You know I have faith in the success of FUT chosing a good doctor, but my only restriction is the ugly duggling phase, my work is very sensitive, and i can not wear a hat in my type of work. Also I will be rediculed by my colleagues if I will look weird.

Goshhh what a nightmare, how can I overcome this ugly duggling phase, and how long will it take, and will the transplanted hair in the front take too long to blend with the rest of the hair, especially the hairline and the templars

Yskhleif,

The answer depends on many factors. Pre op pics, HT size and plan, skin type, hair texture would help us answer you. In my experience, if the Dr. does not shave the recipient area, after a couple to three weeks you should show no signs of having the transplant and most likely no one will notice. Schedule a vacation/stomach virus post HT!!

This assumes that you have existing hair in the transplanted area which will help blend when the lil guys begin to grow around the three month mark. The donor area should be ok as well assuming you have density to cover the strip or fue. You can also look into products that can help with the cover up if necessary.

Hope this help

T

Yskhleif-

I too have a job where I am constantly in the public's eye.

See my hairloss blog. I was able to retain some camoflauge hair and look quasi-normal in two weeks (that is the minimum amount of time before I was told I could comb my recepient area).

I was also lucky enough not to have any significant shock loss; I'm now at 6 weeks post-op.

The stage you refer to depends on a lot of variables as the previous respondent noted.

For me, I was good to go in two weeks. No problem for me because I have a lot of time off during the summer.

I suggest you confer with others to get a bettter fix on a likely timeframe for your look to return to an undetectable phase.

Good luck!

I know what you mean. The ugly duggling phase has me a little worried also. I'm trying to plan my procedure before or a little after december, my holidays.

Yskhleif,

The reality is that you will not look normal for many months if you have significant work done.

A megasession leaves tiny pits and redness in you scalp that will be evident for up to 3 months. The growth may kick in anywhere for 3-5 months and add another 2 months for the new hair to get to a length where it can be styled.


If you are planting into a small area and can camoflage with existing hair, you may be able to hide it.

If you are slick bald and have a "combover" or some variation, the remaining native hair will be shocked/shaved and replaced with redress/roughness of the scalp.

If your new hairline growth is not initially strong, you may have a faint outline of hair where you did not before. This is not "normal".

If you shaved/buzzed your hair on the back/sides before, you will probably not be able to do this for at least 3 months. And depending on your scar may not be able to do this again. I am unable to use clippers on sides because of the strip scar.

I personally did not look "normal" until 5 1/2 months. Because of lagging hairline growth, I do not look goood, but I can style the hair carefully to look ok from the front.

There is really no way to hide the work, some people will know something was done.

I think most people go into hair transplant with the expectation that it will heal fast and be undetectable, but the reality is that once you get it done, you realize that is not the case.

However, you will eventually go out in some state of healing and realize that either A) People dont care what your hair looks B) They realize something is funny but are too kind to say anything C) They are cruel and say something but you are an adult and its easy to deal with those kinds of attacks.

__________________
My Hair Loss Web Site - Hair Transplant with Dr. Wong

This "ugly duckling" phase can be scary and the course of a lot of anxiety. I know this is true in my case, especially after my 1st and 2nd surgery. In both cases, I lost more hair than I had even before any hair transplants and was desperately afraid that I made the worst decision of my life.

Thankfully, hair started to return between 3 and 4 months but didn't start becoming really noticeable until 5 or 6 months.

It's tough, but try to trust the process - especially if you chose a first-rate doctor.

It's a hard road to go, but it's a lovely ride!

Bill

__________________
Managing Publisher of the Hair Transplant Network, the Hair Loss Learning Center, the Hair Loss Q&A Blog and the Hair Loss Forum and Social Community

Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | YouTube

Subscribe to our Newsletters | How We Recommend Physicians

-----

To learn about how I restored my hair, view my my hair loss website.

Remember, true beauty radiates from within, not from the skin.

I am not a medical professional and my words should not be taken as medical advice. All opinions and views shared are my own.

I trust the process lol I'm just not sure if i'm ok with "not looking normal for a few months" as the TheEmperor said.

Hi Yskhleif and tobler-the emperor speaks the truth and it's a long process. there is no way around looking abby normal plain and simple. regardless what anyone tells you, it's a fairly major surgical procedure and it's going to show for some time and the wait for results is abnormal too but when you're ready, really ready to make the move, you'll find a way to deal with all of it and if you use a top notch doc, you'll be just fine

__________________
My Hair Loss Weblog

Yskhleif,

I have had the same worry. In my job I cannot wear a hat, nor avoid people. I would like to minimize any ugly duckling phase, so I have taken 10 days off from work. I am currently on day 4 so am still smack-dab in the middle of being an ugly duckling.

On my web log I plan to post photos regularly over the first two weeks for just this reason; so others can see what changes take place over this time. I have light hair and light skin, so the redness will be very pronounced. I am not sure what to do when it is time to return to work. I have considered experimenting with make-up to hide the redness. But I guess I'll worry about that later. For now, I am out of the public eye.

Everyone's situation is different, but I hope it is helpful. Good luck.