Hamilton

here is the second:

Ok, I was able to get a couple of decent pics. In the first one, I have circled the black spots where the transplanted hair has already shed. You may notice there are some spots around the area that still have hairs in them. In the second one, you can actually see the bumps: the flash from the camera reflected them as white dots, and you can barely see what looks like black pores around some of the bumps. Again, these pictures are decent and they don't really do justice to what can be seen in person. Hopefully I'm just being paranoid, here ...

Hey guys, I am now 15 days post-op from a HT procedure on my hairline. Up until yesterday, I was healing well and noticed no problems. I experienced no swelling at all and all scabs were gone by day 7. I began shedding some transplanted hairs about 3 days ago and everything has seemed fine; however, yesterday I noticed that right at the front of my hairline where some of the transplanted hairs were placed, there are little black dots on the scalp where the transplanted hairs are growing. There are even a couple of hairs that have already shed and I can still see a black dot where each of them were, and these hairs were hooked at the root. The best way to describe them is that they look like blackheads with hair sticking out of them, and it's only right up at the front of the hairline ... I can see about 20 or so dots. Also, to add even more to my paranoia, these dots feel slightly bumpy. I've read on this forum about cobblestoning and how the bumps usually feel like goosebumps. These only feel slightly bumpy, not quite like goosebumps, and I can't even see these bumps in the mirror, but I can feel them with my fingers. Is this normal? Is it part of the healing process, or is it something I should be concerned about? I prefer to not say who I had my HT with, but it was a coalition surgeon, and I've read and seen nothing but good results with his work, so I'm sure there were no outdated methods applied to my HT. I have tried several times to get photos of these dots, but the result is too blurry because it's so close-up. I will keep trying so that you all can see what I am talking about. Any comments/suggestions/shared experiences would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Thanks for the answers, guys! It all makes sense. Dr. Lindsey, I especially liked your tree metaphor. That really put it in perspective for me.

Hey guys, I've been looking around at a lot of the transplant photos on this site, both very large and very small sessions, and I have a question about some of the smaller sessions I've seen. I was looking at the "1000-1999 graft" session category and I mainly saw pictures in which the patient had the majority of the grafts concentrated in a very small area; however, I saw some patients in which they appear to have achieved adequate coverage over a fairly large area with a relatively small number of grafts. Examples: 1205 grafts, 1628 grafts, and 1420 grafts. My question is this: how are these patients achieving the look of density and coverage with such small sessions? Or is it some kind of an illusion?

Hey guys, I'm 23 years old and a NW 5, and I've been taking Propecia 5% and Minoxidil 5%, both topical, for about three weeks now, after being advised by my doc. However, after doing some research and reading on these two medications, I am concerned if I have been taking them at correct intervals. My doc encouraged me to take the Propecia once a day, preferably in the morning after towel drying my hair, and the Minoxidil once every other day. Is this often enough to be fully beneficial? Most of the info I have seen says to take the Minox at least daily, if not twice a day. Should I take it daily or continue taking it every other day? Thanks.

Hey guys, I'm 23 years old and a NW 5, and I've been taking Propecia 5% and Minoxidil 5%, both topical, for about three weeks now, after being advised by my doc. However, after doing some research and reading on these two medications, I am concerned if I have been taking them at correct intervals. My doc encouraged me to take the Propecia once a day, preferably in the morning after towel drying my hair, and the Minoxidil once every other day. Is this often enough to be fully beneficial? Most of the info I have seen says to take the Minox at least daily, if not twice a day. Should I take it daily or continue taking it every other day? Thanks.

Hi guys, I've been reading these boards for quite a while and it's been very informative and interesting! I've finally decided to post a topic of my own in order to get some of your opinions on my situation. First, a little background: My hairline very slowly began thinning and receding around the age of 17. By the time I was 18, I began seeing balding areas through my hair on the top of my head. The thinning and recession seemed to accelerate the quickest between the ages of 19 and 21: my hairline became non-existent and during this time period, and my temples receded very quickly, as well. For about the last two years, however, the recession has seemingly slowed down considerably. Now to the present: About a month ago, I decided to go for an initial consultation for an HT, mainly out of curiousity, not really expecting to be interested in an HT afterward. There, first and foremost, the Dr. highly recommended that I begin Propecia and Minoxidil. He asked me about my expectations out of an HT, and I told him that all I really care about at this point is to have a natural-looking hairline, along with some rejuvinated temples. I told him that I would actually prefer to have a hairline that appeared to still be receding, just not as aggresively. As crazy as that sounds, I think my hairline looked its best around the age of 19 as opposed to my (even) younger days, although it was already receded some, as it gave me a more mature look (now I just look like a 23-year-old with a 55-year old's hair). I actually found two pictures (posted below) of Jude Law as an example of the hairline I would like to have. Keep in mind, I'm talking about the hairline itself, not the actual density of his hair (although that would be nice, too ). Anyway, when we discussed all of this, he recommended 1700 grafts (1300 for the hairline and temples, and 400 for the middle of my head), or 1300 grafts at minimum if I had budget constraints, of which all would go toward the hairline and temples. As I do have budget constraints, 1300 is what I would go with. The Dr. told me I have a very strong donor area. This would be done via strip method, by the way. So I guess I have a few questions: 1. Do you think I am too young to be seriously considering an HT?; 2. Do you think my expectations for the hairline and temples are realistic?; 3. Is 1300 grafts enough to get the hairline I want? Again, I realize I more than likely would not have the density as Law has in those pictures, but I'm more concerned with the hairline itself. As you can see in my pics below, I keep my hair fairly short, anyway, and would more than likely continue to keep it about that length post-op. Also, I began taking Propecia 5% topical and Minoxidil 5% topical about three weeks ago. I take the Propecia once a day every day, and the Minoxidil once a day every other day. I also take 2000mg of MSM powder, along with 300mcg of Biotin and 800 mcg of Folic Acid, and have taken all three of these daily for the past 2 1/2 years. I just bought fish oil today, as I have heard that helps, as well, and plan on beginning it tomorrow. As for shampoo, I use Head & Shoulders with 1% zinc. Any and all comments/info would be appreciated. Thanks!

Hi guys, I've been reading these boards for quite a while and it's been very informative and interesting! I've finally decided to post a topic of my own in order to get some of your opinions on my situation. First, a little background: My hairline very slowly began thinning and receding around the age of 17. By the time I was 18, I began seeing balding areas through my hair on the top of my head. The thinning and recession seemed to accelerate the quickest between the ages of 19 and 21: my hairline became non-existent and during this time period, and my temples receded very quickly, as well. For about the last two years, however, the recession has seemingly slowed down considerably. Now to the present: About a month ago, I decided to go for an initial consultation for an HT, mainly out of curiousity, not really expecting to be interested in an HT afterward. There, first and foremost, the Dr. highly recommended that I begin Propecia and Minoxidil. He asked me about my expectations out of an HT, and I told him that all I really care about at this point is to have a natural-looking hairline, along with some rejuvinated temples. I told him that I would actually prefer to have a hairline that appeared to still be receding, just not as aggresively. As crazy as that sounds, I think my hairline looked its best around the age of 19 as opposed to my (even) younger days, although it was already receded some, as it gave me a more mature look (now I just look like a 23-year-old with a 55-year old's hair). I actually found two pictures (posted below) of Jude Law as an example of the hairline I would like to have. Keep in mind, I'm talking about the hairline itself, not the actual density of his hair (although that would be nice, too ). Anyway, when we discussed all of this, he recommended 1700 grafts (1300 for the hairline and temples, and 400 for the middle of my head), or 1300 grafts at minimum if I had budget constraints, of which all would go toward the hairline and temples. As I do have budget constraints, 1300 is what I would go with. The Dr. told me I have a very strong donor area. This would be done via strip method, by the way. So I guess I have a few questions: 1. Do you think I am too young to be seriously considering an HT?; 2. Do you think my expectations for the hairline and temples are realistic?; 3. Is 1300 grafts enough to get the hairline I want? Again, I realize I more than likely would not have the density as Law has in those pictures, but I'm more concerned with the hairline itself. As you can see in my pics below, I keep my hair fairly short, anyway, and would more than likely continue to keep it about that length post-op. Also, I began taking Propecia 5% topical and Minoxidil 5% topical about three weeks ago. I take the Propecia once a day every day, and the Minoxidil once a day every other day. I also take 2000mg of MSM powder, along with 300mcg of Biotin and 800 mcg of Folic Acid, and have taken all three of these daily for the past 2 1/2 years. I just bought fish oil today, as I have heard that helps, as well, and plan on beginning it tomorrow. As for shampoo, I use Head & Shoulders with 1% zinc. Any and all comments/info would be appreciated. Thanks!