- Get into the habit of sleeping in an elevated position early.
- Eat a light, low-fat, and balanced diet rich in protein to promote blood supply to new grafts.
- Wash your hair gently, and follow hair washing instructions.
- Use hair care products recommended by your doctor.
- Consult your surgeon about your choice of shampoo for a healthy scalp and hair strand.
- Clean bed sheets nightly to eliminate risks like scalp infection due to bacteria or fungus .
- Stay hydrated before and after hair restoration procedure.
- Use extra pillows to minimize discomfort and promote healing.
Don’ts After a Hair Transplant
- To reduce swelling or damage to new hair follicles, avoid direct sunlight.
- Don’t drink alcohol for two weeks, especially right before sleep after hair transplant.
- Avoid smoking at least for two weeks to eliminate the risk of damaging hair follicles.
- Don’t use the same pillow’s surface every night to minimize discomfort caused by bacteria.
- Don’t sleep on the surgical site where the hair transplant takes place to promote faster hair growth.
- Avoid putting too much pressure on your new hair during the healing process.
- Don’t take sleeping pills without informing your surgeon.
- Don’t neglect to follow post-surgery detailed instructions from the hair transplant clinic.
How long does a hair transplant take to heal?
To see the hair transplant results may take up to a year, depending on the patient’s recovery process.
First Week: Both the donor and recipient areas may appear pinkish or red, which will fade as the scalp heals within the initial week. Swelling may occur on your scalp and around your eyes; to reduce swelling, consult with the medical team.
After One Month: New follicles on your hair grafts may shed during the shock loss stage due to surgical stress. Typically, hair starts to regrow within 2-3 months.
After Three Months: By this stage of the healing process, transplanted hair grows approximately 1 cm per month. You can resume your daily activities without any visible scar on your head and sleep as usual without worrying about proper sleeping positions.
Month 6: Your first growing hair will be wavy and resemble your natural body hair. As it grows longer, it will become thick and more suited to your hair type. There will be signs of re-growth. Moreover, the new hair follicles become strong.
One year after a hair transplant: For many patients, it takes 12 months for hair to fully develop on the entire head. Your hair will be growing at its maximum rate and the hair shafts will perfectly cover previously bald and patchy areas on your head. They will have a normal position and angle on your scalp, just like your natural hair.
When are hair grafts secure after a hair transplant?
There is no consensus in the medical community as to how long the grafts will be securely anchored after hair transplantation. According to a study conducted by surgeons specializing in hair transplant techniques, hair strands pulled on the 2nd day after a hair transplant operation may break, while strands pulled at the end of the 6th day are no longer at risk of being dislodged. By the end of the 9th day, the grafts have become significantly stronger.
FAQs about sleep after a hair transplant
How do you sleep the second night after a hair transplant?
You will need to use extra pillows to keep your head elevated and in the right position for a couple of weeks.
Do you need bed rest after a hair transplant?
During the healing process, your grafts and follicles will heal day by day after a hair transplant. By resting, you can speed up the healing process by increasing blood flow to the transplanted hair.
How to sleep after a crown hair transplant?
You can use a travel neck pillow or create a ‘donut’ shape with a towel to take direct pressure off the crown area if it still touches the surface when the head is elevated. This promotes optimal healing and successful follicular integration of crown hair transplant.
How to sleep after a fue hair transplant?
The ideal sleeping position after follicular unit extraction surgery is to sleep with the head up, to reduce post-operative oedema or swelling, and prevent the newly transplanted grafts from moving.
How to sleep after a dhi hair transplant?
You can follow a similar sleep strategy as in FUE hair transplant. After about 10-12 days, you can return to your normal sleep pattern.
Can I cover my head while sleeping after a hair transplant?
It is not our recommendation. Covering your head leads to sweating and sweat-borne infections. Dust and dirt can also get into wounds and increase the risk of infection if you do not know if the cover is clean.
Will I experience discomfort while sleeping after hair transplant?
For the first few days, yes. You are unlikely to feel any pain or discomfort. However, it may be uncomfortable to sleep without turning from side to side. If you cannot get a quality sleep, continue to get rest during the day. Rest will accelerate the healing of the skin.
References
- Gholamali A, Sepideh P, Susan E. Hair Transplantation: Preventing Post-operative Oedema. Journal of Cutaneous and Aesthetic Surgery. 2010;3(2):87. doi:https://doi.org/10.4103/0974-2077.69018
- Bernstein RM, Rassman WR. Graft anchoring in hair transplantation. Dermatol Surg. 2006;32(2):198-204. doi:10.1111/j.1524-4725.2006.32033.x
Article Review By: Dr. Jyothi Shenoy V
Profile Link
MBBS, MD – Obstetrics & Gynaecology, MRCOG(UK)
23 Years Experience Overall
