TommyLucchese

Nice write up and also reflects my incredibly positive consultation in London in May and surgery 16 days ago. Propecia worked well for you!

Thank you for the replies. Dr. Charles I have got the staple removal tool, all but 8 have come out but these 8 are really painful and seem stuck in. Going to have to go to my GP or find a nurse or something.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XYJF3D3qfk Thank you! This has helped loads.....didn't realise there was a certain way of doing it, this video explained everything. Most coming out easy now, thank you for the replies gentleman!

I'm 2 weeks post op with Dr. Feller and as it's not ideal to pop back over to the USA from UK to get the staples out of my head, I thought I'd seek some advice. I had both parents and a friend were there upon attempted removal. It took a lot of force and felt quite uncomfortable before finally 1 staple was removed, this took a lot of time and bled a little. It didn't hurt but apparently it didn't seem 'ready' to come out, the scar is still very red, it took a lot of force to prise it out. Is this normal? I read on here that it's very easy to remove them. I don't know if my parents were just too concerned to pull too hard or if it really doesn't seem the right time to pull them out. Either way, things didn't seem right and we decided to postpone the removal until asking the hair veterans advice! Thoughts, please?

Well I had 2000 grafts on hairline. The hair behind is all thick 'normal' hair and the 'new' hair infront looks like I've had a buzz cut. Obviously it doesn't match so looks odd as it has yet to shed. It's also still a bit red but that has dyed down a lot. Like I said, it isn't terrible...just a bit weird/odd. Still wearing a hat when I go out, but the new hairs are starting to shed now so I should be back to pre-op stage pretty soon.

As said, you'll be able to go back to work but you will indeed look strange. Tomorrow is 2 weeks since my FUT and I do NOT look good.

My parents very kindly paid for mine, otherwise I'd have had no hope at all. It does strike me how the financial side of things seem like no big deal to most people on here with comments like "you can always get another procedure" or people who have had lots done already, I wonder how the world is so rich but poor little me so...poor!

It should like normal tied back. Lots of men have their head up at the right or slicked back and, if done right, looks completely normal. I've also seen quite a few results where the men have grown long hair (of particular interest to me) and again, looks great. Have you looked up female patient results? That should give you a better understanding. Shock loss, as far as I've read, all grows back within a few months, I don't know if you're going bald but I'd suggest taking another photo of it in a month, two months, three months etc and comparing to see if there's any change.

There was one where he ended up with a tuft of normal hair in the middle, and then the rest either side looked like I do right now 13 days post op...the poor bloke didn't look happy in the picture either. The caption was "the result". You're right though, there were a few nice ones. Wayne Rooney's hair is looking very good now in pre season too, he's hit the 15 month mark. Ah I just realised, the one you're on about - it's actually the other way around. He started with that long thin hair, then ended up with that short hair with a very thin hairline. Anyway, I didn't go to Brussels so I can't have any more input but there are lots who have been on here so you should fine all your answers!

I just went on Harley Streets website to look at the photos, oh my god...I can't believe some of the results posted on there that they seem to be proud of! There's a 12 month result that looks worse than cases posted on here at 3 months from the better surgeons. I'm glad I travelled abroad for mine! Seems like posting this thread has probably saved you a dodgy result too! Someone mentioned James Nesbitt on here. Ironically, we were on the same flight from New York on my way back to UK following surgery with Dr. Feller. His hair looked good and it didn't even occur to me at the time he'd had a transplant, even though I knew. I had the perfect chance to say hello, take my hat off and show him my grafts but I felt star struck haha Anyway, good luck to the OP.

Ah sorry, just found the thread and the consultations were for last month.

I think it's just human nature to always seek improvement. At first you want to move out of a flat into a house, then you want to move out of that house into a bigger house etc I suppose it's like that with hair. At first you want a great hairline, once you get that from a HT you want the crown to be stronger.......I guess as people we are rarely satisfied and always want more

I think when people get another procedure it's because they have lost more hair and/or they needed another session to fill in the areas that the first one didn't. Some also get the 'hair greed' where their desires for more hair get bigger...like getting better density.

I'm 9 days post op on frontal area and already dreaming of being able to go back and have a session to thicken up the crown, so yes! And this is meant to be the worst phase too, yet I would still do it.

I saw a post that one of Hasson and Wongs UK consultants would be sometime this month, have a look for the thread.

How long before you can usually get back in the gym and exercising then after HT? I'm 9 days post op...

I had 2000 grafts with Dr. Feller 9 days ago. The next day, with his approval, I was strolling around Manhattan with a hat on. The day after I travelled back to the UK. No problems at all! The worst part for me was having to have the hat on all day coming home as I ended up feeling a bit claustrophobic and it was itchy. The type of hat I wore was a cap that is sort of heightened at the front and top, you know like what the cool kids wear these days. This enabled the grafts to be fine underneath. Good luck!

Thanks, time will tell! Well the answer is to take the meds for as long as they work. If they don't stop working for you then you are sorted! I've seen people who post on here that have been taken them for 10-15 years and it still works great for them, I guess it's all down to individuals. Worth giving it a try though at least I think. Your choice though of course...

Yep that's true. I remember two years ago being out with a friend in the park on a really hot sunny day and he had a shaven head, it looked very see through and thin at the back. I thought he was destined to be following in my MPB footsteps soon. Since then, there has been no change at all. He still has a perfect head of thick hair all over, the sun light was just deceiving.

I take propecia and minoxidil and now due to my HT on hairline/middle of my head, I'm interested in taking whatever I can to try and improve the (already much improved) crown. Is there anything else other than what I'm taking that could help?

I believe the recommended course here would be to start on propecia and minoxidil and see where you are in a year or two. If it stablises and maybe regrows some hair you could go for the HT. Take the meds and start saving just incase! I lost a lot of hair then took propecia and minoxidil since March 2010, I am now one week post op after surgery......that tends to be the path people take as without the meds your native hair will continue to fall out.

Thanks Chris I emailed Spex in the end, was trying to hold off flooding his inbox once more but I sent some pics and he said I was fine. Phew! Thanks for the replies everyone, very helpful. Onto day 7 now, can't believe it's been a week already.

I'd rather have the illusion of density than a bare head, so that's fine by me. All I'm hoping for from my HT is improvement.

I just had 2000 grafts in the hairline and middle part of the head, therefore I expect/hope that when it grows out the front and middle will be of little concern. Previously I have used Mane spray which I felt worked well on the crown and in the middle. Due to funds I also used the spray on the crown but I would like to try something else - I think the fibres will work better back there. I have a strong forlock that will be even stronger now, but there's an area in the crown that needs some help. What do you think is the best? I'll be requiring light blonde...

This will be just a write up, I don't want to put up any photos until I have close to my full result. I do feel like I owe it to you all to share my photos as without people posting their experiences and photos, I'd never have done it. I am just a little nervous about photos right now, but I will definitely post them in time. So, I flew to the US last week and had surgery with Dr. Feller on Friday. I found it to be an incredibly positive experience and it went better than I ever could have imagined. I'd had a consultation in London in May and Dr. Feller recommended 2000 grafts into the hairline and middle part of my head. I got there a little bit early (first time in my life for anything!) and soon enough Dr Feller called me into his office. He took some photos and then drew a hairline, which I was more than happy with but requested tweaking to make it more even on both sides. It wasn't a case of wanting a 'juvenile' hairline but more wanting balance.....which Dr. Feller kindly accommodated for me. After this I answered a few medical history questions and then read through the consent forms and signed where needed. These forms merely said that the best would be done for me but that nothing is ever guaranteed, which thanks to much research I was aware of anyway so was more than happy to sign. As I was doing this the technicians arrived and I was soon on my way into another room for injections. I must say that when the (all female) technicians arrived I began to feel a little nervous and self conscious about my hair loss demons being exposed to the gender that I most try to hide it from, but they were great! Made me feel very at ease and I really got the sense that, while obviously Dr. Feller and his team treat each patient with their utmost care, it really is a fact of every day life for them.....so I was soon very comfortable about the situation. Dr. Feller was also very reassuring throughout about the nature of the procedure and that it isn't the huge painful deal people may think. For the anaesthetic injections I was in a dentist style chair facing upwards and turning my head both sides. To start with I had a valium to relax me and a glass of water. I can't remember how many there were into the various parts of the head but I think at least 20 and, honestly, they were not the most pleasant of experiences. It was just like any normal injection, short and sharp but it was a little more uncomfortable due to it being in the head. However, it wasn't anything to be concerned about and I'd be more than willing to do it again. This, coincidentally, is the worst part of the whole procedure! Dr. Feller told me this is what women do whenever they have botox so for that to be the worst part makes it pretty good I think. After this I had a quick bathroom break. Dr. Feller did the injections whilst there was a technician with him too. Next came the 'shaving down' of part of my forelock and the weaker hair at either side that I think had been brought back by minoxidil, and then I think the buzzing of where the hair would be taken from the back. After this I think I was allowed to get up and go to the bathroom again. Weak bladder! But it was nice to get up and have a little stroll. I'm not sure who did the shaving, there were a few people around as I recall. The (I think it's called) harvesting of the donor area was next and Dr. Feller did this. Due to the injections I didn't feel a thing, I was just sat in a chair in New York feeling very comfortable indeed with little knowledge of what was going on....very nice indeed. Whilst this was going on I was chatting with Dr. Feller and any staff that came in were very friendly too. After this it was down to business and the doctor said he would need to concentrate now as he was making the (sorry, I don't know the exact term) holes for the grafts to go in.This was the longest part of the procedure so far, not sure how long but maybe an hour. Again, no pain due to the injections and I felt very comfortable just laying back letting the doc do his thing. Another quick bathroom break and then the techs came in to put the grafts in. This was about 3-4 hours in total, I listened to my Ipod in parts and just lay there. After a while I did begin to feel a little uncomfortable and my neck ached a bit but compared to the pain I thought I would feel, it was nothing. There were two techs working on this and for the last hour or so they swapped and another two came in to finish. Once the grafts were in, they began pushing down (or something) the new grafts I guess to make sure they were in or something. Then it was time to eat! I had been given a menu earlier from a local establishment to choose from and I tucked into cheese burger and fries. This was much needed and much appreciated! Once feeding time was over there was a bit more of the pushing down and then I was done! I was given some post op instructions from one of the techs and then went through to see Dr Feller in his office. Some people had arrived for consultations, I hesitated to walk out when I saw them but then I realised we were all here ultimately for the same reason so I walked past and showed my shaven/bandaged/post op head with pride! Dr. Feller ran through some things with me, then I gladly performed as a human model for one of the potential patients, and then I said my goodbyes and waited outside for the taxi that had kindly been called for me. I'd say I got there around 7.45am and the injections began maybe 8.30am. I was out of the building by 1.40pm and back in my hotel before 2pm - it really wasn't too arduous at all. In the 5 days since the op, and including the op itself, I'd say there wasn't really any pain. All it is is minor discomfort at times, the procedure is nothing like I thought it would be. Like I said, it was an incredibly pleasant procedure and I'm delighted I chose Dr. Feller. Afterwards he told me he put more grafts deeper into my head on the one side as I had lost more hair there which I was very happy with. I can't wait to see the result! Big thanks to Spex too, who has endured well over 60 email exchanges with me now. He was a big help and I know I wouldn't have made the trip without him so thank you Spex! I completely forgot to ask on the day what the final total count of grafts were but 2000 was quoted in the consulation, I'm not sure what the final count was. [edit] I have made a thread in the questions/answers forum that I would be grateful for any replies. I have experienced no swelling at all and am worried that heavy rain seeping through my cap could have damaged grafts on the day after the op. Also, some graft areas seem almost white but other grafits seem a darker bloodier type red. Is this normal? I'm sure it's probably the usual paranoia people have afterwards but some answers would be very nice! A lot of the redness has died down already...I don't know if I have just got lucky with healing or if I've done something wrong! Oh the paranoia. For anyone wondering what the immediate days after are like: once again, just minor discomfort. Donor area feels a bit tight, in great need to live under a hat to cover the graft area from the public eye but it's not too bad at all. The painkillers help a lot to take away from the discomfort - the whole experience really is pretty straight forward, I'm pleased to say!