Arfy,

After 5 years and 2 HT's I fully agree w/you on:

"The HT should stand alone in years to come"..I am an advocate of top-scalp hair 1st and foremost, the hair that looks genuine at 55 or 60. Guys that fill lower regions and dis-regard the top central area are potentially setting up a back-fire situation.

My 1st Ht doc would not put grafts anywhere outside my native receeded hairline which at the time was a nw3 at best.....of course my 1st reaction was "Damn, he could have done more", now I think "he was definately" the wise one and I didnt stray far from that hairline, just having the healthier hair allbeit higher up...still makes a dramatic improvement in hair volume overall.

Its case by case..but most guys could get some top coverage and look fairly good throughout life.

NW

One problem I would have run into if I did an HT at 23, is that though I had deep temporal recessions, my top was full density. It'd be really hard to add FUs to a region with 60+ FUs/cm^2 already. At 28, it was obvious my top was really thinning, so much easier to add FUs and create an HT that was in fact "standalone" or could "stand the test of time" if I lost more hair.
If I had an HT at 23. I would still have needed one at 28. I'm not sure that is so terrible, but certainly, you've lost a little freedom in your life or you'll have very weird and unnatural hair.
All a risk, after all.

vocor1
Knowledge is Power
If the worst question is the one never asked, then the worst answer is the one never shared.

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vocor1
Knowledge is Power
-- The truth only matters if you know about it.

Jenn- to your earlier question today if Shapiro Medical does work on women, they do. I actually spoke with Dr. Charles about that during my procedure, just out of conversation. In his bio in the Shapiro Medical pamphlet, it states he specializes in female hairloss. So they (Shapiro Medical)are another option for you to research in addition to the other recommendations you have been receiving. Isn't it nice to get the straight scoop from consumers? It really helped me in my decision.

I agree it would be nice to have stand alone procedure, and that is something I am really going for. However like you said you can't really predict what's going to happen a few years down the road, and I may need additional transplants in case I progress higher on NW scale. With FUE available, that is a risk I'm willing to take. Yes - it's possible that I won't have money in a couple of years, but it's also possible that I'll die in a car accident, and won't need the money in the first place (or FUE touch up sessions for that matter). My point is if you look at all if's, and can make an informed decision, by all means do. For some it will mean waiting another ten years to get an HT, for others it will be going for it now. In my opinion, you can't really win in life, unless you are willing to take risks. The best way to avoid the possibility of unnatural look later on in life is not getting an HT - you'll save lots of money and embarassment. On the other hand, you may be losing chance for a better life, and the opportunity cost associated with not taking this risk is just too much for me. I'm going for an HT, because I'd rather risk regretting doing something, than regret doing nothing.

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic''. Arthur C. Clarke

The "I'd rather do something than do nothing" attitude is a factor with ANY guy who gets a hair transplant, including the guys who get "mature and recessed" hairlines. It's a given.

The point is to plan wisely so you minimize your risks, and, if God forbid you or your surgeon calculated wrong, your entire life is not messed up.

A smart fellow can get all the positives of a hair transplant, without having to risk his future appearance.

You don't seem like the type who is interested in making compromises. Well, you may be in for a surprise. Hair transplants are all about compromises.

I do not believe that age alone should be a determining factor in deciding whether or not to perform hair restoration on someone. If you have a young patient who already has significant hair loss, then doing conservative work in the frontal area is not unreasonable. What is important is that the patient fully understands that further hair loss will likely occur. And if they do proceed to stage 7 or greater that they may only have enough donor to restore the front third to front half. However, I usually try to convince my younger patients to keep a high hairline and tell them that if their hairloss stops they can always lower the hairline at a later date. Remember these are some of the most important years in a young persons life. So waiting until they get older before we try to help them in not necessarily the best approach.

Hi

Just purchased Dr. Redmond's Book "Its Your Hormones". I have high testosterone and extreme hair loss.

I was woundering if you could email me leting me know about your progress. I to am on Spironlactone 200 and Yaz birth control.

Also I am depressed due to my hair loss. I have been afraid to to take antidepressant for fear that my hair loss will get worst. Please tell me what antidepressant did Dr. Redmond put you on? Did it cause additional hair loss for you or not? I need something to help me cope while tring to regain my hair.

All the postings I see are negative, which is very disencouraging. Please help if your still out there.

Tammera

Hi, I am a female with hair loss too, and I am trying to find some women who have had positive results with anything they have tried.

Let me know how you are doing

I get worried sometimes thinking about 'what if my hair continues to recede even after the transplant I have had?' But I am happy now. Perhaps later it will backfire. I am 25.
I had the same recession from 16 years old up until I had my transplant this past year. So I tried to hold off as long as possible. Looking at my father, he just had high temples, so I felt it was a safe decision.

My old GF was a diffuse thinner.She was only 29 and her hair was very sparse. She said it happened after she had her baby. I believe it was genetic though in her family. She and I used to joke about our hair all the time, we found that comforting I suppose...

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My Hair Loss Web Site - Hair Transplant with Dr. Pathomvanich