badger_01

I had my first HT with Dr Gabel on 06/12/08.

The plan was to re-create my hairline in place and add density to the front and mid scalp, leaving the crown for a future HT.

Dr Gabel dense packed the front and feathered the density toward the crown. The 3279 grafts broke down as follows

1- 645

2- 2125

3- 507

4- 2

Total Grafts : 3279

Total hairs : 6424

i'd agree with yogi's dad. All the docs on this forum are ethical and have great track records.

Are you worried about losing your native hair post

HT? I think if you're conservative with your first HT and keep sufficient donor hair for future, you should be ok. The best person to give you advice though, is an ethical HT surgeon and there are plenty of those on this site. I am 30 and had similar questions, though I ended up getting my first HT a couple of weeks ago. Consult with a few good docs and you'll be fine!

Mr G,

Being in California, you have other options, even if you don't want to travel. Like someone else on the forums said, it is *possible* that there are good docs in Bosley and some of the other chain clinics but this is not something you want to leave to chance!

Why not schedule consultations with other docs in your area with a proven track record of great results!

thanks for the info Bill and dr Mejia.

djdennis...congrats man...looks fantastic for 4.5 months. Can't wait to see what the 8 month pics look like. Like condoguy said, your hairline looks completely natural! Good stuff from Dr Epstein!

I'm 9 days post-op now and have been noticing a few hairs in my comb when i comb the sides and back or gently massage the suture area. It couldn't be coming from anywhere else since my recipient area was shaved. Could this be shockloss? I thought that it typically starts between 1 and 2 months post-op.

Congratulations! You must be thrilled with the result. Were you on the minox and fines before the surgery? You have alot of density for only 1700 grafts...u must be very happy.

Bill,

Thanks to the pointer to Hairfree. I looked up his previous posts and I too have been too concerned to touch my grafts at all. I allowed the shower head on it last night (day 6) for the first time and for a really short amount of time. I'm going to let my head soak longer tommorrow. For now I'll let the mineral oil do its thing!

OK..thx guys. I've started putting mineral oil as per my docs instructions since yesterday. Hopefully this will resolve itself soon.

Its amazing how after all the research and experiences shared on this forum, I thought i'd know exactly what to expect ..i'm sure there'll be a few more curve balls before its all said and done!

I'm 7 days post-op now, and everything seems like its gone well so far. No grafts appear to have been displaced and there's been no bleeding. I am concerned about some weird ridges or lines that are appearing on my scalp as it heals (marked with a red box in the pics). Is this crusting? Have some of the scabs fallen off and taken the bristle hair with them? Inspite of everything i've seen and read, i'm freaking out a little. I've included a day7 pic and a day4 pic for comparison.

pls offer some words of wisdom!

I'm 7 days post-op now, and everything seems like its gone well so far. No grafts appear to have been displaced and there's been no bleeding. I am concerned about some weird ridges or lines that are appearing on my scalp as it heals (marked with a red box in the pics). Is this crusting? Have some of the scabs fallen off and taken the bristle hair with them? Inspite of everything i've seen and read, i'm freaking out a little. I've included a day7 pic and a day4 pic for comparison.

pls offer some words of wisdom!

Hi Naren,

Good luck with your surgery. From everything I've read and all the blogs I've seen, hairs lost due to shockloss start to come back in month 3, new hairs start to grow month 4, and most ppl have some kind of coverage by month 6. But it takes up to 8 months to get to 80-90% thickness and a whole year for the grafts to mature.

I wouldnt want to be thinking about my hair at my wedding, so I'd wait 8 months before tying the knot! If you have to do it earlier, I'd recommend waiting atleast 6 months.

Good luck!

hair_care, Any ethical doctor will be able to point you in the right direction. And it sounds like you've shorted-listed 2 of the best.

I started looking into HTs when I was 26 and put it off for another 4 years. Toppik and Dermmatch helped me conceal what i was losing during that time. Schedule some consultations with multiple doctors and see what they have to say. It may help to take pictures of what your hairline looked like before you started losing your hair, and what your dad's hairline looks like (if you're following a family pattern of baldness).

Good luck man..keep us all posted.

Am only 5 days post-op.....and hoping that my hair starts to comeback on schedule (whatever that means . Its funny hoping for my hair to return before its even fallen out )

thanks Guys!

Yeah..just taking it easy at home. Visited Dr Gabels office yesterday for some post-op cleaning of the graft and donor areas and haven't left the house since. Still getting used to sleeping in a chair though .Its day 2 and no swelling yet...hopefully its not too bad in the next couple of days. Stopped the pain meds yesterday..the graft area is fine but the donor area is still a little sore..any idea when the soreness subsides ?

First let me start by saying thank you for the positive comments I've received in the days leading up to my procedure. It makes a big difference coming from people who've been through the same thing and understand how you feel.

I understand completely that this is only the first small step toward restoring my hair, and we won't know how successful the surgery was for another year, but yesterday was the culmination of years of researching blogs and forums for me, and I couldn't be happier with how it went, so I'll allow myself a day of euphoria, before the grafts shed and the agony of the wait for re-growth begins.

My day started at 6:30 am in the morning. Dr Gabel had spent over an hour with me the previous day going over the hairline I wanted, but this was the real thing so I appreciated that he really took his time. Even after we achieved one that we were both happy with, we took some pictures and some of the angles didn't look absolutely right. So we went through the process 2 more times! We were only moving a portion of the hairline by a few millimeters, but I knew that if I wasn't happy with to start with, it would bug me for the rest of my life! Dr Gabel was very patient and re-did it each time, until we were both happy.

The strip removal was very quick, and once you get through the initial anesthesia shots which are somewhat painful, there really isn't any pain. Dr Gabel then proceeded to make the holes for the new grafts. He made all the holes himself, was very re-assuring. In fact he was in the room the whole time..placing grafts along with another tech! We'd talked about doing between 2500 and 3000 grafts to cover the frontal areas, and leave the crown for a later date. We got 3279, so I was thrilled with the density. My friend who I'd confided in, picked me up after the procedure and the first thing he said was "your hair looks great..which ones are the grafts". He was shocked to learn that they were *all* grafts, since my native hair was completely shaved. It was cool to see his jaw drop. Though I'm trying to temper my own expectations because I realize that there is still a long road ahead.

The day went very quickly, even though it was a long day. I watched a couple of movies, but mostly chatted with Dr Gabel and his techs. Some of them are really funny, and it was a good time (as good a time as one could possible have while holes are being poked in your head .)

We took tons of pictures, including one with the number of grafts per sq cm. It was really late and I was very tired, so I'll pick em up when I go to have the sutures removed, and post them along with the graft breakdown.

Thanks again for all the support, and I look forward to sharing the rest of my journey and the long painful wait!

First let me start by saying thank you for the positive comments I've received in the days leading up to my procedure. It makes a big difference coming from people who've been through the same thing and understand how you feel.

I understand completely that this is only the first small step toward restoring my hair, and we won't know how successful the surgery was for another year, but yesterday was the culmination of years of researching blogs and forums for me, and I couldn't be happier with how it went, so I'll allow myself a day of euphoria, before the grafts shed and the agony of the wait for re-growth begins.

My day started at 6:30 am in the morning. Dr Gabel had spent over an hour with me the previous day going over the hairline I wanted, but this was the real thing so I appreciated that he really took his time. Even after we achieved one that we were both happy with, we took some pictures and some of the angles didn't look absolutely right. So we went through the process 2 more times! We were only moving a portion of the hairline by a few millimeters, but I knew that if I wasn't happy with to start with, it would bug me for the rest of my life! Dr Gabel was very patient and re-did it each time, until we were both happy.

The strip removal was very quick, and once you get through the initial anesthesia shots which are somewhat painful, there really isn't any pain. Dr Gabel then proceeded to make the holes for the new grafts. He made all the holes himself, was very re-assuring. In fact he was in the room the whole time..placing grafts along with another tech! We'd talked about doing between 2500 and 3000 grafts to cover the frontal areas, and leave the crown for a later date. We got 3279, so I was thrilled with the density. My friend who I'd confided in, picked me up after the procedure and the first thing he said was "your hair looks great..which ones are the grafts". He was shocked to learn that they were *all* grafts, since my native hair was completely shaved. It was cool to see his jaw drop. Though I'm trying to temper my own expectations because I realize that there is still a long road ahead.

The day went very quickly, even though it was a long day. I watched a couple of movies, but mostly chatted with Dr Gabel and his techs. Some of them are really funny, and it was a good time (as good a time as one could possible have while holes are being poked in your head .)

We took tons of pictures, including one with the number of grafts per sq cm. It was really late and I was very tired, so I'll pick em up when I go to have the sutures removed, and post them along with the graft breakdown.

Thanks again for all the support, and I look forward to sharing the rest of my journey and the long painful wait!

Thanks Bill,

Met with Dr Gabel today. We reviewed my hairline, and took some pictures that I'll be posting to my blog soon. I also had a chance to meet with his staff who will be present during the procedure. We reviewed post-op care and he answered all my questions. I was there for about 75 mintues and left feeling much more relaxed and confident...still a few butterflies though

2 days to surgery with Dr Gabel. I'm excited and nervous at the same time. Dr Gabel has been very re-assuring. We've talked a few times over the last couple of weeks and I will be meeting with him tomorrow to go over any last minute questions.

The plan is to address the front and mid scalp region with this surgery, with 2500-3000 grafts and leave the crown for the next HT. We're not pulling the hairline forward (I'd wanted to but the doc advised against it). Instead we're going to re-establish my existing hairline and look to add density.

Pls visit my blog for pics.

I've already learned so much from all of you. If you have any last minute tips and advice, I'd love to hear it..otherwise wish me luck

2 days to surgery with Dr Gabel. I'm excited and nervous at the same time. Dr Gabel has been very re-assuring. We've talked a few times over the last couple of weeks and I will be meeting with him tomorrow to go over any last minute questions.

The plan is to address the front and mid scalp region with this surgery, with 2500-3000 grafts and leave the crown for the next HT. We're not pulling the hairline forward (I'd wanted to but the doc advised against it). Instead we're going to re-establish my existing hairline and look to add density.

Pls visit my blog for pics.

I've already learned so much from all of you. If you have any last minute tips and advice, I'd love to hear it..otherwise wish me luck

Thanks Bill,

I picked Dr Gabel. Thats a good point you make about transecting native hairs. I've been reading that a number of patients started their propecia regimen right after surgery, and I'll probably do the same. Anything else i can do to minimize the risk of permanent shockloss?

Hi,

This is my first post and I wanted to start by saying thank you for the wealth of information o n this site. After reading many of your experiences, I finally scheduled an HT (with a reputed surgeon recommended on this forum)

I've been putting off starting propecia for a while because of all the side-effects I've read about, but I also know that is key in minimizing permanent shock loss after an HT. My HT is scheduled in 2 weeks and was wondering if it is even worthwhile starting propecia now to minimize/prevent permanent shockloss. Since propecia takes a few months to start working, does it make sense to start taking so soon before an HT procedure?

Hi,

This is my first post and I wanted to start by saying thank you for the wealth of information o n this site. After reading many of your experiences, I finally scheduled an HT (with a reputed surgeon recommended on this forum)

I've been putting off starting propecia for a while because of all the side-effects I've read about, but I also know that is key in minimizing permanent shock loss after an HT. My HT is scheduled in 2 weeks and was wondering if it is even worthwhile starting propecia now to minimize/prevent permanent shockloss. Since propecia takes a few months to start working, does it make sense to start taking so soon before an HT procedure?