aaron1234

Wow. Dr. Feller, it looks like you are on to something here.

I use of combo of dermmatch and toppik. It works like a charm. However, like others have already noted, it can appear very chalky at times and certain lights. I always wash them out at night before I go to bed, so I don't have the pillow problem. Concealers don't look great but there are better than the alternative.

Is there a point where too much scalp exercising to increase the laxity becomes damaging? In other words, is there a potential unintended consequence?

Every doctor I've heard speaking about smoking says it can dramatically decrease the quality of the growth. Seriously, give it 12 months when your HT is grown out and then smoke. Better yet, try to quit.

Depends on how many grafts you receive and what doctor you go to. The average per graft seems to be around $4 and $5. Be prepared to drop between $7,000 to $12,000.

Yeah, that guy should have shaved it down for sure. Yikes.

As LMS was saying, I often notice elderly men who have basically no donor left. I always fret that that will happen to me and my donor scar will eventually not have the benefit of being covered by the hair above it.

Now I would imagine that 20-30 years down the road that hair multiplication will be on the market. But there is no guarantee of that.

So does Finasteride actually keep the donor zone from miniaturizing? I don't think there have been studies about the 20-30 year effects and efficiency of Finasteride. So we can only hope that either Fin will keep us from becoming the worst level of a NW 7 or that a newer treatment will come around down the road.

You've hit it on the head Thana. 1,000 grafts sure sounds like alot to someone who doesn't completely understand how a HT works.

Here is a link to the thread I started the day before I had surgery last year. It contains the graft conversation.

http://hair-restoration-info.c...471011583#6471011583

Dr. Gencheff and his staff were professional in the consultation and the surgery. Yes, I was confused about the initial 1,000 graft estimate. But I figured it was a misunderstanding of terminology. I reasoned at the time that a graft must not have been the same thing as a follicular unit. I thought that he could have meant 1,000 different slits with 2,000 different units placed in each one. That's how I rationalized it at the time. I'm much more educated on the terminology now than I was a year ago... because of this site.

But I do not accuse Dr. Gencheff of being intentionally deceiving and sinister. If he was, I would have been in that transplant chair two years prior when I was verging on a NW 6, age 26, before I started the meds.

I simply expected more density. His explanation does make sense when you consider my scar. Though a little pink still, it is very thin and I am pleased with that. My hairline placement is appropriate. I just expected more density and thought I could abandon concealers for my frontal third. That is not the case as the density is thin enough to reveal recipient marks when I'm under florescent lights.

In one phone conversation, he mentioned that men of my complexion tend to take a little while longer to heal and grow. He called us "pinkies". And I think he's right. I can get sunburned in less than 10 minutes. So I understand that the process can take a little longer for someone like me. And as some of you have mentioned that it could take up to 14-15 months for the hair completely mature, I am holding on to that.

Again, I have not been butchered or taken advantage of. I just expected more density and I'm disappointed that I will have to use another surgery to address the same region.

what i did not, and im guessing aaron did not know is that that these future procedures, would come SO SOON AFTER, and WOULD BE IN THE EXACT SAME SPOT AS OUR PREVIOUS WORK, due to the strong lack of density we recieved, all while being promised something else. we were thinking future procedures whould be used to address NEW areas, and future balding...i

That was basically my impression. That one procedure will cover one region and that other future procedures would cover other regions. I'd still like to address the crown in the future. Again, I believed I had realistic expectations but what I didn't understand was what number of grafts were needed to achieve a certain kind of density. And I saw some pretty amazing before and after photos of patients with about 2000 grafts on this site in the photo section. I'm NOT saying this site misled me. I just didn't understand the other variables at the time; i.e. hair texture, color, shaft thickness, etc.

Thana,

You didn't miss anything. That's why your confused... if you catch my drift.

- My in-person appointment, the doctor proposed around 1,000 grafts.

- I mentioned that to the forum and was told by everyone that 1,000 grafts were not enough.

- I call the clinic the day before my surgery. The office manager/secretary told me over the phone, that 1,000 grafts would lead to 1,500-2,000 follicular units and the doctor would maximize my donor.

- I was confused because I always thought grafts and FU's were the same thing. But I went for it anyways because I trusted them over me. After all, they were the pros, right?

Thanks skunky, hairthere, Ron, El Nino, and Bill once again for the encouragement. I really appreciate it.

Money was not an issue in regards to amount of grafts I had placed my doctor. He said it would be no more than $6,000 and that he'd get as much out of my donor as possible. Now if I went to a doctor charging $10,000, then yes, money would have been an issue.

Initially my doctor proposed 1,000 grafts. I mentioned that to the forums here and they told me that that would not be nearly enough. Being very concerned, I called the clinic the day before the surgery and was told by the secretary that 1,000 grafts would lead to about 1,500-2,000 follicular units. I was a bit confused about that because I always thought follicular units and grafts were the same thing. But I went through with it.

My expectations for this surgery was not to achieve adolescent density but have a soft mature hairline to frame the face and give me some coverage. I fully didn't expect to see my scalp through the transplanted hair, that was the whole point of getting the transplanted hair in the first place.

Fin results-

The first picture taken before I started Fin is a bit blurry. And I was also shaving my head at the time. But the outline is definitely heading to NW6. I had many fine, miniaturizing hairs in the middle region that you might not be able to see that were strengthened on Fin. The bald spot on my crown also shrunk. I believe that Fin has been pretty steady for me thus far. Here's hoping that it continues??¦ or else I'm screwed.

I am certainly planning on having another HT in future. As PGP said, I have basically no choice but to go through another one. But unfortunately, it will probably be a couple years before I have the money I need saved up for another procedure. Especially one with a top tier doc.

I with you Judge Holden. I'm just hoping in 5-10 years there is some kind of hair multiplication or cloning technique available. I'm not holding my breath.

I knew full well that I would likely need more transplants in the future. However, I didn't know that I would have to go over the same transplanted region all over again just to get any kind of density.

How many more grafts would my frontal region need to achieve a good amount of density. Another 2000?

Again, I don't think I was butchered. I just expected more density than this. And I had fairly reasonable expectations. I knew not to expect a juvenile hairline or adolescent thickness. But this is just too thin for all that dough.

LMS,

No worries man. I appreciate your concern. I guess I should have settled for the shaved head look and then I could have saved myself all this trouble and dough. I just got tired of that look. But like PGP said, I'm in and there's no turning back now. I'm going to have to start stashing away cash like no one's business now. And currently being a grad student, there's not much to stash.

The thing that scares me most is how successful Finasteride has been for me. What if it begins to lose its effectiveness? My before-meds pics look well on the way to NW6-7 territory. That's what makes me nervous.

Thanks all for you advice & encouragement.

A few things to respond to:

As PGP said:

'You say you feel stubble so that a good sign.

??¦but this is not a bad job.'

That's correct. I have been feeling invisible stubble since the growth began. It's just hard to assess whether it is growing or not. And if it is, it's growing at a glacial rate while other's have grown in at a faster pace.

The Emperor said:

'People with fine hair may take 2-3x as many grafts to get the same density as people with even average hair. You just need more grafts.'

If I have experienced a good yield than you must be right. But I am still wondering if I have actually achieved good growth. Under some bright or fluorescent lights with my hair spiked up, it barely looks like I have anything there at all.

The B spot said:

'At this point in time, you should likely wait until the 14-15 month mark like PGP stated to get a true read on your results.'

'I want to encourage you and let you know that your situation is not terrible.'

14-15 months is what I am holding onto right now. So hopefully there's a bit more to come. You are right. This is not a terrible job or a hack job. So I can't say if it's the doctor's fault or my own physiology. I know it's not hopeless.

LMS said:

'so now, unfortunately, the best advice we can offer this guy is "keep going"... pay more money'

Pretty much. I just hope the money I spend in the future will lead to better results.

I have seen 2100 do much more for others. At any rate, you both are right. I just figured going to someone recommended on this site and seeing his patients in person would have given me a better chance for a successful result. Guess not.

Here I am at 11 months post-op (2100 FU's) and feeling quite blas?© about the results thus far.

As you can see by the pictures, the hairline looks best when it is not seen at all. I'm fairly pleased with the shape and placement of the hairline, with the receded temples. It doesn't look pluggy (although some recipient incision marks are still slightly noticeable) but it lacks much density. Consequently, I am left with the comb-forward look and not much else.

The transplanted hair is still quite thinner than the rest and is growing out quite curly. I am currently using a straightener to address this issue. I still feel stubble. Will this hair eventually grow or is it in a permanently shocked state? At 11 months, can I expect much improvement from where it now stands?

I am fairly happy with my donor scar as it remains very thin and had little to no shock loss in the surrounding area. However, there remains a pink hue around the incision.

Currently, I'm still very dependent on concealers. I use a combination of dermmatch and toppik. I would very much like to lose reliance on them as they can often appear chalky.

The question is what to make of these below average results. My doctor has been helpful, by making phone calls to check up on my status and answering questions. However, he is semi-retiring, which is why I requested the pre-op photos you now see posted. It is clear I have made up a lot of ground since going on Finasteride. My doctor thought it best for me to get on the meds before rushing into surgery and that was definitely a wise decision. I have now been on Finasteride for over three years.

Or is it my physiology? My hair texture is quite thin and maybe just needs more grafts to accomplish more density. I am also a slow healer. I have had other scars on my body for years before they became undetectable. But I can't help but wonder whether if my yield is mediocre at best.

I have by no means been butchered and will not need a 'repair' job. However, I will need another procedure in the very near future and hope the final result will far exceed where I currently stand now.

Advice, comments, support welcome.

Two things:

1) Shave your head. You seem to have a good head shape. The long hair makes the balding look even worse.

2) Get on Propecia or Proscar (cut it into fourths).

You are way too young and advanced in the balding process to get a hair transplant. The medication will at least help you hold on to what you have.

I started with the concealers (dermmatch and toppik) about two weeks post-op when I had to (i.e. days I couldn't wear a loose fitting cap). They were my saving grace throughout the entire waiting period. And I still use them.

Comb, I can't wait to see your results. That's amazing work you got done there. Happy waiting man. It sucks!

God is Punishing Me is indeed an interesting screen name. I always joked that God was punishing me for all of my awful hairdo's when I actually had a full head of hair.

Looking very good. It barely looks like they touched your head.

Here's to another 12,000 posts!