swayzedo

Hey folks, Apologies for my absence but I'be had an extremely ill family member who has taken up all my time since my last update. I'm now at 20 months post op and am very happy with my results. I rarely think about my hair any more and it's so much fun styling it in ways I couldn't before. Really top marks to Dr Bisanga and his team, they sure know how to do a hairline. My one issue is that I don't think it's quite come in as thick as I'd liked, especially on the left hand side and particularly at the front and I would have maybe liked it to be a little denser as in some lights you can clearly see the shine off the scalp which makes it look somewhat thin. It's still very dense though and 90% of the time no-one would notice. I'd probably like to return to the surgery at some point in the future to thicken it out a bit and maybe tweak the front of the hairline itself just a tiny touch. Aside from that it's great so what with just being out the shower I thought I'd snap a few pictures. Thanks!

Thanks Steve. I'm hoping the density will eventually sort itself out, that's why I'm going to give myself another 8 months to bring it up to 18 but it's not a major flaw by any means, just something I notice in the mirror. Everything else is spot on and once again I can highly recommend BHR to anyone who is thinking of getting a HT.

Hey folks, Sorry about the lack of updates over the last couple of months but I've had a family member diagnosed with quite a crippling pelvic nerve pain condition so I've been back home looking after them and not had time for anything at all. Anyway, I have a spare few days and I just remembered I hadn't done an update in ages so here is one. I'm round about the 9-10 month mark now. the hairline is looking super brilliant and so very natural it's scary. It's true, it does look very harsh when it starts to grow in but it softens over time and looks great now. Initially I wasn't ultra keen on the shape as I thought it still looked a bit 'receedy' and didn't suit me but by jove was I proven wrong and the shape adheres to my face so very naturally and any more horizontal and it wouldn't have matched my age. ...well maybe a few cm could be added in the future but for now I'm quite happy. My only concern is the same one I've been bashing on about in that under a strong light the density doesn't really match my natural hair and looks a tad thin. You can see this in one of the pictures posted. and I maybe feel it could have done with perhaps an extra 500 or so on each side to beef it up a little. It's not terrible by any means although it's definitely something that I keep noticing but most of the other time in softer light it looks great and I just can't fault the craftsmanship of the actual design and placement which lets be honest, is where the meat is. Well that's about it. Still got another 2 months to go before the time is up but I think I'll extend it to 18 months just to make sure there isn't some lazy grafts that are still to appear but as of now it's made a tremendous difference to my appearance and my general look which is amazing. Thanks!

Welcome to the club mate. You should be coming out of the 2 week danger zone by now and it's all downhill from there, just a shitload of waiting. The pictures look awesome, you're going to see a massive improvement once that bad boy grows in and starts to frame your face more. Looks like you had a good donor area as well for any future stuff too. Well done mate, you've done a brave thing that is going to benefit you heavily in life! The ceremonial burning of the hat is now less than a year away!

Indeed, if it thickens up more it'll look awesome! I can't take any credit though, all thanks must go to Dr B and his team for their amazing craftsmanship in this field. I've said it before if anyone is thinking of doing this but is humming and hawing then just do it, you seriously won't regret it. Do your research obviously but I can't recommend BHR highly enough. A skilled Doctor, an amazingly friendly team at the clinic and great aftercare from Steve. BTW just in case anyone wants to know what I was like before here's a picture of me from about 4 years ago from my profile photo section. It's a little blurry but you'll get the point. Hair Restoration Social Network - Hair Loss and Transplant Photos

Hi folks, I'm a day late but this is my 6 month update so here's some shots. There's been no real change since last time that I have noticed but still, I'm very happy with the result so far as the hairline seems to be getting that natural ragged clumpiness which is great and it's looking much more natural. The only gripe is that I'm starting to get a little concerned about the density as it's still noticeably thinner in the recipient areas than my natural hair and as I say it doesn't seem to be doing much or changing at the moment. It's probably nothing but I'm hoping for a bit more density than this so it will blend better but I have another 6 months to go so that's a nice margin. Apart from that everything is pretty much fine. The hair is growing in nicely and I've got a sort of Clint Eastwood thing going on right now that it is a bit longer which is pretty cool and swishy. I don't even bother with a hat now, it's all out in the open for folk to see and no-one gives me a second look. I've still to do the local pub/drunk friends test but I'll save that for nearer my years end. BTW, the photos I took here are actually terrible and really don't do my hair or the work done any justice but it is looking really nice so just need that bit more thickness and it'll be perfect. Anyway, until month 7 folks!

Hi all! Not a photo update just yet but I will be posting one in a couple of weeks for my 6 month mark. Just a story to tell, I made the ultimate test by having an old friend over for a drinks last night, the first friend I've seen since having the procedure and I had no hat on for the whole night and my hairline didn't even get a second glance which was amazing. In fact I got a big compliment of 'looking a bit like Hugh Jackman' since my hair is longer and growing my beard in so indeed a testament to BHR's good work. On another note, I had a consultation with a respected plastic surgeon last week to see about some acne scar removals and when asked if I had any other operations done I told him about my hairline repair and was told that it looks "extremely good!" so big praise indeed and another shining testament to Dr B and his team. As for the hairline itself it's really starting to settle in now and look good. The recipient area is still noticeably thinner then my natural hair, especially near the front corner on the left side but I am assuming this will catch up eventually. That's about all folks, I'll post my 6 month picture update on the 20th and I'm hoping that I can field test the whole hatless thing in a pub with friends by maybe February.

Thanks folks. Yes I'll be keeping all my future updates to this thread from now on and I'll post some pre-op pics next time. Really good to hear I have some more density coming. It's been a great experience with BHR, top notch all the way and this is coming from probably the most annoyingly nit-picky person on the planet!

Thanks for the reply's folks. It's a good feeling to be able to slay the wind but it's also been such a slow process I'm having trouble remembering what it was like beforehand, before the dark times, before the Empire! But seriously I'm delighted with my progress so far and it's no wonder Dr Bisanga and his team have such a high reputation. I think the biggest fan of his work is my mother who owns a hair salon and so has an eye for such things and she is amazed at the quality of my procedure and is the one recommending BHR to all her friends.

Hi folks, Well I'm now at exactly month 5 since I left Brussels and so far everything has seemed to be going according to plan. I'm delighted with the result so far, the graft placement and the way the hair flows with my native hair in terms of waves is quite astonishing. The design (now that it is reaching what would be it's final shape) is actually much more conservative than I expected. If I'm honest I wouldn't have minded it being a bit more horizontal and mite less curvy but it looks exceptionally natural and is a major improvement over what I had before. The massive factor is that when I go out and a gust of wind blows my hair up I'm not bothered who sees it. It still looks like it's receding a touch but it's an acceptable level of receding and therein lies the big difference. My only real concern is that the recipient area is still very less dense then my native hair. This is most apparent under a strong light which I have tried to illustrate in the photos. I've included two 'bedhead' pics where the hair is dry and I basically have just woken up and three wet pics take about an hour after I got out the shower, all under a strong light. I know it's only month 5 but I can't see any more new hair growing when I part it so I was a little concerned that I'd had my lot but after seeing other peoples pics of 5 months I'm a bit more at ease as it seems to be a similar density. I can quite happily go out without a hat on now, but it does mean a bit of styling beforehand to get some shadows going. The longer it gets the easier this is to achieve and with a bit more density I should be good to go whatever my hair decides to do that day. I'll be posting my future updates in this thread to keep it tidy (like I should have done from the start) Thanks all!

Great to hear Steve, especially about the softening of the hairline, which to be honest is pretty good at the moment anyway. Yes, very pleased so far. A combination of superb surgery from a great team and months of eating clean and avoiding anything fun! Looking forward to the 8 months mark!

Haha thanks for the kind comments folks I'm quite taken aback. home1212 the pictures are quite flattering but in real life you can still tell it's a transplant due to the density difference. With that style it looks really good due to shadows making a natural filler but any other brushed back or up style and the difference is extremely noticeable but hopefully that will thicken out in the coming months. But yes, very happy so far and would recommend BHR to anyone thinking about a procedure.

Hi folks, That's me at exactly 4 months since I left Brussels so thought I'd upload some quick pictures. In a nutshell everything is in place and looking great bar the density. the recipient area is still noticeably thinner than my native hair, especially under a strong light and with a full side shed and this makes the rounded part of the temple peaks look a little unnatural. I'm wearing it in this sort of half side shed right now because it seems to be where my hair wants to fall naturally so just letting it do it's thing and it looks better this way for the amount of growth I have at the moment. Just a side note, I went out for the very first time without a hat on Saturday. Ok it was only to the off licence and back to pick up a few beers and I was a little on edge but it still felt really good to do although I'm a long way off a fully public hatless outing. As it's month 4 I realise that this is only the beginning and I'm very much hoping for much more density in the coming months so that I can really begin to experiment with my hair. As it is now, I'm really pleased with how it's looking at this stage but a bit more thickness and it will be perfect! Thanks all!

It's great that you can take fin. I took it for a few months in 2011 but I felt dead inside and you had to jump through hoops to get in in the UK off a doctor and pay as well. I've considered shaving my head again to let the other hairs catch up but I'm at wolverine phase right now and the mirror is being awesome to me (in a dark light!)

Thanks all! tk I only take saw palmetto as propecia doesn't agree with me at all. In saying that I've been keeping my diet super clean with plenty of protein, green tea and regular workouts to keep the blood flowing. I think I've drank booze twice since Brussels as well so I'm sure all of that has made some sort of small difference to progress. pkipling, did you have any hair that didn't shed? I had loads that stayed and just kept growing so it probably gave me a bit of a head start.

Thanks Rootz, I'm quite happy so far and looking forward to the next few months when things should really start to happen.

Hi all, just doing a small update. I'm now 3 months and 10 days since I left Brussels and BHR clinic and I'm happy with my progress so far. The hair has thickened up nicely in the last month or so. In a shadowy dull light it looks almost solid but under direct light it is still very obviously a transplant. If I part the hair I can see new tips poking through so I'm looking forward to seeing them growing in. At the moment the right hand side seems to be progressing more than the left but they are roughly the same. One thing I have noticed is that the front of the hairline still looks very synthetically patterned, especially if I stand a bit back from the mirror. This (I hope) is due to the redness not quite fading just yet and you can just make out the little V shaped arrows along the hairline pointing down but I'm hoping that once the hair thickens and once the redness fades further it will disappear. Just to say, now that it is thickening up and my hair as a whole is a bit longer the transformation to the rest of my features is quite astounding. My face feels framed and much more together and not only do I think I look younger but I feel different as well, more grounded and sure of myself so looking in the mirror every morning certainly has some sort of psychological impact. I can't wait until it is thick enough so that I can style it and actually go outside. If I never have to wear another baseball hat ever again it will be too soon!!!

Oooft, I'm struggling to keep a lid on things from all this waiting. How do you seasoned HT vets pass the time? Work and hobbies don't seem to be taking the edge off and I'm wearing a hat more now than before I went in. I'm exactly two months post op, lot of hair that didn't shed and just continued to grow which was nice but I feel like I'm sitting at the mirror with my comb like a ninja thinking "GO!" It actually feels like six months since the procedure, the rest of my hair is growing quite fast as usual and I'm DYING to start some styling but I know it'll be at least another 1-2 months before any real growth starts in the recipient area. I sound selfish because I have so much to look forward to but ooooh it isn't half frustrating.

Hi folks, Just thought I'd sneak on here and post a couple of pics while I have 5 minutes. I know I still haven't done my write up of the procedure yet but work and some technical faults concerning a bastard plasma tv and shady computer in my home are to blame. Anyway I'm coming up on 2 months post op and getting some growth already. A lot of the transplanted hair did not shed and just started growing immediately but Steven put my mind at rest and said this happens sometimes. Got some new hairs poking through as well plus some fuzz too. The photos look quite bare due to the lighting but in a mediumly lit room the recipient looks very furry indeed, although if I stand back a foot or two it just looks bare again. Still a bit browny red as well in that area but it's fading slowly but surely. It seems like an age since I was at the clinic and time is passing so slowly but I'm hoping that if growth is this good at just under 2 months then the next 2 look to be quite exciting and after that should be well into the race. Anyway that's me, I'll check back in again once I finish being all John Connor with the broken tech in my house and I have an easier way of uploading. Cheers!

H folks, I'm just over 1 month post op with my hair transplant so waiting on that growing in and my fitness routine seems to be paying off. All those gruelling sessions and hungry evenings are staring to work so that's 2 out of my three things I'd lie to change about myself under way. The third is my face. As a teenager I had terrible acne and I have quite a few pock marks which basically crushed my confidence and in my 20s I had a bout of dermatitis for which i was prescribed steroid cream and foolishly applied it to my face. Anyway a combination of the cream, losing weight and just general age I guess has left my cheeks looking quite droopy which is bad enough in itself but it really highlights the pockmarks and makes them more visible so i was thinking about getting a cheecklift but I have no idea where to start so some surgeon recommendation would be appreciated. When I pull the skin up gently just beside my eyes all the droopyness and even most if not all the pockmarks seem to disappear or at least are hardly noticeable and I have discovered I actually have quite decent cheekbones which I must admit.....I'm not hating! It's just my cheeks I'd like done, not bothered about my forehead or even lines around my eyes because that's just character you get when you age so I'm fine with it. I would like to avoid any of the 'startled' look that the eye seem to get when Hollywood people get this sort of stuff done. I'm not wanting to look younger, I just want to look good for my age but right now I think my face looks more 56 that 36 and there is a hint of junkie that I get when I look in the mirror but that's probably me exaggerating. Thanks, any info will be brilliant! EDIT: I forgot to say I'm in the UK so looking close to home for starters, Europe etc. ta!

Well I'm midway through week 4 post op. I really should get off my arse and do a good write up of the procedure but busy days have come since getting back into my old routine. So how's it been? Well good and bad I guess. Good in the fact that I have somethig to look forward to I can't wait until it starts growing in and I can really play with the comb. SO many different styles I want to try out that I just wasnt brave enough to when I had a strong hairline whe I was younger. The bad is the fact that time seems to be passing so slowly but yet so fast. The novelty of the shaved head has long since passed and now that shedding has really got underway I'm left with a buzzed head that really shows off my receding hairline and absolutely jo trckery to cover it up. The redness of the scalp is still very much there but it is fading slowly but surely. My plan was to keep buzzing it until the hairs sarted to appear but I've had enough of this look so I'm just letting it goand the transplanted hair can catch up when it starts to grow. I can always get a trim to even it all when the time comes but for now I just need some length. I've also decided to grow a beard to keep myself occupied and also to take my mind off my head. Did a cmplete clean shave 2 weeks ago and I'm not touching it at all for a whole month. After that I'll decide whether to trim and style it or just go full mountain man. One thing I have noticed....and I was afraid of this, is that the grey in my hair is really starting to come through now that eveything is the same length. My beard has a healthy amount of grey on wither side of the chin as well so I gave in to vanity and bought myself a beard dying kit. It serves a double purpose as I always wndered what I'd look like with a brown beard as, although my hair is dark brown, my beard is a mongrel mix of black, brown, blonde and ginger so it might be nice t make the whole hairy package a little more uniform. I can't think of much else to say other than 'hurry up'. I know I'll have at least (if I'm lucky) another 2 months of the rest phase before the hair starts growing again and I just want that to hurry up so I know that tangible progress is being made. Yes the honeymoon period is well and truly over and the settling in to married life is a long way off so the limbo in between is going to be a hard one. I'm also trying to get in shape again as just two weeks post op of sitting on my arse eating chocolate has made me gain a few pounds so I can't even have a drink until the end of the month and progress has been made. Everything seems to be on track though so we'll see.

Toubey, I had an FUE procedure, not FUT so I have no scar to widen and I did wait the two weeks that the doctor said before training. Also when I say weighted squats I don't mean barbell squats on the shoulders, it's just a a barbell plate that I grab with both hands and extend out in front of me while squatting. It acts as a counter weight and allows me to get lower without falling backwards, plus it works the shoulders too. I can see your point if you have a suture but I had no issues with my donor area before after or during the training.

Thanks all. So far I'm happy with what I see in the mirror so hopefully it can only get better. I don't feel impatient nor do I have any kind of hair blues at the moment. The first week post op was rough but afterwords everything was fine and much thanks goes to Stephen from BHR who seems to always be on hand to answer any question I throw with a super speedy reply.

Just to report back, I did a 30 minute session this morning before breakfast and everything was fine. No pain anywhere and no headaches at all. I kept the intensity of the whole thing very, very low and was more concerned about completing the rounds rather than bursting my arse. I did swap the burpees for some weighted squats and the low intensity bits I just shook my arms and legs on the spot instead of jogging for maximum rest but in saying that I was still out of breath and my heart was going fast but like I said, no issues with my head at all and I continue to shed as normal. Cheers!

Hi folks, first off this isn't a review of the day or surgeon, I will do an in depth one when I have more pics but just a small niblet of my journey so far. Well I'm at day 17 so I thought it might be time to put some pictures up. Apologies if some don't work or are crap but it's my first time posting images. All images done with an iPhone, a shaky hand and a crap sense of photography. The pics are from the first day of the op then day 4, one week and today (day 17) Some comments - The hair certainly doesn't blend at all with my natural hair, the shafts are very thick, course and much darker and when it runs into my own hair you can tell the difference but I am guessing that is to be expected and will settle in. Also I have begun shedding a lot, especially when applying moisturiser to the area so the recipient looks very bare and think compared to the rest of my head. I just buzzed my whole head down to a number 1 today (first actual haircut in 20 years and first time buzzed) and the transplanted area does stick out like a sore thumb due to a combination of the above plus redness but all this is to be expected. I cannot make a final judgement until a year from now but so far I am extremely pleased with everything. I keep passing by the mirror and squinting my eyes a little so the above issues don't seem to apparent and I am really loving what I see. The hairline is much more curved and less straight that what I wanted but looking at the shape it is absolutely bang on for my face. My only issue right now is that on the right side the way the hairline is shaped it has very deep staggers coming out if it in the form of small triangles pointing down that were drawn on to make where the hair should be. To me it looks a little unnatural and like a pattern although the left side was the same but looks much more natural but I am 99% convinced that this is because the whole area is still red and is making it look like that but to be honest it is not bothering me at all. One thing I will say is that these photos make the hairline look much, much more conservative and curved back than what it really is. It is very, VERY horizontal and broad and as mentioned above Dr Bisanga got it pretty much bang on for my face. A millimetre lower at the temples wouldn't hurt but that's me being ultra picky and if it stayed like this I would be overjoyed. I have to say that after such a long time with hair down to nearly my waist I'm not hating the buzzed look at all, it's quite cool actually but then again it's not quite me so I will be looking forward to getting some length back in the future. In the meantime enjoy the pictures. I don't think they are quite in order but still. Cheers! EDIT- sorry forgot a breakdown Originally quoted 2000 grafts but ended up 2360. A fairly significant and expense increase but ultimately all necessary. 1 hair - 609 2 hair - 693 3 hair - 776 4 - hair 222 5 - hair 60