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Thanks a lot, Spanker! Fingers are obviously crossed over here. I've been back at work for 2 weeks already, and fully own it. I work in a hospitla, and so more than anything, the other nurses and doctors are intrigued. Now I just need to come up with a better story on how I got my scar! :-)

Just wanted to update everyone, as today is the 4 week post-op mark! Sadly, the ugly duckling phase is in full effect. Had some shock loss around the strip scar like I did with my first procedure, but hoping like the first I get most of it back. Otherwise, just playing the waiting game now and hoping for good growth. A lot of the sensation is coming back to my scalp pretty nicely, and overall (except for feeling ugly) I feel pretty good. Will be posting again at my 2 month mark, although I'm sure there won't be much in the way of changes by then. Hoping everyone here had a great weekend!

JP- Wow, knockout result at 6 months. Rahal nailed it and your hair looks absolutely amazing! Wishing you continued success on your next 6 months of growth, and I'm looking forward to seeing your photos at the year mark! All the best! Mike

Good choice in choosing Dr. Rahal; I'm sure you'll be very pleased. And just to clarify to the forums, the 45 FUE follicles were viable follicles extracted...but some of the FUE units weren't usable and so instead of risking more waste of needed grafts, Dr. Rahal stopped the procedure. I did not waste a sizable amount of grafts in the process....so I guess that is good. In terms of the donor scar from my second procedure, we decided to keep the size consistent with the first, to try and merge the two scars. Additionally, we wanted to get as many grafts as possible.....I would have been happy with 3500-4000.....but based on my previous strip and me probably not being as diligent with scalp laxity exercises as I should have been...we were only able to get 2500. But given that I had 4737 grafts via FUT before, I've had a decent chunk of grafts used. I'm hoping that I could get another 2,000 out somehow as a back-up bank in the future, but obviously I am uncertain if that is possible, and I didn't discuss with Dr. Rahal what I have left in the FUT bank!! TheEnd890- In answer to your question, my hair did thin a bit more over time....however, it is important to note that the mid scalp was never addressed really to begin with the first procedure, so we decided to visit that area this time around. To be honest, it was the area that was bugging me the most. Also, I have had some crown work done in my first procedure with Dr. Rahal, but we decided to be conservative and not do any more this time around. I will likely wait to heal from this procedure, and research great SMP clinics and go get my scalp done (especially in the crown) for the illusion of density. I still have some hair in my crown (even though it's thin), so the SMP should help quite a lot with the appearance needed to eliminate some of the contrast between my scalp and my dark brown hair. Nice to hear from everyone, Old and New (Hey again Matt!!)....and look forward to continuing to share my progress with you all! I get my sutures out on Saturday and get to take my first shower/shampoo to rinse some of the scabs and crusts off on Monday.....so I will likely take and post photos on Monday when I am 14 days post-op! Best, Mike

Trust me, it was frustrating to say the least....and I can’t for the life of me figure out why I’d be the one case in a million who isn’t a candidate for FUE. Oh well, at any rate....I’m sure there was a reason it was meant to be?! I had a total of 4737 grafts done in 2012....and I think 1800 of those were put into my crown area. I was goin pretty bald I felt like! I will reach out to the clinic for some pre op photos....and post when I can. Meanwhile, here are a couple of photos. The first was the state of my hair prior to my first transplant in 2012. The second was taken a couple weeks before my surgery this time around. So you can see that my first transplant was obviously a success compared to where I started....but my hair is pretty thin and sparse in several places up top. Definitely needed some help/grafts in the mid scalp. Hoping these 2560 grafts will make a noticeable difference and were widely used at the end of the day.....? Thanks to everyone for the good wishes! Will be posting frequent updates throughout the journey!! Best, Mike

Hey everyone- Long time poster and member here in the forums! It's been a while since I've been on, as I've mainly just been enjoying life :-) I recently went back to Ottawa for my second round of FUT with doctor Rahal. My first procedure was done in 2012, where I had just over 4700 grafts FUT. In 2015, I went back to Dr. Rahal to have 2500 grafts done FUE, however, for some reason unknown to me...Dr Rahal said that my grafts were not viable via FUE (something about the bulbs kept disintegrating during extraction) and that we would have to stop the procedure. I was obviously bummed given that I spent all that money to get back in the chair, only to find out that only 45 grafts were viable and that we'd have to instead do another strip procedure if I wanted another transplant. Fast forward to today, and I am now 7 days post transplant number 2! I'm gonna keep this post brief, as there isn't much to report that was different than my first procedure. In terms of pain, this round of FUT seemed WAY worse than the first. I just couldn't get comfortable during the procedure, and it took significantly more anesthetic to get me comfortable and numb. Post op, I had significantly more pain and discomfort, however I also knew what to expect after my first procedure. I stayed well ahead of the pain this time around, and felt like I'm out of the roughest phase of the healing process. General swelling was less than the first time, although I chalk it up to having half of the grafts as I did during my first procedure. I also elected to pay the extra $850 Canadian to have the PRP injections to supposedly help with healing post-op...but I'm definitely not convinced that the expense was worth it. Redness and overall discomfort was not improved this time around as suggested it likely would be with the treatment....and the cost is ridiculoulsy high given that a vial of two of your own blood is centrifuged and injected. Seems like the treatment should be 1/3 of the cost....but I elected to have it done, so I have to live with my decision. As always, my impression of the Rahal clinic is still top notch. Great crew and friendly staff. My only negative about the experience (other than the high price of the PRP) is that the time spent with Dr. Rahal seemed way less than my first procedure. It might just be that it's been a long time since I've been in the surgery center, but it seems that Dr. Rahal did the majority of my grafts implants my first procedure....and this time his techs did all the trabsplanting. Makes me slightly nervous that the grafts won't yield as well, but I have to trust that the techs are probably very well trained and that the overall result was still managed/supervised by Dr Rahal. I am putting my faith in the Rahal results that are typical from a visit to Ottawa, and am confident that my results will still turn out great. Overall, I am happy to be done with this round; and looking forward to seeing results in the upcoming months. As you can see from the photos below, I am about right where I should be for 7 days post op. I get my sutures out on Saturday, and remember how much of a difference that makes in terms of comfort. Counting down the days. The grafts were places in the mid scalp and frontal third to fill in some density overall.....no more grafts in the crown. Unfortunately, I have come to the realization that I don't have enough grafts left to completely fill in the crown area, so I focused on density in my hair line and will deal with wherever bald spot in my crown the future holds. Also looking at SMP in the future to help with the appearance of density. I'll wait at least 12 months post op from this procedure to see where I stand before I do any other modifications to my hair. Anyway, I'm glad to be back on these forums and tracking my (and all of your) hair restoration results! This is like my second family here, and I'm glad to be back amongst the community. Best, Mike

That's exactly what I was trying to figure out. I'm wondering if I'd just be throwing my money away...as I see so many mixed reviews on efficacy.

Hey everyone- Long time former poster here who admittedly hasn't been on here in years!! Hope all is well and that all of you are doing great and growing great hair. Long story short, I am going back for a second FUT procedure, and hoping to add 2500 grafts or so to my existing hair. I seem to have become mildly resistant to Finasteride, and my hair is thinning a bit. What I'm wondering is.....how effective do you all feel that PRP is as a treatment during transplantation. The clinic is attempting to sell me PRP with my procedure for an extra $600....and I am wondering if the claims that it "speeds up" the healing process and graft growth phase are true at all? Does anyone have any direct experience or observations. Any advice is much appreciated! Looking forward to hearing from you all! Mike

Looks really fantastic at 4 months, buddy!! Excellent. Plus the harsh light photos really help provide an accurate portrayal of your current state!! Months 4-8 were my favorite in terms of growth, so it's going to be an exciting 4 months for you. Looking forward to seeing your next update!!

This is going to be an excellent result. Can't wait to see this when it's done growing in!

Your hair looks fantastic, buddy! Excellent result for sure! =)

That is going to be an excellent result. I just scheduled my second procedure with Dr. Rahal for September, and can't wait to get back in the chair to finish everything off!!

Can't. Your hair is looking awesome buddy!! I can't believe you're almost 8,000 grafts in. What a tremendous difference it made for you!! I want to get a couple thousand more myself to hopefully get your thick/full look too!! Looking forward to seeing that 12 month post-op post….It's going to be awesome! Hope you've been well, Mike

thedude, I really empathize with you right now!! I have honestly never personally seen post-op pics like yours except from photos from restorations from the 90s…..not to stress you out anymore. The good news is, everyone here is right in saying that it's really fixable. It's a terrific thing that you only went with 1500 (if he even used that many) and not the 2000 as previously mentioned. That leaves you with some much needed grafts to use on your correction surgery. Unfortunately, because he is not a recommended surgeon on these forums….it is unlikely that the moderators can contact the surgeon on your behalf and try to bring this case to justice. Have you thought about calling the clinic and expressing your concerns?! Again….probably not cause to worry yet……you should wait until your hair starts growing in and seeing what you're up against before you stress out too much!! Definitely do your research on IAHRS recommended surgeons going forward. And again….if you're already this worried about the result….I'd contact the clinic and ask to speak to your surgeon and see what he has to say about it. I certainly would want to if it was me. I hope the best for you and good growth!! You came to the right forums for support, and everyone here is also hoping the best for you!! Keep us posted! Best, Mike

Hi Mikey, Welcome to the forums!! I agree with David, Dr. Konior is one of the top guys in the industry, but researching multiple physicians is always a really good idea in all cases. Did Dr. Konior say why he didn't think you were a good candidate? I'd be curious to hear, as surely he thinks there's a reason for it. Being in Chicago, you are close to a lot of great surgeons on the East Coast…..so don't despair just yet. The list David provided will do you well to start your search….as it would be wise to choose your surgeon that is recommended by the forums for their outstanding credentials! Congrats on starting Propecia and for your decision to take the first step in fixing your hair loss. The community here is an awesome network for support….so don't hesitate to reach out to people along the way! Again, welcome to the forums! Best, Mike