Midwest00

About 9 days post-op. Everything going as good as expected. Pain subsiding as donor area heals. Not much shedding or graft fallout yet. Not much itch either. All of which was much more present in first procedure that put 2300 on frontal 1/3. Since this procedure was 2400 spread out throughout the scalp is probably the reason for the less acute post op symptoms. Other then that, nothing new to report.

I've been a long time lurker on this site and finally decided to create an account to contribute my opinion and experience.

 

The mistake I made with my hairline was letting the clinic (Rockville, MD-WMHC) draw too straight of a line and not asking for a more age appropriate hairline for my later years. The temptation of the lower, perfectly straight hairline is very tempting, but you got to know the limitations of the surgery.

 

We all wish we could have that amazing hairline we see on other men, but I wouldn't go for it unless you want a thin fake looking hairline. If you fall into this category then you will be stuck with one hair style for the rest of your life or until you can find time and money to get it corrected.

 

Think about what you want to look like when you are older and don't be short sighted. Nothing wrong with critiquing a design even if it is done by a top professional.

This is very true. I struggled when they first drew my mature hairline. Wanted it lower. I think men get tired of recession on the hairline, therefore when they see a hairline drawn innthaat hows slight recession, they tend to want to reject the notion. I certainly did. Dr Konior highly recommended the mature hairline during my first transplant and he was spot on. I allows Moe density to be added to a smaller overall area and looks great.

For what it's worth, here's a Konior result that got my attention when it came to naturalness and what he could do with only 2000.

 

Raymond Konior, MD - 2000 Follicular Units - YouTube

^^^up on this one too. He really executed on this one. A true artist. I would care less if the pre-op pick was wet and the pos-op pick was dry. 2000 grafts is awesome for that result . Two days ago I got 2400 grafts from Dr. Konior and hope to get anything like the result in the video

All of the above plus Konior.

 

Obviously I'm biased but here's my top 3 Konior hairlines off this site:

 

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/166424-raymond-konior-md-chicago-2344-graft-frontal-hairline-restoration.html

 

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/169403-raymond-konior-md-chicago-2708-graft-frontal-hairline-restoration.html

 

http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/167601-raymond-konior-md-chicago-3911-graft-frontal-hairline-restoration.html

^^^yup what he said

Went in for follow up this morning (May 31) day after procedure. Dr. Konior says thing are looking good. They did a cleaning of the transplanted and donor area. Not much swellig or pain yet as i have been sticking to meds around the clock.

I will be contacting Dr Konior and asking him for pre-op pics from my first procedure 5 years ago. I myself would like to see them for myself as well as share them with the community.

Graft distribution from first procedure was 2300 grafts on the frontal 1/3 only and creation of a new hairline.

I agree starting Androgel and stopping propecia andminoxidil was a perfect storm. In my pre-op pis I posted today the frontal 1/3 was completely covered with no visible scalp. Also there was zero evidence of hairloss on the crown. I felt the need to share this as some men on this forum may like to "feel" better and look better beyond the hairline. Also many people take fnasteride on this forum. It has caused libido concerns, low testosterone scores, and fatigue..all of which are symptoms that lead to Androgel prescriptions.

Here is immediate pre-op. having trouble attaching multiple pics to a single post. This is same day, same lighting.

Everything went great, as expected. We discussed the goals I had which increased density through out my frontal half and a little bit in front if the crown. Ended up with 2400 grafts. Dr Konior is a true artist and takes perfection seriously. He was very meticulous and focused a lot of time on specific areas to make sure it was just right. Already having a great hairline from him a few years back allowed us to focus on more density. He even cut out an old (bigger) scar from a small 600 graft procedure I had 3 years. Which i regret. Today I consider a success as I gained 2400 grafts and a much better scar.

His staff is incredible. Everything runs like clockwork and they are like a well oiled machine. Konior and his assistants are always communicating to make everything just right. They truly take pride in doing an awesome job as opposed to just getting the grafts in. From my recollection, Dr. Konior placed almost every graft. He only left the room if I needed a break or more numbing medication.

So over 5 years I have been blessed to have around 4700 grafts from Dr. Konior, and 600 from another Dr that added some density to my hairline. So about 5,300 grafts total. Cant wait to see the end result. I have posted some pre and post op photos from today. Later i will post photos from before and after photos from both sessions. I also will be asking Dr Konior for before and after photos from my first procedure to see how far my hair has progressed from the very beginning.

Thank you for the words of encouragement. I will post results and some post-op pics on Thursday or Friday.

I decided to create a new thread as I approach my 2nd procedure w/ Dr Konior on May 30,2013. Only a couple days away now. You can read my original story http://www.hairrestorationnetwork.com/eve/169669-my-hairloss-rollercoaster-medication.html

In a nutshell Dr. Konior is simply outstanding. My first procedure was great and it was a great success. It was about 2300 grafts in my frontal 1/3. I was taking propecia and minoxidil every day as well. I then started to have panic attacks that were keeping me up at night. Was put on Paxil and eventually androgel and ED meds to combat sexual sides of Paxil. I was instructed to stop minoxidil and propecia immediately. So we take away two meds helping my hair and introduce a strong androgen binding compound in Androgel. Apparently transdermal testosterone applied through the skin has a high conversion to dht compared to the injectable version of testosterone. The hair fell out like crazy. Most horrific shed ever. Stopped Androgel but the damage was done after 2 months.

This brought me here to Dr. Konior, probably 10 years earlier then expected for HT #2. I always knew it would come, but not so obviously overnight. But here I am just 2 days away and ready to move on. Tom has been great. My wife is supportive, she said she has to live with me for 60 more years and doesn't want me mad about my hair. She also cuts it every other week and has mastered it while surely saving us cash.

Tom will be picking me up from the hotel on the morning of the procedure and taking me back after the procedure is finished. They have been very accommodating. I hope this thread puts some value on not only 1 but 2 transplants with a great Dr. Hopefully the results are mindblowing. My main concern is that I hope he can find enough to address the crown a little as it has shown a little shedding and I would like to keep it in tact as much as possible. I will be updating with pics and hopefully there will be some from further back that I can get from Dr. Konior. Thanks for all the well wishes and advice I have been given. Feel free to ask questions or comment. Updating post-op soon.

....meanwhile

6 days away and looking fwd to updating post-op. I am curious to see how far 2,000+ takes me with regards to my current balding pattern. Hoping we can get the crown a little bit as well as frontal 1/3 or 1/2. IMO I would rather be receeding in the front but full on the crown as opposed to full in the front and thin on the crown. Feel like I would have the "monk" look. That's just me though and I am trying to stay realistic with my goals. The full density look is behind me , but the 60% + coverage all over would work well.

Starting to browse the 2,000+ results from top docs to see what kind of results I can achieve. Even though this is my 2nd 2,000+ HT with Dr. Konior I can't help but speculate. Scheduled the hotel for the night before and night of the procedure. Great deal on a suite if you are one of Dr. K's patients

Greatjob- thank you for the support and I will update for sure. Looking fwd to being a 2 surgery patient of Dr. Konior over a five year span and hopefully show what close to 4500-5000 total grafts can do with an A+ surgeon.

In a weird way I am looking fwd to taking a few days off and just relaxing. I enjoyed my recovery last time as it was a much needed break from work and exercise. It was also a testament to my doc with minimal swelling, bleeding, ect...

Well, at the risk of continuing to drive this thread off-topic, I can speak from personal experience. I am a teacher. I spent 10 years in the classroom before opting to take a large cut in pay and moving to full-time online teaching. Some go into the field for the right reasons. Others don't. But no one goes into teaching for the "amazing pay".

 

Any thanks you get from teaching better come from your intrinsic love for the progression. If you want thanks from anyone else they are few and far between. It got the better of me and I'm much better suited to the virtual environment. The fact is that around 50% of new teachers leave the profession within 5 years.

 

No one can judge a teacher until they've spent time in their shoes.

 

Good luck Midwest00!

Much appreciated. Also I agree on everything you said pertaining to teachers.

Just wanted to say that I am 8 days away from HT #2 with DrKonior on 5/30. Pretty excited. Got the hotel for day before and day of surgery. First procedure was 2300 grafts 5 years ago. This one is looking at 2000+ I put some recent PC's in my web blog. Will post more post op. Hopefully I will be able to get pics from start to finish to include my progression before and after 2 surgeries with Dr. Konior.

Note:

As always communication with Tom and Dr. Konior has been A+.

creatine or whey does not have any effect on hairloss. only steroids will speed up your hairloss if you are predisposed to it.

This is right on the money IMO. Creatine does not convert to a hormone in the body, therefore does not affect hair loss. I was using creatine products for pre-/post workout for 10 years with no hairloss. Once I took the "pro-hormones" that were once legal but now banned, saw significant shed. I was also put on testosterone replacement therapy from Dr for low test issues and I lost a huge amount of hair loss in only a month..it was unbelievable how much I lost. I had a 2300 graft procedure by Dr Konior in 2008 (prior to the huge shed) and now only the transplanted hair remains on my frontal 1/3.

I am getting another from Dr Konior on May 30.

Looks great. Very nice detail. As I have previously posted; I have booked my 2nd procedure with Dr. K for May 30th. He is truly Elite. If it is any comfort I had redness for a while that slowly went away for during the 9 months post-op. my skin pigmentation is similar to yours as well. Enjoy this time of growth and congrats!

I appreciate the kind words. Yes I agree what is happening to teachers is horrible. Lots if good teachers losing jobs. Horrible.

No KO I completely understand. I would never put my Fam in that situation. Finances have been saved up for a few years now and lets just say I have recently been abruptly blessed in the $ dept:-) Knowing that another HT would be on the horizon.

Just to update I will be embarking on my 2nd HT with Dr. Konior on May 30th. Excited is an understatement. Hopefully I can get some pics from this surgery. I know Dr. K has my pics before my 1st procedure. Will definitely update post surgery.

Up are. Made contact with Tom at Dr Koniors office. Working on a late May/early June date. As a teacher this gives me the whole summer to recover and hide. As in my story I had a huge loss from Ssri Med and even some Androgel in only a month I lost half my hair..no exageration. All that remains in the front is Koniors transplanted hairs.

^^^^yes to all. Matt u r spot on my friend.

I agree with Arrive, he is spot on. I was also in your situation. Manipulating everything to go out in public, ect... balding can be a condition that messes with people o the point hat they are willing to pay a child's worth of college tuition for what...a group of hairs from the back of your head to the front. Can something sound so mundane but be such a high priority...answer is YEs BC a lot of us made the choice to go through it bc it was too much to go through us balding.

Its OK feel this way. I know you worked with a solid company but I would pick out a few more highly regarded HT DR and see what hey think just for your piece of mind. Hang in there, you look great. But in your eyes you don't..learn to love it...look despair in the mirror and tell it to "whatever explative you choose)! At least you can verbally empower yourself over the self image negativity long enough to either accept what you are or seek other opinions. Prayers and keep us posted. We all help each other here. Best forum on the planet!

Also I have experienced times where the Dr does the incisions and placed a good majority of the hairline. Sometimes it can be difficult to tell who is doing what and where they are placing due to the numing of the area....and Valium Unless the surgeon or techs are telling you what they are doing which is rare during what can be a lengthy procedure.

^^^Agree. Looks great and very natural. Flawless!

Very nice. Looking good with growth/ added density still coming. I also like how thetransplanted hairline was established in relation to the existing frontal line. Scar closure looks excellent as well. Keep the updates coming! Strongly considering Dr. Keller for HT #3. This reinforces my recent inquiries.

Is there grafts placement going from he front all the way back to the crown? From the one post-op pic it appears it that some grafts made it that way as the crown as I see it so showing improvement with the frontal region. Entire head of hair gets an upgrade in under 3,000 grafts is impressive and there is still 3 more months to the on year mark. All with an impressive scar closure. Bravo!

Just updating the progress with my journey towards reclaiming my once adequate hair density and have found myself at a stalemate with a few Dr. All 3 are fantastic and recommended on this wonderful site that we are grateful to have.Dr. Keller has reached out to me once and so has Panine. Each with different aspects of results and fees to consider. But great surgeons no doubt.

I am a teacher in the Midwest which is not a great place to be as our schools are cutting like crazy with the state not paying hat is owed. This leaves the future uncertain for teachers like me who will stay employed but nonetheless it may get dicey at contract renegotiation time. Which leads me to say that $ is an issue. I know I know you should never go for cheaper, and this is a lifelong decisuion. But with these 3 known surgeons there are differences that have to be discussed. I have a wonderful conservative hairline from Dr. Konior. He did a great job. His work held up great until a run of meds, explained above, took my hair in chunks an it got bad real quick. Imagine the joy of seeing it IL come back and for it to only regress in a matter of one month. I went to the Dr and told them to take me off and here I sit today with a year+ of propecia and none to show from it, except the grafts that were transplanted.

Without giving names I took online referrals and found myself at a stantill in the beginning of the post. I have 3 surgeons I have contacted. For Density only or part of my frontal 1/3 and maybe a small area in the crown. Also one of the lower costing surgeons. has great scar closure which is a plus. I just feel that at he rate of hairloss I am going to be at soon there will be no other time then this summer to get it done to avid having students and Co workers seeing he obvious hair transplant. I manage it somewhat well with Nanogen but he areas are requiring more and I do not know how much longer it will be effective as a Concealer. If anyone has any recommendations on how to approach the situation I am all ears feel free to pm me as well. I am on a budget, but not too small that it is not feasible to get an Ht. I have gotten 2 from Illinois surgeons. Konior and a small procedure from Dr Samuel in St Louis

Considering HT with Keller this summer any updates on this?