savehair

thanks man. i do still have hair just it's diffuse thinning so i use concealer to cover bald spots up. i see most SMP folks just go with the shaved head look. i guess i need to find some example of people who got it with medium length hair and get some advice

any updates on this? very interested to see your results now that it's 10 month post op

Hi All, long time lurker here, i'm seriously considering doing SMP since i still have hair but diffuse thinning all over my head. I currently use concealer products and they look good to a certain extent but the draw back for it that it rinses off so i cant really do any water sports or always worrying when it rains. got some questions below hoping the experts or experienced users can comment here. by the way, i keep my hair at medium cut length (around eye and ear level) 1. how does it look wet? is it more noticeable or it remains hard to tell 2. does it complicate things if i want to get a HT down the road? 3. what are some of your regrets if any after getting it done?

hey guys, im also a patient of Dr. Rahal and yep, i was looking at your pre-shed photos and thought they were your 3 month post op photos. sorry, i dont want to share any photos online but i am about 8 month out, i see some growth but not super dense and not where i want it to be yet. i also got about the 2k grafts on the front. i hope it denses up in the next few months when i reach full growth at 12 month

wow nice results man, they look very dense at just 3 month out even with the buzz cut espeically the one you were wearing a tank and the close up shots , i think you will have great results by the time it's all grown in. mine is still very thin at about 7 month out , FUE for about 2000 in the frontal third and similar sq/cm. hopefully im a late bloomer and more to come in the store for me in the next few months

same question as the above on the sq./cm great results man, so happy for you ! hoping mine turns out decent (playing the wait game now)

i believe the most important for you now is to find out how much donor you have. if your goals are to restore a full head of hair , it may be possible but depends on how much donor you have. i m guessingin it will take a minimum 5~6k grafts to restore the entire front and top, if you wana do crown, it may take even more. good luck !

i agree with MrJobi lol, stop worrying and go out and enjoy life, you have great hair, you do not appear to be losing either if you are really paranoid, start documenting it month by month with pictures and measurements, that is the only way to tell if it's starting to go

long time lurker, and this site had helped me greatly so i decided to make this thread for those who looks to pursue the HT path for restoration. it's a big next step to take and there are much lessons learned as i went through this process , just thought i've share my experience for those that are out there planning to go through this process can benefit from it. keeping everything toe bullet points for easy read Pre Op/Consult: Understand what you want to achieve first Go for at least a few in person consultations with different doctors to assess how much donor you have and can you achieve your goal (even if it's not the doctor you intend on going to, go to a few different doctors to get their perspective of your situation and your goals) Always talk to surgeon himself if possible in person , phone, or web cam, online consult photo will not be enough and can set up for false expectation. Their representatives are knowledgeable but you are better off talking to the Dr himself/herself so expectations are set correctly. you probably have to do it in person to get the expectation set correctly as well. if you plan on traveling abroad , get debit and credit cards that does not charge foreign transactions , you will save a lot of money through this for payment of the op and expenses while you are there if you have long flights (5hr+) consider buying travel size spray bottles so you can keep your grafts moist while you are flying or waiting for connecting flights, you will also want to consider staying for at least 3~4 days before flying Try to stay at Dr. guest house or somewhere close to the clinic for first few days, you can always go for cleaning and ask them to check on how you are doing, and worst case if something goes wrong, you can get help pretty quickly. (i had my surgery with Dr. Rahal, and i stayed at the Brookline guest house. it was good to meet with all the other patient and it was walking distance to the clinic. it made a big difference given the convenience and meeting people going through the same process) if traveling abroad, try to be there a day early, you can get familiar with the environment and go out and get supplies that you may have missed while packing. also in case for whatever reason your flight is delayed, you don't miss your surgery Post Op: plan to stay in door in hide out mode for about 3~5 days. everyone will get facial swelling and it's probably at it's worst the first 2~3 days post op, you will not want to go out get a neck pillow, it will help you secure your head in place without touching the newly place grafts for most part take the prescribed mild pain killer even if you are not in pain, it will help you sleep and you need to rest for it to heal well sleep in 45 degree (recliner chair is great if you have one), this will help the swelling disappear much faster keep your activities light and in door. exposing your head will speed up the healing process it's almost better to shave your head, this is easier for the Dr and team when they do the insertion, it will also help you clean easier post op. of course, only if you are comfortable with shaving it and depends on what type of surgery you went with, you may have to shave regardless. Buy a couple spray bottles, you can use it for shampoo and water rinse, also just to spray your head every couple hours to keep the receipient area mois that's it for now, i will come back and add more as it comes up. Happy new years and hope new things come out in the near future to help us all reach/exceed our goals as we all continue the journey

that was my first thought too but was told by the clinic that baby shampoo may dry out the scalp so it's better to go to a normal shampoo. they did recommend a generic brand but as i look up the ingredients, it contains a lot of chemicals, i will probably go for something all natural or continue with the baby shampoo

what is a good mild shampoo for daily use post op? i know you are suppose to use baby shampoo but what should one use after the initial month? *doctor instructions shows one is safe to go back to regular shampoo but just want to be extra cautious and get some advice from

Hi Sugar High, any updates? also interested in going through FUE with Dr. Rahal but just wanted to see what was the latest update, can you let us know or pm me? thanks!

Altdot, yep, that helps. also getting some of my question addressed through Chad. it's good to know that it's virtually undetectable in the back after 1 week, how about your receipient areas, when do you think it will start look normal

altdot, how was the overall experience, i am also in for about the same size of surgery, im still deciding whether to go with FUE or FUT. leaning towards FUE for the less scaring, but FUT seems have more example where it give better yields tough decisions, wants your feedback on your FUE experience

any update on this? thinking about FUE with Dr. Rahal, just wanted to see how you are doing