BlueSteel

Have you thought about talking to a therapist? (with sincerity) You can't control your emotions perfectly but you certainly can modify "distortions" and negativity with therapeutic techniques.

With respect, a surgeon can charge whatever they please for a consultation or procedure. This procedure is elective AND cosmetic. Most of us expect to be compensated for our time. We also realize that if we ask for excessive compensation that we won't have any work. Plastic & cosmetic surgeons with exorbitant fees just won't get patients unless their work and marketing is superb. Maybe formertrackstar did pay $500 for a consultation, or maybe he did not. But why all the fuss about this being "out of line". Remember this procedure is not only elective its also cosmetic. If this was a charge for a life or limb saving surgery it would be a different matter. The recommendation is for quality and results, NOT finding a bargain.

any other takers?? anyone knowledgeable about this?

only Umar has shown lots of solid results... i don't see anyone else doing BHT regularly.

Do Beard hair grafts count for "more" than your average scalp hair graft because of the larger diameter/caliber of the hair. I am just curious because I may want to use some for my crown. I can probably only get another 1000 FUE from scalp unfortunately. I was thinking of turning to beard grafts for further coverage.

Do Beard hair grafts count for "more" than your average scalp hair graft because of the larger diameter/caliber of the hair. I am just curious because I may want to use some for my crown. I can probably only get another 1000 FUE from scalp unfortunately. I was thinking of turning to beard grafts for further coverage.

I have heard great things about Dr. Bisanga... personally I went with Dr. Feriduni and was really happy with my experience. Things just went really smoothly his whole team is extremely integrated, he is very hands on and will help you every step of the way (even aftercare), and his results from patients I met (In Person... not just photos) are excellent. Here is my thread in regards to my experience Best of luck in your choice.

status i would guess that only in the past 50 years has a mans looks been just as valued as his status. by observation, even today... i still feel like most girls choose guys based on status when it comes to marriage and kids.

Drew, you around? Everyone is hoping you are doing well and getting solid growth... we'd love to see more pix. Hope you have had some additional growth.

hi Burned, I just read your story, that must have been really difficult on you growing up. I am sure you have adjusted emotionally but just want to let you know that we are rooting for you! Hope you have wonderful growth!

It sounds like dating/women aren't your main concern when it comes to hair loss... what would you say is your main concern/worry?

I read threads such as this and its kind of heartbreaking...I get how devastating hairloss can be, I was there (and still am). We seem to equate our success in dating negatively correlates with baldness but honestly some girls just DO NOT care that much. Women are different than men, studies show that women are much more variable in what they find attractive whereas men are more coherent in what they find attractive. (there are evolutionary reasons for this which I won't go into) I definitely try to focus on the things that you can control which include the following attractive factors: [ ] under 10% body fat [ ] bench 125+% / squat 200+% of your weight? [ ] make a 6 figure salary [ ] have a wardrobe that women rate as 9 or 10 out of 10, ask them [ ] do you have high status? are you the "boss" or the "leader" (if not, work/fight for it) [ ] play a musical instrument and/or sing well [ ] have a beautiful apt/home and a nice car [ ] are good at socializing and connecting (how to win friends & influence people) you CAN control these things and honestly, i'd focus on them. Realizing you are in control of your life makes you confident. Focusing on things you can't control makes you feel helpless, which is really unattractive. my hair started thinning at about 18, since that time it has ALWAYS bothered me. However it has also been part of the motivation for so many other parts of my life. It STILL bothers me, but it is not a crippling blow. my main point, go through the checklist and FOCUS on what you can CONTROL. remember there are beautiful girls out there that just don't care about your hair, but they DO care about other things like your incredible singing voice, six pack abs, perfectly white smile, six figure salary, or the fact that you are the one that everybody looks up to, listens to, and is the leader in your group. I'd love to hear what other people think can be done to improve your social/dating life.

with any medical procedure there are risks benefits and alternatives the OP made their decision; I have met Dr. Rahal before, he is an ethical surgeon that would have fully disclosed the patients risk/benefit/alternative profile. He did a scar revision for me. There are many things about the patient we do not know ie: family history of hairloss / acceptance of "moderate to high risk" surgery etc and being committed to the HT process if further loss occurs. I had a HT with 3000 to the front with Dr. Armani back in 2005. Finasteride lost its effectiveness in the temple zone and front in 2008 and I experienced side effects after about 10 years of use in ~2009. Obviously I stopped. This is just a picture timeline of what it looked like. I understand that forum users believe this is a "rare" occurrence and that the info put out by Merck states only ~5% of patients have side effects. If it happens to you however, it doesn't matter how many people do or don't have side effects. You have them, end of story. from the age of 26 to 32 the appearance of my hair drastically has changed as I reflect on the pictures. That being said, the doctor is there to guide and counsel patients and let the patient make the ultimate decision unless they are extremely poor candidates / have unrealistic expectations. it sounds like the OP knows the risks and Dr. Rahal discussed these with him, there is nothing unethical about the surgery. if the OP can't accept the fact that there IS A CHANCE, he could lose a substantial amount of hair behind the hair transplant, that is another matter.

Are you playing an active role in the wedding, where lots of photos will be required?

Hi Chrisdav, the results are beautiful. Honestly I would never lower that hairline.... it looks great and very natural. It is also smart that you have the foresight to preserve grafts for further loss. I would spend the money you would use for further HT for something else like a great wardrobe or vacations etc. It looks great.

If you have darker pigmented skin you stand a higher risk of keloid formation, just an fyi. I am south asian (from India), but tractional stress may have also caused my hypertrophic scarring.

I would love to do a low density transplant for the crown. I just don't want to waste grafts and if the crown expands/drops then it would be nice to just let it go and not have an abrupt transition from extremely dense hair to a totally bald posterior crown. I didn't know that the whirl pattern gave the illusion of greater coverage. that is fascinating. I do not take finasteride, I quit about 3-4 years ago. Side effects which have gone away with cessation of the drug.

I think most patients don't have raised or severe scarring. Unfortunately I did. There are no guarantees in any surgery (unfortunately) so this is always a risk. However you always have the opportunity for revision.

Thank you, I really appreciate your kind words... especially as I realize my new grafts will shed in the next 10 days or so! I saw your thread also, looks amazing! You still have more maturation which has to feel great because you already have achieved excellent cosmesis.

I was glad we were able to do the combo. Imagine if you only had the laxity for 2000 strip and only had the density for 2000 FUE. That was my situation. It would be hard to go through a procedure for only 2000 grafts. I also think it would be interesting to see if some patients who could harvest ~4000 via strip and 3000 FUE would be able to get 7000 grafts in one 3 day period (day1: strip 4000/ day 2: fue 1500/ day3: fue 1500). Although it might be a little pricey it would be an amazing opportunity to do a lot in one pass and could restore most NW5s. Of course you would have to see if this was something Dr. Feriduni felt was appropriate.

oof about a year, i looked it up

Thanks for your advice! How long do people recommend between hairtransplants, since this is in a new area that has virgin scalp? would I be able to do it sooner if I do FUE into that area? the reason I ask is that the next academic year I am switching jobs (July 1st 2013) and will be working 80+ hours a week. I don't want to be healing or be in my first month post op then.

Hi guys, I recently had work done with Dr. Feriduni... ~3200 in the "middle third"/bridge area. The experience was great. I was wondering how many more grafts forum users would suggest for me. I don't know whether I should get FUE or Strip again. Let me know your thoughts, they are greatly appreciated. the link to my other thread with pix Just want to get some advice from HT patients, not only clinics. Thanks in advance.

I will write more about my experience later, but right now I need to pack. Thank you to everyone online who has posted their experiences. It has made my journey much easier and more relaxed.

The headband shown here. I also realize from Dr. Feriduni's shavedown for FUE that I look good with extremely short hair. Hopefully the scarring is non keloidal and I can get FUE / SMP into the scar in the future.