OtherSyde

OK well, I'm on duty today and didn't bring my laptop, but I took a decent pic of my current state with my low-res cell phone camera. As you can see, I'm experiencing instense shock-loss. Good thing I had my head shaved, cause there would be no hiding this state of baldness, even with a huge emo-kid-style comb-over. Go back and look at my first pics (the in-surgery pics) on Page 1 of this thread, and you can see that I'm balder now than I've ever been. Then scroll down and see the 2-hour -post-op pics, and then the 2-day post-op pics on the next page, and you can see how much has fallen out. It sucks, but I guess it's just part of the process; It gets worse before it gets better. I've noticed that I've pretty much stopped losing hairs at this piont (Day 16) though. An occasional hair still falls out, but from about Day 7 to about Day 13, many hairs would fall every time I would dab the mineral oil on my head. I could clearly see them because they would stick to the cotton ball very visibly. Now, very few do, if any at all. So guess it's now just mostly a matter of waiting for the new follicles to take root and begin making hairs, and for those new hairs to start poking out through my scalp. I know it won't reach full density for 8-12 months, but does anyone have any input on a time-frame as far as when I could at least see some new hairs poking through, and when I could begin to look at least somewhat normal again? Two or three months? Four or five..? 0.o

Well crap, I got super-busy last night and didn't get a chance to re-size/crop/upload my new pics. It's not a lot to show, just basically looks the same as the post-op pics but minus a lot of density due to the shock-loss. I will get them up ASAP though.

As stated by the post directly above this one, Dr. Gabel does very clean and refined work. If you're willing to fly across the country, I definitely recommend him and his staff. He's well-known as one of the top surgeons on these boards and in the US, and for good reason. As for what Norwood I was before surgery, I grew my hair out and got pretty good at styling it and giving it volume, but given the balding at the crown and mid-scalp, combined with the very-receded hairline (you can sort of see how far back it was with my hair pulled back and the lines drawn), I was a good bit past a Norwood III Vertex, almost approaching a Norwood IV Vertex. My hairline looks lower than it actually was because of the length of my hair, but the hairline itself was not only several millimeters higher than it is now, but it was very thin and sparse, consisting only of some wispy, super-thinned-out white hairs in their final stages of existence. I pretty much had to do that thing where you comb hairs from your frontal scalp area all the way down to your forehead and do some fancy cross-hatching work to make it look semi-plausible (you can see this demonstrated in the pics of me wearing the red shirt towards the end of the first page of this thread: http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/158912-hair-transplant-soon-dr-gabel.html ) Now, thankfully, I'll never really have to worry too much about the frontal scalp area or hairline again. Looking at some of my Before pics, I didn't realize how good I'd gotten at hiding it. But I can't WAIT until 2-4 months from now in mid-spring, when the new hairs start poking through and it all gradually starts growing out! It'll seem so thick. As for shaving it for surgery, I believe Dr. Gabel prefers to do this for the sake of cleanliness and clarity during the procedure. I think it lends much greater visibility and freedom for better precision in placing the grafts. I've heard they don't have to shave it, but it helps. It may vary from doctor to doctor. I didn't mind; I wanted a fresh start from a clean slate. Additionally, I've been experiencing a LOT of rapid shock-loss during the past few days (about 10-13 days post-op). This includes some of my original hair as well as most of the newly-placed follicles releasing their old hairs as they merge into their new surroundings and begin manufacturing new hairs. If I'd kept my hair long, this would have made me look SUPER-thin and scraggly at this point anyway. In my case, it's definitely better to just go through the "ugly phase" and not sweat it too hard, rather than try to cling to a few remaining hairs. Better to look like "guy who just chose to shave his head for no real reason" instead of "scraggly-haired balding guy with a bad haircut." My scar seems to be doing very well also; My wife has some mild training in the medical/surgical field, and she says it is looking like it will heal very well and with very little visibility in a few months (especially under a veil of hair). Some new pics are coming later today so stay tuned.

No, you're probably right and I'm probably confused, I probably mis-typed And I'll have to let my hair grow out another 2 or 3 weeks to cover it up I think.

Yeah, I suppose I would have actually blended in somewhat in Hawaii, given the massive cultural diversity there, I just want go there looking as young and healthy as I hope I feel. Plus, now I won't have to put sunscreen on the top of my head as much... ;p I chose Dr. Gabel for several reasons. I was looking at Hasson & Wong as well, as they are very revered on these boards too, but don't you need a passport to get into Canada now? I ultimately went with Dr. Gabel because, during the course of my research, I saw more results/testimonials posted from his firm (I may have just missed some of H&W's pics), they were great results, and he's also only 3 hours from me, with no border-crossing involved. Mind you, if I'd seen a significant level of superiority in H&W's results, I wouldn't have hesitated to journey into the Great North. I've been up there many times with family or the Navy, and I'm fairly sure I could manage it without much trouble. I'm glad I chose Dr. Gabel and his crew though, they seem to have done a real bang-up job. I can't say anything (and haven't seen anything) at all negative about Hasson & Wong, but I can definitely recommend Dr. Gabel, as my photos and story should attest to. And finally, to answer YouOnlyLiveOnce's query: Yes, as soon as I shaved my head I was aware that it's getting pretty thin towards the back/vertex, so I'm going hit the Finasteride steadily for the next year or two and see what turns up, but I already plan on have another HT in 2-5 years (depending on finances, plans, etc.). My wife and I have sort of deal as far as this kind of cosmetic thing goes; she had GB surgery a year ago and has lost about 85lbs, so she gets the next big expenditure devoted to suck-n'-tuck on her arms and belly so she can feel alright wearing a bathing suit in Hawaii. I'll shoot for another HT in a few years, Probably anywhere between 2,000 to 4,000 grafts (depending very strongly on how the Finasteride treats me). I will have the back/vertex/mid-scalp filled in, and touch up any thinned-out frontal spots. As for right now, I just hope I'm one of the guys who responds well to Finasteride.

Alrighty, here's an update, 7 days post-op. The pics of me with the super-black hair were from November 2008; I was dying my hair (not THAT dark; the wet dye just looked really dark) and I took the opportunity to use the darkness to make a very defined analysis of my hairline. Don't let the dye fool you, I was thinning at this point too. Then there's the pics of me in the blue shirt with the lines on my head; This was at my consult with Dr. Gabel in Seattle on Dec 27th, three days pre-op. Note the thin, scraggly hairline. It wasn't much further back then than it is now, but it was very patchy and basically comprised of dying white fluff and super-thin white hairs; I couldn't do much with it. The last three pics are from tonight, January 6th, 7 days post-op. I now see several factors: 1. Noticing some shock-loss. Figured as much would happen. Guess I'll start the Ugly Phase now, and get it out of the way. It'll be all the better when my old hair grows back, in tandem with my newly-placed grafts, I think it'll be quite thick despite its thin appearance at this point. 2. Looking at my Before pics, my hairline actually appears to have been brought forward several millimeters, which is great. My temples being brought forward helps alleviate the receding-hairline-look as well, something I hadn't previously anticipated. 3. My widow's peak used to be maybe a half-centimeter lower and a good bit wider, thus giving it a stronger presence on my forehead. I'll probably have that rebuilt on a later HT, which I will inevitably need in order to stave off further balding in the vertex/mid-scalp region. I'll probably just throw two or three hundred grafts at it. But I'm happy for now.

OK, in reference to people who look OK being bald... Stanley Tucci looks pretty good bald. Jason Statham could be the spokesperson for Bald, Inc. just because he makes it look so good. I guess a great physique, ample charisma, a bad-ass attitude and lots of ass-whippin' tendencies more than makes up for it. Not to mention being a rich actor. Edward Norton looks pretty appropriate being bald and ripped in American History X, although this only furthers the negative stereotype of bald white guys being seen as "skin-heads." And finally, I suppose Ronnie Coleman's little tiny bit of muscle could compensate for his baldness. I'm not going to tell him otherwise. So some people look good bald. But your average guy, like me just doesn't really.

Wait OK, I looked up Redditor on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redditor Nope, never heard of it. What characteristics of my post or writing style make me seem like a Redditor? I gather from the Wiki article that they collaborated with Stephen Colbert to do some kind of satirical rally campaign thing... Do they write satire? At first I thought you were referring to the "red" part of the word Redditor, relating to communism, brainwashing, propaganda, etc. and I thought you were asking if I'm someone who is paid to try and proliferate a particular ideal through my writings and whatnot. Which I'm not; I just have very thought-out ideals, and I tend to rationalize a lot and act on my ideals (thus getting a hair transplant for starters). Maybe some of my rationalizations aren't completely accurate or valid, and some are probably slightly biased based on my upbringing and experiences, but I try to be as objective and perceptive as I can, I try to stick to facts and relatively-provable/observable factors instead of barfing out opinions on people or starting flame wars.

Yeah, I can testify that some people actually look good bald, although most of us don't. You have to have the right facial structure. Also having a buoyant personality helps, or the touch-guy thing like Jason Statham. Having huge muscles generally makes you attractive as a male as well, more in the manly Cro-Magnon way though. What's a redditor..? Like a re-editor? Or does the "red" part refer to something involving communism?

OK so I got inspired by Flavio's "Are We Shallow" post and this post started out as a reply in that thread, but went off on a tangent about psychology, anthropological tendencies of society, etc., and ended up barely fitting there (content-wise) and being way too long as well, so I made it into a post of its own. Being always the outside of society, and later a balding guy in society, I have made many observations about peoples' behavior towards what society views as its distinctively less-than-perfect members. Being a bald guy is pretty much like being a fat chick in our society: You'll be accepted on the surface out of common decency and allowed to interact with society on a limited basis, but only as far as you're useful. The prettier people are more desirable, which gives them instant ground to stand on. If you're not good-looking, then you have to compensate somehow (having money or influence, being able to do something that others can't, etc.). And although a fat chick or a bald guy can force him or herself to be accepted on some level, or work themselves into a position of power using other factors like intellect, talent, charm, manipulation, raw power, etc., but that's still the only reason they'll be accepted; if someone comes along with an equal amount of skill but a prettier face/body/whatever, they'll almost always be picked over you, because beauty is a very, VERY legitimate and very real and potent strength, heavily valued in our society. It's just a fact. When it comes to raw sexual attractiveness and that instant, instinct-based snap-judgment in the eyes of any stranger, the prettier always get the smile, the better treatment, easier popularity (which often equals out to being elected into positions of power), etc. Being bald/fat/ugly is an automatic stigma against you, and it's very difficult to overcome this; not because you're in any way truly inferior, but more due to the way society collectively thinks, which can be attributed to deeply-ingrained anthropological factors involving symmetry, perception of fertility (even though hair on the top of your head has long been proven to have nothing to do with fertility or virility, this absurd myth still persists in our society in subtle undercurrents), genetic characteristics that would make offspring more likely to be successful/accepted in society, as well as more recent, surface-level factors like Hollywood's massive social influence, and even simple churlish views left over from high-school that people just can't let go of. In this image-centric, beauty-obsessed, post-MTV-generation society full of easily-obtainable plastic surgery and cosmetic perfection, beauty can be bought, and being attractive and having hair is no longer some unobtainable birth-right reserved for the genetically fortunate but simply a choice on your part, a sign of one's awareness of and/or agreement with society's ideals and tastes. It is also an indicator of your own status and financial success (or lack thereof), which makes conforming to the ideal all the more... expected of you. There are so many ways and so many reasons to be attractive and so few reasons not to be, it's all the easier for society to outright demand it of you. And you can't change society's ideals. Mind you, I'm usually kind of stubborn and in no way a surrenderist, but society as a whole is way, WAY bigger than any one person or one group. It would be an enormous waste of time and energy to try and make society think a different way about such a trivial issue when you could just buy some hair (or lose some weight, or whatever area you may be lacking in), thus simply stepping out of the line of fire; common sense prevails. And besides, if you're gong to spend your time and energy valiantly white-knighting some ideal or cause, you should probably use your momentum to raise cancer awareness or start a food drive for starving people or something noble like that. And sure, one can argue that it's what's on the inside that counts, that intelligence, adeptness, decency, charm, wit, or overall goodness is more important than a simple aesthetic feature, and that may well be true. But that's not gonna stop society from subtly ostracizing you and giving you crap at every turn for the rest of your life. And besides, do you really want to have to do your little song-and-dance for 80% of the people you meet, time and time again, in order to to convince them of your worthiness (as if you should even have to) just so they'll think "Oh, he's actually somewhat intelligent/talented/whatever, so I will now grudgingly accept him in spite of my initial negative snap-judgment based on appearance alone?" Especially when the more handsome guy next to you, who might be a complete inept retard or a terrible person, will instantly and automatically be much more widely accepted without even trying? What a waste of time and effort. Some people use beauty as a weapon to attack others or feel superior. I intend to use that which I develop/build as a preemptive strike against peoples' natural judgmental tendencies, for the sake of making my life easier and letting me focus on more important tasks without having to worry about hang-ups and being short-changed because of people prioritizing me in second or third place because of low-level judgments based on external characteristics. In the business environment, work environment, and social environment alike, it just helps so much and makes life so much more pleasant and easy to be instantly liked, even if only for superficial reasons at first. Being handsome and vibrant-looking is such a social lubricant, allowing one to move through society with far less hassle on a daily basis. If you look at the evidence, being pretty (or at least not being ugly) is not a shallow thing at all; it's an important tool in one's social (and possibly career) toolbox. And this discussion, so far, is mostly only based on science and external observations; it's not even beginning to delve into the whole internal psychology of what thousands of snide comments and almost-daily small rejections eventually does to someone's mental and emotional state in the long run; We are Modern Man, not Cro-Magnon Man; even if we're not all metro-sexual or anything, we feel things, and need some level of acceptance (or at least not rejection), and therefore we need form and not just function. But that's a whole different thread. I've been forced to analyze this subject for years and years now, because growing up in the Midwest and eventually becoming military means constantly running into people who are all-function and no-form, who just can't grasp any reason for needing to be attractive, the blunt stupidity/ignorance of which drives me freaking insane. Opinions? Input? TL;DR?

Could not possibly ring more true. This is pretty much my exact stance.

So, I just had my first HT with Dr. Gabel, which seems to be a smashing success so far.... http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/158956-live-surgery-dr-gabel.html But I was wondering how much shock-loss should I expect? I've been reading the forums a lot, and it seems that various people get various levels of loss in the first month or two, and some people get nearly none. Also, some people seem to lose more of the newly-implanted hairs, and some people seem to retain those more while losing more of the original, resident hairs in the recipient area. I realize I'm in for an ugly phase, and I really don't care what falls out as long as it grows back before I move to Hawaii in 8 months. But I was initially under the impression that most of it is going to fall out for a month or three until it all gradually starts to grow back in, and I keep finding more and more mixed outcomes on the forums. Is it possible that I won't lose all of the new hairs? Will some of the new follicles retain their hairs and continue to grow, unphased by their relocation?

Thanks! And yeah, I wasn't just wearing a stocking cap; Dr. Gabel said it would be best to wear the little protective blue shower-cap-looking-thing under the cap; that way if the stocking cap shifted, it would only slide along the outer surface of the shower cap and not rub my scalp. The shower cap is very tightly-woven also, and therefore much less likely to have any hair snagged or entangled in it. Here's a few pics of the donor area, which really doesn't cause any pain anymore (only feels a bit tight). It looks a bit haggard under the super-white light I have shining on it, but any huge incision across your scalp is going to take some time to heal. Also, my hair is shaved shorter than it's ever been since boot camp almost 6 years ago, making the donor site that much more apparent. After it heals and I let my hair grow out a half-inch or so, it should be very subtle.

Well as far as posting his photos, it looks like Dr Gabel has been too preoccupied, which isn't surprising at all; the mere fact that I got into an impromptu appointment three days after my initial consult, I got the strong impression, is due to sheer luck or to someone else having canceled; I know that he has been booked solid until mid-January at the very least. Anyways, here's an update from me since New Years (remember I had my surgery done on December 30th). This is New Years Eve. I just wore a stocking-cap to New Years festivities to conceal my slightly-weird scalp. No one questioned this. I had lots of fun. This was one day post-op... And here I am on January 1st, a mere two days post-op. Not bad-looking, huh? I forgot my hat on my journey to the local Wal-Mart for milk, but no one even really seemed to notice (and believe me I was watching). The place was packed due to the New Years sale and holiday gift-exchange crowd, too. I just didn't look all that conspicuous, I guess. It only saddens me that all these newly-placed follicles will quickly release their current hairs during their shock-loss phase over the next week or two, and I will have to be balding again for a month or three, but I know they will regrow as thick as ever. I can't wait for March/April!

OK! Well, if you've gotten this far in this thread, it's time to jump on over to the actual procedure! I documented everything as it progressed, and described the experience in full! See here: http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/158956-live-surgery-dr-gabel.html

You're quite welcome! Also, if Dr. Gabel is reading this, could you throw up some of those nice high-resolution photos you took of my before-and after, my strip, and especially of my super-clean looking grafts all lined up nicely in the little clear dish? That would be great!

Yep, active duty Navy. Stationed in Everett, WA. Way too cold for me. It was kind of a pain to get this approved, especially on short notice; The military in general is very disdainful of "cosmetic" things, especially in men. Half of my superiors are relatively bald and don't care in the least, because they have the military-esque "function-over-form" mentality. I work on a fairly small ship full of salty sailors who mostly shun luxury. Everyone gave me a hard time over it, and I'm sure I'll be the laughing-stock of the ship for awhile as the news rapidly spreads, but I don't care. I'm just ecstatic to know that I'll now have a great head of hair so when I transfer to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii in 7-8 months, I can lounge and surf and mingle happily on the beach and not feel like the bald white touristy-looking guy sticking out like a sore thumb. I can't wait!

Alright, here are a few I took about ten minutes ago, which is about 2 hours after the procedure. Look at that density compared to the shot I took a few days ago (the first pic)! Not only is it far more dense, but the hairline, although only slightly lower, is very strong and dense instead of thin, wispy, and transparent. Granted I'll have to walk around for a week or two with my head looking like someone attacked it with a weed-eater, but hair transplants aren't instant-gratification. I think this is going to look great in 3-5 months, and amazing in 8-12 months.

Alright! I'm back in my hotel room now. The procedure went amazingly smoothly. Early this morning, I was supposed to be at the office at about 6:30am, but the taxi was taking FOREVER, so Dr. Gabel actually just drove to my hotel and picked me up in his Acura. We discussed some last-minute thoughts in the office, took some professional-grade pictures for records' sake, and made the guide-lines on my forehead. Within 30-35 minutes, we were in the operating room and he was sticking me with needles full of local anesthetic. Then they taped/wrapped my head up like a mummy, leaving only the strip extraction-point exposed. I laid face-down in the operating chair which is sort of like laying in one of those weird multi-segmented beds at a massage parlor, and he quickly extracted my strip. It was completely painless; I was pretty shocked at how quickly it went. After he had sutured up the donor site, they further cleaned my scalp and shaved the recipient area (most of the frontal scalp region). Then I wandered around for a bit, and got to watch the very-skilled staff dissect my strip. They are quite skilled, one being ex-Army, who worked for several years with Dr. Alexander in Phoenix before moving to Oregon. A real crack team. Then the implanting began. I rarely felt anything besides the occasional vague prick, although I'll warn you that I felt a weird crunching sound reverberate through my skull each time the blade was pushed into my skin. Fortunately, thanks to the Valium I had taken earlier, it wasn't really even unpleasant. I created this thread on my smart-phone, finally got to watch The Truman Show after years of wondering what it was about, and then, after taking a break to eat some teryaki chicken, I simply passed out for over an hour while they worked (which worked out well for them since I didn't move at all, making their job easier), which also goes to show how little discomfort there was. I must point out that while his assistants took turns helping to place the grafts, Dr. Gabel himself was there, carefully placing the grafts himself almost the entire time. He made additional holes towards the end just for perfection's sake, to fill in any small areas lacking in density. I was frequently handed a mirror to view the progress, and was updated on the status of the procedure often. I got look at the various tools of the trade, and learned quite a bit about the science of it all. We were done with the procedure by about 5:30pm, which seems like a long time, but that included leg-stretching breaks, bathroom breaks, lunch, and some down-time while my strip was further dissected in order to yield more grafts. "From all I've read on here, Dr. Gabel is an outstanding and ethical surgeon, not to mention a comedian. Good luck to ya!!" Well I had read much the same things and seen only great results as well, and I'm here to tell you that it's all true, possibly barring the "comedian" part, haha. He certainly has a sense of humor and is very upbeat and conversational, but very professional as well. Everything went off like clockwork. And I can back the "ethical" part in full, as he sold me on strip-FUE and a smaller number of grafts for several reasons (including better/prettier end-results with the actual follicle units, and preserving donor areas for later), rather than trying to sell me the raw FUE method because costs a bit more or trying to over-sell the amount of grafts necessary. I'd recommend his establishment to anyone looking for a great hair transplant. He's crafty with the graft placement, too; not only does he seem to have maintained the upward-direction of my strange but charismatic cow-lick that I've always had in the front of my widow's peak, he incorporated in all the weird twists and swirls throughout my scalp, conforming the new implants to the unique flow of the resident follicles. My hair runs in strange directions every other inch, like the wild currents of the Pacific Ocean, and Dr. Gabel navigated and sailed them like a salty mariner. And, although price really wasn't an object in this very-important procedure (I have no issue paying more to have something done right), I really expected to pay around ten or eleven thousand for a good, strong hair-transplant. However, with great attention to detail and creative and strategic placement, he seems to have done amazing things with just under 2,000 (about 1,800 grafts) and it all boiled down to about $7,193 total. Amazing. I have to sleep upright in a recliner tonight, but Dr. Gabel is once again coming to pick me up early in the morning for our next-day instructional consult, post-op exam, and some final photos. Oh also, here are some photos of bits of my strip, as well as some of the used incision blades...

I'm eating lunch right now... We're about 2/3 of the way done I think. I'm heading back to the operating room right now.

OK! Pics... NOTE: See the red lines along my hairline? Those are the only implants inserted so far. These are just mostly pre-op pics. The white spots along just below my hairline are where the anesthetic was shot in. More pics as I progress...

Yep, I'm sitting the chair right now, reporting live from my smart phone aas Dr. Gabel is implanting hair grafts into my front hairline. I don't feel a thing. sorry if this text is a bit garbled; not only am i trying type into a smart phone while staring into very bright operating-room lights, but i had a valium about an hour ago. i will try to post a pic if my phone can manage to multitask and hanfde javascript at the same time ;p

After cleaning up and changing and washing my hair, this is more how it might appear in a better situation: And this is my true hairline, revealed. It's actually gotten quite high. I am really, REALLY looking forward to having it lowered a half-centimeter or so and strengthened/thickened, and my widow's peak restored; that would really frame my face better I think. EDIT: Holy crap I am so pale, I've been in Washington too long... I can't wait to move to Hawaii and get a tan

OK here are a few from today. This is when I had just gotten home; my hair is a little stringy because I'd been at work on a big dirty ship, wearing a hard-hat all day, but this sort of represents a real-world scenario, the way people might see you hair in a regular situation or if it were wet from the rain, swimming, sweating, etc. In the second one, the only real bald spot is in the center where you can actually see skin; the camera flash is glaring off of my hair in a big circular area around the center spot; that area is mildly thinning as well though. It's so hard to get a good top-down shot! I tried like 4 times.

OK here's a top-down from a bit over a year ago that I dug up... Thinning level is about the same now, since I've been on Propecia and now Dutasteride for about a year and a half now. The crown/vertex has gotten a little worse, and the front hairline is pretty wispy and thin now.